How did you come to upon this game?

erhino41 · Dec 4, 2015

I have been doing a lot of thinking on how I came to love this game and how it is that anybody comes to know this game. My story goes something like this:

When I was twelve I was enrolled in tae kwon do. Every Saturday I would take lessons. I was an athletic kid and I liked tae kwon do enough, however I wasn't crazy about it, or I knew I wasn't going to do it for the rest of my life. One Saturday my mom dropped me off for a lesson but it was closed. The dojo was located in a cookie cutter small business office park in Tewksbury, Ma, a suburb of Lowell (really Boston, but back in the mill days, Lowell). It was across the hall from a newly opened pool hall, Towne Line Billiards (R.I.P.). Having twenty dollars in my pocket and no ride for at least an hour and a half I was left to my own devices. I exited the dojo and didn't know what to do. I contemplated walking home, it was only a couple of miles after all, but I heard the clicking of pool balls through the pool hall door. My ears immediately perked up. I was enamored by the sound. I opened the door and was absolutely consumed by the room. The smell, the sound, the fifteen Connelly tables laid out beautifully and the scant few die hards who were there at noon on a Saturday. I instantly knew that this would be a part of my life forever. The rest as they say is history.

I would like to know others origin stories or intros to this best of games.

I also have been thinking about how to get youths interested in this game. There seems to be no youth programs that I have seen. I was welcomed open arms into Towne Line Billiards. They had a Saturday youth league and had several players, though not world beaters, who were very eager to teach youths and welcome a new generation to this sport. I see the opposite nowadays. I see players who ridicule new comers for not knowing more than they do and make them feel like they have to earn anything that they may get. I may be wrong, but I would like to hear some ideas on how to get youths involved in this game and I look forward to hearing how you too came to love this game.

Thanks,
Eric

(((Satori))) · Dec 5, 2015

As a kid I used to go to a rec center and they had a pool table and bumper pool.

As a teenager I started hanging out at a gameroom that was like a pool hall for teenagers at night. Foosball and pool were what they had with very few video games. There were older men who would come in too during the days and for tournaments. The old men played mostly golf and were pretty good and that is where I really learned the game. They would play some nineball with me sometimes and give advice.

RiverCity · Dec 5, 2015

My grandparents watched me during the day before I started school. Problem was, they were both drunks, so we usually ended up at the bar. I would get a few quarters and a push towards the pool table. My grandpa could play, and when he saw I liked it, he showed me some stuff.

After my mom found out I was being babysat across state lines in a bar by drunks..... that stopped. I started asking dad to take me, so he started taking me to the bar. I finally found pool halls in my teen years. Was much happier, not getting puked on by an alcoholic grandpa.

:grin-square:

Bank it · Dec 5, 2015

I lived in a small town with few recreational choices. It had a pool hall though and my father was the houseman there. He did it all, ran it, cleaned it, everything. I was tasked with getting up at 4am and helping him clean the tables & such. When we finished he would make me practice for an hour and a half before school & once I hit 13 I started working there after school doing various tasks until his shift was over. Then there was another hour of practice before going home. I basically grew up in there.

Johnnyt · Dec 5, 2015

I was 8 years old in 1941 when I rode around with my Dad delivering ice to bars, meat & fish markets, homes, firehouses and special events, on Long Island, NY. He had about a dozen firehouses he served. The first firehouse I went to had a ten foot table all covered up. I asked what was under the tarp and he uncovered it. When he turned the triple overhead light on and started pocketing balls, I just sat there amazed watching him go into another world. He asked me if I wanted to take a few shots. When I saw how hard it was...I was hooked. A few years after that the bar boxes started showing up at all the bars we served ice to. Each time I rode with him he would sit at the bar at one of the last stops of the day sipping a cold one and give me 5 dimes to play pool. Johnnyt

PS:By the time I was 12, he was my stakehorse.

