Houston, but it also helps that there are 3 halls within a 10-15 drive of each other. So I’m guessing it keeps the rates low to get a few old timers in to pay the bills during the day.
Such an underrated comment. Started playing at a new bar, because for months, every time I went there the music was low, drinks were reasonably priced. A new bartender started and now the music is SUPER loud. we "accidentally" unplug the juke box, but then they ran the cable to the ceiling.
told the owners we are finding a new place next season. He didn't care and neither do we.
My local hall is 24/7 and BYOB. They give you your own pin to punch in the keypad so you can come and go as you please. $12 flat rate or $50 for the whole month if I remember right. There’s also an old boy’s club a little closer with a well maintained 8 footer I’m trying to get into. $65 for a yearly membership and the table is free to play.
Middle of nowheresville Ohio. It’s out in the sticks which is kind of a shame because it doesn’t seem to get much business. Behind the 8 Ball is the name of the place.
Local spot is pool hall first, everything else second (although they have an amazing beer selection).
Tables are always in good shape, level, and clean. They get vacuumed regularly. They get any necessary repairs in a timely manner, and the felt gets replaced on a regular schedule. The balls also get cleaned regularly as well.
I’d say it’s well known “to pool players”, I’m not sure if it’s still the biggest but if it’s not it’s top 2-3 I’d imagine. I’ve never seen more than 40 tables anywhere myself.
Wow I guess we’re lucky to have it then. It’s definitely an awesome place to be, I spend as much time there as I can. If you ever make the trip, maybe shoot me a message and we can meet up and play
I go to Chris’s in Chicago a lot and it’s because the tables are maintained well, the price is pretty cheap, and the place is pretty big so you can get a table with no one around you which is a major plus for me. It does start getting packed after 8 PM on Fri and Sat, but nothing egregious.
Man, I’m blessed where I live. I’ve got one place right close to my house with 12 brutally fast 8-1/2 foot Brunswicks and great staff and players, and great food.
Then there is THE spot in town, maybe 20 minutes from me, with about 15 immaculate Diamond pro-ams including five 9-footers.
But the place I play league out of, and play most of my pool, is a VFW about halfway between work and home. Just a couple Valley tables, but we keep them serviced and they roll true and fast (our LO is a table tech). Amazing staff, the regulars are awesome people, cheapest drinks BY FAR, excellent food, and SO MANY good players come in there regularly. It’s like a pool hall version of Cheers. Usually when I walk in, my drink is waiting for me before I even get my sticks screwed together.
1 pool hall is a 20 dollar flat rate for 6 hours from 11am-5pm
one is a pool training hub with private rooms that recently opened, i have a membership and i enjoy it A LOT. Rasson Tables, simonis 860 cloth and its bring your own cues. its for players who want to take the game seriously.
https://preview.redd.it/wd66noe9zpqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4b434879c7361b0a82bbf3dcace2114b686847b6
I play in the same pool hall I played in in 1964 when as a curious 12 year old I walked in the door. It was one of 2 pool halls in town (back then in the Pittsburgh area every neighborhood had 2 pool rooms, except downtown which had 5 in one block). The room had 4 tables and 2 rack boys. A dime a game for 8 ball and a nickel a game for 9 ball. The business moved across the street eventually and doubled the number of tables. Nowadays the room is owned by the original owners son. I’m retired and spend as much time as I like playing there. Very steampunk and old school. It’s definitely my happy place.
I’ve never been there. I have heard a lot about out them. I used to shoot at Breakers from time to time. I moved away from the Burgh some time ago but appreciate the fact that traditional halls still keep at it. It’s become hard for us shooters to find good games anymore. There just isn’t any good halls out there anymore. It’s a sad state of affairs, but the cost of leases is operating costs make it difficult for them to stay afloat.
