Are there enough young people playing snooker?

Snooker has regained public attention since the Masters competition began on Sunday, but are there enough young players getting involved and playing in community spaces?

Local snooker club Greenbaize has been a part of the Bournemouth community since its establishment in the late 1970s.

The club is officially called the Wallisdown Snooker Club and Shop, but known more locally as Greenbaize, and boasts a variety of facilities including 10 snooker tables, two 8-ball pool tables, and a snooker shop open seven days a week.

Club representative Warren Blamey is in his mid-50s, but has been playing snooker since he was 15.

He spoke to BUzz about the possibility of young players moving up the ranks in snooker, and the likelihood of them reaching competitions such as the ongoing Masters.

Between 12th and 19th of January 2025, the Johnstone’s Paint Masters Championship, the most prestigious invitational tournament in the sport, is taking place at Alexandra Palace in London.

The competition is contested between 16 of the highest ranked snooker players, and is a part of the Triple Crown.

The Triple Crown is the collective name for three of the most prestigious events in snooker – the World Championship, the UK Championship, and the Masters.

Winning all three of these in a players’ career places them in an exclusive club, with only 11 players in history having achieved this.

Becoming part of the Triple Crown is a dream for any young aspiring player, and Blamey commented on the likelihood of any young player making it to that level amid the tough landscape of the sport.

He said: “It is damn near impossible.

“Somebody starting off around the age of 11… if you are lucky enough to be able to start at that age and are tall enough to play, you have got a chance.

“If you are starting at 15 or 16 it is really difficult, because kids at 11 or 12 have about four or five years on you.”

One of the ways a junior can progress in the sport is through a programme known as ‘Cue Stars’, which is a tiered system for tutoring children who are just starting out and wish to play snooker.

The players work their way through bronze, silver, and gold ranked competitions, before progressing onto other competitions at a higher level.

Blamey reiterated how vital it was to have clubs like these, as well as mentioning some issues effecting those hoping for a shot at a career in snooker.

He said: “It’s quite expensive to get started.

“We charge £7.70 an hour, so if you are a kid and you get a tenner a week pocket money, that does not go very far.”

Although Blamey mostly credited the cost of the sport as a challenge, he also mentioned the lack of facilities available for children to use.

He said: “In this area now, we have one proper snooker club, most of the other places are social clubs which all have restrictions on age.

“Not many kids can get to play before they are 18.”

Overall, the aim of the club is to provide a welcoming atmosphere to those looking to play a few frames of snooker, and as much as the children are encouraged to move up the ranks, the venue also hopes it works a social tool too.

Blamey said: “There are hundreds and thousands of players who are playing two or three times a week, and they absolutely love the game… they just come out and have a social event with a couple pints or a few cups of tea and the snooker.

“That’s where the grassroots of snooker is, and it’s lovely we have got the professional system – but the important thing is that people enjoy it as a social event.”