Billiards Quarterly Review is indebted to Mr. George White who sent this cutting from, "The Billiard World," of January, 3rd, 1911. The article is by "Cueist." Is there a billiards historian out there who can identify, "Cueist"?
George Gray was, as all enthusiasts know, a wonderful red ball player. During the season of 1911, when not yet twenty, he made no less than 23 breaks over the thousand. In a match against Harverson he ran to game with 2,196 unfinished, and in a break of 1,340 at Cardiff he made, at one stage, no less than 289 consecutive middle pocket losers. According to Levi, "Billiards in the Twentieth Century," (P.23) Gray made a break in practice which Levi estimated to have been 2,400 unfinished. This break was, incidentally, made in a hotel at Norbreck whilst Gray was on Holiday in Blackpool. I wonder if he was at the Norbreck Castle? Gray was not very old when his health gave way. In later years, though running a billiards saloon, he never played at all.
"With the new year, and a good half of the season gone, one may be allowed a little reflection on the past. Amongst English players it has been a very quiet time, and the bad lapse of form by Stevenson is to be doubly regretted just at present. Bad health has had a deal to do with this recently, but really, Stevenson has not played up to form for the past eighteen months and naturally people are beginning to question whether he will ever get back to that brilliant play he showed us three seasons back. One can only hope for the best with this consoling fact, that a man is never too old to play billiards so long as he retains the necessary faculties."
"What a grand instance of this is John Roberts! For the past six months the G.O.M. of billiards has been touring Australia, India, China, and Japan. And what fine billiards he has played. In Australia he made a run of 600 odd, he made the highest break that the Colonials have seen by any English player. On another occasion he had an average of 250 for a session of 750 points, whilst on many occasions he has had averages over the hundred for runs of a thousand points. All this in his sixty-fourth year. Apropos of his age, I am told on very good authority that he had a bet that he would make a break over 600 to celebrate his sixty-third birthday, and that he did it within the week. Really, that reply of his to Inman - who had challenged him to a level match - that he would play Inman level when he was seventy years old, may yet come to pass. The hopes that were entertained of Charles Dawson's return to the game look very much like never being realised. More's the pity, for he supplied that quality of skilful play and bulldog courage which everyone admire and which so seldom go together."
"In the matter of play, George Gray's wonderful losing hazard breaks positively dwarf everything else. There is no getting away from this fact. Take for instance his breaks. He has scored nearly 50 times more points with breaks over 500 than all the rest of the billiard players put together. As far back As August I ventured to prophecy that Gray would revolutionise the game of billiards. This he undoubtedly has done and the question that now presents itself is, what will the end of it all be? Already in certain quarters there is an agitation on foot to bar or restrict the stroke. At present this is so manifestly unfair that I do not think either of the ruling bodies will entertain the matter for some time. First let us see what the other leading players can do with the stroke. When other players make thousand breaks off the red then will be the time to talk about barring. Between losing hazard play and such strokes as the, "spot," and the, "anchor," there can be no fair comparison. The anchor stroke required little or no skill to make a 1000 break, for once the position was obtained the further one went the easier it became. The spot-stroke required more skill, but in playing it there were not more than seven or eight different combinations of the shots required, and I think, with the improvement in play since the spot-stroke days, that were it revived, many amateur players would be making their thousand breaks by its use. In losing hazard play the combination of shots required for a big break are practically countless. Of the skill and stamina required to make big runs by its means the number of breaks made by players other than Gray, speaks volumes. It is ridiculous to say other players could make these breaks if they tried. Big breaks are the only stock-in-trade of real value to the professional player and to say, "I could and I would," is mere childish patter. I am not saying they cannot be made, but that to make long runs they require much more skill than any combination of strokes ever played on the billiard table - the present top-of-the-table game included."
"In a year or two when Gray starts making three or four thousand breaks off the red ball, as I confidently expect he will do, something will have to be done in the matter from a professional point of view, but whatever it is I do not think it should interfere with the game for the amateur. Many ideas of alterations have already been suggested, such as a smaller baulk and smaller pockets. All of them very non-practical, for any such restrictions would make the professional turn his efforts towards making long runs of cannons, and thus the next development would be turning our good old English billiards into the French and American game. To sum up the matter, no alteration is at present required. When it is, the question, after all, is such a purely professional one, that it should be dealt with only as affecting professional play."
"It is always interesting to know how a big break was ended, but it becomes doubly so when the break ties with the world's record. In making a break of 1143 at Accrington last week, and thus exactly tieing with his own previous best, George Gray is to be sympathised with, for had he got one more point it would have meant at least £50 to him. It is singular that since making the world's record of 1143 in London, he should make breaks of 1143(?) in Sheffield, and 1143 in Accrington. These big breaks are a great strain on a player, and Gray tells me that it is much easier to make ten breaks over 300 than one over 1000. Gray began to lose position when he miscalculated the return of the red ball from the top cushion. Consequently he had to play a, "Jenney," into the middle pocket. This unfortunately brought the red into baulk. A cannon was played as shown in the diagram. Here Gray landed the cue ball badly on the red just catching it thin instead of full as intended. The position left was a very awkward one, only a long run-through cannon being on, and this Gray just missed. "Hard Lines," with something stronger added, most billiard players would call it."