Golf, and more recently, tennis, have undergone revolutionary changes, despite initial reluctance from the more conservative players. Billiards and Snooker, despite increasing popularity do not appear to have followed this trend. Let us take a look at how the game has changed, and how these changes have manifested themselves in the equipment.
Maces, not cues, were used in the early days of billiards, because all that was required was a push of the cue ball. The first maces were single flat pieces of wood flaring out at the business end to a width equal to that of the ball. This end was also curved, as is a hockey stick, but with a more gentle curve. Cushion strokes were, of course, difficult, and this fact led to the cushions being covered in the same cloth as the table bed.
Charles Cotton had his own ideas about dealing with cushion shots. He wrote in his book, "he Complete Gamester. "hat:-"If you lie close you may use the small end of your stick. "he first editions of this book (1674) make no reference to cues at all, but this use of the smaller end of the mace, "he tail, "French for tail is 'queue') was certainly observed by the well-known diarist John Evelyn:- "They, for the most part use the small end of the stick which is shod with brass or silver."
Before the cue itself became popular, the mace evolved in another form. Instead of a single piece of wood fanning out to a thicker end, a tapered round piece of wood was used - very similar to a cue - but with a mace-like head fitted to the thin end. This would do the same job as the normal mace, but when turned on its side, a cup-shaped 'scoop' could be used to rake the ball round the table. This introduced a new element of skill into the game. There was now more to billiards than the strategic position of the balls.
The modern cue was first used by French players, who found it beneficial to the carom game. It was not long before the cue crossed The Channel. The mace had left its mark however as some players would play certain long-range shots with the thick end of the cue. This was assisted by the 'flat' on the butt, a feature which survives to this day. By the time Edward White wrote his, "Treatise on Billiards," (1807) the cue was used almost exclusively, and when Kentfield became the first champion, and produced his own book in 1837, the cue was described as being 4ft 10ins long, 1/2 ins at the tip. Not a lot of difference from the implements of today. Cues became rather longer and a little thinner at the tip, but there were no major developments for many years.
At the time that White produced his treatise, a French Infantry Officer, one Captain Mingaud, was practising his billiards while in prison in Paris. He hit on the idea of a leather tip, and produced them by punching out pieces from an old harness. Leather has remained the only material for tips ever since.
Billiard cues have had their share of wacky inventions. In 1866, a Mr. A. J. Aspinall, patented the spring loaded cue. The more the spring was compressed, the more power was produced. All the player had to do was to press a button on the shaft. As a result of his brain-child, Mr Aspinall did not become a rich man. The mid-thirties saw more short lived novelties. One was a cue with a sight line which was supposed to be an aid to aiming. Another was an innovation from the professional Tom Tothill. He had his cue painted green saying it would be restful to the eyes. The brass ferrule was first popularised by Willie Smith. This was not a technical improvement as regards the playing of the game, but it protected the wood whenever a new tip was fitted. Two-piece cues are not a new idea. In a Burroughes and Watts catalogue of 1884, the two-piece was advertised as the means by which a gentleman could carry a cue through the streets without informing the world that he indulged in such unseemly activities as billiards. Players of the old school who thought that two-piece cues were inferior to the traditional items were astonished when John Spencer won the World Snooker crown in 1977, playing against Cliff Thorburn, who was also using a two-piece.
Ash has always been the most favoured material for cues. This is due mainly to performance, but also to aesthetics. What player is not excited by the sight and feel of a well-made, straight-grained ash cue? North American players preferred maple which was found to retain its straightness even when subjected to extreme variations of temperature and humidity. Many players prefer the smoother finish of maple including such fine performers as Norman Dagley and Ken Shirley. Technology may well push our game forward, but since so many records have been broken, and new heights of popularity achieved by skill alone, it would seem that the tradition materials of wood cue and leather tip will survive for many years to come.
Thanks Chris, interesting and enlightening.
Just one small point. If ash is so beautiful to look at and to play with, how come that you yourself have for years played with that awful looking black abomination of whippy graphite? I suggest that you should go and see Clive Glover!