[jdietrich]

If it really is a matter of attention span, then I wonder why snooker remains so popular in the UK and is growing rapidly in China, Germany and elsewhere. The game attracts global TV audiences and sponsorships that dwarf any form of pool, in spite of being longer, slower and more difficult to understand.

Are Americans uniquely impatient? Are American TV networks lousy at presenting billiards? Is pool just inherently boring?

[mrbrandonking]

Good observation. I wondered the same thing when someone else commented that most people are uninterested in watching pool on TV. Yet snooker is a big hit on TV in the UK, as you point-out.

I think that, historically, snooker became popular on TV in the UK because the BBC started airing the weekly "Pot Black" series to showcase their early color broadcasts. The green cloth and different colored balls looked great!

Makes sense when you consider that snooker, while still enormously popular, has also seen a decline from its 1980's high point. Color TV isn't much of a novelty anymore.

[mrbrandonking]

Your second point about American TV networks and pool is also true. Commentary is usually provided by some vacuous talking head who's never played pool before, gets excited about simple shots yet remains oblivious to the subtleties that actually make-up great play, like cue-ball positioning or safety-play. If you're lucky, there might be an inarticulate former pro to provide color commentary.

That's why one of the things that stands-out about the 1966 video clip posted earlier is how unusually competent the commentator was! Announcer was "Whispering" Joe Wilson.