Pool is increasingly becoming one of the most popular pastimes that people from the UK undertake, so what is the big attraction with regards to pool and why are so many people taking up the sport?

Pool is Cool

Pool has always seemed like a much cooler sport than snooker in the UK, possibly because of its associations with American glamour. Paul Newman first popularised pool in the 1960’s when he starred in The Hustler, a film which made him a household name and made pool seem like one of the most glamorous and exciting things you could do.

After the film a few pool halls did appear around the UK but pool was still a fairly niche pastime with not many people knowing about the game.

The Crucible

In the 1980’s the introduction of televised Snooker at the famous Crucible building popularised the sport for people of all ages and made the world’s top snooker players into household names, as well as making them extremely rich. At that point snooker was still more popular than pool in the UK and there were far more snooker halls that pool halls dotted around the country.

The Color of Money

Then in the 1980’s Paul Newman once again brought pool to the forefront of the national consciousness with the help of the biggest star of the time Tom Cruise. The pair appeared together in ‘The Color of Money’, a sequel to ‘The Hustler’, which had achieved cult status over the decades. Newman and Cruise were equally lauded for their performances and the film became one of the biggest box office smashes of the decade.

Pool Halls Appear

After the film was launched, more and more pool halls began to appear throughout the UK and the sport began to overtake English Snooker in terms of popularity. Although snooker was still popular amongst older players, pool became the cue sport of choice for the younger generation

What can be learned from Pool

Although to the untrained eye a darkened and smoky pool hall may not seem like a place of learning, in actual fact young people can learn many lessons from playing pool. Becoming skilled at potting cue balls into the right holes requires highly developed hand eye coordination, as well as teaching about trigonometry. Adding up scores can help with addition skills, whilst player etiquette can teach young people how to interact in a mature and reasonable way.

Custom Pool Cues

Nowadays many pool players opt to get themselves custom pool cues. These can be decorated with all sorts of things such as country of origin flags, favourite football team colours, names and nicknames and much more. Buying a custom pool cue for a young player can really help to develop their sense of pride and ownership as well as letting them know that you care about their interests.