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Please make sure that you know how to play and that you can play Penny Black before attempting to play Penny Red. Penny Red is a bit like tennis. When the red has been sent onto your court and no points have been won then it's your turn to send the red back onto your opponent's court.

However, you cannot actually touch the red itself. Instead you have to flick your shooters in such a way that they collide with the red and knock it over for you.

The flicked shooter must hit either your other shooter, the red, or both.

The palm of your hand should not move and the shooter must not be nudged forward before being flicked.

When the whole of a shooter is on the the board it must be flicked cleanly with the nail of a finger or thumb.

When the red overlaps the edge of your court it may be side-flicked.

To side-flick pick up one of your shooters and hold it vertically between a finger and thumb at the side of the red. If necessary use a finger on your other hand to help you flick the held shooter and make it strike the red.

Immediately afterwards the held shooter must be respotted on one of the four spots.

Every match begins with a serve and every point won is followed by a serve.

As in tennis you must serve for the whole of a game and then your opponent serves for the whole of the next game and so on.

To receive serve place a shooter on each corner spot.

To serve, place the red on the quarter spot, one shooter on the serving spot, and your other shooter on a corner spot. Then with a single flick send the shooter from the serving spot into the red so that the red is sent onto your opponent's court.

If you fail then you can try again. If you fail a second time then your opponent wins the point.

After serving respot the shooter you served with on the free corner spot.

You can take one, two, or three flicks to return the red, but no more than three.

If the red is returned with one flick, then you may, if you wish, pick up one of your shooters and reposition it anywhere you want on your side of the court.

If the red is returned with two flicks, then you may, if you wish, flick one of your shooters into position. You can only return the red with two flicks if each flick makes a shooter collide with either the red, or your other shooter, or both.

If the red is returned with three flicks, and you must leave your shooters where they are. You can only return the red with three flicks if each flick makes a shooter collide with either the red, or your other shooter, or both.

If the red is returned with a cannon (see next section), and you may, if you wish, pick up either one or both shooters and reposition either it or them anywhere you want.

During your turn a starshot can be made only if with one, two, or three flicks you make either one shooter hit your other shooter or both shooters hit the red.

Then the returned red is allowed to knock off the board one or both of your opponent's shooters.

You get two points for each shooter knocked off.

However, if the starshot is also a cannon then you get three points for each shooter knocked off.

"I got through to the final of our school Penny Red competition. The first to win five games would win the match. We were four all in games and it was five all in the final game. I had the chance of a starshot to win the game. I went for it and my shooter came off, so it was six five to Ben. He needed just one point to win the game. Straight away got another chance for a starshot and I decided to go for it.

"The whole match could be decided on this one shot. If my shooter came off again he'd win but I aced it and this almighty roar went up. It felt really good. And I'd scored a double starshot earlier on, that's a four pointer. I reckon I deserved to win because I was the bravest, wasn't I? I went for them starshots, didn't I? I was bad. I was so bad. Even Sir said so."

Except from starshots your opponent's shooters must not be knocked off the board.

However, if the returned red hits one of your opponent's shooters and the red remains on the board then you may, if you wish, and if it is possible, pick up the shooter the red hit and reposition it on either your opponent's serving spot or quarter spot.

When it is your turn, at no time can the whole of any of your shooters cross the whole of the line, or come off the board.

A shooter cannot be respotted on a spot that is already wholly or partially covered by another shooter or the red.

When you reposition a shooter the whole of it must be on your side of the half way line. None of it must touch the line. None of it must overlap the board.

A stationary shooter, which is in contact with the red, must be either respotted on one of the four spots or used as the middle penny in a cannon. It must NOT be flicked until after it has been respotted. Respotting it does NOT count as one of your flicks.

When a shooter is placed on a spot it must cover the spot completely.

The first person to win seven points wins a game.

The first person to win an agreed number of games (usually five) wins a set.

The first person to win an agreed number of sets (usually three) wins the match.

As above but with the following exceptions.

A player can only flick his own shooter.

Shooters are marked so that there can be no confusion about who should flick which shooter.

If you served the last game for your team then your partner must serve the next one, and vice versa.

When you flick a shooter at a penny, which is near to it, then at the instant that the shooter hits the penny your finger may still be in contact with the shooter. If that is so then the flick is called a push shot.

If the shooter then strikes any other penny then the push shot is a foul.

A foul can also be committed in the following ways.
(a) By touching any penny on the board that is not his shooter.
(b) By not flicking a shooter cleanly.
(c) By moving the board so that one or more pennies slide.
(d) By flicking a shooter so it, or any other penny comes to rest either wholly or partially on top of, or underneath, one or more pennies.

If a player commits a foul then his opponent wins the point.

It is impossible for the lower shooter to hit the red without being pushed through the other shooter, and that would be a push shot. If the lower shooter then hits the red it would be a foul. If the lower shooter does not strike another penny then the push shot is legal. It is not a foul.