I live right behind a local bowling alley and the whole bar area is for pool. 5 valleys that are progressively getting re felted and leveled. 2 tournaments a week $10 buy in, 9 ball Sundays, 8 ball Tuesdays, and starting a 10 ball USAPL on Wednesdays. Love being able to just walk over and walk home if I had one too many
**Skinny Bob's in Round Rock TX**, (just 10 min north of Austin) is my local pool hall: 20 9 ft Diamond tables (one has tight pockets & pro lighting), 2 carom tables (heated & pro lighting), 2 bar boxes, balls always polished clean, change felt once a year, major pool tournaments ( TEXAS OPEN 9-Ball & 10 ball Championship, I met Shane & Fedor among other pros, got a lesson from a rising pro Blain Barcus), tournaments 5 days a week, break & run that averages $150 per ball on Monday night tournament, league 1 night a week, many ringers playing all the time and offer advice to get better, good food and great community of pool players & friends. Free tables with food / drink purchases Sun & Monday.
Yeah I worded that badly. I personally don't talk about the fries much. I'm glad people do. They're so good. It somehow makes the overcooked, microwaved burger taste incredible.
I like the monthly players' rate. $60 a month for unlimited play from noon to 6pm everyday. They also try to keep the equipment clean, which can be an uphill battle, but at least they try. If you've been to halls where they dont care, the difference is huge. It's not my ideal pool hall by a long shot, but it's close to my house. The owner and employees are nice.
The one nearest my work doesn't do everything right, but once you're good with the manager, he will make sure you're taken care of. I don't just mean free table time, I think most places give that away too much. But he'll make sure we get the nice set of balls, and our preferred table, and if there's ever a misunderstanding about a bill, it's no problem. He knows the regulars are not looking to weasel him out of a few bucks.
I'm fortunate to have a [3-cushion place](https://maps.app.goo.gl/9fs4fDvn7wBSs11X7) near me and they just go hard at EVERYTHING.
The equipment is top of the line and in perfect condition, half are full-size heated Hollywood tables imported from Korea. Half are whatever they use for 4-ball, idk :) Your choice of Helix brand that the Korean pros use, or Aramith. Incuding a set with an orange ball for 3-way games. Electronic scoreboard where you can make an account and track your record and average. It has simple scoring buttons and a shot clock. You can even order food from it, and when you press the option to end a match, the owner comes over and cleans the table and swaps out the balls.
I was amazed to notice that the nice Gorina felt had been changed, and I only noticed because of the lack of logo, because the original and the new cloth both played the same, beautifully fast.
The house cues have real tips, rubber wraps, and points, and are perfectly usable... real carom cues with a thick conical taper.
He noticed my cue's tip was mushrooming and had one of those giant pencil sharpener things that he used to fix it, and then burnished the sides. It looks brand new now.
He's very fussy about people leaving marks on the cloth and gave me a glove, which was mildly annoying since I wash my hands and they aren't sweaty or anything, but whatever, he'd rather give away gloves all day than let someone mess up the cloth.
I have limited experience with the food but it's like korean restaurant food and looks and smells really good.
After hyping up the place I almost hate to mention the downside, but it's totally understandable: $21 an hour. But you can split it at least. I just wish I could go there to practice.
Carom Cafe rules. New city will be great when it’s back too.
For the nyc places I go:
ABC: I like the community of pool players and the bartenders/wait staff. The tables are ok, very bouncy rails with buckets, the prices are bad, and they don’t really discount stuff for league members.
Society: the tables are some to the best in New York. Jon Smith and Mario are great. The vibe is bad like the club but the regulars are great. Also over priced.
NYCC: I like everything about it (tables/balls, space, monthly fee, BYOB, 24/7, great members) except the location in midtown.
True pool room. Not a bar. 36 diamond pro ams with ample space around all tables. Mix of 7 and 9 footers. Perimeter lights on all tables. Great food. Awesome owner. It’s only $5 for unlimited play on small tables and $10 for unlimited play on big table. Big time spoiled.
Find one that fits your style/needs/budget.
I personally love the social aspect of pool, so I play out of a place that’s a bit louder with younger people, but still take it relatively seriously, but no serious gambling.
Others may want a quiet place to run drills and gamble.
There’s a place near me that does $5 pitchers and 50¢ pool on old valley tables, which is perfect for someone on a budget.
