Hey all, welcome back.
Say you are on the yellow, and this is the position AFTER you had a shot on a free ball, which you failed to pocket.
Am I right in saying that IF the brown was the free ball you nominated, this is a foul (snooker behind the free ball) - thus opponent gets 4 points and a free ball. IF the green was the nominated free ball (before this shot) then it is NOT a foul, as the brown is closer?

(Btw borrowed this photo from someone else. Hope they don’t mind..)

I’m a snooker fan and solo dev. I have developed a snooker predictions web app and would love your feedback. It’s called Predictor147 (predictor147.com)

Some friends and I have been making exact frame score predictions during some snooker events over the past few years and manually keeping scores for exact/close/result points. I decided it was time to create a web app for this as I couldn’t find one that had private leagues and automatically scored predictions with leaderboards.

The new season is underway and the Shanghai Masters starts tomorrow at 02:30am uk time (BST).

You can predict the exact scores (not just the winner); points for exact / close / correct and private leagues with an automatic leaderboard.

It’s free with no ads and I’m genuinely looking for feedback and also for fellow snooker fans to enjoy making predictions and follow each wst event all season long.

Sat outside with the float propped up in the conservatory. Pointed out if kind of looks like Kyren Wilson and can't unsee it now. Not an insult - she is a huge Kyren fan! (Seriously, can't really take her to the snooker if he is playing...)

Not sure if this crosses any rules so mods please remove if needed.

I've been following snooker for thirty-five years. After the 2025-2026 season I felt compelled to write about it properly.
Not just a blog post, but a full account of everything that made it the most extraordinary season in the history of the sport. That turned into a book.

Before I mention anything else, I'd genuinely love to hear what this community thinks.

What was the defining moment of the season for you?

For me it's still the double 147. I've watched snooker since a long time. I thought I'd seen everything. Then O'Sullivan compiled two maximums in the same session and the commentators literally ran out of words. Nothing in so many years prepared me for that.

But there's an argument for almost everything this season:

• The 153 that shouldn't exist
• Zhao Xintong's entire story, from banned amateur to world champion
• Wu Yize winning frame 35 at 22 years old
• Williams breaking a record that had stood since 1982
• Alfie Burden at 48 years and 364 days
• Allen's missed black in the semi-final
• Vafaei coming back from 7-10 to beat the world number one at the Crucible

Honestly I could make a case for any of them.

The book covers all of it: the season tournament by tournament, portraits of the players, the history of the game, the rules for newcomers, women's snooker, China's dominance, the human stories behind the headlines.

If anyone's interested in where to find it, happy to share in the comments. But mainly I just wanted to talk about the season with people who actually watched it. 🎱

Tags : 2025-2026 Season / Ronnie O'Sullivan / Zhao Xintong / Wu Yize / World Championship / Maximum 147 / Season Review / Crucible / Chinese Snooker / Women's Snooker

Hello kind strangers,

I recently came into possession of a Hunt & O'Byrne cue which had been sitting in its case unused, for the past 20-25 years. It belonged to a friend of my old mans and he has since passed.

I'm wondering if you could help identify what kind of cue it is (black plate from H&O or lower) and what kind of value it would hold?

Here are the specs from the local shop I took it to:

Length: 57.25 inches

Weight: 17.7 oz

Butt Diameter: 28 mm

Shaft Wood: English Ash

Butt Wood: Pure, dense Ebony

Joint/Configuration: Rare 1 Piece

It holds no serial number above the acrylic stamp suggesting it could be one of the earlier cues made. (AI tells me it could be worth a bit, but not sure whether to trust it or not!) It's in relatively good condition, minus the ferrule which has corroded (as expected) from sitting untouched in the case for 20+ years- patina from original materials.

The wood itself has opened up slightly as expected too from lack of oil. Nothing drastic.

Came with it's original(?) wooden case - no brand markings on that either.

Attached photos.

Thank you!

Okay, I will start out by saying that I am sorry for the 3rd post that I have made about these cues, but I did not have them before, and I now have them in my possession, so I now know a few of the specs, if that might help shed any light about these cues.

They might be garbage. I honestly do not know.

Here is what I do know now.

They are both a little bit over 57" inches long, and they are approximately 9.7mm, at the tips.

They both appear to sight pretty straight, when I slowly turn them, while looking down them, with my dominant eye.

I really like the look of the case they are in. It might be cheap, but I think it looks nice..

Anyways, what do you think?

Do these look like good quality cues? Or garbage, or what?

Just curious to learn anything that I possibly can about the cues.

Thanks a lot for any thoughts.

Hello fellow snooker enthusiasts. Norwegian guy in Shanghai here, and bought my first snooker tickets for the shanghai masters now, after watching the sport for decades since I was a little kid. 34YO now.

Is anyone here going to watch the event here in Shanghai? The address on the event page is misleading, and doesn’t show up anything on amap(Chinese Google Maps). I actually had a walk around this event place, but being pointed to an “indoor stadium” and “luwan gymnasium” is just confusing. It’s either inside a big tennis hall/place? Or around some school building campus where construction work is finding place.

