Snooker Fouls and Penalty Points: The 4 to 7 Rule Explained
Snooker rules · Fouls · Updated 2026-07-31
Every foul in snooker gives the opponent at least 4 penalty points. If the ball on, the ball first struck, or any ball potted in the stroke is worth more than 4, the penalty rises to that value - never higher than 7. Miss the reds entirely and clip the blue: 5 away. Pot the cue ball off the black: 7 away.
Fouls decide close frames - a player needing snookers is really farming these 4s and 7s - so scoring them correctly matters as much as scoring pots. Here is the complete picture: the penalty values, the common fouls, the miss rule, and the free ball.
How the penalty is calculated
Take the highest value among: the ball that was on, the ball the cue ball struck first, and any ball potted or forced off the table by the foul. If that highest value is less than 4, the penalty is still 4 - the reds, yellow and green never give away less. The penalty is added to the opponent's score; nothing is deducted from the offender.
| Foul | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Failing to hit any ball | 4 (or value of the ball on, if higher) |
| Hitting a colour first when a red is on | Value of the colour struck, minimum 4 |
| Potting the cue ball (in-off) | 4, or the value of the ball on or struck if higher |
| Potting a ball that is not on | Value of that ball, minimum 4 |
| Hitting the blue first when a red is on | 5 |
| Any foul involving the pink | 6 |
| Any foul involving the black | 7 |
| Ball forced off the table | Value of that ball, minimum 4 |
| Touching any ball with clothing, hand or rest | Value of the ball touched, minimum 4 |
| Playing before the balls have stopped | 4, or highest ball involved |
After a foul: the opponent's options
- Play from where the balls lie: The default. The incoming player takes the table as it is, with the penalty points already added.
- Put the offender back in: If the position is poor, the fouled-against player can require the offender to play again from where the balls lie. Powerful when the table is a minefield.
- Cue ball in hand after an in-off: When the cue ball is potted or leaves the table, the incoming player plays from anywhere inside the D, but may only strike forward of the baulk line.
- Free ball, if snookered: If the foul leaves the incoming player snookered on every ball on, the referee calls a free ball - see below.
The miss rule
A miss is called when the striker fouls without hitting the ball on and the referee judges a better attempt was possible. The penalty points are awarded as usual, and the opponent may have the balls replaced exactly and make the offender try again - as many times as it takes. In professional play a player who can see a ball full-face and misses three times forfeits the frame; club rules vary, so agree before you break. Scoring a miss is identical to scoring the underlying foul; what changes is the replacement option, which is why a scoreboard needs both a foul and a foul-and-a-miss control.
The free ball
If a foul leaves you unable to hit both extreme edges of any ball on, you are snookered by the foul, and the referee calls a free ball: you may nominate any ball, and it counts as the ball on - a nominated black stands in for a red at 1 point while reds remain, or for the ball on during the clearance at that ball's value. Pot it, and the natural sequence continues. This is how breaks above 147 become theoretically possible: a free ball before the first red, taken with a black, then black off the extra 'red', offers a ceiling of 155.
Fouls at the tap of the actual value. Snooker Scoreboard₊ scores fouls at their correct minimums, handles foul-and-a-miss in marker mode, and keeps penalty points on the right side of the board - with a deep undo when the table lawyers finish arguing. Scoring is free and works offline. Learn more about Snooker Scoreboard₊.
Fouls and the snookers-required endgame
Trailing by more than the points remaining, fouls are the only currency left. Each snooker you lay is an attempt to buy 4 to 7 points, and each one changes the arithmetic: 33 behind with 27 on the table is one snooker and a clearance; 40 behind is two. A scoreboard that recomputes points remaining and snookers required after every shot turns that from mental arithmetic at the worst possible moment into a number you can simply read.
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum penalty for one foul in snooker?
Seven points - any foul involving the black. Penalties never stack above 7 for a single stroke, however many balls are involved.
Is there a foul worth less than 4 points?
No. Four is the floor. Even a foul involving only a red (value 1) or the yellow (2) costs the full 4.
Does a foul end the break?
Yes. The visit ends immediately, the break is recorded at its pre-foul total, and the opponent chooses how to continue from the options above.
Can you deliberately play a foul?
You can - conceding 4 from a safe position is sometimes better than risking a bad contact for 7. What you cannot do is profit from it: intentional misses invite the miss rule and, repeated with a full view of the ball, can forfeit the frame under professional rules.