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I feel sure the cushions are regulation, no undercut. On the other hand, the slate pocket cut-outs in some tournaments look to be about 1/2" over sized. The WSC table may only be 1/4" over sized which would account for less breaks, it's difficult to see because the slate is covered by felt. I am aware snooker is a spec-takers sport and if the tables were absolutely regulation, there wouldn't be 100 breaks one after another, not as exciting as it now is, that is absolutely certain. The question is: do people want to see snooker played on tables set-up to exacting spec's. There may be many who prefer to see unrealistic breaks one after another on non-standard tables and I guess it is possible the sport would not attract the audiences it now enjoys if the tables were so. If you have a look at the tables Alex Higgins and Reardon played on, it is now a much easier game, super fast cloth with little to no nap, very responsive cushions and bigger pocket cut-outs make it so. I also think the Star Table slate cut-outs differ from tournament to tournament. If the tables were all set-up to true regulation spec's, it would provide a more realistic and interesting game and one everyone could relate to. There would not be so many breaks over 100 however, that said, everyone would get to see snooker at its absolute best .... this is only my opinion of course.
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Last edited by blinky88; 25 April 2011, 05:29 PM. -
This is an old argument and I sure that there will be quite a lot of replies. I for one would like to see tighter pockets, this would favour players will close cue ball control. There should also be a standard template for every table in the land no matter where, after all if you play darts the sizes on the dart board never change no matter what level you play at, so it should be the same for snooker.
I hate any kind of under cut what so ever. -
I played on the star tables at glos academy t'other day and i can assure you caz, you wouldnt want the pockets tightened bud...lol...Comment
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You couldn't have picked a worse sport to make your point than Darts. PDC trebles are bigger than BDO trebles, hence the higher 3 dart averages in the PDC.Originally Posted by cazmac1 View PostComment
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it may also have something to do with the pdc having taylor/lewis/barney/anderson etc lol. i have played on the tables at gloucester and played on the main tour when the riley aristocrats were being used and i dont care what anyone says, the qualifying tables are 10times tighter than tv tables! the tv ones accept 90percent down rails no matter if its high into top knuckle or hits cushion a foot before bag, the qualifier tables need to be bqang on whether they have just been re-covered that morning or notComment
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I second that lol, i went to Sheffield star academy and the tables was lovely for sure you don't want those pockets tighter, next tables to me was ebdon, o'sullivan and ding and those robots just never missed on the same tables i was playing on which showed me that the tables are mean and they are just so bloody goodOriginally Posted by cally View PostComment
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I think the pockets look very tight in this years championship. Many missed pots down the rails.Comment
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There were a record 83 centuries in the 2009 World Championship, and I believe that was played on Riley Aristocrats. Doesn't that undermine your point...?Comment
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Top post. People need to stop kidding themselves that they are buckets ( or at least very generous ), if it were all that easy... Hey, Q School soon. Take a shotOriginally Posted by MasterBreak147 View Post
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Just to add my 2 cents worth as I just had 2 weeks at the Southwest Snooker Academy. I have a BCE Westbury at home which I thought was set to the templates used on the Riley pro tables but I can tell you the Star tables at the academy are a lot tighter.
However, there is one slight difference between the tables at the Academy and those on TV and that is the cloths are always brand new on the TV tables and are replaced through the tournament and also the spotlights in use keep the table surface quite warm. The brand new cloths are the reason some balls are able to touch the cushion just before the pocket yet still slide in.
At the Southwest Academy the cloths are not brand new (but still in pristine shape and changed frequently) so those tables will play tighter than those on TV. I can guarantee that as I practiced on them for 13 days.
I did notice a slight difference between the 2 tables I used, and one was definitely harder than the other and I think that is just down to human error from the table fitter as he can't be expected to get each and every table perfectly to template all the time.
I believe the Star tables in use for the pros on TV are tight enough and don't need any tinkering. Potting a ball down the cushion is still tough and in fact tougher than on my table at home even though I have the #10 cloth fitted now
Terry
TerryTerry Davidson
IBSF Master Coach & ExaminerComment
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Terry, I respect your comment, that said, I am still absolutely certain in my mind, the slate cut-outs on the Star Tables are at least 1/2" oversize and at times slightly smaller. If they were genuinely regulation, I do not believe 100 breaks would be seen so often. It would be a much truer representation of the game if they were genuinely regulation, perhaps not so spectacular however, it would be much better viewing. The slate cut-outs can be very deceptive because felt covers the slate. I'm sure everyone can appreciate if the cut-outs were bought forward as I suspect, the pockets would accept balls that would normally jaw. I have been watching with interest, my 1st thought was the cushions were undercut ..but.. that does not seem the case, they look regulation. It has taken a lot of time to come up with the theory I now have. I could be proven wrong if the spec's on the slate cut-outs was readily available however, I haven't any luck finding them. All statements herein are strictly my opinion.Last edited by blinky88; 28 May 2011, 04:08 PM.Comment
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I don't play at all so I'm not disagreeing, but wouldn't a faster cloth, larger pockets etc make the game harder in terms of cueball control? They'd be sliding all over the spot and going in-off all the time, no?Originally Posted by blinky88 View PostComment
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and also the original dart bard had no trebles at all on it...... (the manchester log end board)Originally Posted by Gerry Armstrong View PostComment
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