Power Snooker is set for a return in 2019 possibly to the UK - eight years after its last appearance in 2011. The game, which saw five-times World Champion Ronnie O'Sullivan win the first edition in 2010, and then saw the Pinner potter Martin Gould win the final event in 2011, never really got off the ground. This was despite there having been 450,000 view the first edition live on ITV4 in the UK alone.

Under a new management company and chief executive of the Power Snooker Group Ltd, however, they have been slowly beavering away to put the speedy version of the game back on the map again for younger modern audiences and the digital download generation.

It was hoped that now under World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn that in 2010 Power Snooker would transform the waning popularity of the traditional game. Under the current CEO Michael Gruber, it is hoped the revamped game will not take over traditional snooker, but work alongside the traditional much-loved one and help build a younger fan base across the globe for both.

Restructuring

Gruber told me in an email Q&A: "As I understand it before we got involved, a group of people had been looking at how they could make snooker more exciting in the same way that 20/20 cricket made cricket more accessible to a wider audience. This took place around 2009-2010. With the first event taking place at London's O2 Arena in 2010, won by Ronnie O'Sullivan.

We became involved when providing all the finance for the 2011 event, won by Martin Gould, held at the Trafford Centre, Manchester in November of that year with the view that the finance raised would enable the company to put on further events."

He added: "In 2016 the new Board of Directors, with shareholders approval, looked to take the company forward by way of restructuring the company, and initially developing a digital platform.

The free Power Snooker App (Apple and Google App Stores as well as our website) is our first such creation. The second game, to be incorporated into the first app should be ready by the end of this year with possibly up to seven versions to follow over the next two to three years. Live events are under discussion and we are planning a showcase event for 2019."

There is also a push into the e-sports market in which these kinds of sports are becoming very popular of late.

How Power Snooker works

The "new" version hasn't changed - much. There are still the same rules from the 2010/11 editions, which included:

  • Nine reds in a diamond shape with at least two reds having to touch cushions on the break off shot
  • Players win by the number of points scored not how many frames won - after 30 minutes of play.
  • Players play under a 20-second shot clock rule with a penalty of 20 points if exceeded and the chance for the opponent to take over the game or let their opponent keep playing.
  • The power ball - a dark red/white ball is placed in the middle of the diamond set up and if potted, two minutes of "power play" occur where players double their scores with each ball potted.
  • The game is still played on a 12ft by 6ft table.

Demand is Great

In a previous interview, which can be found on the social network Linkedin, with an enterprise digital finance journalist, the chairman, Costas A Joannou (see video above), told Simon Chan: "There is a great demand.

That we have got the rules right for our audience and for attracting the younger generations. We have plans for the future in the form of mixed championships, not just men but ladies too. And there is the strong possibility that we will host a UK championship event later this year or in early 2019. We will carry this out on the model we have tested."

The Power Snooker Group have also introduced the unique cryptocurrency the Power Snooker Coin for the digital version of the game and this can help players buy better cues, etc.

Michael Gruber says: "In brief, we have created our own cryptocurrency which is fixed (no more can ever be created) which is supported by our business and the tangible assets to be purchased from the sale of the PSCs. The PSC is utility where purchasers of certain amounts are entitled to benefits which are listed in the Whitepaper this makes our PSC different from most cryptocurrencies.".

The CEO's personal interest in the game he said was as an "armchair spectator" but he saw the great potential in the game.

He commented: "We see Power Snooker becoming a worldwide activity alongside traditional snooker, expanding the audiences for both and providing players with another platform to exhibit their skills."

The Power Snooker website has more details.
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