Gisborne Cosmopolitan Club Snooker Adjunct past president Steve Wood says the club’s snooker room and tables have long been highly regarded in New Zealand snooker circles.
The Taylor’s Handyman Builders Gisborne Masters attracted 48 players from all over the country, and Gisborne hospitality drew many compliments.
The snooker room was purpose-built when the Cosmopolitan Club was built in the 1980s.
“There’s good space between the tables,” Wood said. “You can just about have two people playing back to back.
“Someone is paid to look after the tables, which are brushed and ironed regularly. They are sprinkled with water and ironed just before a tournament.
“Some of the tables are nearly 100 years old, and were shifted from the old Cossie Club in Peel Street.
“We try to recloth them every three and a half to four years. We do them all at once so they are all pretty consistent.”
Wood said it cost well over $10,000 to recloth all eight full-size snooker tables and four 8-ball tables. It made economic sense to do them all in one go. Some tables were used more often, so had more wear. Sometimes the cloths on the least-used snooker tables were taken off, turned over and used to recloth the pool tables.
Darren Manthey (Tokoroa). Dan Dowden (Hamilton). John Macmillan (Tokoroa), Kevin Moore (Petone).
Kevin Whynn (Waihi). Busby Akuhata (Gisborne).
George Corney (New Plymouth). Jeff Trass (Kerikeri).
Les Bryon (Gisborne). John Baldwin (Waipawa).
Rob Elvin (Taupo) 51. Karen Trass (Kerikeri) 80.
