Pontins Welsh Open

Off to Pontin’s. It really is quite a dump. It still look’s just like a prison camp. On arrival found Peter Gillcrest stood outside. I remember him from his snooker days rather than his Billiards fame. Introduced myself and found him to be really nice and cheerful. I told him I was here for the Billiards and not the snooker which shocked him a little. I wished him luck and went upstairs to watch.

All the people from the videos were there Geet, and Martin, Sutton and a few others. There were not many people watching but I was quite amazed by the quality of the play. Peter had 4 breaks over 100 and a double, simply amazing. I introduced myself to Martin who is a lovely chap. I explained I had not managed to get hold of Paul Dunning yet so he said he would give me an hours coaching between sessions.

The hour went very quickly he showed me several practice shots and picked up on my cue action which he felt need a lot of work, to lighten it up and allow a greater follow through.

Peter played very well getting 3 hundreds in the first match I saw. Martin made 231 which was a simply staggering break it’s only after playing the game you realise what an achievement that is. Some of the players I watched were not that good or performed badly on the day. There seems to be three levels of play. Basic, where the player can get a 30 break. Intermediate, where the players are getting 50-70 breaks regularly with some control and then the top 4-5 players where nothing seems hard at all. One thing this weekend has shown me is the dedication of the players and officials at all levels in keeping the sport going. I was amazed that there were several very young players playing who seemed to have a high standard of play. The most important part is that the players seem really happy and are enjoying the game rather than worrying about wining.

I met one of the referees a short chap whose name escapes me. He will be at the Police championship in Norfolk doing his bit he will be my giving me some support.