oldplayer · Dec 5, 2015

it was my 1st year in college (1964) and a college buddy asked me to come with him to the pool hall....never had been to one so I tagged along. I still remember walking up the creaking wood steps to the 2nd floor of a building and turning the corner to see a smoke filled room with a snooker table and 8 other tables which were 9' gold brunswick tables. the floors were wood and while shooting the floors would creak with every shot. just a classic place! I can't remember now if you called the rack boy and payed him 15 or 25 cents/rack! to my fortune, in those days you were allowed to not only smoke but put the cig on the rail while shooting! my buddy was about the best player there and he took me under his wing for the next year. played mostly straight pool and bank and on occasion 9 ball. been hooked ever since albeit 2 or 3 layoffs over the years. love the game to this day! :dance::yeah:

Island Drive · Dec 5, 2015

Grounded for two months doing stupid chit as a kid. Had a Sears pool table in the basement with a clay ball set, started to play. Dad saw I wasn't studying, sold the table when at school one day. Every.......EVERY suburb town in IL had a pool room back then, or a bowling alley/pool room.

Badbeat13 · Dec 5, 2015

My dad has always been an excellent player. I started banging
balls around with my 2 brothers on an 8' table in my grandmother's
basement at the age of 8. I took up the game and my 2 brothers
didn't. When I was 15, I started going to the poolroom with my dad
and he'd gamble pretty high. I'd play the younger crowd the whole
time we were there for hours and hours several days a week. It
just so happened that The Color of Money came out that year(1986).
Needless to say, I was hooked. By the age of 17 or 18 I could run
racks with some consistency. I've kept playing all these years, not
as often as I'd have liked some of the time. Man's gotta work, you
know? I put a 9' Diamond in my basement in August of 2000, so I
can get my feel on a daily basis. Work hours still hinder my playing
time, but that's just life. I still love this great game, though, that's
for sure.

Tony_in_MD · Dec 5, 2015

Started knocking balls around the age of 8 on my uncles pool table in his basement. During my teens, I bowled for my Jr. High-High school so our practice and match play was at the local brunswick bowling alley which also had 4 great GCI's with the ashtray corners. Between bowling matchers and after waiting for my dad to pick me up I would play pool. As soon as I turned 16 and had my drivers license, I started to play both there and another room in the area regularly Always straight pool for small amounts of money, no other game was popular at that time in that region of PA.

Buckzapper · Dec 5, 2015

I was only 12, but Mom knew the owner of the poolroom and every day she would pack my lunch, give me a few bucks and drop me off at 11 AM. I’d play some and watch some and about 5 I’d walk to the corner and take the bus home, just in time for supper.
I’m 64 now. The past 3 owners grew old and passed away, but Mom still packs my lunch, gives me a few bucks and drops me off at 11. She’s 85 and shouldn’t even drive. I spend the day at the poolroom hustling kids that can barely hold a cue. It’s easy to intimidate them into a $5 game.
I keep telling people their coffee smells good until they buy me one. I never buy a new leather tip. On the floor I can usually find a good one that popped off somebody’s cue. Mom has learned to replace tips for me and she does a great job.
I believe all dentists and barbers are thieves and that’s why I’ve never been to one. I got a Dremel tool for Christmas one year, so I fix my own teeth and do a little cue engraving on the side.
I have to go now. Mom is calling me for supper and I have to make sure she has my clothes laid out for tomorrow. She’s a sweet old woman and it’s a shame to think I’m going to have to bury her in the back yard someday next to Dad, just to keep her checks coming.

philly · Dec 5, 2015

Buckzapper said:
I was only 12, but Mom knew the owner of the poolroom and every day she would pack my lunch, give me a few bucks and drop me off at 11 AM. I’d play some and watch some and about 5 I’d walk to the corner and take the bus home, just in time for supper.
I’m 64 now. The past 3 owners grew old and passed away, but Mom still packs my lunch, gives me a few bucks and drops me off at 11. She’s 85 and shouldn’t even drive. I spend the day at the poolroom hustling kids that can barely hold a cue. It’s easy to intimidate them into a $5 game.
I keep telling people their coffee smells good until they buy me one. I never buy a new leather tip. On the floor I can usually find a good one that popped off somebody’s cue. Mom has learned to replace tips for me and she does a great job.
I believe all dentists and barbers are thieves and that’s why I’ve never been to one. I got a Dremel tool for Christmas one year, so I fix my own teeth and do a little cue engraving on the side.
I have to go now. Mom is calling me for supper and I have to make sure she has my clothes laid out for tomorrow. She’s a sweet old woman and it’s a shame to think I’m going to have to bury her in the back yard someday next to Dad, just to keep her checks coming.

