With Mike Russell about to leave for India in defence of his World Title, it seemed a good time to pay a visit to Clacton to give him a warm-up game Russell started playing billiards in the Teesside Boys League at the age of 11 and was soon making century breaks. He turned professional at the age of 18. Mike is now just 23 and in the years from his first professional match to the present day he has dominated the game as no-one since Lindrum. He has won countless minor events and all the major ones at least once. He became the only player since the days of Joe Davis to win the U.K. Professional Title three times in succession. He took the World Title in Australia in 1989 - the youngest ever winner - and successfully defended in 1991 in India. He is in India again (Bombay) and after a hat-trick.
Mike Russell has many times amassed points in a manner and at a speed which has seemed unbelievable to the amateur player. One of his best was in winning the Huntingdon Mini-Prix in January, 1990. He played six one-hour games and his opponents included John O'Neill, Bill Andress, Ken Shirley, and Norman Dagley! I asked a billiards playing friend (Who had never seen Russell) how many points he thought a player could score in six separate hours taking into consideration different tables, the inevitable opening safety shots, the quality of the opponents, etc. After a little thought he said that he reckoned that, under the conditions as described, a very good speedy player might score at around 400 - 450 an hour and therefore would have scored in the region of 2500 points. In fact Russell scored 4319 with breaks of 523, 442, 287, 230, 186, 179, 176, 163, 148, 137, 131, 129, 125, and dozens of 50s and 60s. My billiards playing friend wouldn't believe it!
It is amusing to recall that one very well-known billiards authority wrote:- "Russell is an outstanding prospect but the wisdom of turning professional with such haste is questionable." Just two years after this was written Russell was World Champion.
Mike Russell's feats at the game cannot be compared with those of the games legendary players of the thousand break era. On the other hand, those great players were able to play more hours of competitive billiards in one season than Russell has played in his life. But Russell has made his thousand breaks and his ability is perhaps better summed up by another man who has made his thousand breaks - Jack Karnehm:-"Given the right conditions (Format) this boy could do anything."
This then is a brief profile of the man I was going to make a three hour drive to see for a game of billiards. But what is that for the privilege of competing with a World Champion, in no other sport that I know of is this possible.
Mike Russell is based at the Clacton Snooker Centre (Mike Clarke) and I arrived there in just over three hours - and early. A walk along the sea front refreshed me before going on to the Snooker Centre where Russell was waiting. The Clacton Snooker Centre is a very nice club indeed with a comfortable bar-area and a well appointed billiards room with an annex housing two excellent match tables. We arranged to play 1500 up and the final score was:-Mike Russell 1500 - Tom Terry 1316. Oh. I forgot to mention that he gave me 1000 start! Mike broke and after 5 visits had 197 on the board scoring at an average of 49 whilst I had scraped up a mere 21. My visits Nos.7 to 12 brought me 159 points at an average of 26.5. That kind of scoring would be good in a local league game and a period like that would be quite useful in an ABC or a Mini-Prix. The Champions corresponding 6 visits saw him pile up a total of 746 with a break of 332 and an average of 124. Thus after 12 visits Russell was on 943 whilst I was on 180. Against such scoring a thousand start seems hardly enough.
Mike's play was characterised by his wonderful ability to exploit the floating white, and his flair for getting out of trouble when position was lost. It seemed to me that he was not quite at his best and did, in fact, lose position rather more than usual. When, however, a man has the ability to play a deep screw pot as shown, then a slight loss of position seems immaterial
On the other hand the following is not so good: a Deep screw pot with side to retain position at the top. I murmured, "good shot," but Russell remarked, "yes, but you shouldn't have to play them." He was not quite at his best. The game continued in a rather unspectacular fashion, we both missed when in position, and Mike ran to game with a 61* to score 1500 in a little under two hours.
Scores of Game - 1500 up:
Mike Russell: 0 (break) 11.73.71.42.3.156.332.6.2.130.120.0.16.0.6.46.26.0.95.71. 5.25.165.12.24.0.2.61*. Total 1500. Av.53.6
Tom Terry: 0.0.11.0.10.2.22.5.0.46.18.68.12.7.3.0.21.10.16.0.2.0.7.10.0.26.20.0. Score 316 Av.11.3 Total 1316 (Receiving 1000)
A walk along the front for a breath of sea air and a three hour drive home. How many ordinary performers - at any sport - anywhere in the world - had that day confronted a World Professional Champion?