2025 Players Championship

[pigeonslayer]

Attended my first final in years yesterday (also went Friday).
General observation about live snooker - those bloody earpieces are a pain - i have no desire to listen to Phil Yates (the others are fine) - I am there, I dont need things explaining to me - but accept that others need that - but surely in this day an age there are in-ear devices that do not broadcast the sound everywhere!!

I am not a fan of Kyren's, but have to respect the effort he has put in on the table, and his title haul since becoming World Champ is not to be sniffed at. But this dancing and getting the audience to clap along? No thanks.

The Judd and Kyren rivalry seems to be one that is going to be shoved down our throats for the next 10 years - I would agree that Trump is desperate to confirm his dominance, but yesterday's tactic of refusing to take a back step cost him at least 5 of the frames, as time and time again he ran out of position and tried to pot his way out. Wilson still had to put him away, and showed much more patience, but given the "Clash of the Titans" build up, it was a little underwhelming.

I didn't stay to hear the interviews - but was interesting that after they swapped the white (that Kyren first brought up), Judd's cue ball control was even worse!!

[cueman]

The cueball/balls issue was a load of BS in my opinion. I think given how much they both wanted to get one over the other, they simply had too much tension in their cue arm and it led to them over hitting or under hitting shots, prompting an embarrassing belief it was the balls affecting their game.

A real light cueball would mean they would be hitting shots thick and thin yet there was barely any issue with that. It was simply poor positional play and that's more down to tension.

[MrRottweiler]

Only just saw the video from a previous tournament where a phone rings three times while Kyren is at the table and when security go to deal with it he says something like "don't throw him out just get him to sort out his phone". Decent of Kyren to react like that instead of just letting them get on with it like most players would.

[vmax]

The cueball/balls issue was a load of BS in my opinion. I think given how much they both wanted to get one over the other, they simply had too much tension in their cue arm and it led to them over hitting or under hitting shots, prompting an embarrassing belief it was the balls affecting their game.

A real light cueball would mean they would be hitting shots thick and thin yet there was barely any issue with that. It was simply poor positional play and that's more down to tension.

They are using 1g's aren't they so there is no way the cue ball should have been light, but aramith balls aren't entirely made of the same material, couldn't find anything on their snooker balls but here's a link to an explanation of why their pool balls differ, the difference between premiers, premium and 1g's would be the same I guess.

https://www.pooldawg.com/article/the...ol-table-felt/

[DeanH]

The cueball/balls issue was a load of BS in my opinion. I think given how much they both wanted to get one over the other, they simply had too much tension in their cue arm and it led to them over hitting or under hitting shots, prompting an embarrassing belief it was the balls affecting their game.

A real light cueball would mean they would be hitting shots thick and thin yet there was barely any issue with that. It was simply poor positional play and that's more down to tension.

I think I heard Leo say, when asked by Judd, that the set of balls were the same used in the semi-finals; possibly they were new at that time. I don't know the number but I believe a box of balls are only used for a certain number frames/matches in ProTour events before being passed on.

But to me after the first couple of frames the cue ball did not seem to waver any more

[akofb]

They are using 1g's aren't they so there is no way the cue ball should have been light, but aramith balls aren't entirely made of the same material, couldn't find anything on their snooker balls but here's a link to an explanation of why their pool balls differ, the difference between premiers, premium and 1g's would be the same I guess.

https://www.pooldawg.com/article/the...ol-table-felt/

There was a video put up in social media, I thought by WST but it's not on their feed now, of a referee walking up to the table and setting it up before one of the Player Championship matches and I was surprised to see they used the middle range set of balls, Tournament Champion in the blue and gold box and not 1G's.

[Cue crafty]

There was a video put up in social media, I thought by WST but it's not on their feed now, of a referee walking up to the table and setting it up before one of the Player Championship matches and I was surprised to see they used the middle range set of balls, Tournament Champion in the blue and gold box and not 1G's.

These are still 1g balls, WST have a deal with Aramith / The reseller where they buy 1g balls in that box because they do not need the metal case for each set. I know this because they sell the sets on after a tourney or two and there is a 1g sticker on the boxes they buy. (I know a few people and clubs who buy the second hand sets) . It saves them money this way.

[trying]

These are still 1g balls, WST have a deal with Aramith / The reseller where they buy 1g balls in that box because they do not need the metal case for each set. I know this because they sell the sets on after a tourney or two and there is a 1g sticker on the boxes they buy. (I know a few people and clubs who buy the second hand sets) . It saves them money this way.

Do you have any contacts to get hold of used sets?

[DeanH]

These are still 1g balls, WST have a deal with Aramith / The reseller where they buy 1g balls in that box because they do not need the metal case for each set. I know this because they sell the sets on after a tourney or two and there is a 1g sticker on the boxes they buy. (I know a few people and clubs who buy the second hand sets) . It saves them money this way.

