What can be done to raise the profile of snooker?

Question

After the tragic death of paul hunter, i was shocked by the lack of media interest in this and over the years ,snooker in general.

Why does it not get the same coverage as other sports ie golf cricket or even football within the media, when it is televised just as much if not more?

Answer 1

it needs to be faster and more colourful, snookers loss will be pools gain

Answer 2

Exploding Balls...

How can you call this a SPORT???

  Its a game same as darts and chess etc

Answer 3

The idea

is simply to arrange  National Competitions

town versus town

present schools with half-size tables

and VISITING ENCOURAGEMENT

instilling interest with local prizes and certification

will also go a long way

TV Stations would assist with the disemination of details

> would give them...MORE to cover

and a bigger audience potential as peeps watch family compete

Hold out a sweet    

and it will be snatched out of your hand

INVESTMENT NEEDED?  

that is a toughie!

Dave

Answer 4

Paul Hunter will be very much missed by all the people who love snooker, myself included, and these people aren't few.

Maybe the length of the games is one of the reasons that sets back snooker a little, but it's an amazing game. It's not just about technique, it invlolves a lot of strategy and mental preparation.

Answer 5

It is not as exciting as the the rest what can you do, Pot the balls and have great cue ball control, I like the sport and play alot but it is not a glamourous game, 2 blokes and table and balls. Golf has a big croud and it can take you to beautiful places if you travel to play, Football is Football and cricket has more to it as well!

Answer 6

Get the men to play topless.

Answer 7

It's a minority interest thing.  It's also utterly, utterly boring.  I'm not stopping you being interested, but leave me alone.

Answer 8

It just needs to be shown that it is not just for older men and that young chaps and even women for goodness sake can play it too! Its a great sport to show on TV because it is so easy to watch as its relaxing and it is no doubt easy to film. Snooker really needs to have an 'injection' of coolness from someone or something. Perhaps a reference or snooker scene in a modern cool film that young people will watch.

Answer 9

Trouble with snooker is that nowadays the players are so good at break building that it's too easy to win a frame with only one visit to the table.    The excitement has been dropped and it's turning into a game of chess.

I think it has reached the dizzy heights and its lowest ebbs and has just about found its correct level of support.

Maybe one of the lesser TV companies will pick it up and show it more regularly.

Answer 10

I think it's just a matter of time. As the game get more coverage more and more will be hooked.

Answer 11

I follow the Teletext viewers' forums and letters columns, and when Paul Hunter's death was announced, it appears that those letters' forums were swamped with condolence letters, texts and emails from his fans, and by extension fans of snooker in general.

I once saw a TV interview, where someone had tried to bring snooker out of the dirty old working men's club, but found that, like golf and a couple of other venerable old games, snooker seems resistant to the sort of evolution that major sports such as soccer, tennis and even cricket have had to undergo.

There is still an association of snooker with grubby old gentleman's clubs and seedy snooker halls that is very, very hard to shake. The fact that the snooker coverage on the BBC is considered an annoyance and a joke among the young does not help at all.

As with all evolutionary adaptations, though, the best steps to take are small, but firm ones, where there's no risk of backsliding. And the first thing that snooker, as a sport, has got to shake off, once and for all, is its association with smoking.

Paul Hunter's death from cancer did not help in that regard. But maybe if it raises awareness that snooker, like professional darts, poker and Formula One racing, needs forever to kick the weed habit, then maybe his death can bring about some good in the long run, if those who seriously wish to bring snooker into this millennium press home the message now.

But the jaded cynic in me doubts it will have much effect, either way. The old guard in snooker are too entrenched, more than any other sport.

Answer 12

It needs more t.v coverage at peak times. Loads of people watch the world championships but hardly anyone watches any of the other tournaments, this is because they are not on t.v at all or because they are on some third rate channel where nobody looks to see whats on. If some more of the big channels showed some of the lesser tournaments it would help no end, however they are more interested in showing c**p like Big Brother and Celebrity Love Island. Sky have been a huge help to the sport by starting the premier league snooker a few years ago so it's getting more coverage than it was. The sport needs more televised tournaments and some big name sponsors and publicity, simple.

