"Snooker is *torture* at all skill levels . . . pool is *fun* at all skill levels."

arnaldo

arnaldo

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Saw that provocative quote the other day while browsing online. I rarely attribute much to sweeping generalizations like that, but it was intriguing.

Made me think about the strange fact that snooker on TV is avidly followed in dozens other countries worldwide by millions of fans of all ages -- from pipsqueaks to grandmas -- who've never even held a cue, while rarely-televised pool draws audiences full of folks who have played on many occasions at some period of their lives.

Arnaldo
 
Cant agree with the quote but I do feel that snooker is the best pocket billiards game by far.

It’s like a mix of straight pool and rotation, with the added benefit of having a set ‘battlefield’ each rack where certain landmark balls return to their places.

You get plenty of randomness to make each run different but you have the sturdy colors to keep form during the chaos. Even a non player can look at a frame in action and quickly understand the table and challenges (or lack) in the frame.

And you have table size, which makes all this possible without a cluttered mess.

I love snooker. Never even touched a table with rounded corners though, let alone a 6x12. It would probably torture me to death but it’s great watching the chaps that do it well
 
Fun fact, during the 80's the large majority of viewers on the BBC for Snooker were housewives, must have been the sharp dressed men :)


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If it ever becomes popular in the US it’ll have to be played on 7 foot snooker tables
 
Snooker also has a classier image. Which in turn attracts sponsors.
World Snooker has a decent amount of prize money, but if you are not in the top 64 you are struggling to earn a living as a professinal, so still a long way to go.... say, vs Tennis or Golf where top 200, 300 players earn good money to not have to try and hold down a second job.

I play both Snooker and Pool, and within pool I have played UK pool as well as US pool.
All games have their merits, as a player I do prefer US pool on a good 7ft bar box like a Diamond. 9ft tables, love a good gold crown or diamond again.

The quote is a bit off though, as pool can be torture if you are off your game or playing a higher rated player running out or jamming you up. I enjoy doing that to players as well.
Both are mental games and both rely on playing the table and not your opponent vs other sports.
 
Kind of makes you wonder if getting people to tune in is about more than just watching 2 dudes knock balls in holes?
 
The 12 ft tables with directional cloth is a thing for sure, then add in the 3 1/4" pockets with rounded corners, that's a whole nuther thing.
 
tim913 said:
If it ever becomes popular in the US it’ll have to be played on 7 foot snooker tables
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Up until the 80s (maybe early 90s ) it wasn't uncommon to find 10 reds coin-op snooker tables in pubs in the UK. I can't remember exactly how they worked but it was something like: the cue ball and the colours were slightly undersized much like an English pool cue ball. The reds stayed down when potted and went into the ball return but the colours came out at the other end of the table with the cue ball. I think they were 7ft but can't really remember as I only occasionally played on them while drinking (as opposed to more serious play on a 12ft in a club). They were eventually all replaced by pool tables that made more sense in terms of value to the pubs - and sadly many of those pool tables have since made room for more seating in the era of the absurd "gastro" pubs.

The game itself can certainly be played on a smaller table and can be enjoyable to play. I've never played on American 10ft table but see nothing wrong with that, although when (and not if) the USA produces a world class snooker player he (or she) will have grown up playing on a 12ft somewhere.
 
David in FL said:
So, you’ve never actually played snooker… 😉
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Correct. Never even played a simulacrum of the game.

My brain power however is what the experts call “above average” so I can accurately asses the objective awesomeness of pocket billiard games that are outside of my real world experience.
 
In my local room we have a few dozen players that can put a couple of racks together. On the snooker table there might be a few that can also produce a break over 24.

I enjoy jumping on the 12ft'er from time to time with the masses. Keeps them honest about their actual ability.

I think a better quote would be something like: "Snooker is always torture - Pool can be fun"
 
I have a few regrets regarding my lifelong pool experience, and snooker, or a snooker table, is at the top of the list. I had access to a snooker table for a very short window during my post grad period. I really feel that snooker could have improved my pool game a great deal if I had continued to play it. Beyond this, however, for me, snooker's most significant aspect is GOLF. I never had more fun on a felted table, consistently, than playing golf at Purvis's Pool Hall in Oxford, Mississippi. When I returned home, it was not Ole Miss I longed for, but a pool hall and a game.

I do not know what it was about this game -- the time, the place, the players, or just the game itself -- even on the days I got crushed, I loved it, and I was always back the next day for more.

Without Purvis's, I could have graduated magna cum laude from Ole Miss . Instead, I settled for a Ph.D. in pool and life.
 
Biloxi Boy said:
I really feel that snooker could have improved my pool game a great deal if I had continued to play it. Beyond this, however, for me, snooker's most significant aspect is GOLF.
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Oh it would have for sure... I credit it for any perceived ability I display on a pool table.

I did dabble in Golf from time to time. So many games made great on a snooker table. Golf, Poker Pool, Money Ball, Bottle Pool, and even 3 ball. I think of them all bottle pool did the most to increase my understanding of caroms and CB control.
 
Where I live, snooker is often on tv. Whenever O'Sullivan plays, there is usually an influx of new players the next day. After they can't pocket a ball in an hour of trying, they usually leave...

Snooker is fun at all skill levels, but expectations must be realistic in order to enjoy it at the lower levels.
 
JazzyJeff87 said:
I love snooker. Never even touched a table with rounded corners though, let alone a 6x12. It would probably torture me to death but it’s great watching the chaps that do it well
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I find that snooker pockets are a little more generous than English pool pockets, which is great for chaining a break in and around the black. But, yes, to an American trying to pot balls into rounded pockets, it can be a real challenge. You can't cheat English pool or snooker pockets nearly as much as American ones.
 
Greg M said:
I find that snooker pockets are a little more generous than English pool pockets, which is great for chaining a break in and around the black. But, yes, to an American trying to pot balls into rounded pockets, it can be a real challenge. You can't cheat English pool or snooker pockets nearly as much as American ones.
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And by definition that means they never have the pleasure, fun, and option of learning and achieving mastery of Straight Pool's dazzling, beautiful and fundamental short-position play by using all parts of the pocket. That element of 14.1 is seen in all fascinating ultra-long runs when you know how to look for it and then incorporate it into your own game.

And it's a factor and tool that enriches your 9-ball positioning options for the CB when you're left with a less than ideal way to get on your next shots. So, besides 14.1 it's seen during world-class navigation of difficult 9-ball layouts and may be typically the reason that a small-pocket background causes some snooker champs to do less well against players who've learned all the nuances, skills, (and benefits) of knowing how and when to use all parts of the pockets -- especially when they've stuck themselves with far less angle than they'd ideally want, for easily getting on their next OB.

Arnaldo
 
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