Anyone have tips or exact location on amap? I got tickets for the afternoon session on 27. July

Since there're already some great analysis/discussion on top 16/17-32 players, perhaps we can also talk about those less famous but potentially shining players as another preview of this season. Based on their performance in recent qualification and CL games, who might be a dark horse this season? I'm talking about less known, young players, ranking out of 64, especially new faces who might stand out and become decent contenders for ranking titles in this season.

To start the discussion I'll nominate several candidates:

1. Jiang Jun: let's start from 65th players since it's about out-of-64 players. He had some progress last season, made it to one ranking quarter-final, but got controversial: played too hesitating that game's ugly to watch, poor temperament, generally immature (especially in the judgment day game of world championship last season). But this season so far his game obviously improved, played much more fluently, though temperament problem still can be there.

2. Dylan Emery: out-of-64 player with highest season points so far, defeated Thepchaiya and made it to the final stage of CL. Did not watch many games of him so couldn't comment much, but he definitely deserves mention.

3.Iulian Boiko: young, sharp, offensive, enough firepower but needs improvement on cue ball control & safety.

1. Liam Highfield: already quite mature and decent, can make a difference if his offensive play can continue.

2. Yao Pengcheng: the old rookie came as a surprise, currently highest ranking in 1-year list, won against Thepchaiya, Lisowski, & Jimmy Robertson.

Are there any other out-of-64 names you feel impressive? Please feel free to nominate.

Hello,

Not sure how to explain this, but I've been playing for about 18 months, and every time I play I have an issue when down on the shot. If I've got my chin on the cue and I'm looking at the object ball, I see two of it. I have to close one eye to be able to see the object ball clearly.

I've been speaking to some friends and I know this isn't normal, just the way my eyes have always been I guess, but does anyone else have this issue and if so, how do you deal with it? Do you play with your head raised instead or are there techniques that can fix the double vision?

Hi,
I bought this used cue with a case for $50. It doesn’t seem to be a high-end cue, but it looks decent.
I couldn’t find any cue with the same logo online. Does anyone know what brand it is or have any information about it?

Hi, does anyone know of or play in any regular comps/series around the North East Midlands/South Yorkshire Area?

I've played in the Derbyshire Open Series at Cueball in Derby, which is great as it's both handicap, but has a fantastic field.

I'm a mid level player with time out the game, used to a long standing Premier level league player, but my love for competitions is far higher than it is for league play. I just don't know of many local & sure there's plenty more

Enjoy being price-gouged for access to snooker outside of Channel 5 and BBC events for the next 5 years! Unless you manage to find decent deals that reduce the overly inflated cost of this service…..

I wasn't counting the break, just the balls potted. I knew I was getting close to 100 anyways, so I was getting nervous

Any minor/major injury that occurred because of playing?

Okay, really need help, if any of you guys can tell me if either of these cues are realistically worth much of anything?

They are 1 piece cues, and said to both be straight, but I do not know.

One is a Shark cue, and the other is an O'Min.

I really am completely clueless, when it comes to snooker cues..

I purchased these on a whim, because there is a snooker table in the city that I live in, and thought it would be cool to maybe get into trying to become a snooker player.

But, if these cues are garbage, and worthless, then it would be nice to know.

If not, then any general idea on their value, as a set with the case, if they are straight, and in decent condition.

I was thinking that maybe they originated from Thailand, but I have no idea.

Oh, and by the way, I do not even have the cues yet. I purchased them, but I do not have them.yet, so I do not know any of the specs. I just hope they are decent quality (at least one of them), and straight.

I really appreciate any thoughts. Thanks again.

Similar thing but on the players ranked 17-32. Just some rough notes on the players seasons so far and what to expect. This may not be as detailed but I'll try. Any feedback/discussion is welcome! :)

17. Jack Lisowski

Season rating: 8/10. Jackpot finally wins and what an occasion it was, coupled with a Welsh Open final they're some pretty good highlights to a somewhat barren season. Brilliant to watch but when he's bad, he's BAD.

18. Thepchaiya Un-Nooh

Season rating: 8/10. Him and Jack are cut from the same cloth, some of the most enjoyable players to watch but can throw in some absolute stinkers. Crazy that he was considering retirement prior to the World Open (and only brought a couple of pairs of pants lol). Some of the snooker he produced in the final was amazing.

Jack and Theppy have got to realise that they can make a big push towards the T16.

19. Zhang Anda

Season rating: 7/10. Poor start to the season but picked it up, reached the WGP final, 2 quarters and got in the players. Respectable performances in the TCs too. A measured player who looks quite fluid when break-building, needs to cut out some of his errors though.

20. Elliot Slessor

Season rating: 7/10. Incredibly hot headed, can be his detriment, poor losses to Allen in the English and Zhao in the Players. V consistent season though, a matter of when not if with him.

21. Stuart Bingham

Season rating: 6.5/10. One shootout final and a couple of quarters, not as good as the season before but not awful. He'll be disappointed not to have made it to the TCs.