LOL. You're a 64 year old millenial.

Pushout · Dec 5, 2015

I saw "The Hustler" with Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, etc. in 1961 or the re-release in 1962 and/or read the book and I was ruined for life

My grandparents bought me a 3 1/2 x 7 fiber board topped table the following Christmas. By the time I was 17 I had been playing in the bars for a while

I got serious about the game in 1973 when my wife and I moved to a city with a 10 table room, which grew to accommodate a total of 28 tables. I began learning Straight Pool and never looked back. I've never regretted it.

oldplayer · Dec 5, 2015

Buckzapper said:
I was only 12, but Mom knew the owner of the poolroom and every day she would pack my lunch, give me a few bucks and drop me off at 11 AM. I’d play some and watch some and about 5 I’d walk to the corner and take the bus home, just in time for supper.
I’m 64 now. The past 3 owners grew old and passed away, but Mom still packs my lunch, gives me a few bucks and drops me off at 11. She’s 85 and shouldn’t even drive. I spend the day at the poolroom hustling kids that can barely hold a cue. It’s easy to intimidate them into a $5 game.
I keep telling people their coffee smells good until they buy me one. I never buy a new leather tip. On the floor I can usually find a good one that popped off somebody’s cue. Mom has learned to replace tips for me and she does a great job.
I believe all dentists and barbers are thieves and that’s why I’ve never been to one. I got a Dremel tool for Christmas one year, so I fix my own teeth and do a little cue engraving on the side.
I have to go now. Mom is calling me for supper and I have to make sure she has my clothes laid out for tomorrow. She’s a sweet old woman and it’s a shame to think I’m going to have to bury her in the back yard someday next to Dad, just to keep her checks coming.

we have a winner! :woot::dance:

SilverCue · Dec 5, 2015

I also got hooked on the The Hustler with Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason in 1961 and reruns.
Only tables in town were in the local bar with minimum age of 18 unless accompanied by a parent.
Started playing in 1965 when my dad was playing dominoes.
Turned 18 in 1966 and started playing every day when I had money.
Did yard work and worked for my dad and played pool until I joined the Air Force in 1967.
Then I played at the rec centers at every base I was stationed.
By 1968, I won the base championship every where I went.
In 1987, I won the USAFE 14.1 tourney with two runs over 50 in final game.
Retired to the Maryland area and continued to play after work and weekends until work got too demanding. Stopped playing in 1997.
Retired from work end of 2011.
Fought cancer in 2012, part of 2013.
Started playing again end of 2013 just to get out of the house.
Now I'm playing well enough to really enjoy my self again

philly · Dec 5, 2015

SilverCue said:
I also got hooked on the The Hustler with Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason in 1961 and reruns.
Only tables in town were in the local bar with minimum age of 18 unless accompanied by a parent.
Started playing in 1965 when my dad was playing dominoes.
Turned 18 in 1966 and started playing every day when I had money.
Did yard work and worked for my dad and played pool until I joined the Air Force in 1967.
Then I played at the rec centers at every base I was stationed.
By 1968, I won the base championship every where I went.
In 1987, I won the USAFE 14.1 tourney with two runs over 50 in final game.
Retired to the Maryland area and continued to play after work and weekends until work got too demanding. Stopped playing in 1997.
Retired from work end of 2011.
Fought cancer in 2012, part of 2013.
Started playing again end of 2013 just to get out of the house.
Now I'm playing well enough to really enjoy my self again

Great story. Many happy rolls.

garczar · Dec 5, 2015

Started going to BoulderBilliards in Tulsa,Ok. in the fall of '78. X-mas break from O.U. It was run by Randy(aka FatRandy)Wallace. I was hooked from jump street. BuddyHall was living in the area and i got to see him, Matlock, CountryCalvin, DonnieFulks and all the other big Midwest players. Place was underground and absolutely magical. Pool was at it's pre-casino height and it's been brutal to watch it get to where it is now.