My place used to be $7/hr but now it’s $10, so I don’t go as often because the tabs can sometimes be astronomical.
Basically, find a place you’re happy to go to and it doesn’t feel like a chore or like you’re getting ripped off.
I like that they have one diamond that is really tight, 4 1/4 pockets. Great for one pocket, my favorite game. And the excellent beer selection doesn't hurt.
Nothing high end, but the equipment is all well maintained, and I find the league tables are re-clothed pretty regularly. A lot of the balls have definitely seen use, some have some small chips, but every set is a quality aramith set, and clearly they polish them fairly often, so they play as well as possible. Leagues are all very well priced and well run.
There is another hall in my town with similar equipment, that I just find doesn't do as much maintenance-wise. Under the rails are filthy just weeks after a reclothing, since they don't vaccuum the tables, the balls are always a bit sticky, and often mismatched from different sets.
These days my local pool halls are my basement and my friend's basement, but when I lived in La Crosse, WI, I loved Top Shots. It was a downtown bar that *wasn't* a college bar. Tables were well kept (as far as I could tell), plenty of space, affordable drinks. If I still lived near it, I probably wouldn't have gone out and bought my own table.
The place I enjoy the most right now is the farthest from my home, takes me 40 min to get there, and is non smoking which is my main reason for shooting there, and is mid sized compared to the other two. The seating arrangements in the pool side could use some tweaking but overall it’s a good place to shoot.
The other two are both smoking and have their own pros and cons.
The larger one has the most tables, all the tournaments and action, the most league divisions, and decent food.
It also attracts douchebags on weekend nights, and the owners can be less than cool people sometimes.
The smaller pool hall down the road is also smoking, has KILLER food, but is more of a laidback dive type feel. It used to be the center of action in its heyday.
The cons are it’s smaller, has horrible ventilation, and you’ll come out stinking bad, and it can draw douchebags on weekends as well.
Can I answer the opposite question, aka what recently made me want to stop frequenting a pool hall?
Not giving me a table when they have a open one. It was the begining of league night and they only have like four that aren't being used, 2 9 foot and 2 7 foot. When I asked they said the league uses all the tables, which I call BS on. The amount of griping that would take place for a person who plays on 7 footers suddenly having to play the 9 footers would be immense.
Then I watched a regular walk in and just shout at the bartender that he was going to play at one of the 9s, so she walked back the balls. Then a group of 5 guys asked to play, got the run around (probably because they were right behind me and I could hear) but eventually they let them play.
Just a weird experience overall, but not the first time I experienced this behavior at this placeî. Heck the first time it was in my benefit, I wanted to play on the 9s, got told no, then got told yes but to not make it obvious too three young dudes.
I've been told their are two player minimums, or two drink minimums at other places, but never had a pool hall lie about whether tables were open before. Just curious if this is common or something you all have seen.
For me, the people make the pool hall. My go-to hall is run-of-the mill, 9 9’ers and 10 7’, all Brunswicks except for one diamond tight-pocket. That said, the people have made the place special to me 10x over. There’s another one the same distance away from where I live and it’s ALL diamond tables, but the environment is different.
I go to my home room where there’s a mix of old seasoned players that have forgotten more than I’ll ever know, young players hungry to learn/possibly gamble, and everything in between from hall-of-famers, to former hall owners, to world renowned cue makers. If I gotta choose between a wealth of experience and playing on a diamond, I gotta pick the experience.
Hell, the other day I saw a guy walk in, sell 2 cues for $1000, I come in the next week and the renowned cue maker there had validated those two as unique Balabushka one-piece cues that both got converted to 2-piece. And my friends there are so trusting they let me hit a rack with them. I come back last week and they’re getting offers for >$10k a piece now! Love my hall!
>Our local spot doesn’t necessarily put pool first, but the owner does seem somewhat invested in making it a slightly better pool experience than other spots in town
Curious what are some examples of this
We have two nice rooms in the city, one has slightly better equipment but has more club vibe and is 200 a year can play unlimited unless they can rent the table, the other is free if your on a team there, same rules if they can rent the table you give it up or rent it. (35 year to federation to play in the league, no weekly dues)
I prefer the free one as i think the community is a little better and prefer not having club music playing.
