I find it hard to stomach that their knowledge increases proportionally to the cost increase in this poll.
That seems like an odd statement to me. Cue makers are a perfrect example. I have seen many people argue on this site that cue cost from expensive makers are worth it because of their time, efforts, knowledge and ability, yet you say that increased knowledge should not equate to increased cost?? Union workers all make more as their knowledge increases, as do most jobs. Why wouldn't a good instructor make more if he knows more, and is better able to teach that knowledge. Maybe I am misunderstanding your statement.
It seems to me that an instructor can help or hurt you. A bad one can probably mess you up, whereas a good one can elevate your level of play well beyond what you will by yourself given the same amount of time. If you really want to be good, and you have good word of mouth from people who know about the game, then I would not let price be the deciding factor. Sometimes it is worth it in the long run to pay more, sometimes paying more means nothing.
I would look for someone who emphasizes fundamentals. If you ask people about Scott Lee and Randy G on this site, you will get a lot of feedback regarding lessons with them. I asked about Scott Lee in a thread that you can probably do a search on. All of the feedback was very positive. He is a bit expensive at $75 an hour, but that would be worth it to me if he can help my game that much. Especially since I hate not being really good at something. I wil have to save some money to do a 2 hour lesson with him, but I think it will be worth it given what I have heard. Good luck in your quest.
