Are they all or mostly failed snooker players? I don't mean any disrespect to them at all I was just wondering. It seems to me that snooker is incredibly difficult and I just always figured that if you're from the UK then you automatically started playing snooker first. I guess I just assumed (maybe wrongfully) that players like Darren Appleton, Tony Crosby, Darryl Peach, Steve Knight etc while they are great pool players just couldn't quite see making a living having to play snooker against O'Sullivan, Higgins, Hendry, Williams, Doherty and all the other monster snooker players. Am I way off here?
British pro pool players
- Thread starter Mr441
- Start date
Allison Fisher was the female version of Steve Davis womens world Champ. It is very difficult to get up there in snooker but the $4 is good if you can make it. I think Crosby actually did well in the snooker world. I see your point though.
Darren Appleton was not a snooker player I do not believe, he played English 8 ball. As for the others I do not know what they played.
Crosby was never ranked in the top 100.
Not all. Some came from an english 8 ball background, ie. Darren Appleton and Karl Boyes.
Raj Hundal switched to pool while still a teenager so he wasn't pro yet I don't think.
I don't think it's fair to call them failed snooker players. Snooker is not set up in a manner that is very accessible. It is very tough to break in to the game. I'm not sure if it was Shaun Murphy or Quinton Hann who said that if you don't make it to the top 16 within your first year or two, you never will.
Pool is much easier to get into as most events are open to anyone and everyone for the most part starts on a level playing field.
Raj Hundal switched to pool while still a teenager so he wasn't pro yet I don't think.
I don't think it's fair to call them failed snooker players. Snooker is not set up in a manner that is very accessible. It is very tough to break in to the game. I'm not sure if it was Shaun Murphy or Quinton Hann who said that if you don't make it to the top 16 within your first year or two, you never will.
Pool is much easier to get into as most events are open to anyone and everyone for the most part starts on a level playing field.
The notion that all British players are all failed snooker players is false.
None of the top UK players could be considered to be snooker players to a high professional standard. Most are capable of making century breaks
but could not compete at the very top level.
Of the names mentioned above only Daryl tried his luck as a professional along with the great unknown Mark Gray.
Of the known snooker players, only Steve Davis, Tony Drago and Quentin Hann dedicated any time to pool. Many others have tried it but could not sustain their interest.
Going the other way both Jim Rempe and Steve Mizerak were recognised snooker professionals (along with WPA Chairman, Ian Anderson) who failed to make an impact.
Tony played snooker for about 6 or 7 years while he was ranked outside the top 100 he was playing on the UK tour. This tour only allowed for 16 players each year to move up to the main tour, with only 5 tournaments where you played races to 4. It was like a lottery to make it up.
So many top pro snooker players were starving. Tony came over to the US and played 9-ball for the first time and really just loved the game, and that was that. Today it is very difficult to make a good living just playing pool, but at least he is playing a game he truely enjoys.
Natalie Crosby
(Tony's wife)
So many top pro snooker players were starving. Tony came over to the US and played 9-ball for the first time and really just loved the game, and that was that. Today it is very difficult to make a good living just playing pool, but at least he is playing a game he truely enjoys.
Natalie Crosby
(Tony's wife)
I think that maybe for the players mentioned, that snooker may not have really been their game. Sounds silly but there are people who are really good at 9 ball and can not do well in snooker or just 8ball. At a local club they play bank the 8 Detroit, meaning the 8 ball must be banked to the pocket of your last pocketed ball. Some guys are really good at it, others who are quite good at regular 8 ball just get wiped.
It does not matter if they are so called failed snooker players, what really matters is , are they now good 9ball or what ever other game they have chosen to do.
You could make assumptions about the artistic pool players as being people who can't play any table game, but can make amazing 1 off shots. But that is not really true. They have also found a niche of what they are best at doing , and do it very well.
Just my thoughts.
Neil
It does not matter if they are so called failed snooker players, what really matters is , are they now good 9ball or what ever other game they have chosen to do.
You could make assumptions about the artistic pool players as being people who can't play any table game, but can make amazing 1 off shots. But that is not really true. They have also found a niche of what they are best at doing , and do it very well.
Just my thoughts.
Neil
WOW, Mrs Crosby is posting on here now. Thats awesome, I hope you start posing on here more. You probably make more sense that Tony
your pretty much bang on with this post some tried some knew there was no point. you can get to the top quickly with pool but snooker not so plus its no fun being outside the top 50 in snooker just a long hard struggle to make ends meet not many tournaments. at least with pool it is more sociable and you always have a chance.
top 50 snooker players are all super tough mentally and top cueists and have the tennique to be good at any game, i mean any snooker player in the top 100 with a brain who plays day in day out pool for 4 months with a pro pool player that also explains the intricacies. will be a reasonble chance to beat any top pool pro but you can give the top 20 pool players in the world the same time and coaching and they will have no chance against a top 20 snooker player. technically it is so much harder to play end of story no disrespect its a fact hopefully some educated people who have played uk snooker will back up what i say. you need a ridiculause amount of hours of repetitive practise at snooker
i have just started playing 9 ball, and the game comes very easy to me, the reason a lot of snooker players start playing 9 ball as its very easy to play to a high level we just need to learn the difference on certain shots but it comes so natural to us that im not surprised at all that so many make the switch with great ease, i had a 138,137 and 132 the other week last time i played snooker but now im concentrating on 9 ball to make it pro but the biggest problem i find is the cue and getting used to it, snooker players have a great advantage as the cue action is a lot more solid and a lot of pool players could learn a lot from them, i coach some very good pool players now and its helping there game a lot
Just want to add something to what Doug said above....... if we take uk style 8 ball pool into consideration, we certainly shouldn't forget at least a passing mention for Mark Selby who is a top class current pro snooker player who has also quite recently won the world 8 ball championship (uk style 8 ball) and Chris Melling, a much lesser ranked pro snooker player who has also won that same aforementioned world 8 ball pool championship (twice). Chris also played on the IPT. Tom Ford is another lower ranked pro snooker player who is a very competent uk style 8 ball player.
Graeme Dott, who has won The World Snooker Championship quite recently, apparently still plays quite regular league uk style 8 ball pool in Scotland. Old veteran Doug Mountjoy, another World Snooker Championship winner in his day apparently still turns out in uk style 8 ball pool matches in Wales.
PS...for uk style 8 ball read english 8 ball if you prefer, we Jockistanis don't really like to credit the English with anything though
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Just want to add something to what Doug said above....... if we take uk style 8 ball pool into consideration, we certainly shouldn't forget at least a passing mention for Mark Selby who is a top class current pro snooker player who has also quite recently won the world 8 ball championship (uk style 8 ball) and Chris Melling, a much lesser ranked pro snooker player who has also won that same aforementioned world 8 ball pool championship (twice). Chris also played on the IPT. Tom Ford is another lower ranked pro snooker player who is a very competent uk style 8 ball player.
Graeme Dott, who has won The World Snooker Championship quite recently, apparently still plays quite regular league uk style 8 ball pool in Scotland. Old veteran Doug Mountjoy, another World Snooker Championship winner in his day apparently still turns out in uk style 8 ball pool matches in Wales.
PS...for uk style 8 ball read english 8 ball if you prefer, we Jockistanis don't really like to credit the English with anything though
Class Posting Michael. Maybe they should call it Boys Bar Box.
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