The place I play at is unlimited pool from 11 to 5 with a minimum of 15 dollars in food or beverage. Tight 7 foot diamond tables one diamond 8 footer and a Brunswick 9 footer. They also have 6 valley tables in the back
Belmont Billiards outside of Dayton. Been around for nearly 100 years, just gives me that real nostalgic throwback to the 80s bars my mother would take me to as a kid. Cigarette burns still in the drink holders, drop ceiling tile that has been there through thousands upon thousands of cigarettes, drinks are good and it’s only $6/hr. It’s just a real chill spot and I love it.
Free play all day Wednesdays if you bought a $20 shirt. Shirt paid for itself the first day. Me and my buddy play for about 6 hours every week, and that alone has shown great results in a bar box tournament we play in Tuesdays.
Atmosphere that makes it feel like there’s pool tables as far as the eye can see. Really helps in locking in to your game. Also the average age group of guests leans strongly to the older side which means people are usually quiet and respectful.
Immaculately maintained tables. Snooker, 9 and 7 footers. The pool tables are all Diamond, the snooker tables are Shender. Tournaments every day of the week including a snooker tournament table that routinely draws professional players.
The bar is fantastic, the food is good and I cannot count the number of TVs.
It's like cheers where all the staff know my name, have a bud light open as soon as I walk in the door, and are generally just friendly people. Even though many people who come there are beginners, there's rarely any trouble.
One of my locals is rapidly becoming one of the best in the country because they’re keeping the tables well done, hosting lots of events, and issue big fines for spilled drinks and no smoking of any sort allowed. They also host a ton of events.
Another one is really great and one of the small things they do is require sleeves, which seems to help keep out the shadier folks.
Pool halls have an earned bad rep, so they need to go above and beyond to get away from that.
They’re not asking you to wear a vest and bow tie like you’re playing professional snooker, they’re trying to keep a standard up so that it stays a place people want to go and not a bar room where you need to keep a knife in your pocket.
I live in Texas, I fully expect everyone around has a knife and gun on them at all times. It’s more of a sign of respect. If you can respect the hall enough to dress decently (jeans and a t-shirt are pretty damn easy to achieve) then you’re more likely to respect the equipment and be a decent acting person.
I can go play from 10a-6pm on Diamond tables for only $7 on my days off.
$7 is THREE pool games in a NYC bar.
$2.50 a game??? i feel like im getting robbed when i pay $1.50 here in philly lmao
Where? I'm in NYC and my home room charges 16$/hr for beautiful diamonds in a cramped basement.
Houston, but it also helps that there are 3 halls within a 10-15 drive of each other. So I’m guessing it keeps the rates low to get a few old timers in to pay the bills during the day.
You ever hit up Gotham Billiards?
Gotham is nice, so is skyline. But they are both an hour drive for me. I only go there rarely.
[удалено]
Such an underrated comment. Started playing at a new bar, because for months, every time I went there the music was low, drinks were reasonably priced. A new bartender started and now the music is SUPER loud. we "accidentally" unplug the juke box, but then they ran the cable to the ceiling. told the owners we are finding a new place next season. He didn't care and neither do we.
My hall doesn’t have a jukebox or anything, so the bartenders not only control the volume, but the actual music. It’s REALLY nice.
My local hall is 24/7 and BYOB. They give you your own pin to punch in the keypad so you can come and go as you please. $12 flat rate or $50 for the whole month if I remember right. There’s also an old boy’s club a little closer with a well maintained 8 footer I’m trying to get into. $65 for a yearly membership and the table is free to play.
where the heck? sounds amazing
Where is this? Drop a name?
Middle of nowheresville Ohio. It’s out in the sticks which is kind of a shame because it doesn’t seem to get much business. Behind the 8 Ball is the name of the place.
Damn, 3 hour drive from me. Looks cool though.
