By Elliott West
Introduction
Situated in Harlow, Essex lies one of the most vibrant snooker clubs in Great Britain. It is of course JP’s Snooker Club, owned by the former professional snooker player and a friend of the late and dearly missed Paul Hunter, Jason Pegram. A club where juniors, amateurs and professionals flock to practice on the numerous snooker tables that this establishment offers or the numerous competitions and exhibitions that Jason and his team tirelessly host.
The Man Himself
Jason Pegram was a fine professional in his time, born in 1971 and turning professional in 1991, he spent seven seasons on the main tour, a regular throughout the 1990s with his biggest single win coming when he reached the semi-finals of the 1995 WPBSA Minor Tour -Event 4, a tournament played in Helsinki, Finland. Pegram defeated Steve Lemmens in the quarter-finals 5-3 before losing to Colin Morton 3-5. However, he did take home £1,850 of the £22,550 total prize fund.
A player who won 86 of his matches and lost 101, Jason once made the snooker headlines when he was witnessed making two 147 breaks on consecutive days in practice at the Phoenix Snooker Centre in Harlow. An amazing feat to see once but twice is certainly a very treasured piece of snooker history. A contrast to today where he jokes, he loses his nerve when his break reaches 90. I am sure a few players would be happy to get up to just that score but Pegram still has a few gallons left in the tank because when you get to professional level, you never lose, especially not in practice.
A Hive of Activity
JP’s Snooker Club is a powerhouse for snooker, providing league pool and snooker and various darts’ competitions. Luke Pinches, the son of the professional player Barry, recently won a junior tournament here earlier in October 2021, defeating Alex Clenshaw 4-3 in the final. The club also hosts a very special event each year, holding a charity day in Paul Hunter’s memory and this year they raised £8,200 for the Kirkwood Hospice where Paul spent the last days of his life. An event that is brilliantly organised and run by my dear friend, Curtis Braithwaite and Geoff Williams. The club also has a charity golf day event for Paul as well and both are hugely supported by the snooker community with a lot of players donating their time to help the cause, including Stuart Bingham, Joe Perry and Mark King with the familiar faces of Gary Filtness and Patsy Fagan turning up too.
Like the late Ron Gross’s club, JP’s has a large board next to the snooker room in the bar area, which displays a fluctuating list of highest breaks with everyone’s eyes on who will take that top spot of that treasured 147 break?
Summary
The JP Snooker Club in Harlow is highly respected in the world of snooker and Jason Pegram does a fantastic job in successfully maintaining a club that is full of life, laughs and a place where people come and just have a drink or take part in one of the many activities that the club provides. Whether it is snooker, pool or darts, this is definitely on the recommendation list and somewhere where you leave in high spirits, knowing that you have had a good afternoon or evening out.
