2023 World Championship

[Starsky]

Im sorry , I take back what I said Trains, I’m actually sitting on a train on my commute from work and I’m bored .

I wouldn’t want to break this fragile truce we seem to have these days

[trains]

See #463
Circling your wagons around nothing as usual

[PatBlock]

Completely agree with John here, I've been moaning about this (and lots of other stuff ) for years now:

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[cueman]

He was sponsored and supported for years by Paul Mount at the South West Snooker Academy with some of the best playing conditions in the UK.
I have nothing against him though, as i've said on here before, he openly advocates opening the tour up to all, so for me i'd never have any problem with whatever success came his way.

Sorry for going a little off topic here. Do you openly support, or advocate for the opening up the tour for all again then?

[trains]

Sorry for going a little off topic here. Do you openly support, or advocate for the opening up the tour for all again then?

Yes absolutely, when you say again are you referring to the qualifiers at the Norbreck Castle Hotel in the early 90's ? I don't think that can be fairly compared with today as the top 64 nowadays is much more difficult to break through now.
Look at the Q School qualifiers nowadays its just a regurgitation of the same players bouncing back again as they themselves have a huge advantage over most who've never played on tour.
I'd just have a set entry fee for anyone who wants to play on tour, of course it wouldn't be cheap as you've got to maintain integrity, how much it would be i don't know.
Of course new players will get beat but a little experience and getting your feet wet is a great thing.
I don't think Jenson Kendrick or even Adam Duffy have won a match this season, the current system just isn't good enough imo.

[cueman]

Well, I think that was the only time the game was opened up, apart from the very early closed shop days many years ago.

Reason I ask is, I know a few players who've got their own businesses, play snooker to a decent level, who would simply just pay to be a pro so they can show off, or claim to be a pro just because they have the money to do so. Personally I hate the thought of the game simply being about who has the money to get into the pro game. Its already getting harder for players to be able to afford to play as it is, less clubs around, so little competition to stop prices rising, the game is sort of becoming a closed shop in the respect you need money to play anyway.

However, I prefer the competitive route to getting on tour by merit. There just has to be an entry system in the form of a competition like q school, otherwise we'll end up with a logistical nightmare of the potential for hundreds of players around the world getting on tour, having to find venues large enough to host multiple rounds of qualifying, when standards of the amateur game are already pretty poor. Jenson Kendrick or a few others who've qualified might not be great, but they at least have earned their spot on tour. My worry if we open up the game, it will be taken up mostly of old men because its only them who either have the money or play regular enough and it will be a complete turn off to try and appeal to youngsters to take up the game. Also, I feel we will have huge issues with visas for overseas players who will want to turn pro, but the UK home office who are already anti foreigners will be preventing a fair opportunity so it will be heavily UK biased. If snooker is to have a future, it needs to be a truly global sport, I cannot see that happening if the game is opened up to anyone.

[itsnoteasy]

Pretty much agree Cueman. The part where Trains says don't make it cheap to play, defeats the whole object, all that does is add a financial barrier for players,making it less inclusive not more. Your point about players with money paying to play is correct as it one hundred percent happened the last time they did that, of course it's a tiny minority but those players did exist.
I'm not saying it's ideal now and I can see Trains has always been about more inclusion and getting as many players as possible to have a chance of making a living on the tour and I agree with that.
It is better than it has been,take QSchool out the equation, you also have the qtour as a route for amatuers, younger players like Moody and Graham have got a card by winning age range comps, also women are getting a chance and even the seniors world champ gets a card.
Is it ideal? Probably not but apart from the gift cards given to the likes of Jimmy and Hendry etc all the rest are merit based one way or the other, which seems pretty fair.

[Cue crafty]

After match punditry from Murphy, he brings every single line of conversation back to himself..... If only he could hear himself, he might cringe too. FFS Shaun, it's ok you lost to Si and we all know you did and have proven yourself a winner. Well done 👍 now please get over it!!! 🙄

[neuronic]

So, no intervall this afternoon ... and hardly any snooker


By the way, can we appreciate how ridiculously easy Ronnie's run to the finals is shaping to be? This gotta be the easiest path ever surely...

[Odrl]

So, no intervall this afternoon ... and hardly any snooker


By the way, can we appreciate how ridiculously easy Ronnie's run to the finals is shaping to be? This gotta be the easiest path ever surely...

Could be, but at least it's Higgins, Allen or Selby to meet him in the final this time, so we'll have a match whatever happens. And no guarantees he makes it of course, some very capable players in that part of the draw still, even if they are not quite at his level.

[PatBlock]

Jack's back. Too late though?

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[PatBlock]

Jack's back. Too late though?

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11 - 8 Game on!

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[neuronic]

Wow... the luck Jack is having right now

[PatBlock]

Wow... the luck Jack is having right now

That was a superb safety off his missed long red wasn't it.
What the hell was he doing with that last shot of his in frame 20, pot the red off the brown? Unbelievable.

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[Cue crafty]

What the hell was he doing with that last shot of his in frame 20, pot the red off the brown? Unbelievable.

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Yep. Pretty sure John Higgins didn't teach him that one! That was straight out of the Mickey mouse book of snooker!