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Canada

Postby badtemperedcyril

All the focus on promoting the game overseas seems to be on Far East Asia and mainland Europe. Why not Canada, with its rich history of producing world class players, such as Chenier, Thorburn, Werbeniuk, Stevens and Robidoux? Surely, if not a full ranking event, a 16-man invitation would be popular?

Re: Canada

Postby lhpirnie

badtemperedcyril wrote:All the focus on promoting the game overseas seems to be on Far East Asia and mainland Europe. Why not Canada, with its rich history of producing world class players, such as Chenier, Thorburn, Werbeniuk, Stevens and Robidoux? Surely, if not a full ranking event, a 16-man invitation would be popular?

There have been attempts over the years to rekindle snooker in Canada, but these days pool dominates. Basically, the market isn't there to promote a big event. A smaller tournament might be viable, but without coveted 'ranking' status, sponsors and broadcasters aren't keen enough (as you know, that's one of my main arguments against the current ranking system).


I'm afraid 'history' doesn't really count for anything. Younger people (fans or prospective new players) are interested in what's happening now - banging on about stuff from 30 or 40 years ago is a turn-off.

What happened to Canada should be a lesson. Snooker can just as quickly fade away in China and even the UK without new ideas and new players.

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerFan

lhpirnie wrote:I'm afraid 'history' doesn't really count for anything. Younger people (fans or prospective new players) are interested in what's happening now - banging on about stuff from 30 or 40 years ago is a turn-off.


Has somebody told the BBC?

Re: Canada

Postby The_Abbott

we just need Ryan Reynolds to speak to his dad Dean and fund a tournament.

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerEd25

Dean is Ryan’s Uncle - it’s a common misconception :hmmm:

Re: Canada

Postby Dragonfly

Used to like the Canadian players years ago. They always seemed a bit edgy. I guess it was the pool hall gambling culture of North America. Lots of stories of drugs, money matches and so on. Think Thorburn was shot at at one stage.

Then snooker got all clean. We need some coke sniffing, gambling Canadians back

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerEd25

They also tended to have a unique playing style. Their pool-hall upbringings led them to attempt lots of outrageous plants, doubles, and ambitious screw shots, and many of them would use the loop-bridge quite regularly which, apart from Alex Higgins, was rarely seen in the British game.

They were certainly a colourful addition to the sport, and are missed by me, certainly :sad:

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerFan

Dragonfly wrote:Used to like the Canadian players years ago. They always seemed a bit edgy. I guess it was the pool hall gambling culture of North America. Lots of stories of drugs, money matches and so on. Think Thorburn was shot at at one stage.

Then snooker got all clean. We need some coke sniffing, gambling Canadians back


This is what passed for edgy in the 1980s.

Image

Re: Canada

Postby acesinc

I haven't been to Toronto in 4 or 5 years, but the Canadians have a lot more snooker going on in one city than we Americans have in our whole damn country. I am hoping to hear SickPotter's input on this.

Meanwhile...

SnookerEd25 wrote:They also tended to have a unique playing style. Their pool-hall upbringings led them to attempt lots of outrageous plants, doubles, and ambitious screw shots, and many of them would use the loop-bridge quite regularly which, apart from Alex Higgins, was rarely seen in the British game.

They were certainly a colourful addition to the sport, and are missed by me, certainly :sad:



Like this? :



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcOi7VxJ4qA

We North Americans do indeed tend to display a bit of swagger now and again.

Re: Canada

Postby ReneeWagner

It's surprising that the focus seems to be elsewhere when Canada has contributed some remarkable talents to the sport. A 16-man invitation event sounds like a fantastic idea, and it could definitely draw attention to the incredible snooker history that Canada holds.
As a snooker fan myself, I've always been fascinated by the sport's history and the players who've shaped it. Speaking of exploring more, have you checked out https://ontariosbest.ca/ ? It's a website I stumbled upon that's chock-full of articles about Toronto, including sports and events. I think you'd enjoy diving into their content.

Re: Canada

Postby Sickpotter

China and the UK have well structured leagues to help train the younger players and get them accustomed to competitive match play.

Canada has nothing of the sort and quite frankly without a proper learning path to being a pro you simply aren't going to make it. Good luck to you finding a certified coach of any note in Canada, everyone is basically self-taught.

If you're talented in the UK or China you'll have sponsorship opportunities because the game has good exposure. That's simply not the case in Canada, there's little if any televised snooker shown here so sponsoring a player will have very little return on the investment.

Canadian snooker/pool has always had a gambling component which tended to make our players match hardened and competitive in the 70s-80s. As the pool halls started removing snooker tables in favor of 8/9 ball tables the gambling remained but shifted almost entirely to 9 ball. Sure there's still a few halls with snooker tables but nothing compared to the 90s. I live in Toronto and there used to be at least 7 pool halls with snooker tables within a 10 mins drive of my house......down to one now, the only other halls with snooker tables are 30+ mins drive. Finding a snooker table is one difficulty, finding a decent money match is entirely another.

If I were to go in to a pool hall and indicated I was looking for some action I might get 20 offers for 9-ball before someone even mentions snooker.

Sad state for snooker and cue sports as a whole IMO, at least I no longer rely on gambling to make a living <cool>

Re: Canada

Postby Holden Chinaski

Luca Brecel is the snooker World Champion.

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerFan

Holden Chinaski wrote:Luca Brecel is the snooker World Champion.


Fake news.

Re: Canada

Postby HappyCamper

Canada is belgium

Re: Canada

Postby Juddernaut88

SnookerFan wrote:
Holden Chinaski wrote:Luca Brecel is the snooker World Champion.


Fake news.


Prove it.

Re: Canada

Postby SnookerFan

Pink Ball wrote:I think it’s because everyone in Canada plays ice hockey nowadays.


I don't know if this is meant as somewhat tongue in cheek, but I wonder if there is a certain truth to it. Or at least to how popular snooker is in Canada nowadays.

Not that I'm saying that there's no interest. See my Keanu Reeves quip earlier. (At the time of posting, he had been in the news visiting snooker clubs, and discussing his interest in the sport.) But, at the same time, is it popular enough to hold a ranking event there? When was the last time there was a Canadian player on tour? Maybe the WST just think there isn't a sustainable interest having snooker over there.


Oh, what the hell am I talking about? It's the WST, how much interest is there in Saudi Arabia, other than some rich lovely lady lobbing money at it? <laugh>