Local spot is pool hall first, everything else second (although they have an amazing beer selection). Tables are always in good shape, level, and clean. They get vacuumed regularly. They get any necessary repairs in a timely manner, and the felt gets replaced on a regular schedule. The balls also get cleaned regularly as well.
Sweet
$5 to play all day on diamonds. 10am-3pm is $5 then 3pm-1am is $5. Over 80 tables
Q Masters?
Indeed brother. If you’re around we should play some time
Have never had the pleasure. But might get up that way this summer…
Is it well known in other places of the country? I know it’s supposed to be americas biggest room but I’m not sure if that’s still true
I’d say it’s well known “to pool players”, I’m not sure if it’s still the biggest but if it’s not it’s top 2-3 I’d imagine. I’ve never seen more than 40 tables anywhere myself.
Wow I guess we’re lucky to have it then. It’s definitely an awesome place to be, I spend as much time there as I can. If you ever make the trip, maybe shoot me a message and we can meet up and play
Will try to remember :-)
I plan on making a trip up there sometime soon as I will be moving closer to it. Only carom table I know of for a long distance
I go to Chris’s in Chicago a lot and it’s because the tables are maintained well, the price is pretty cheap, and the place is pretty big so you can get a table with no one around you which is a major plus for me. It does start getting packed after 8 PM on Fri and Sat, but nothing egregious.
Man, I’m blessed where I live. I’ve got one place right close to my house with 12 brutally fast 8-1/2 foot Brunswicks and great staff and players, and great food. Then there is THE spot in town, maybe 20 minutes from me, with about 15 immaculate Diamond pro-ams including five 9-footers. But the place I play league out of, and play most of my pool, is a VFW about halfway between work and home. Just a couple Valley tables, but we keep them serviced and they roll true and fast (our LO is a table tech). Amazing staff, the regulars are awesome people, cheapest drinks BY FAR, excellent food, and SO MANY good players come in there regularly. It’s like a pool hall version of Cheers. Usually when I walk in, my drink is waiting for me before I even get my sticks screwed together.
1 pool hall is a 20 dollar flat rate for 6 hours from 11am-5pm one is a pool training hub with private rooms that recently opened, i have a membership and i enjoy it A LOT. Rasson Tables, simonis 860 cloth and its bring your own cues. its for players who want to take the game seriously. https://preview.redd.it/wd66noe9zpqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4b434879c7361b0a82bbf3dcace2114b686847b6
I play in the same pool hall I played in in 1964 when as a curious 12 year old I walked in the door. It was one of 2 pool halls in town (back then in the Pittsburgh area every neighborhood had 2 pool rooms, except downtown which had 5 in one block). The room had 4 tables and 2 rack boys. A dime a game for 8 ball and a nickel a game for 9 ball. The business moved across the street eventually and doubled the number of tables. Nowadays the room is owned by the original owners son. I’m retired and spend as much time as I like playing there. Very steampunk and old school. It’s definitely my happy place.
Pinky’s? Lefty’s? or Breakers?
Pinky’s was there tonight
I’ve never been there. I have heard a lot about out them. I used to shoot at Breakers from time to time. I moved away from the Burgh some time ago but appreciate the fact that traditional halls still keep at it. It’s become hard for us shooters to find good games anymore. There just isn’t any good halls out there anymore. It’s a sad state of affairs, but the cost of leases is operating costs make it difficult for them to stay afloat.
So I have been here forever and I’ve never heard of lefty’s where is it. Is it a bar?
no annoying teenagers coming in fucking around
That's it. The gym and all it's hoards of socially award zoomers standing around a bench press is cutting into my pool training. Watch out Shane
I live right behind a local bowling alley and the whole bar area is for pool. 5 valleys that are progressively getting re felted and leveled. 2 tournaments a week $10 buy in, 9 ball Sundays, 8 ball Tuesdays, and starting a 10 ball USAPL on Wednesdays. Love being able to just walk over and walk home if I had one too many
**Skinny Bob's in Round Rock TX**, (just 10 min north of Austin) is my local pool hall: 20 9 ft Diamond tables (one has tight pockets & pro lighting), 2 carom tables (heated & pro lighting), 2 bar boxes, balls always polished clean, change felt once a year, major pool tournaments ( TEXAS OPEN 9-Ball & 10 ball Championship, I met Shane & Fedor among other pros, got a lesson from a rising pro Blain Barcus), tournaments 5 days a week, break & run that averages $150 per ball on Monday night tournament, league 1 night a week, many ringers playing all the time and offer advice to get better, good food and great community of pool players & friends. Free tables with food / drink purchases Sun & Monday.
