For the budget player, perhaps...

I own and play with only 2 cues. An '04 ebony 8-pointer into curly maple with ivory inlays from Steve Kornele and an Adam cue that was already well used when I received it from my best friend 33yrs ago. I have owned a beauty from Steve Klein, as well as cues from Joss, Viking & McDermott. This doesn't exactly mean I know good cues, but...

I just bought a simple Star (by McDermott) cue for my ex/slash housemate (long story).

http://www.mcdermottcue.com/s8.php

For the $123 that I spent on it, I think it looks and feels pretty damn good. I don't think I would suffer much embarrassment by pulling it out for a night of pool at my favorite pool hall. She only received it today and hasn't played with it yet, but I suspect that it will be a good player. More on that to follow.

We finally got to the pool hall last night and I got to sink a few balls with her new cue. It was, as I suspected, a pleasant experience. It had a good hit and offered decent ball control. I didn't shoot a lot with it (being her's and all) but feel that I could be entirely comfortable and confident with it.

She certainly felt comfortable and confident with. I noticed a distinct improvement in her shooting, and that was after playing on a 9ft table. I typically play 8ft with her. The grip is a little narrower than my 2 cues, which probably fit her small hands better. I'm sure that helped her some.

Like many, I like and can afford a little fancier cue, so I won't be getting one for myself. If you, however, don't care about that stuff and just want a good tool to enjoy the game with, it'd be hard to wrong with this. I think it's a good cue, especially at $123. It won't keep you from bringing your talent to the table.

It can also make a good gift, as I've found out. She's quite happy with it.