Top Snooker coach David Horrix believes the future for amateur snooker at club level is looking grim if there isn't a sea-level change in attitudes when it comes to women and juniors wanting to play the game in some snooker clubs.
Horrix, who began his coaching career around the late 1970s, and devoured everything in snooker starting with Joe Davis's books, is a Head Coach at the Menstone Club in Menston, West Yorkshire. He now coaches around 40 juniors and has introduced over 100 to the great game.
But Horrix, who coaches talented young female players including World ranked 19th 15-year-old Aimee Benn on the World Ladies tour, still believes some UK clubs are not doing enough to welcome juniors and women into enjoying and play snooker.
He told me via an email Q&A: "Snooker is run well by the WPBSA - it's not how snooker is run, it's how the clubs are run that is the nub of the issue."
He added: "There are still many clubs where women are not allowed to play snooker or even enter the snooker room! People seem amazed when I say this, but it's true! There are clubs that theoretically allow women to play snooker, but the atmosphere is so intimidating that no women play snooker!"
Desire and potential recipe for success
Horrix believes that without a steady flow of juniors from the UK (male and female), the next female World Champion on the ladies tour is likely to come from overseas and not from the UK.
He said: "The ladies game is exciting and despite the huge barriers the standard is remarkable.
Reanne Evans (pictured) is by any comparison a superb player and has set a very high standard."
On the talent that Horrix is nurturing, he said the emphasis is on "enjoyment, effort, and improvement." He said to be successful at snooker, you need both ability/potential, but more importantly, desire.
In Aimee Benn, he said he sees "both" desire and effort.
Another talent he is nurturing is a girl named Krizzler Cree, 15. Although she's not ranked yet, he said he seriously believes she is another player who could be a top 5 player in a few years time. Horrix said Cree will be playing her first tournament this month in Leeds.
He believes that in the young females he is coaching there is a future World Ladies Champion, but, he said: "To be honest, the potential is meaningless without desire." He added: "Desire and effort are what I look for in players."
"There is a belief that textbook perfect technique can turn a person into a top player.
It helps of course, but you must add in 10 years of practice and match play, dedication, and a fair amount of ability."
A marathon of the mind
Horrix is currently studying a degree in psychology and wants to use what he learns into coaching his players as he said he is very keen on the mental side of the game.
He has also started penning a new book he says, which won't be out for at least a year, which will have some mental tools to help players, as well as some practical pressure drills and exercises to explore.
In the past, he has penned and collaborated on some books, including 147 Snooker Drills and Exercises with another coach Andrew Highfield, which can be viewed on Amazon.
He said: "Practicing without pressure is a recipe for failure."
You'd be amazed to know Horrix is a fan of eating Garlic (5 raw bulbs at a time) not while he is coaching though, and, also, used to be a fan of professional wrestling.