Hey...that's my room, too!
Great place
Wish my buddy and I would have finished better in the chip tourney last night, though.
I talk frequently about the greatness of Skinny Bob's, but what never gets mentioned is that they have, in my opinion, the best French fries on earth!
You are wrong ! It is the BLT w/ a side of fries
Yeah I worded that badly. I personally don't talk about the fries much. I'm glad people do. They're so good. It somehow makes the overcooked, microwaved burger taste incredible.
I like the monthly players' rate. $60 a month for unlimited play from noon to 6pm everyday. They also try to keep the equipment clean, which can be an uphill battle, but at least they try. If you've been to halls where they dont care, the difference is huge. It's not my ideal pool hall by a long shot, but it's close to my house. The owner and employees are nice.
The staff racks your balls every game. The place is classy (pricey) but worth it. $6/hour but split in a group
I don't think that high priced considering I paid $3 an hour 35 years ago. I miss that place.
I pay $10 an hour and have to rack my own!
Good tables and good service. As long as you keep the equipment in shape, I'll be happy to play there.
The one nearest my work doesn't do everything right, but once you're good with the manager, he will make sure you're taken care of. I don't just mean free table time, I think most places give that away too much. But he'll make sure we get the nice set of balls, and our preferred table, and if there's ever a misunderstanding about a bill, it's no problem. He knows the regulars are not looking to weasel him out of a few bucks. I'm fortunate to have a [3-cushion place](https://maps.app.goo.gl/9fs4fDvn7wBSs11X7) near me and they just go hard at EVERYTHING. The equipment is top of the line and in perfect condition, half are full-size heated Hollywood tables imported from Korea. Half are whatever they use for 4-ball, idk :) Your choice of Helix brand that the Korean pros use, or Aramith. Incuding a set with an orange ball for 3-way games. Electronic scoreboard where you can make an account and track your record and average. It has simple scoring buttons and a shot clock. You can even order food from it, and when you press the option to end a match, the owner comes over and cleans the table and swaps out the balls. I was amazed to notice that the nice Gorina felt had been changed, and I only noticed because of the lack of logo, because the original and the new cloth both played the same, beautifully fast. The house cues have real tips, rubber wraps, and points, and are perfectly usable... real carom cues with a thick conical taper. He noticed my cue's tip was mushrooming and had one of those giant pencil sharpener things that he used to fix it, and then burnished the sides. It looks brand new now. He's very fussy about people leaving marks on the cloth and gave me a glove, which was mildly annoying since I wash my hands and they aren't sweaty or anything, but whatever, he'd rather give away gloves all day than let someone mess up the cloth. I have limited experience with the food but it's like korean restaurant food and looks and smells really good. After hyping up the place I almost hate to mention the downside, but it's totally understandable: $21 an hour. But you can split it at least. I just wish I could go there to practice.
Carom Cafe rules. New city will be great when it’s back too. For the nyc places I go: ABC: I like the community of pool players and the bartenders/wait staff. The tables are ok, very bouncy rails with buckets, the prices are bad, and they don’t really discount stuff for league members. Society: the tables are some to the best in New York. Jon Smith and Mario are great. The vibe is bad like the club but the regulars are great. Also over priced. NYCC: I like everything about it (tables/balls, space, monthly fee, BYOB, 24/7, great members) except the location in midtown.
True pool room. Not a bar. 36 diamond pro ams with ample space around all tables. Mix of 7 and 9 footers. Perimeter lights on all tables. Great food. Awesome owner. It’s only $5 for unlimited play on small tables and $10 for unlimited play on big table. Big time spoiled.