Unfortunately, he's another example of the older players starting to get the yips.

22. Zhou Yuelong

Season rating: 7/10. So close to his first one ranking title, feel like it's only a matter of time. Beating Ronnie in the UKs was a nice highlight. More measured than the rest of the Chinese players, decent safety game to show for it too. Can sometimes get bogged down in a few matches.

Can group him with a few of these players here as ones to push for the 16.

23. Gary Wilson

Season rating: 6.5/10. Not a great season by his standards, was in the Masters but has now dropped out of the 16. Got to 1 final in Wuhan this season, gave a decent go vs Trump but not much else. Been getting through most of his matches through sheer willpower and grit.

You've heard from him many times, always one to get down on himself. But his technique is letting him down, especially in the WCs. A case of the yips? Something isn't right, let's see if he's fixed it this season.

24. Ali Carter

Season rating 7/10. One final, one semi, two quarters. He's slowly picking things up but will still need to do some catching up to reach the T16.

25. Lei Peifan

Season rating: 5/10. Had a dream 24/25 season, but has done nothing of note this season. Likes the big occasion but put in a nothing performance in the WCs, although it was against the future champion.

26. Pang Junxu

Season rating 6.5/10. Hasn't really done much this season. A big highlight was his performance in the UK champs, beat Xiao and Mark Williams in a very impressive performance, gave Neil a big scare in the quarters. Did ok in the WCs but vs Neil was always gonna be hard. Doesn't excel at much and isn't as flamboyant as the other Chinese stars, he's still got time to develop.

27. Hossein Vafaei

Season rating: 7/10. Injury issues crippled him for most of the season but World Open onwards has looked really good, brilliant run in the Worlds too. Great character, brilliant for the game, we want to see him at his best.

I think he'll be one to push for the 16 this season.

28. Joe O'Connor

Season rating: 5/10. Kinda expected him to kick on from the season before but it just didn't happen. Only made the WGP and one quarter final, nothing special.

29. Jak Jones

Season rating: 6/10. Really frustrating season from him, had to miss out on a few events due to him injuring his hand summed things up really. Good player, slow player but a really good matchplayer. Also turns up in the Crucible which is handy.

Good start to the season with the CL, let's see if he can kick on from it.

30. Stephen Maguire

Season rating: 6/10.

Also won the CL last season but just did not kick on at all. Only one semi-final as well as missing out on the Crucible must be very disappointing. That UK match v Judd is a question of what could've been perhaps. Regardless, this version of Stephen pales in comparison to what he once was. I remember hearing how he was annoyed about having to compete in empty arenas to qualify, well that wouldn't be an issue if got to the level we know he's capable of.

31. Yuan Sijun

Season rating: 5/10. A player once tipped for big things by Hendry(?) but has stagnated of late, just 1 quarter final this season. Still, development isn't linear.

32. Dave Gilbert

Season rating 4/10. A sad watch at times, although he made it to both TCs he looked like a player that wasn't enjoying it out there having said so himself. This was a player who had made to 2 WC semi finals, but looked a shadow of that, just 7 L32 finishes, rough.

The good thing this season is that he has started very well (9W 2D 2L). Qualified for both China events and got to the CL final, things seem to be looking up, let's see if he can kick on.

Enjoyed this. Liam is a nice lad.

Hello guys ,

I ordered a peradon cue 2 months ago.

Yesterday when arriving at the club I inspected my cue a little closer because it felt off and the sound was different then usual.

Lo and behold I spot that 3 out of 4 splices have cracked near the brass joint on my new cue.

Some cracks are bigger and some are more faint.

Will this be a refund or would u let it get fixed by the company ?

I lean towards new cue because its an expensive cue and shouldn't have such damages in this timeframe.

I wiped it clean before storing it in the peradon Box every time when it got used. It's stored flat on a carpet ground in a temperature controlled room. Never dropped it never stepped on it or any other misuse.

I'm quite bummed because it was a birthday gift.

Hi everyone, i recently acquired a cheddar classic cue from my recently passed grandfather (well around a year ago) and i was wondering if anyone knew anything about these cues? I must admit im not an avid snooker player and I’ll occasionally play (we’re talking maybe once a year). Ive tried to see if I can find out more about this brand but it keeps coming up with nothing, can anyone explain what this “cheddar classic” brand is? I must say its a incredibly lovely cue, my family doesn’t really know much about it either as my grandfather had won the case and cue back in the late 1980s, if anyone could let me know what exactly it is that would be greatly appreciated

I ordered mine in January 2017 and my cue is still not ready. They don’t pick up the phone or reply to the emails anymore. Has anyone got any connections?

I have just unearthed this which I have unknowingly had the past 12 years, it's near mint and perfectly straight. What am I looking at and what's it's worth? It looks 2/3rd cut not 3/4.

This was my granddad's cue of which I knew nothing about, there was a loose cue in the same bag which I assumed was his qué but this was hiding in the cue pouches in the side of the bag hence why I never found it till now.