Pool ball returns, also called "gullies" or "gutters", return balls to near the foot of the table after they sink in the pockets. Returns increase a table's price, but will speed the start of your next game by avoiding circling the table to fetch balls from all the pockets.
Pool Ball Returns Aren't Classic, But Fun
Returns are not for the pool purist! The balls clatter audibly as they roll beneath the table's sides, distracting everyone within earshot.One notable exception was the one-of-kind table developed by Amsterdam Billiards, which had lucite returns, legs, table, all but the slate and felt is transparent so onlookers can watch the balls roll beneath the table surface!
The table, which cost $25,000 to create, was followed by a second, and both have since been sold to collectors.
Broken pool ball returns prompt the frustrating tradition of dropping half a dozen balls down the pockets, to dislodge a stuck one from beneath the pocket where it first went missing.