Snooker Club Table Cloths and General Maintenance

[Derek P]

Ok so simply put a few of us decent players in our club have a real bug bear with the new owners of the club.
Other than walking away and going to another club how do we solve the following issues:

1. New owners have no clue about snooker.
2. They can't be told that buying cheap secondhand cloths is a false economy.
3. Will view any comment about table condition as 'moaning and can't please everyone'
4. Spend money elsewhere in the club on lights, signs, pool tables etc.
5. Wont brush, block and iron cloths daily even though they have been told it helps table play better and last longer.

Any suggestions?
I dunno if we are all starting to fit a square peg into round hole but can appreciate we are all friends in the club and have been going for years, the standard has went right down hill in recent times and trying to get it back up to scratch but we need the help from the owners who seem unwilling to put the hand in the pocket or see sense.

Thinking of a members committe or players committe and try to present the case to them as to why tables are in poor condition but they are not players and are business owners so fair enough probably dont care as long as the numpties keep paying the light its all good.

Thanks

[Cue crafty]

Members committee is the best way but try to put ideas forward that appeal to the "money orientated management" Things like organising match nights and comps on the quiet nights when they dont get much revenue. Maybe involve decent cheap food to make a bit more money from these events and agree that the proceedings go towards the better cloth etc. It might not be every players idea of fun but maybe a few would enjoy learning how to clean and brush & iron the tables properly (use this to gain favour). Use opportunities on here (and elsewhere) to get good cloths at fair prices. (there was one for sale last week I think) If you can put forward fair priced alternatives that are better then they will probably like it. money makers usually like a bargain. Sell it to them that it is a good advertisement for the club to be able to say they have a few "match tables" as some people will pay a little more light money for that. (make sure you agree that you guys dont though lol)

It needs to "look like" an assisting partnership between your committee and them so that you can agree to use funds you help raise, to on the decent players favoured tables.

Rileys clubs had this issue big time, didn't care about snooker and never cleaned the tables etc let alone re-cloth any. The team I used to play for done a fair bit for them in this respect, they even gave the hall a re-paint to gain favour and keep it going.

Its crap, because you are a paying customer, but if you love your club and its the best place for you locally to play the game you have to fight and get involved to keep it how you want it.

all the best.

[Derek P]

Members committee is the best way but try to put ideas forward that appeal to the "money orientated management" Things like organising match nights and comps on the quiet nights when they dont get much revenue. Maybe involve decent cheap food to make a bit more money from these events and agree that the proceedings go towards the better cloth etc. It might not be every players idea of fun but maybe a few would enjoy learning how to clean and brush & iron the tables properly (use this to gain favour). Use opportunities on here (and elsewhere) to get good cloths at fair prices. (there was one for sale last week I think) If you can put forward fair priced alternatives that are better then they will probably like it. money makers usually like a bargain. Sell it to them that it is a good advertisement for the club to be able to say they have a few "match tables" as some people will pay a little more light money for that. (make sure you agree that you guys dont though lol)

It needs to "look like" an assisting partnership between your committee and them so that you can agree to use funds you help raise, to on the decent players favoured tables.

Rileys clubs had this issue big time, didn't care about snooker and never cleaned the tables etc let alone re-cloth any. The team I used to play for done a fair bit for them in this respect, they even gave the hall a re-paint to gain favour and keep it going.

Its crap, because you are a paying customer, but if you love your club and its the best place for you locally to play the game you have to fight and get involved to keep it how you want it.

all the best.

Yeah i think as a paying customer its a bit frustrating with snooker clubs not caring about the facilities they provide but it seems the rule more than the exception to have a good standard.

Points noted about the committee and making it 'look like' we are helping their money making side when in reality we just want a half decent table.

[inevermissblue]

If you're not happy about the playing conditions do what I do and sort them out yourself. You only get out of it what you put in.

[Derek P]

If you're not happy about the playing conditions do what I do and sort them out yourself. You only get out of it what you put in.

Been doing it for long enough but with a club of 14 tables and only 1 cloth/table which is half decent to play on then there's a battle to get on the only table that recieves my daily maintenance.
I'm not saying I should get priority of the table because I maintain it but I don't have the time or get paid to do the other 13 tables so I may only see the fruits of my labour for 50% of the time i spend in the club.

No one in the club has a clue how to brush/block or iron a table properly, they run a brush over it once every few days and it's still manky with dust and chaulk.
The club doesn't have an iron, I have an iron so its fallen to me to maintain the table I play on but like I say I can't demand I use that table and no one else.

[inevermissblue]

Surely you're not the only person in the club to give a damn? Get a few of you together that are like minded and adopt the cleaning. Like I said. If you want the best possible club...make it so. The game is marred by misconceptions about what should be done to the tables or if anything should be done at all. I play on a preferred table in our club but clean all of them. In return, I am given access to the place outside of opening hours. They have pretty much given me to reigns in terms of snooker.

[DeanH]

ensure that all these "like minded people" know how to clean down a table!
sounds silly but I recall such a person who said "of course I do" and about 2 minutes later proceeded to wave the brush across the table half-a-dozen times and once in the correct direction.

[Big SAM]

Story of my life. Trying to convince people to maintain all of our tables out in the field across the UK is like talking to brick walls.

All they want is minimum input and maximum output of revenue. Sadly most places in my experience are owned by people who just see the ££'s and have no interest in anything else. I wish you the best of luck!