Another pool hall going under

[LOW E.T.]

The Pool Loft in Joliet IL. is closing its doors after about 15 years and is selling thier tables, lights chairs house cues everything must go. he does have a price list.. he has 8 gold crown III's,a sams billiards barbox. and all the other stuff... chair's cues ect.... for $2200 you get a gold crown a 3bulb light fixture and centenial ball with red dot cue.... i dont know where ill go now.....:frown::sorry:

if intrested call the pool loft and talk to ernie 815-722-0964

 

[spktur]

Anyone notice how many pool rooms go under in the areas with the strong smoking bans? I guess closed is better than having to deal with the smoke.

 

[KRJ]

Hmmmmm

Anyone notice how many pool rooms go under in the areas with the strong smoking bans? I guess closed is better than having to deal with the smoke.

Ummmm, could be the economy !! The other rooms in IL are still up in running. Why have they not closed their doors?

Nothing to do with smoking. Maybe this room didn't a have a strong league network for the slow nights during the week, maybe no tourneys, mabye the location was poor, maybe no liquor license, who knows. But too blame one thing (smoking ban) is not even in the ballpark I"ve been in Chicago for 48 years, and never even heard of this place.

Most of the rooms I play in for both leagues, and tourneys are still up and running,,,doing great? No. But people are spending way less when they don't have the extra income. Our league is near capacity ever session, before and after smoking ban. We lost nobody to ban.

 

[LOW E.T.]

smoking ban / liquor liscence... find a pool hall these days with no bar...
this place went from packed in the winters with a waiting list, to starving..
i would rather stay out of the bars and stay off bar box's. the just pool halls were killed by the smoking ban

i used to shoot at palos billiards,, presmoking ban no liquor and they were packed all the time.. no leagues , little tournaments.. but packed with pool players :thumbup:

 

[Fatboy]

Ummmm, could be the economy !! The other rooms in IL are still up in running. Why have they not closed their doors?

Nothing to do with smoking. Maybe this room didn't a have a strong league network for the slow nights during the week, maybe no tourneys, mabye the location was poor, maybe no liquor license, who knows. But too blame one thing (smoking ban) is not even in the ballpark I"ve been in Chicago for 48 years, and never even heard of this place.

Most of the rooms I play in for both leagues, and tourneys are still up and running,,,doing great? No. But people are spending way less when they don't have the extra income. Our league is near capacity ever session, before and after smoking ban. We lost nobody to ban.

Back in the great depression pool rooms did great, there were lots of unemployed rail birds, it was free to go sweat a match, cheaper than the movies etc. The reason IMO pool rooms dont have that anymore is because we as a society have changed what we do with our free time. The internet, online poker, video games, gambiling in casino's is everywhere now are a few of the reasons pool isnt booming. There are lots of reasons.


I was sweating $20,000/set action in Vegas a month ago there was 6 or 7 of us on the rail-15 years ago you couldnt have got a seat.

League players, video poker machines and full bars are necessary to keep pool rooms alive in this era. Long gone are the days of "Just pool, this is Ames mister"

I was kinda sorta hopeing that when the economy went south a couple years ago the pool rooms would benefit-dosent look that way.

I'm in Koln Germany right now I went to this little room the other night with 6 9' tables, it was packed on a thursday night. They put a smoking ban in Germany about 2 years ago, that room would have no chance in America, even if you owned the building it still wouldnt survive. the pool culture in America has terminal cancer. the exception being "Hobby" league players who dont know who SVB is. the 7' box's will survive IMO

 

[spktur]

You can't pay the rent on table time. It takes a good food and drink business to make any money. And it takes a lot of work and promoting to make that work too. The leagues and their players are who support the business. The gamblers and their players don't spend much, just a little table time. Here locally we have both smoker free and smoker friendly pool rooms and both are making it but the smoker friendly are the ones doing well. In fact the biggest one has had his best year ever just this past year.

 

[jdxprs]

any idea how much they are selling chairs for?

 

[KRJ]

Hmmmm

smoking ban / liquor liscence... find a pool hall these days with no bar...
QUOTE]

Quentin Corner Pockets in Palatine. No bar, still going strong. Leagues and tourneys keep the players coming in.

Oh, and lets not forget the most prominent pool hall in Chicago, Chris' Billiards !! No bar, no liquor, NADA and they have been open for how many decades pre smoking ban and post smoking ban.

So, again, lets not blame one thing on someones problems. I mean, Obama can only blame Bush for so much, sooner of later the dude has got to take responsibility for his own actions.

Come to Addison....our league is packed....most folks that smoke have told me they don't even mind anymore because they are smoking less and saving a few bucks. PLUS the smoking ban is three years old now. I don't know many businesses that can stay open for a full three years with minimal income coming in. This economy is taking a lot of businesses out, not just pool rooms !

Plus, FATBOY makes some darn good points in his post about the state of billiards today !