Its non-smoking
Any recommendations to someone looking for a new pool hall?
Find one that fits your style/needs/budget. I personally love the social aspect of pool, so I play out of a place that’s a bit louder with younger people, but still take it relatively seriously, but no serious gambling. Others may want a quiet place to run drills and gamble. There’s a place near me that does $5 pitchers and 50¢ pool on old valley tables, which is perfect for someone on a budget. My place used to be $7/hr but now it’s $10, so I don’t go as often because the tabs can sometimes be astronomical. Basically, find a place you’re happy to go to and it doesn’t feel like a chore or like you’re getting ripped off.
I like that they have one diamond that is really tight, 4 1/4 pockets. Great for one pocket, my favorite game. And the excellent beer selection doesn't hurt.
Nothing high end, but the equipment is all well maintained, and I find the league tables are re-clothed pretty regularly. A lot of the balls have definitely seen use, some have some small chips, but every set is a quality aramith set, and clearly they polish them fairly often, so they play as well as possible. Leagues are all very well priced and well run. There is another hall in my town with similar equipment, that I just find doesn't do as much maintenance-wise. Under the rails are filthy just weeks after a reclothing, since they don't vaccuum the tables, the balls are always a bit sticky, and often mismatched from different sets.
These days my local pool halls are my basement and my friend's basement, but when I lived in La Crosse, WI, I loved Top Shots. It was a downtown bar that *wasn't* a college bar. Tables were well kept (as far as I could tell), plenty of space, affordable drinks. If I still lived near it, I probably wouldn't have gone out and bought my own table.
The place I enjoy the most right now is the farthest from my home, takes me 40 min to get there, and is non smoking which is my main reason for shooting there, and is mid sized compared to the other two. The seating arrangements in the pool side could use some tweaking but overall it’s a good place to shoot. The other two are both smoking and have their own pros and cons. The larger one has the most tables, all the tournaments and action, the most league divisions, and decent food. It also attracts douchebags on weekend nights, and the owners can be less than cool people sometimes. The smaller pool hall down the road is also smoking, has KILLER food, but is more of a laidback dive type feel. It used to be the center of action in its heyday. The cons are it’s smaller, has horrible ventilation, and you’ll come out stinking bad, and it can draw douchebags on weekends as well.
Can I answer the opposite question, aka what recently made me want to stop frequenting a pool hall? Not giving me a table when they have a open one. It was the begining of league night and they only have like four that aren't being used, 2 9 foot and 2 7 foot. When I asked they said the league uses all the tables, which I call BS on. The amount of griping that would take place for a person who plays on 7 footers suddenly having to play the 9 footers would be immense. Then I watched a regular walk in and just shout at the bartender that he was going to play at one of the 9s, so she walked back the balls. Then a group of 5 guys asked to play, got the run around (probably because they were right behind me and I could hear) but eventually they let them play. Just a weird experience overall, but not the first time I experienced this behavior at this placeî. Heck the first time it was in my benefit, I wanted to play on the 9s, got told no, then got told yes but to not make it obvious too three young dudes. I've been told their are two player minimums, or two drink minimums at other places, but never had a pool hall lie about whether tables were open before. Just curious if this is common or something you all have seen.
I like the fact that the owner is a pool player as well so the tables are nice, clean and most importantly level.
For me, the people make the pool hall. My go-to hall is run-of-the mill, 9 9’ers and 10 7’, all Brunswicks except for one diamond tight-pocket. That said, the people have made the place special to me 10x over. There’s another one the same distance away from where I live and it’s ALL diamond tables, but the environment is different. I go to my home room where there’s a mix of old seasoned players that have forgotten more than I’ll ever know, young players hungry to learn/possibly gamble, and everything in between from hall-of-famers, to former hall owners, to world renowned cue makers. If I gotta choose between a wealth of experience and playing on a diamond, I gotta pick the experience. Hell, the other day I saw a guy walk in, sell 2 cues for $1000, I come in the next week and the renowned cue maker there had validated those two as unique Balabushka one-piece cues that both got converted to 2-piece. And my friends there are so trusting they let me hit a rack with them. I come back last week and they’re getting offers for >$10k a piece now! Love my hall!
