Pool ace Chris Melling has called on everyone involved in the sport to turn detective and find his treasured cue which was stolen during a tournament last week.

He has offered a £500 reward to anyone who can find the cue which was taken from Brighton's Hilton Hotel during an 8-Ball tournament.

"I had played one round which ended at 7pm and was due on the table for my next game at 10pm and left my cue under the staging for the event where all the players leave them.

"When I went back to play again it was gone - I couldn't believe it," Chris said.

C hris, 25, was playing in the final Strachan International Tour event and had just booked his place in the final stages of the competition, beating Carl Clack 7-4.

After the theft of his cue he lost 7-6 to Andy Cross in the last 16 of the event.

The 100-year-old cue was given to him early in his career and is thought to be unique.

"Must professional cues weigh about 17 or 18 ounces, but mine was just 12oz and was a crucial part of my game.

"It is so unusual anybody involved in the game will know it was mine - and the case was covered in stickers. Even if they try to peel them off my name is still on the lid," he said.

Chris used the cue when he twice won the Embassy World Pool Championship in 2001 and 2003, when he was crowned World Junior Champion and in numerous tournaments around the world from Las Vegas to China.

"It is a vital part of my game and it is not easy to adjust to a new cue. Top Canadian snooker player Alain Robidoux dropped from the top ten to 300 in the rankings after his cue was broken.

"Everyone in the game has been very good, and I have been given a £700 cue, but I desperately want mine back. I just hope it comes back to me in one piece," he said.

Police have been checking video footage from the hotel which shows two youths leaving with the cue.

"There were a couple of lads watching my games all weekend but they weren't seen again after the cue disappeared," he said.

The Keighley player has a tremendous following among pool players world wide and he has called on his fans to watch out for the cue in pubs, clubs and snooker halls throughout the country.

He is currently working alongside snooker star Jimmy White staging exhibition events around the country.

Last week they were in Ireland and met Rolling Stone guitarist Ronnie Wood and U2 front man Bono during their exhibition schedule.

"My career is really going well at the moment and I am having a fantastic time, but having my cue stolen like this has been a major blow."

Chris started his career in the pool halls of Keighley and won almost every trophy in the Cross Hills and district snooker league before turning professional.

Last year he also played on the main snooker tour and was aiming to work his way back into the top rankings, but is now spending long hours on the table with his new cue - and hoping that his old one is returned.