The Statman for mastermind!

[Cyril]

Takes ten minutes to walk there from The Crucible. Try the Monk instead.
What do you think of Statman's "Early World Championship scores" thread? 1937 final looks a real high standard, especially given the heavy balls and tight pockets in those days.

[PaulTheSoave]

The Monk was our regular in between sessions and The Bankers Draught after the match was over. cant wait to go there again.

The early years are amazing to read. I keep them for winter evenings. Conditions were more difficult so you have to praise the breaks made at those times. Were the balls made from ivory, as continental billiard balls are?

[hegeland]

Didn't they stop using ivory in the late 1800's? Or was that just in american pool?

[PaulTheSoave]

Ivory balls are still used in Billiard Artistique on the continent as with substitutes you wont be able to make the patterns.

[Cyril]

Yep, ivories were used for billiards until about 1915 then composition (will check the actual name in a minute) started to come in. In the twenties both were used although the leading players used mainly composite. I am pretty certain that no snooker championships was ever played with ivories.

Bankers Draft is good for meals. So is the Monk, to be fair.

[PaulTheSoave]

They still use ivory balls in Artistic Billiards. If you look at the balls they all look cracked, but still do the business!

[Cyril]

BALLS
"Bonzoline" were one of the early makes of composition balls.

My records tell me the following:

Wooden balls were used before 1820.
Ivory balls were then used for the next century.
Composite balls were first marketed in Britain in 1901.
The most well know composition ball, the "crystalite" came about in 1909.
Ivories were phased out of all competitions by the 1930's.
The "Super Crystalite" ball, a much lighter ball, was introduced in 1972 and is still used today.

[hegeland]

My BCA Billiards The Official Rules and Records Book says:

"John Welsey Hyatt, known as the father of the American plastic industry, was an inventor rather than a player, but his invention of the celluloid plastic billiard ball in 1868 revolutionized the billiard industry. Hyatt began his search for a suitable synthetic billiard ball material when a New York billiards firm offered a $10,000 prize for a substitute for ivory. Hyatt's earlier attempts involved shellacking a paper pulp sphere and a ball made of layers of cloth."

[Cyril]

What does BCA stand for, Billiards Congress of America?

[hegeland]

Yep, that is correct.

[hegeland]

The book also says that before 1960 Ivory balls were used in Three-Cushion Billards. After 1960, cast phenolic balls have been used.

[PaulTheSoave]

We still have some billiard cafes using ivory balls though. They are a selection used for decades as new made ivory balls are prohibited over here.

[Cyril]

btw Paul. Have added a pic of my ugly mug in the gallery, so when you see me walk in The Monk, you can buy me a pint of lager.

[RaNeN]

Statman!!!!!!!! Statman!!!!!!!!!!!

[Cyril]

Statman!!!!!!!! Statman!!!!!!!!!!!

you alright mate? lol