There are lots of levels of players and fans.
The elite players are playing with cues supplied by cue manufacturers hoping to use them as advertising. They get a paid salary and paid to offset entry fees and travel expenses. In the world of pool, those are the "rich" ones. IMO they play with subpar cues that they have "tuned" to their specifications. Even goof ball Earl who is batshit crazy had a lucrative contract and told fans how crappy Cuetek cues are and he was so good he could win even using one of their cues (Cuetek dumped him after several years).
Back years ago, it was somewhat common to see top players using with a Szamboti. Now I never see that. The most common cue I see is ANYBRAND with aftermarket shaft. That is about as cheap as you can get for a good playing cue for far below $1K.
I have a few nice cues, but in the world of collecting, I am about as poor as it gets.
I have shot trap and skeet, the over/unders are thousands, the reloading, travel, with no payouts is more expensive than pool.
My brother-in-law was in racing, and I remember him spending $40k just for a set of heads. Racing, even at the lower levels, is so expensive it truly is a sport that is only for those who are very well off. You are constantly repairing broken parts, and none of them are cheap.
Even at the amature level, leagues, or just your local bangers, typically play with predators, and Meucci cues for far less than $1k probably less that $500.
Nothing is cheap anymore. Last night my wife and I went to Outback, We each had one beer, and no desert, just an appetizer and our meals and it was $92 before tip. Five years ago that same meal would have been under $50.
Hard to find a "cheap" hobby. Professional pool players are just getting by, not getting rich. Nick Varner, maybe the best all around pool player in his time, and champion in multiple disciplines didnt get rich from pool. Now, he was successful in his business ventures around the pool industry, but it wasnt the big tournament payouts. Over the years I have interviewed, several Hall of Fame pool players who were either broke or just scraping by.
JMO
Ken
The elite players are playing with cues supplied by cue manufacturers hoping to use them as advertising. They get a paid salary and paid to offset entry fees and travel expenses. In the world of pool, those are the "rich" ones. IMO they play with subpar cues that they have "tuned" to their specifications. Even goof ball Earl who is batshit crazy had a lucrative contract and told fans how crappy Cuetek cues are and he was so good he could win even using one of their cues (Cuetek dumped him after several years).
Back years ago, it was somewhat common to see top players using with a Szamboti. Now I never see that. The most common cue I see is ANYBRAND with aftermarket shaft. That is about as cheap as you can get for a good playing cue for far below $1K.
I have a few nice cues, but in the world of collecting, I am about as poor as it gets.
I have shot trap and skeet, the over/unders are thousands, the reloading, travel, with no payouts is more expensive than pool.
My brother-in-law was in racing, and I remember him spending $40k just for a set of heads. Racing, even at the lower levels, is so expensive it truly is a sport that is only for those who are very well off. You are constantly repairing broken parts, and none of them are cheap.
Even at the amature level, leagues, or just your local bangers, typically play with predators, and Meucci cues for far less than $1k probably less that $500.
Nothing is cheap anymore. Last night my wife and I went to Outback, We each had one beer, and no desert, just an appetizer and our meals and it was $92 before tip. Five years ago that same meal would have been under $50.
Hard to find a "cheap" hobby. Professional pool players are just getting by, not getting rich. Nick Varner, maybe the best all around pool player in his time, and champion in multiple disciplines didnt get rich from pool. Now, he was successful in his business ventures around the pool industry, but it wasnt the big tournament payouts. Over the years I have interviewed, several Hall of Fame pool players who were either broke or just scraping by.
JMO
Ken