is snooker dying out in uk?

[golferson123]

is snooker dying out in uk?

don't talk rubbish! your falling into the elitist trap that's its all about the pro game suppose it don't count count if you aint had the white cleaned at least three times got a bottle of water and had a pxxs break

[cueman]

The free time in playing snooker is limited, i would prefer to play in better condition, of course it includes the quality of snooker table. Otherwise , I would play other sport. From marketing pont of view, the life cycle of snooker is decling in uk, but expanding in other counties. I think we want some new stars instead of ronnie alone,.

I think what has been said about the clubs and tables in the UK has played a big part in its decline. The reason its expanding in other countries is because they are relatively new to the sport and also new clubs opening with good quality table conditions its far easier to sell the game to a new audience.

Here in the UK many clubs were bought up by Rileys who decimated the snooker side of these clubs. Tables are now very old with damaged slates, cushion rubbers over 20 years old, dents on the rails and cloths that are terribly maintained or ripped, all the time whilst punters are charged over £6 p/h in many clubs, and people wonder why the game is dying!
We need more academy style set ups or clubs willing to invest in the future but I can't see that happening.

Eventually snooker will go much like football did in this country. We made the game, everyone else invested in it whilst we stood around admiring our history. 20 years from now there won't be a top british player in the game, probably not 1 in the top 32 given how things are and the lack of youngsters taking up the game.

[Leo]

don't talk rubbish! your falling into the elitist trap that's its all about the pro game suppose it don't count count if you aint had the white cleaned at least three times got a bottle of water and had a pxxs break

maybe, but many people know you enter a completely different game when you play on a table with tight pockets,or the same table as pros proper pockets,that big break people normally smash in on their club tables seem to come to a halt when they move tables and then what happens they start missing easy balls that they would normally pot and say damn these pockets are tight i ain't playing on these again or is it really them saying I am not quite as good as I thought.

[golferson123]

is snooker dying out in uk?

well I've made centuries with bonzolene/old crystalites/super crystalites/and some sets that look like the surface of the moon but with your logic they don't count because they aint been made on a super tight star table (sic)

[alabadi]

maybe, but many people know you enter a completely different game when you play on a table with tight pockets,or the same table as pros proper pockets,that big break people normally smash in on their club tables seem to come to a halt when they move tables and then what happens they start missing easy balls that they would normally pot and say damn these pockets are tight i ain't playing on these again or is it really them saying I am not quite as good as I thought.

its having the opposite effect on my game, if i play on a nice table which has a fast cloth i'm ok, it suites my cue action and i can control the white better. but when i play on the other clubs heavy worn out cloths with cushions that you can't predict what they will do, i lose the white too often which makes my next shot harder than it should be.

also i would like to agree with the poster who mentioned lighting, i think its crucial, the pro lighting is much brighter everything becomes much clearer not much shadows or dark spots and playing becomes a lot easier on the eye.
some of the clubs we play in the lighting is terrible, coffin box lighting some with bulbs missing dark a dreary parts of the table lit up and other parts in darkness, terrible.

[Leo]

well I've made centuries with bonzolene/old crystalites/super crystalites/and some sets that look like the surface of the moon but with your logic they don't count because they aint been made on a super tight star table (sic)

that's great and I am sure you are a great player,but think you are losing where I am trying to come from in terms of difficulty between tight pockets & big pocket break building

[itsnoteasy]

I will play on anything too but for me its not the size of the pockets that puts me off - its the speed of the cloths - Playing on a match table with fast cloth and steel blocked cushions G1s and good lighting can not be bettered in my opinion. Decent tables make decent players - Most of us on here play a totally different game than the pro's condition wise. They don't need to whack it around to get position as much - and cannon the pack on a match table and the pack splits lovely. Sometimes on club tables you need to hit them with a sledge hammer - the pockets are tighter on a match table yes but on a fast thin cloth it does not turn off with the nap and because you don't need to whack it encourages a nicer smoother cue action to develop - if your stroking it they go in and tighter pockets do help you concentrate more because they are unforgiving. The lighting matters too - cant beat proper lighting - how many clubs still have coffin lids with dull lighting urrr.

Most local clubs are in the dark ages still using old tackle old tables and this is not showing any foresight - Maybe if a every club or a few of them invested in a few Star tables or aristocrats then they would find a number of good players flock back to play - in turn inspiring others to play or improve - Its worth paying a bit more to play on a good table. I'm not saying fill the club with them but one or two great tables to appeal to everyone would possibly help the cause.

