Three members of the same Dunfermline family will compete to become Scotland’s number one pool player this weekend.
It must be strange playing in a national championship which is named after your dad, especially when he’s competing in it too.
Ross McInnes (69) has been world champion five times, and Scottish champion 13 times. His son Preston (18) recently became Scottish under 18s champion, and his other son Morgan looks to retain his current position as Scottish Open champion.
It won’t be a problem If family games ever become heated, as Ross's wife and the boys' mother is the world’s first female snooker referee, and former European pool champion Michaela Tabb.
Tomorrow is the beginning of the Scottish Pool Association Bellhaven Ross McInnes Scottish Open, which will last until Sunday.
Morgan said: “My dad has won basically everything there is to win in pool, so you can ask him lots of questions.
“I practice with my brother, but we’re not competitive with each other. If anything, we’re kind of on the same team.
“It’s probably been easier for him because when he started playing, I already had my table at the Ballroom in Dunfermline. That meant he had free practice from the get-go.
“He’s improving all the time, and he just captained the under 18s Scotland team in Malta at the world championships as well.”
Morgan practices at the Ball Room in Dunfermline city centre. He said: “I can’t thank them enough to be honest. I’ve got my own space to practice with my family, but nobody else gets on the table so it’s always in good condition.
“Practice is going well, and I had some coaching last night from a guy called Allan Reynolds. He’s probably the best pool coach in the UK, and luckily, he only stays in Rosyth."
“I always play a bit of snooker prior to pool competitions. You need a better cue action for snooker, so to get any reaction your timing needs to be better, whereas on the pool table anybody can move the ball around because it’s much smaller. It makes the hardest shots in pool much simpler.
The family certainly aren’t short of equipment, as Morgan works at his mum’s recently opened cue-sports shop in Rosyth. Ms Tabb said: “To have both of my children playing, and at a very high standard, it’s full on. I don’t know how we find time to work.”
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