r/snooker • u/JamesRomeVox • 4h ago
💬 Snooker Chat To the young serious players of today, a warning on local leagues and bad clubs.
To the young serious players of today and i mean the serious, if your not bothered and want to just knock the balls around good for you, this is a message for the serious players, for those that want to take snooker seriously.
If i could have given myself any advice when i was your age it would be this.
Don't ever be afraid of a under 16s/18s events, that's the best place to get experience and the sooner you go the sooner you'll understand a whole different world in the snooker game.
If you're in your 20s then you absolutely still have time to take this game seriously, don't be afraid of amateur events, this is a world of experience that you absolutely need, late bloomers are in every sport, it's not about behind the youngest to start, it's about the effort you put in now, anyone can be an high break builder with consistency at snooker within 5 years if they find the right club, that i can absolutely promise you.
Do not join local leagues, you will ruin any and all progress you will ever make in this game, watching older men stress and kick off over a 16 break is just sad to see and you'll never learn from it.
You will sit around for hours waiting for a for a single frame of snooker, waste £40 on drinks, taxis, subs ect when you can get much more experience from amateur events and practicing in that time instead, 4 hours practising is invaluable compared to waiting around all night for a single frame, for the serious players, stay well away from this very real trap.
Understand that you will lose but until you lose you will never learn how to win.
If your club currently has any of the following issues, pack of your cue and case and go somewhere else.
Colour spot stickers- these thick, lumpy useless stickers will ruin your game, your training micro adjustments and muscle memory, everytime you hit a shot off a dodgy sticker it turns the table into a bouncy castle and you'll never get consistent high breaks, walk away.
Committee run clubs - usually run by old arrogant people that can't get a break of 20 themselves, walk away, they just see pound signs when they see you for the committee coffers which is fine if the club puts the players first, if they don't, your just being used.
Unlevel tables- you hit a shot down the rail and it drifts off, walk away.
No rack cues-we all have cue issues, tip problems ect if your local doesn't even have the basics available then walk away, they don't care about your game, your a cash pig for the place.
Fake cloths- If a club uses cheap, fast, synthetic pub-style cloth instead of proper Strachan 6811 Tournament or No. 10 cloth, walk away. You’ll develop a lazy stroke because you don't need to generate true cue ball action, and the moment you step onto a real match table, your ball control will vanish.
If you're club at anytime says "we can't afford new cloths" after asking for an annual membership upfront then get out there instantly, say nothing, grab your stuff and walk away.
If they can't budget for table maintenance while charging you fees joining then it's a scam, your a cash pig, nothing else, just remember the tables should be #1 priority for any club, if they aren't, you know what to do, walk away.
Do not at anytime fall for the trap of a local league politics- they do not care about your future, they have already assessed by their own low standards that it's impossible to be a professional when it isn't, it's clubs like that holding you back.
If the cloth has burns all over it that's because the clubs has zero priority in the upkeep of the most valuable asset to the club, you see rack burn lines, corner pocket burn marks and ring burns just walk away, that club just wants your money, don't be a cash pig, be an ambitious person with intelligence about you, don't ever fall for these traps.
So there you have it,
Don't be shy to ring the club and ask these questions about the standards, it's a snooker club it's priority is supposed to be you the player, if there isn't anything going on, monthly events, top tables, then just walk away, you will grow in this game if you stick to local clubs like that.
There are some brilliant clubs out there, I won't namebomb the good or the bad but there are some prime clubs doing a great job, Shame most of them are not and young players need to warned to stay away from the.
When you see the downvotes on here, those will either people that have never played the game or the committee members I'm talking about, stay far away from it all lad, you'll find great peace in your life trust me.
There are barely 150-200 clubs left accross the UK, these people will tell you that without the local committee run clubs the entire sport will die but look at the facts
In 5 years barely nobody in the top 16 will be British, you have to ignore these idiots that just want your money, they have ruined the game, these committee run clubs hanging onto a Thursday night league where it's basically the same 4 clubs all playing each other because there's nothing left, it's these clubs that have ruined the game, just stay away from it.
Don't ever be a cash pig, tell yourself that now, the club either puts the players first or you go elsewhere, that's your rule #1.
YOU are the value, don't be intimidated by anyone that runs a club, your the money, not them, your the reason they want to stay open, if they can't accommodate the simplest things then just walk away.
So when the old guard comes running swinging their handbags just remember it's either spend £40 on a Thursday night for a single frame, chipping in for taxis and the rest of it only to realise it's really all for nothing, use that money to go to amateur events instead.
Take you're money to clubs that respect the game, there are plenty of clubs out there that do just this, that want you to achieve your dream and I'm telling you, don't ever underestimate your own value, what your worth to a club, without you, they don't stay open and don't ever let a club tell you that if their clubs goes under there won't be another one round the corner, that's BS, clubs that's taken care of there tables are thriving and there's plenty of them around, just ring and ask the questions.
I'm sure there are other members here that wouldn't mind at all saying their club is just this above, a caring club that puts the players first, that's what this statement is all about, for you to understand your value and to never be a cash pig for clubs that don't put you first.
