If you follow PowerGlide on social media, you may have noticed some we went to see some of the world’s best snooker players in action!
The English Open kicked off yesterday at the K2 Centre in Crawley and it was a pleasure to watch Ronnie O’Sullivan, Neil Robertson and Mark Williams strut their stuff and show why they are some of the finest players in the world, despite their lack of a PowerGlide cue!
Defending champion O’Sullivan made light work of his opponent Kurt Maflin despite losing the first frame whilst Robertson and Williams also progressed with relative ease winning 4-2 and 4-1 respectively.
O’Sullivan seemed as though he was in no mood to waste any time, and his comments after the match may have confirmed that suspicion, as he patrolled the table with purpose, rarely making any mistakes and showing flashes of the brilliance that endear him to so many.
Getting to see some legends of the snooker game was a treat, but for any fans attending the English Open this year, make sure you buy yourself a programme and turn to the back cover. There you will see our advert for 20% all PowerGlide products with the code: B35988MU
This offer only extends until 12 November 2018 so act fast!
Snooker is a sport that demands precision and quality in order to be the best. Thankfully, Powerglide have the range of cues to match your every snooker need. But you don’t need to take our word for it, take former Snooker World Champion John Parrott’s word instead.
At Powerglide we pride ourselves on the quality of our hand-made cues, but sometimes it’s nice to hear from those who know more about what a professional-standard player looks for in a cue.We sent John a few cues to try out recently, two of which were 3/4 joint cues and the other was a two piece, or 50/50, cue.
John is a 16-time professional tournament winner, including the UK Championship, to go along with his World Championship win in 1991. These days, his professional playing career may be over but snooker fans often see him as a snooker expert for the BBC.
Of the two Prestige 3/4 cues, John said; "they are absolutely brilliant cues, the feel is terrific. They are a quality piece of wood so they sound solid when you hit the ball with them.”
Of the Prestige III cue in particular, he added; “the Snake wood cue is finished to a very high standard. Powerglide have even rounded off the tips so you can take them out of the box and they are ready to play. Can I keep them as I will use them when I next do an exhibition?” Of course you can, John!
The Prestige III Snooker cue with Ebony butt features a hand-spliced Ebony butt with single front Snakewood splice and 3 thin veneers. The 3/4 quick-release joint, 9.5mm tip, brass ferrule and leather buffer combine to make a quality product. The cue length is 57" and is available in 17oz, 18oz and 19oz weights and the cue is supplied with soft cue sleeve and 6" mini extension.
The Prestige I cue has a plain, hand-finished butterfly spliced black ebony butt. It also feautures a 3/4 split with quick-release joint, 9.5mm tip and brass ferrule, and leather buffer. As with the Prestige III, the length is 57" and available in 17oz, 18oz and 19oz weights. It also comes with a soft cue sleeve and 6" mini extension.
"Personally, I only use a 3/4 joint because sometimes with a 2 piece you think about the joint when you look down the shaft,” said John. “Although not my type of cue, I cannot fault the finish or how the cue plays. Anyone wanting a top 2 piece, these are the ones to buy!"
Over the weekend, the Golden 8 Ball Tournament drew to a close in Blackpool, which was the largest event to date, featuring 256 teams over two weekends of events.
Powerglide is a proud sponsor of the tournament, the first of which was held in 2011. Despite the inaugural event containing just 28 teams, the years since have seen the tournament grow exponentially, doubling in size in 2012 and before the first ball was potted this year, it had grown almost tenfold in just 7 years.
The first weekend of action saw the Amateur Series take place in Blackpool. The aim of the Amateur Series is to extend its appeal to the less skilful players and actively reduce the number of strong teams entering.
The weekend featured Round Robin stages, with each player playing each opponent once in a match. The format is more conducive of a 3-player event, and reduces timing pressure in the arena, allowing novice players longer at the table. The Amateur series also featured an ‘Open Doubles Trophy‘ and an ‘Open Singles Trophy‘, which was open to all registered players that attended the Amateur weekend.
For the first time, this year the Junior Singles event took place during the Amateur Series weekend and the tournament organisers also trialled a small but successful Special Needs event, truly making the Golden 8 Ball Festival of Pool, accessible to everyone, regardless of ability or skill level. In total, a prize pot of £10,000 was up for grabs to the winners of the various competitions.
The Pro-Am Series took place the following weekend, and featured an £18,500 prize fund across 7 competitions, including the Gold, Silver and Bronze Trophy, the Wooden Spoon, Men’s and Ladies Singles and Mixed Doubles.