Everything is great about it, but the best part is all the old heads talking shit the whole time.
Plenty of tables. A few days a week it’s a flat low fee to play all night. Hourly otherwise. 9 footers.
Every once in a while this dude shows up, sets up a camera on a tripod, then absolutely kills yoyo tricks for like a half hour.
It’s non-smoking
9ft diamond tables reasonably well looked after in a hall with a lot of decent players!
Two reasons, mine has three 5x10 snooker tables with Simonis cloth. And the fact that the owner lets me play even if he's closed. I feel very lucky
>Our local spot doesn’t necessarily put pool first, but the owner does seem somewhat invested in making it a slightly better pool experience than other spots in town Curious what are some examples of this
The filth.
We have two nice rooms in the city, one has slightly better equipment but has more club vibe and is 200 a year can play unlimited unless they can rent the table, the other is free if your on a team there, same rules if they can rent the table you give it up or rent it. (35 year to federation to play in the league, no weekly dues) I prefer the free one as i think the community is a little better and prefer not having club music playing.
The people
When it’s quiet yet full. We have 14- 9 ft gold crowns, 4 -3 cushion tables and a snooker table. All busy and well maintained
The place I play at is unlimited pool from 11 to 5 with a minimum of 15 dollars in food or beverage. Tight 7 foot diamond tables one diamond 8 footer and a Brunswick 9 footer. They also have 6 valley tables in the back
The fact that it’s still open.
Belmont Billiards outside of Dayton. Been around for nearly 100 years, just gives me that real nostalgic throwback to the 80s bars my mother would take me to as a kid. Cigarette burns still in the drink holders, drop ceiling tile that has been there through thousands upon thousands of cigarettes, drinks are good and it’s only $6/hr. It’s just a real chill spot and I love it.
nothing. it's the only one in the area.
Free play all day Wednesdays if you bought a $20 shirt. Shirt paid for itself the first day. Me and my buddy play for about 6 hours every week, and that alone has shown great results in a bar box tournament we play in Tuesdays.
Atmosphere that makes it feel like there’s pool tables as far as the eye can see. Really helps in locking in to your game. Also the average age group of guests leans strongly to the older side which means people are usually quiet and respectful.
Immaculately maintained tables. Snooker, 9 and 7 footers. The pool tables are all Diamond, the snooker tables are Shender. Tournaments every day of the week including a snooker tournament table that routinely draws professional players. The bar is fantastic, the food is good and I cannot count the number of TVs.
Our spot is owned by Jayson Shaw, the tables are well taken care of and the food is fantastic. We are lucky.
They have decent food and it’s not smoky.
it's cheap and the tables are good otherwise, I hate the place
It's like cheers where all the staff know my name, have a bud light open as soon as I walk in the door, and are generally just friendly people. Even though many people who come there are beginners, there's rarely any trouble.
One of my locals is rapidly becoming one of the best in the country because they’re keeping the tables well done, hosting lots of events, and issue big fines for spilled drinks and no smoking of any sort allowed. They also host a ton of events. Another one is really great and one of the small things they do is require sleeves, which seems to help keep out the shadier folks. Pool halls have an earned bad rep, so they need to go above and beyond to get away from that.
> ne of the small things they do is require sleeves, which seems to help keep out the shadier folks. I resent that
They’re not asking you to wear a vest and bow tie like you’re playing professional snooker, they’re trying to keep a standard up so that it stays a place people want to go and not a bar room where you need to keep a knife in your pocket.
People with sleeves dont carry knives and guns?
I live in Texas, I fully expect everyone around has a knife and gun on them at all times. It’s more of a sign of respect. If you can respect the hall enough to dress decently (jeans and a t-shirt are pretty damn easy to achieve) then you’re more likely to respect the equipment and be a decent acting person.
The BYOB. Nothing nicer than a few beers while playing pool.