Answer 13

I  think that it is high profile enough for such a boring spectator sport.I was also sorry that Paul died but our thoughts should be with his young wife and child.

Answer 14

As a fan of all billiard games, I too would love to be able to watch pool and snooker on TV more often as well.  I like to watch it because I play the game myself and I appreciate all the little nuances.  I tend to watch the player, while everyone else watches the balls.  Incidentally, I think that pocket-cam's are about the dumbest novelty in televised billiards.  Here's where I differ with what most people say.  I don't think that the future of billiards has anything to do with television coverage, movies, or even (wait for it)...professional players.  I think the future of billiards in all of its forms will be centered around amateur participation, i.e. local leagues and local tournaments.  Every year, more and more regular people worldwide pick up a cue.  Professional billiards does not need universal acceptance.  It does not need flamboyant characters and spoiled crybabies with inflated salaries to make the basketball and football fans pay attention.  It needs good players...period.  M.D.-BCA Instructor/Referee.

Answer 15

the game needs more extrovert characters.............alex higgins in his day drew more peope than some movie stars. the players today are not the same...albiet they are good.............the sport needs to dynamic instead of the boring style which its played today........example.....who remembers the steve davis dennis taylor world final.....the country nearly hhad a blackout after that match was over because so many people put on the kettle for a cuppa the elecric grid almost overloaded.......23 million people watched the end of that match

Answer 16

It's because all the snooker players don't have any charisma and they are all pasty faced.

Answer 17

Well I know it might be seen as selling out, but think about it, if it gets funding it could be worth it. Birmingham City football club were totally floundering until the Gold group (+ David Sullivan took them over).. WWF has never been so popular since it began using scantilly clad women and American football has the cheerleaders and half time dances etc.. Why not have glamorous women playing, or coming around with placards saying things like, "My what a BIG break", or "Frame 2" and when somebody wins they can have one saying "KNOCKOUT".. ??

Answer 18

it is SOOOOOOOO boring, thats why.

Answer 19

i suppose it would be more popular if you had a few blondes in underwear potting them balls.

Answer 20

I think the fact that Snooker is not all over the papers is actually a good thing. Football in particular is far too over hyped these days and you just get sick of it. You must also remember that snooker players are not part of our celebrity culture which is also a good thing.

Snooker is doing just fine as it is and with the amount of up and coming chinese players coming through at the mo it is fast becoming an international sport.

Answer 21

It's a load of balls, that's why!!! lmao

Answer 22

I think it is because it is harder to appreciate the skill involved with a sport like snooker than it is with something like football.

Also as it is an individual sport instead of a team sport it is harder for people to form an attachment to the sport as there are no local ties at all.

Raising awareness would be tricky but if they could make the game quicker and more exciting like Cricket did with 20-20 maybe more young people would become interested in it. Ronnie O'Sullivan has been championing this sort of innovation for a while now.

Answer 23

Colour television made snooker and teletext killed it. Who's going to wait up till after midnight to watch highlights when the frame by frame scores are on ceefax or whatever you have nowadays. Having said that it can be very gripping entertainment. It is up to the sport itself to think of a way of putting it back in the public domain.

Deepest Condolences to the Hunter family

Answer 24

Snooker is the only sport i know where i love to play the game but i just cant watch it, no matter how much of a chance i give it.

I read someone say that a celebrity competition would be good, and it would....for that one occasion, but the profile will coem straight back down again.

Simply put, it cant be done

Answer 25

more coverage by the media and more celebrities like Alex Higgins notorious attitude, as well as high generating profile like of Rocket Ronnie !

Answer 26

it needs more glam, this seems to be all people are interested in now! its just the football orientated culture in UK to blame.

snooker has its true fans, if its not broken why fix it?

Answer 27

It really boring to watch, I just don't see how anyone can get excited about it.

Answer 28

i prefer it the way it is now. I'm sure paul hunters family do too as they need to be together at this time and having more media attention would only make it harder for the family then it already is.

Answer 29

It used to have MASSIVE coverage back in the 80s. Remember Snooker Loopy?

Not it's just been absorbed into the bigger picture/excess TV channels.

Answer 30

Make it more interesting!

Answer 31

Make it interesting?