Alcohol and snooker.

Newish member so apologies if similar to previous posts ,what's Islanders experience with alcohol and playing. Personally like a couple of pints if playing mates sometimes if longer session upto 5_6 never felt major drop in standard. Playing in leagues always T total apart from a couple when needed and both matches made 40+ breaks to win.

I don't drink any more, but I used to.
I found that my standard was affected by drinking, positively at first, and then negatively. There seemed to be a peak about halfway through the second pint, when I felt relaxed and played freely. It tended to quickly decline after that though, and by the third pint I could barely pot a ball!

chengdufan wrote:I don't drink any more, but I used to.
I found that my standard was affected by drinking, positively at first, and then negatively. There seemed to be a peak about halfway through the second pint, when I felt relaxed and played freely. It tended to quickly decline after that though, and by the third pint I could barely pot a ball!

I suppose it varies from person to person in my twenties and thirties I'd considered myself to be a regular drinker so could drink 10 pints and be ok.not playing snooker obviously,remember entering a open comp in Worksop mid 80s playing Bill Werbinuk in semis WOW he really did just pour it down. He played brilliant and won comp, his prize was £50 bar tab which he spent before he left.

Sometimes I stay completely sober, and others I'll have three or four beers. As mentioned above by Chengdu at first, the first couple help relax you and then it goes the other way

Usually I play better when not drinking at all, and I can get relaxed and confident without. But it's a social with my mate and we usually like to have a few jars, and pop outside down spliffer's alley for a you-know-what. If I'm playing badly, one of them can sometimes tune me right in

SnookerFan wrote:I sometimes drink when I'm watching it.

think i may have been a bit insensitive last time,i promise never to mention leggins again.

Never really drank playing snooker. Drinking while playing pool is fun. As a couple of previous posters mentioned I find in the short term it helps my play improve somewhat. I play with more freedom.

Then it gets to a stage where I'm playing with too much freedom. Basically I stop really caring about what happens if I miss and so on. And then I lose interest totally and just want to sit and chat. So probably wouldn't really do much good for me if I was a pro snooker player.

I suppose it depends on why you are playing, if it is just a social game with a mate then you'd probably have a couple of pints, pot a few balls and have a laugh.

If it is a competitive match in which you need to be at your best you may try to leave off any booze until afterwards.

I’m bad enough at snooker as it is. Anytime I’ve ever had anything to drink it’s made things even worse. I don’t play snooker very often now, but fairly regularly play pool and do not drink when playing.

Are players allowed to drink anymore? Nobody seems to, but are they allowed to be under the influence or is it banned?

Scooper wrote:Are players allowed to drink anymore? Nobody seems to, but are they allowed to be under the influence or is it banned?

That’s a good question. I always made the assumption that it was banned, much like smoking. I don’t necessarily see it as a problem. If a player wants to have a drink whilst playing, surely it’s only harming them. Would be nice to have some clarification on this rule though.

2 pints of cider is the magic zone, I can almost string together a break.

I need a drink to play better. I have no idea why. I would probably beat Judd after 20 pints going by that logic.

SnookerEd25 wrote:

The_Abbott wrote:I need a drink to play better. I have no idea why. I would probably beat Judd after 20 pints going by that logic.

the Abbott is Bill Werbeniuk - confirmed

not bad for a dead guy if I say so myself

SnookerEd25 wrote:

The_Abbott wrote:

SnookerEd25 wrote:

The_Abbott wrote:I need a drink to play better. I have no idea why. I would probably beat Judd after 20 pints going by that logic.

the Abbott is Bill Werbeniuk - confirmed

not bad for a dead guy if I say so myself

Must be all done with CGI

Or IPA

Does for me,certainly speed increases shot time when you're trying to time you're next Wass.

SnookerFan wrote:

The_Abbott wrote:I need a drink to play better. I have no idea why. I would probably beat Judd after 20 pints going by that logic.

Does a drink or two stop you from overthinking and lets you play more instinctively?

I used to drink beer, rather a lot of beer, and I did have the timetable down to reach the appropriate amount for a good game of snooker. Generally, two beers (admittedly, cheap American, 12 oz. cans) before the first frame was out, then gradually taper consumption as the match continued. Mid-game, I would begin to re-hydrate with green tea and cut off the beer completely about 90 minutes before finish. So this would be about 4 to 5 beers for a four hour session.

I began to look pregnant, was drinking too much to be healthy so I have slowed that trend a lot. I have gone to red wine now and consume far less, both in alcohol content and calories. But I do believe the "right" amount of alcohol helps my game.

SnookerFan, I believe your assessment is probably correct. Like so many of the less athletic "technical" sports, snooker is mostly a mind game. The great Arnold Palmer said of golf, ""Golf is a game of inches. The most important are the six inches between your ears," and the same can be said of snooker. To succeed is all about confidence. Many believe that snooker is an intellectual game, "Chess with balls" is the phrase. I disagree; many, if not most, of the best players are not exactly Einsteins. I often say that one's brain generally gets in the way.

So I believe alcohol smooths out the rough edges of doubt and relieves inhibition as it does in so many respects. Obviously, relieving too much inhibition wouldn't be a good thing, but I do believe my confidence level improves with the right balance. I also believe my confidence level has gone up as I have gotten older and wiser. Thankfully meaning less alcohol needed to play my best game. I have never understood the players who say they played much better in their 20's than their 40's. The CO92's longevity doesn't surprise me in the least. I was so stupid when I was younger; my self-confidence today is so much higher. Despite the failing eyesight, bad back, and wobbly knees, I play a much better game today than ever before. Rang in the New Year with a nice half century.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7nbmjkImHQ

Tequila!