Are you jealous of the tremendous support some niche sports get? It turns out that all pool has to do is get one person's attention. I had no idea...
(Well, and be more dangerous.)
(Well, and be more dangerous.)
A quick fix for pool
- Thread starter Bob Jewett
- Start date
Pocket billiards is the niche sport. 
The success of snooker as a profession is Huge alongside the money that can be earned on a pool table.
When a person proposed snooker, I knew what game, when they proposed pool, what's the game was my inquiry.
The success of snooker as a profession is Huge alongside the money that can be earned on a pool table.
When a person proposed snooker, I knew what game, when they proposed pool, what's the game was my inquiry.
It's also a sad fact that most people would rather watch paint dry than watch others play pool...
middleofnowhere
Registered
Does pool actually have a definable goal? As it is now it probably has more exposure then in its history. You can watch pool on YouTube 24 hours a day if you like. I'm not sure it can have any more exposure then it has right now.
So what is the next step?
On the professional level there is a few dollars in it for a very, very, very few players. For the most part it is still just an amateur pass time. Pretty hard to expand beyond that. Most cities you are lucky to even find a place to play.
So is there an actual goal? Just asking.
My guess would be driving television viewership.
Just because you can watch it, doesn't mean that enough people actually do. And YouTube just can't ever drive the numbers that TV can/does.
Until you get viewership, you won't get advertising sponsors that spend the money to drive bigger events with big purses...
Again though, aside from a relative few of us crazies, most people just don't find pool all that entertaining to watch...
Overwhelmingly the people I interact with everyday have no idea that pool or billiards is something that people actually take seriously in any way. I have met three collogues in 20 years, by chance, that are on a pool league or have competed in tournaments regularly. 3.
Most of these people would be less surprised of people who take chess, ping pong or archery more seriously than pool. At least ping pong was in Forest Gump.
The goal of pool should be to really make a concerted effort to repaint it's image.
However at the same time the vacuum created is just refilling with degenerates who feel at home keeping the image dark.
It will take generations to fix.
Most of these people would be less surprised of people who take chess, ping pong or archery more seriously than pool. At least ping pong was in Forest Gump.
The goal of pool should be to really make a concerted effort to repaint it's image.
However at the same time the vacuum created is just refilling with degenerates who feel at home keeping the image dark.
It will take generations to fix.
RidgeRaider
Well-known member
This is a really good point. Pool is disenfranchised as a whole in the states. Saying pool, holds no weight, it just means you're playing on a pool table. The rules and games are different every bar / player you come against, unless you're in a league. Even then, every league has different rules and nobody can agree on one set.Pocket billiards is the niche sport.
The success of snooker as a profession is Huge alongside the money that can be earned on a pool table.
When a person proposed snooker, I knew what game, when they proposed pool, what's the game was my inquiry.
Everyone knows the rules to baseball. Everyone knows the rules to football, hockey, soccer, etc. Standardized rules no doubt helped those sports become as big as they are on a whole. If nobody agreed what a home run was, we'd have 20 baseball leagues and none of them would be successful.
Now, how do we fix this? I have no idea. I don't think North America is interested in making billiards professional or standardized.
Auto racing is the biggest spectator sport in the world. Some motorsport parks have more disciplines at a single facility than there are common pool games, that does seem to hinder auto racing.Pocket billiards is the niche sport.
The success of snooker as a profession is Huge alongside the money that can be earned on a pool table.
When a person proposed snooker, I knew what game, when they proposed pool, what's the game was my inquiry.
middleofnowhere
Registered
You can't really compare pool to snooker. In Europe snooker is a cultural thing. You can name drop any top snooker player to anyone and they know who they are. You see them on advertising signs.
In a small way pool players in the US feel like that. They regard pool as American. That may be why some of the resentment towards the new foreign players invading the US pool scene taking over what we see as our sport.
Is this situation, since it's Sales' it's Known as Cold Calling....
A skill few possess, and a job very FEW want. Allot of work.
Selling is NOT telling....
Spent yrs in Sales, and 4 yrs in Cold Calling.
Cold calls are the toughest until one understands his catch first.
bm
DeeDeeCues
Well-known member
In the world? Soccer gives every other sport the break and the wild three.
Zerksies
Well-known member
Pool doesn't have a short attention span it's a more complex to watch. Look at bowling it has 10 pins and its the same everytime. Look at curling same everytime. Basketball run down the court and put the ball in the same basket. After you break the end goal is not clear everytime. If you simplfied the game so that everyone had clear simple rules or goal popularity would or could increase.
I actually think that the participation angle of pool is making headways in the sporting world. Having 7K participation contestants in LV this week and APA coming back in April will get the attention of sponsors. When you can attach that many people somethings gotta happen. There's a reason why Brunswick has come back to the sport along with the other manufactures.
I expect the 'Red Bull Story' is the focus of countless MBA classes and dissertations, especially the marketing aspects.
As a long time F1 fan, I was at first skeptical of their entry into the sport (most newcomers fail miserably and suffer huge financial losses). However, they quickly assembled a first rate organization from bottom up, and have achieved unprecedented successes in F1.
For those reasons, I watched their development and strategies very closely and even became a fan of Red Bull Racing (I've still never tasted the stuff).
After the death of Dietrich Mateschitz, the F1 team has started to show signs of political infighting and weaknesses. So I'm thinking now that the Red Bull successes were largely attributable to the genius and strength of personality of one man, Dietrich Mateschitz.
So Bob, maybe you're right. Maybe we need to find just that one special person to champion the game of 'pool', then ride that persons successes to a rise in popularity.
middleofnowhere
Registered
The bottom line is, most all sports are spectacular sports. Few people have played or play the sport they enjoy watching. I almost never played football, baseball, golf, bowling and so on. However I watch them all.
So to answer my own question on my previous post. The goal is more spectators. That brings sponsors and money. And as a residual effect. More players and more pool rooms and more growth of the sport.
We see investment being made in the professional level. I don't see any investment being done on a grassroots level. What I mean is pool rooms as a franchise chain. It has been done in the past.
I used to go in a place when I was just a kid called "House of Lords Billiards".
It was a small chain and I think a few are still open.
Formula One racing's worldwide TV viewership and personal attendance is topped only by that of soccer. I expect if you included all of 'auto racing' or certainly all of 'motor sports', the numbers would be greater than soccer.
middleofnowhere
Registered
With everything being said the goal has to be for a kid seeing pool on TV to turn to his dad and say "Hey Dad can we go out and play pool will you teach me how to play".
There wasn’t until the hole card camera. That changed everything. I wish I knew what the pool version of that is.
I still believe that pool still has potential to make it bigger. it just needs proper exposure and sponsors to make it generally interesting to more people. besides, how many movies and series have been made about pool? I would say not much considering "THE HUSTLER" is still considered arguably the greatest pool movie ever and that is a classic oldie. not much follow-up after that. hopefully there would be writers and producers out there that would generate interest on making a movie or series about pool. I know it is doable and just needs some creative great writing for it to succeed. I mean look at Poker now, it's huge and a very nice must watch tv, partly thanks to "Rounders".