Also at grass roots we need more comps and sponsorship of leagues - perhaps a free junior club on Saturday-Sunday mornings with coaching to inspire the next generations of youngsters to pick up a cue.
It also helps to have a few more people doing great write ups in the local press like Neil Tapperell - Have I spelled that right?

On the national side of things a 1 million first prize for the worlds does say to youngsters this is a game worth taking up - Rooney earns more in a week than the top prize in our game and the money has not actually gone up - discounting inflation - for years.
It would be nice too if the association or our government gave sporting grants - like they do with other sports - as this would help our new generation of youngsters with the expenses of competing in what is now a world wide sport - taking the edge off if they break onto the tour for a few years at least.

That's my 2 pence worth.

Have you been sneaking into my club and playing on our tables lol, our club not only has the coffin shades, they have energy saving bulbs in them, so the first twenty minutes are played in the dark while they heat up and even at their brightest they are not good. You are also very very very lucky to get it brushed and ironed, so it's slow, dirty and full of finger trails, but to be honest, it doesn't bother me, sometimes all the kicks get on my nerves, but at least I'm playing snooker and that's all I want, if it shut I would have nowhere to go and as a club, the lads that go in ,the owner etc etc, you couldn't ask for friendlier.Our club has two tables with tight pockets and I used to play on them, but the table I play on now got recovered and they didn't so that's why I play on it, I would describe the pockets as average club size
I would like to add, we had a lad at our club who had over 150 147s a lot of them on these tables, not line ups , all against players , so if he can do it the only thing stopping me from doing it, is I'm not good enough, it's not the table, it's the lack of talent.

[Byrom]

I agree with a lot of what has been said - during world war two Japan got nuked and they rebuilt it in a new fantastic way - new cities are springing up all over developing countries - in these new developing snooker countries they are opening up clubs using star tables and stuff and this is one reason that they will develop more pro's than us unless we seek to re-develop our playing conditions -

I mean if you had a car you would change it in ten or twenty years or upgrade it to a modern retro look if you wanted to keep it - its not rocket science - Clubs like Rileys charged the earth for playing on crap and invested in the wrong areas away from what they should have - snooker.

I think its good to appeal to a variety of snooker players - casual players and everyone - If I had a club I would have two or three maybe four match tables star tables or steel blocked match tables - I would have a great lounge area section with pro pool tables a few 9 ball tables, proper darts sections, small table snooker tables for the kids or for a laugh, a pinball machine and a few retro arcade games - a bandit or two set to pay out now and again, a poker table - and a range of nice big pocket club tables all with new lighting on every table - G 1 Balls or T C at the very least, good food selection - a lounge bar with big screen - the odd exhibition high breaks board - electronic scoring, coffee machine, a fit chatty blonde behind the bar, discounts on rates for OAP's, free coaching days and school days to attract young players in on quiet mornings. Cheap all day rates for the addicted players and discounts of the bar for members and someone who cares about the place to keep it clean cover iron and clean and cover tables properly - I would also be open to new ideas and left of center things to appeal to all and keep it fresh.

A selection of great cues and bits for sale - tagged rack cues that trigger an alarm if they walk out the door down someones leg lol

EDIT - I would also ban bar billiards - keep the riff raff away

Job done - snooker saved.

[j6uk]

i'm gonna have a bar billiards table in my club

[golferson123]

is snooker dying out in uk?

yes I get that but star table pockets are not tight they are correct! don't think that all snooker tables that are not star tables are buckets.

[DeanH]

i'm gonna have a bar billiards table in my club

oh I miss bar billiards
used to play in a league many years ago, great fun
I hear that a table (singualr) may be coming back somewhere local but not confirmed yet.

[jim evans]

We have one in Sheffield very similar, was a rileys now steelers bar, as a heated match table in a separate room,about 12 other full size, 2-3 3/4 tables,9 ball and other pool tables,a bar billiards, big screen and smaller screens, and other stuff you say,and must say it's a big improvement from the rileys of old.

[Leo]

yes I get that but star table pockets are not tight they are correct! don't think that all snooker tables that are not star tables are buckets.

Ok proper size pockets then

[jrc750]

Ok proper size pockets then

If my pockets are tighter than the TV one's does my break count as double ?

[Leo]

If my pockets are tighter than the TV one's does my break count as double ?

lol valid point