IT's already big in Boston and Brooklyn and it could get bigger still - in Burnley!

For the East Lancashire township, once the domain of snooker, billiards, darts and dominoes, is now a hot bed for American Pool.

Burnley boasts the UK's number eight (and rising) "Fast" Glenn Stevenson, while locally-based cue-masters Rileys are a driving force behind the sport nationwide.

Glenn reckons the game is "ready to explode" while Rileys continue to pump up the sponsorship volume.

So what's all the fuss about?

It's accepted that Yanks tend to be bigger, bolder and brasher than their more reserved cousins this side of the Atlantic and, true to form, American (nine-ball) Pool is bigger, faster and louder than the game you are used to playing down the Fork and Giblet on a Friday night.

Everything about it, in fact: the table is larger, the pockets are wider, the balls are bigger, the cues are fatter and heavier and with a wider tip.

In short it's a whole new ball game. Burnley-based Glenn, a snooker professional for the last six years and manager of the Top Break Snooker Club on Elm Street, has jumped straight in at the deep end and clawed his way to a Top 10 GB ranking.

"The next two to three years are crucial for the sport here, but all the signs are that the thing is set to explode," he says.

"People like Steve Knight, the UK number one, now get recognised around the world, so Britain is starting to develop a name for itself in the sport."

As is Glenn - albeit not yet on the global stage.

As a snooker player, the best he ever achieved was a 301st in the official GB rankings. But as a leading light in nine-ball pool he is now ranked eighth.

"It's notoriously difficult to break into big time snooker and at 31-year-old I'm a little over the hill by professional standards, but I've got years to go in nine ball pool. Some of the top American players are in their early 50's, so I'm not even at my peak yet."

But be warned. Just because the pockets are bigger doesn't mean it's a cinch.

"It's not as easy as it looks. People think it looks easy on TV and I must admit I did at first. That was until I played it - it took me a good few tournaments to get into it, and I know snooker professionals who can't get past the first few rounds in a competitive game."

But some English players have been quick to catch on.

"Alison Fisher is a former ladies world number one snooker champion," says Glenn.

"She packed up and moved to the US to take up the game full time about three years ago. Now she's the world number one American Pool player, and a multi-millionaire to boot."

Fast and furious, it's not about tactics so much as rapid-fire potting. In fact, Glenn reckons that you can win a game without the opponent leaving his seat, and players regularly do. That's half the fun, and million dollar spot prizes are often offered for players who manage it. The game's popularity has rocketed since Sky TV picked up on the game several years ago, but despite its links with the North West it's taken its time to catch on north of Watford.

Glenn: "It's more popular in the South, don't ask me why. But there are more and more tables being installed in the North West. Places like Manchester, Blackpool and Preston all have specialist halls, and Route Nine on Darwen Street in Blackburn also specialise."

There are currently just 128 UK professionals in the game - the same as there used to be in snooker before they threw the doors open to the public.

Rileys have not been slow on the uptake: "American pool is the fastest growing sector in the leisure market," says sales and marketing director Mark Foxley. "We declared an interest five years ago, after snooker it was the logical development, and now we are market leaders. Along with the sponsorship, we supply tables, equipment and even print logos onto cloth."

Glenn's next chance to climb the ratings comes later this month in the Riley-backed London Tour (round six) at Clapham.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.