Pushout · Dec 5, 2015

Buckzapper said:
I was only 12, but Mom knew the owner of the poolroom and every day she would pack my lunch, give me a few bucks and drop me off at 11 AM. I’d play some and watch some and about 5 I’d walk to the corner and take the bus home, just in time for supper.
I’m 64 now. The past 3 owners grew old and passed away, but Mom still packs my lunch, gives me a few bucks and drops me off at 11. She’s 85 and shouldn’t even drive. I spend the day at the poolroom hustling kids that can barely hold a cue. It’s easy to intimidate them into a $5 game.
I keep telling people their coffee smells good until they buy me one. I never buy a new leather tip. On the floor I can usually find a good one that popped off somebody’s cue. Mom has learned to replace tips for me and she does a great job.
I believe all dentists and barbers are thieves and that’s why I’ve never been to one. I got a Dremel tool for Christmas one year, so I fix my own teeth and do a little cue engraving on the side.
I have to go now. Mom is calling me for supper and I have to make sure she has my clothes laid out for tomorrow. She’s a sweet old woman and it’s a shame to think I’m going to have to bury her in the back yard someday next to Dad, just to keep her checks coming.

WOW, Cliff you are so full of it! LOL!!

bdorman · Dec 5, 2015

The neighborhood I live in has a great fishing lake. I fish there often and have made friends with many of the other fisherman.

One day (4 years ago) I was at the Community Center and saw a few of my fishing buddies playing pool, so I went in the room just to visit.

They put a cue in my hand and the rest is....as they say, history.

(however, what really hooked me on pool was YouTube. I was bored that night so I did a simple YouTube search. Among the search results, I clicked on "Reyes vs. Bustamante", not knowing anything about them. Watching that match is what made it all click.)

I still fish a couple times a week during the season, but it's taken a back seat to pool.

Tramp Steamer · Dec 5, 2015

For me it was the summer of '32. I was thirteen years old and the country was in the midst of the Great Depression.
My mother was working as a waitress at a small diner located next door to pool room named Fat Tony's. Tony's place had six pocket billiard tables, and two Snooker tables, one of which was a big six by twelve.
Every day after school I would walk down to the diner where Mom worked and wait for her shift to end. There were times when she would have to work over, and when she did I would go next door and watch the guys play pool.
There were old men in the back playing golf on one of the Snooker tables for a penny a point. There were also times when road players would come through, hustling for what ever they could come up with. Cash, in those days, was hard to come by.
Over time I got to know Fat Tony, the owner, and he began to give me table time for sweeping the floor, and emptying the butt cans. After several months of after hour pool play, I got pretty good. Good enough, in fact, to beat most of the regulars and many of the out of town players, and it wasn't long before word got around that Tony had a boy that was a contender. I made us both quite a bit of money that summer and most of the next winter.
All good things must come to an end, they say. Mom quit her job and ran off with a tire salesman. Dad couldn't get over the fact that Mom had walked out on him, especially with a guy who sold Goodyear's, so he took the old Enfield out of the closet, stuck the end of the barrel into his mouth, and blew his brains out. My older Sister got pregnant and moved in with my Aunt and Uncle. She gave birth to conjoined twins who later went to work in the circus. My younger brother used the same Enfield that killed my father, to hold up a Ben Franklin store. He's now in a reformatory in Brooklyn.
Me? I did a little bit better. I changed my name to Buck Naked and got into the movie business. Maybe you've heard of me. :thumbup:

P.S. The first liar doesn't have a chance around here.

beerpressure · Dec 5, 2015

My grandpa had a table in his basement and I would always knock balls around as a little kid.

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