FIRST let me congratulate you upon your vastly improved magazine. I am sure it will do the game a lot of good.
I was very interested in your reproduction of letters from "The Times," and the answers thereto from J. W. Horrocks and Mr. Bisset on "Sight in Billiards Playing."
It is a subject which has always greatly interested me, possibly because I have always realised that skill in billiards playing is entirely dependent upon it. For over a quarter of a century I have been writing on the game in our well known Yorkshire papers, the "Post," "Evening Post," and "Sports Post," and in these papers I have always contended that skill at billiards is dependent upon correct aim.
For instance, say, one had made a life-long study of the theory of billiards and knew more about the game, theoretically, than even Walter Lindrum, this would be of no use whatever if you could not aim straight. The little billiard marker, whose knowledge of the game may be nil but who can naturally aim as straight as the champion, would beat the most knowledgeable person in the world.
George Gray was the finest "aimer" at billiards I ever saw.
Here is an instance of George Gray's fine aim allied to his cue-ball control.
When Gray first came to England, in 1910, I had a room in Leeds specially arranged for him so that he could have a month's practice before appearing before the English billiard-loving public.
One day I discussed with him the importance of aim. Said I: "To test a player for aim and cue control I would put the object red and white balls near the middle spot with just room for the cue-ball to go through them, leaving no more than a sixty-fourth of an inch to spare. Then give me a player who can go through them and bring the cue-ball back through them off the top cushion, and I would say that player ought to go on scoring for a week."
Gray modestly said: "I think I could do it if you will give me ten tries."
I said: "All right, it's not fair to bet upon it, but if you do it in ten tries I will buy you a new hat."
He did it at the third attempt, and to show it was no fluke he did it again.
In that same season his highest break was 2,194 (unfinished). I am sure if he had wanted the break could have been 5,000-odd unfinished.
But I digress. What I wanted to do was to thank Mr. Bisset and Mr. Horrocks for their excellent contribution to the subject of "aiming."
May we hear more on this most interesting subject.
Where is the largest billiard hall in the world? How many tables are there in it?
I do remember hearing about a billiard hall where the marker had to have a motor-cycle in order to be able to get round all the tables.
That must have been an American room. But it is English rooms I mean, not foreigners, as the Roberts' supporter remarked when someone said" Anno Domini "would beat John Roberts!
I used to think I owned the largest billiard room in England when, some eight years ago, I purchased from Mrs. Roberts the room that the great John had in Leeds with 57 tables.
John Roberts was just the kind of man who you would expect to have the biggest billiard room in the world. His ideas were always" on top gear."
In this selfsame Leeds saloon of 57 tables, I played him his last Leeds exhibition match of a week's duration.
That was in 1909 when I was Yorkshire Champion. John was always very generous with his start and he gave me 3,000 in 9,000. We scored level for three days, after which I took matters somewhat easy. But the G.O.M, of billiards went scoring mad on Friday, when in the afternoon session he scored 1,500 to my 300, and repeated the dose in the evening. To score 1,500
How John Roberts forced the pace
in two hours, with a set of ivory balls that were liable to run like a "jazz" set unless you "dragged" them to keep them straight, was good going for a man past 60. I said to Roberts:" My word, when you do get going you do get them quickly. "n that quick way of his he had of answering a question almost before it was asked, he barked back: "Nowadays I have to get them quickly or I could not get them at all."
A delicate reference to the disability of age.
I never forgot another thing he said to me in this match. Anyone who has had a long and intimate acquaintance with ivory knows there never was such a thing as a true set of ivory balls, but the set Roberts put on the table for this match was a particularly foul set. When playing from baulk to the top of the table you had to" stick"your cue through the balls as though you were trying to screw their heads off to have any hope of them running straight. In the first three days, seeing that I was comparatively doing well with them, and Roberts was missing them, I ventured to say to Roberts: "Do you not think they are a very bad set of balls?" The great John fairly snapped back at me: "What's the matter with them?" "They run off very badly," said I. "You should not let them run off," as the quick reply.
And the more I thought of that reply the more I saw billiard sense in it.
Ivory balls were certainly very beautiful, and the musical click of the ivory ball may have been soothing to the senses—but, my, they did run off!
But I digress. I started to find out the largest billiard saloon in England, and it has just occurred to me—why not ring up the largest billiard factory in England? And so give me 2621 Accrington, please miss. Fifty-five tables in our room at Ardwick, Manchester, is the prompt and courteous reply.
In a further letter Riley's say:
"Regarding the billiard hall owned by us at Ardwick, Manchester, we should imagine that this is the largest billiard hall in the world.
The approximate length of the place is 200 ft., and the width approximately 80 ft. The hall contains 55 billiard tables on the ground floor."
I thought so. Memory has just reminded me that in 1911 George Gray and I opened this room which had previously been a huge skating rink.
Perhaps in that country where they say they play billiards before they have their porridge, there may be some big halls.