Contrary to popular assumption, getting involved with a sport in the UAE doesn’t always involve sprinting up and down the Corniche dripping with sweat, or hurtling around Yas Marina Circuit at break-neck speed. For those not blessed with speed or lightning-fast reactions (or who like to take their time weighing up the options and contemplating the next move – preferably in an air-conditioned venue with speedy food and beverage service), there are many appealing options, including the ever-popular sport of pool.
According to the World Pool-Billiard Association’s first 2012 report, interest in the sport is increasing in the Middle East, and it is hoping to hold more major events in the region in the future. But judging by the consistently busy pool tables dotted around the various venues in Abu Dhabi, the UAE has had a love affair with the sport for far longer than the previously WPA might have realised.
At the moment your best options for playing a frame or two are populare hangouts and sports bars such as NRG at Le Meredien, Rock Bottom Café and Ally Pally Corner. Hardcore pool fans, and anyone desperate to learn a thing or two before sharking around town might be interested in spending a weekend in Dubai to visit the recently opened Shooters Billiards Café in Dubai Marina. Though the venue doesn’t offer a formal teaching programme, when we called and explained that we had a hankering to learn the basics of the billiard hall, owner Fawaz Wazwaz was more than happy to accommodate our amateur request.
When we poked our head around the door the following Sunday afternoon, we were greeted like an old friend and introduced to Fawaz’s younger brother Rod, who Fawaz explained is a far more accomplished pool player, hence will make a better teacher for our short tutorial. To start, he explained that ‘billiards’ is another word for cue sports, and isn’t confined to one particular kind. A billiards hall will usually house both pool and snooker tables, just like Shooters does.
As Rod led us to one of the pool tables, Fawaz reappeared with a smile to hand over a pink cue, before disappearing again as we got started. Once Rod had finished racking up the balls in a triangle, he leaned down and with a short, sharp tap of the white ball, performed a clean break. Two balls rolled into the pockets, and Rod told us that regardless of whether he had potted solid or striped balls, he could still choose which balls he would like to continue playing. Upon discovering he had potted solids, however, he opted for stripes to give us an easy first run.
Taking our first shot, he instructed us to rest our cue on our left hand on the table, and hold the back end of the cue lower down in our right hand. Our first shot was abysmal. ‘Did you notice how you jumped up at the end?’ he asked. ‘You did this…’ Rod straightened his back sharply from bending over the table. ‘Try staying low.’ His advice, though it sounds simple, turns out to be surprisingly good. On our next shot, we hit the cue ball exactly where we intended to and, to our relief, it smashed one of the coloured balls straight into the side pocket.
While we managed to hit a few more good shots during our short lesson, we won’t be signing up for any tournaments just yet. But if we’re looking for a night of social, air-conditioned fun that we can get away with calling ‘sport’ without breaking a sweat, a game of pool is likely to be on our list this summer.
Shooters Billiards Café, Open daily 10am-3am, Dubai Marina (04 368 5645).