Correct, they are 1G sets in the usual cardboard box with a 1G sticker on them.
I have a set from a Womens event at Frames Coulsdon

[akofb]

These are still 1g balls, WST have a deal with Aramith / The reseller where they buy 1g balls in that box because they do not need the metal case for each set. I know this because they sell the sets on after a tourney or two and there is a 1g sticker on the boxes they buy. (I know a few people and clubs who buy the second hand sets) . It saves them money this way.

Well that makes me a little happier that they are using the better balls lol

[Cue crafty]

Do you have any contacts to get hold of used sets?

I’d like a set myself, but there’s a bit of queue I’m afraid and I’m way down it….Worth trying the WST website to see if it’s possible to apply and wait.

[Nifty50]

These are still 1g balls, WST have a deal with Aramith / The reseller where they buy 1g balls in that box because they do not need the metal case for each set. I know this because they sell the sets on after a tourney or two and there is a 1g sticker on the boxes they buy. (I know a few people and clubs who buy the second hand sets) . It saves them money this way.

A pro told me they were given a set every season by WST. He used to pass (read sell) his old set on. Not sure if this still happens. They came in the blue box with the 1G sticker. There’s a couple of sets in the cupboard at my club but they’re in a sorry state now. Someone has swiped the whites and replaced it with a club white. Think a few club reds have been mixed in as well.

[Cue crafty]

A pro told me they were given a set every season by WST. He used to pass (read sell) his old set on. Not sure if this still happens. They came in the blue box with the 1G sticker. There’s a couple of sets in the cupboard at my club but they’re in a sorry state now. Someone has swiped the whites and replaced it with a club white. Think a few club reds have been mixed in as well.

Shame when folks don’t look after stuff eh! Maybe if they understood the crazy cost of them new now they might think twice and be more careful.

I’ve got a set of 3G I bought second hand good few years back now, I clean them about once a week and put a bit of polish on now and again, they still play as well as most.

[TheBaize]

As I expected Judd is not just fighting Kyren on the table, he's fighting the fear of losing to him, you can see it in his eyes. I don't see that in Kyrens eyes though tbh, looks up for it and believes in himself totally.

Agree with this. I`ve never liked watching Kyren play but it`s been obvious in the last year that Judd is intimidated by him despite having a far superior snooker career. Maybe Judd should have some sessions with a sports psychologist to harden up the mental side of his game.

[vmax]

Shame when folks don’t look after stuff eh! Maybe if they understood the crazy cost of them new now they might think twice and be more careful.

I’ve got a set of 3G I bought second hand good few years back now, I clean them about once a week and put a bit of polish on now and again, they still play as well as most.

I only use my own set of deluxe SC's, only 2g between the set, a far superior ball, no special chalk needed, kicks are very rare and only due to chalk or dirt on the contact point, no big bounces, no strange contacts in humid conditions, just hit the cue ball a bit harder, also they can be cleaned in hot soapy water without any kind of discolouration. Must be well over 40 years old now and not a mark on them, when I've cleaned them that is.
I have an SC set for sale if anyone is interested, not deluxe but a regular set that in fact are just as good. Deluxe just means more closely matched weight wise and not a different material which is not the case with Aramith sets as can be seen in that linked article. Duramith seems to be the tradename of their top grade of phenolic resin, I would expect 1g snooker balls to be made of that and I also wouild expect them to last a little longer than a couple of tournaments.

As for Judd struggling against Kyren or anyone else for that matter, his offset address of the cue ball is down to him moving on the shot (watch his right shoulder), the harder he hits the more he moves to the right and the cue then pivots on his bridge hand to the left so the wider his offset address is. His problem is not moving on the shot when he's under pressure, he stiffens up and his body movement that brings the tip of the cue to the point he wants to strike doesn't happen so he strikes at the address point. He's the complete opposite of everyone else, he needs to move on the shot while everyone else needs to keep still.

This is the way it is with Judd, he's a complete one off, when he's relaxed and confident it all works, when conditions are heavy his timing goes astray because he needs to strike a little harder than usual and if he hasn't naturally offset for that extra pace it doesn't work as well and he not only misses pots but his postional play is compromised as well. Aramith balls not working very well in heavy conditions is a problem for him more than anyone else and I think Kyren got this into his head in that final when he questioned the cue ball.

This was noticeable at the US open pool a few years ago, a larger cue ball and where to address it as well as a napless cloth was a problem for him and it carried on into the following snooker season which was a poor one by his standards.

I really don't think he can change, and to be honest why should he when he can play to that phenomenal standard most of the time.