is snooker dying out in uk?

[Cue crafty]

Pool tables become more common than snooker tables. There are 2 reasons for this:

Many homes can accommodate a pool table. Very few are large enough for a snooker table.

In commercial settings they possibly make similar money, but pool tables take up less space. Time is money, so is space!

I understand the commercial aspects, I guess the maths is pretty simple. But I grew up playing snooker first on a 6’ x 3’ table. It was always snooker but with a bit of pool thrown in for fun sometimes. It’s the scoring aspect of snooker that made it a more interesting game to me. Most pool players will have cleared that table plenty of times but fewer snookers players will have done the same in their game. It’s that difficulty that makes it interesting to me. So I think there’s a more salient point here in that people have less time and patience in modern day life maybe?

[philip in china]

Pool tables become more common than snooker tables. There are 2 reasons for this:

Many homes can accommodate a pool table. Very few are large enough for a snooker table.

In commercial settings they possibly make similar money, but pool tables take up less space. Time is money, so is space!

[Cue crafty]

Came back yesterday after 5 days in Butlins (Skegness) with the family. At 11-00 Friday morning, my children were in the sweet shop with their mum taking an age to choose what they wanted before we headed home. I went into the sports bar (Hotshots) next door to see all six american pool tables being used. These pool tables are £6-00 an hour. I then made the 3 minute walk to the snooker room (Green Baize) to see just 3 of the 14 available tables being used. There is no charge for the snooker tables, they are free.

I was at Center Parcs last week and they have got rid of their only two snooker tables and replaced with about another 5 UK pool tables. They already had American and half a dozen pool tables anyway.....

Amazing people would rather pay £6 an hour to play pool instead of free snooker. Says it all really I guess.

[mick farrell]

Came back yesterday after 5 days in Butlins (Skegness) with the family. At 11-00 Friday morning, my children were in the sweet shop with their mum taking an age to choose what they wanted before we headed home. I went into the sports bar (Hotshots) next door to see all six american pool tables being used. These pool tables are £6-00 an hour. I then made the 3 minute walk to the snooker room (Green Baize) to see just 3 of the 14 available tables being used. There is no charge for the snooker tables, they are free.

[DeanH]

Idleness. Not having to shave every day is great. And who sharpens a pencil with a Stanley knife?

I used to use an old scalpel
Nearly always used to use a Stanley, back in the day

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

I'm quite frankly dumbfounded by this
How can something be the best spectator sport in the world when you have no idea how difficult it is and what you're watching is really special ?

I agree with Eracn to a point, but snooker is seen on tv and does look like fun but when the kids have a go and can't do it they go back to the playstation where no one ever gets beaten by someone who's a real person doing something physically real.
There's a young lad where I work who cannot even sharpen a pencil with a stanley knife without putting the local A & E on alert, yet he's a wizard on his smartphone, got the beard for it as well; while I'm about it, what's the deal with so many young men trying to look like Grizzly Adams

Idleness. Not having to shave every day is great. And who sharpens a pencil with a Stanley knife?

[mick745]

There was more snooker shown on Freeview last season than for many a year. The English Open, Ni Open and Scottish Open were on Quest, CoC, Players Championship and World Grand Prix on itv4, UK, Masters and World's on bbc (with some welsh open covrrage) so the problem is not exposure.
Even if often seen as a daytime filler rather than serious programming.

Is it seen as an honourable profession anymore? How do you get youngsters away from their screens.

Are enough young players at the top of the pro game anymore to prevent it being seen as a bit old fashioned? Is it young and trendy?

[tomwalker147]

"is snooker dying in the UK". No it isn't.

[jonny66]

Ehh ? What's wrong with it ?

It's fixed now, but just kept taking me to page 14 when there was new posts showing

[jrc750]

Another broken thread?

Ehh ? What's wrong with it ?

[DeanH]

test to view newer posts

I can view it now

took a few minutes but it did eventually appear

[jonny66]

Another broken thread?

[vmax]

I've never once played snooker, but find it to be the best spectator sport in the World.

I'm quite frankly dumbfounded by this
How can something be the best spectator sport in the world when you have no idea how difficult it is and what you're watching is really special ?

I agree with Eracn to a point, but snooker is seen on tv and does look like fun but when the kids have a go and can't do it they go back to the playstation where no one ever gets beaten by someone who's a real person doing something physically real.
There's a young lad where I work who cannot even sharpen a pencil with a stanley knife without putting the local A & E on alert, yet he's a wizard on his smartphone, got the beard for it as well; while I'm about it, what's the deal with so many young men trying to look like Grizzly Adams

[Triedandtested]

Agree completely. Snooker decided to clean up it's act and it's become incredibly dull for it. It's never going to be the first choice for 'clean living' types, they all prefer actual sports. There probably are plenty of characters left in the game, it's just that they're all sober.

Whether we like it or not there's 2 sets of snooker fans that's the hardcore fans who'll stay up to watch a low ranked player playing against a qualifier, then the Ronnie fans who'll only watch when Ronnie plays.

Fortunately at the moment with Ronnie playing well & top of his game snooker will glide along as it is, unfortunately once again whether we like it or not the day Ronnie retires a massive chunk of the snooker audience will walk away.

[philip in china]

No need to apologise for reopening this thread. It is about the most important one on the forum.

Johnny66 you might well be correct. Having said that I know many people who are what you describe as "clean living types" who enjoy the game.

I wish I knew how to put the game back where it was 30 to 40 years ago. I suspect there is no simple answer.