 

[Quesports]

Hey RJ,
Your right and Fatboy is also. If you look around anywhere you go I'd bet you'll see very few pool players under 30 years old. The younger generation is completely involved with media types of entertainment. Online games, X box and things of that nature. Pool is not as easy to become proficent at like a computer game is. High quality pool takes years to develop and the kids today are not interested in putting in the time necessary to play pool at a high level. Also many pool halls are no longer even putting out cues for new players to use. There are NO sneaky petes on the walls like there used to be so how are kids going to get interested in playing pool. When I was young all the pool halls had sticks on the walls, you found one you liked got some balls and played pool. This has always amazed me, the pool hall owners are not even promoting their own business..

 

[KRJ]

Hmmm

Hey RJ,
Your right and Fatboy is also. If you look around anywhere you go I'd bet you'll see very few pool players under 30 years old. The younger generation is completely involved with media types of entertainment. Online games, X box and things of that nature. Pool is not as easy to become proficent at like a computer game is. High quality pool takes years to develop and the kids today are not interested in putting in the time necessary to play pool at a high level. Also many pool halls are no longer even putting out cues for new players to use. There are NO sneaky petes on the walls like there used to be so how are kids going to get interested in playing pool. When I was young all the pool halls had sticks on the walls, you found one you liked got some balls and played pool. This has always amazed me, the pool hall owners are not even promoting their own business..

Good Point Dan !! My son is 11 and it's tough to get him to play pool in my own basement....likes all the electronic stuff. Just glad he likes baseball (my fav sport) otherwise I'd have to start playing video games......

Amazes me that none of the pool halls have a pro shop to sell decent cues, cases, etc....not just tip shapers. Lot of lost income there. Plus, run more tourneys, get folks in the door and sell them some food and drink. Maybe they will like your place and come back for some more and tell their friends.

But to the OP. We don't know why the PoolLoft is shutting their doors, but I can tell you a smoking ban that is already 3 years old is not it, especially since bars have it,and not too many of them shutting down. Lots of restaurants are struggling too ! FOlks are not spending like they use to.

 

["T"]

Oh, and lets not forget the most prominent pool hall in Chicago, Chris' Billiards !! No bar, no liquor, NADA and they have been open for how many decades pre smoking ban and post smoking ban.

You have some good points about the pool scene overall, but Chris' got kicked in the groin by the smoking ban in a big way. It has been in a decline ever since. So much that at least until a few months ago, last time I was there, they've been looking the other way when it comes to smoking just to stay alive.

The places that have been doing well have leagues, liquor, and food, no doubt about it. Other places, well, it seems that they just don't want to change, or maybe work too hard.

 

[Spider1]

I guess closed is better than having to deal with the smoke.

Tell that to the owners and employees.

Smoking bans are hell on bars too, not just pool halls.

 

[midstroke]

Sharky's in maryville illinois just close a few weeks ago also.

 

[LOW E.T.]

at this point the owner is just hopes to make it till june... but he doubts it
....

 

[cueandcushion]

Sharkys in Southern IL just went under also. Just saw all thier stuff on a local auction site. We bought some odds and ends stuff. Gold Crown 3s went for like $550 or so. Southern ILL has a much worse economy than the rest of the state.


Many places still allow smoking despite it being illegal and they still cant make it.


If you cant make it selling liquor to minors, allowing smoking during a ban, and having illegal poker machines its a pretty bad economy. I am NOT speaking of Sharky's just to be clear. Just typical of so many businesses on the east side of the Mississippi in a horrible economy.

 

[Desmondp]

20 years ago, there used to be heaps of Video Arcades, now home consoles have killed most off. Pool halls are a similar type of entertainment for the regular joe. Nowadays, they have all the entertainment they need at home

Hell i have a great pool table room at home and sometimes get mates round for a night of drinking (nowhere near the tables!) , pool and pron

 

[JolietJames]

The owner of the Pool Loft also owned one of the green rooms up north. Business went south so quickly after the smoking ban he had to close the doors on that place right away. I know the ban had an immediate effect on the loft but I don't think it would have made it in the long run regardless. There was no next generation behind his last who quit coming after the ban. They were nearly 21, and probably would have been gone soon after that.
It sucks for us in the Joliet area because it's the last pool hall here. It was also the place where you could usually find action. I've watched, sweated, and played against many road players who stopped in on their way across the country.

 

[jbravo2984]

pool halls strive in poor economic conditions. History has proven that. RJ, your arguements are weak dude. You're using Chris' and Quentin as your examples of pool halls that are going strong? Lol. Every time I've ever been into Quentin, I wonder two things, where is everybody and how in the works are these guys still open?! There are more rooms that have closed in Chicago since the smoking ban than there has been in the 2 decades prior. Guess what? The average household had video games and Internet the while time! what hasn't been killed off by the smoking ban is dying because of Unmotivated know it all Chicago pool room owners and league operators who don't keep their equipment up, fail to promote their rooms/leagues/events, don't spend money to make money, hire druggies and drug dealin "employees", who are pAid only just enough to get them to work hard enough to not get fired. The pool world is full of cheap skates and room owners who don't do one major thing. Listen to their customers.
I'll help you all understand why some rooms are performing way lower than they have the potential for.

Rockford billiard cafe- crappy equipment compared to their competitors just 20 mi north of them, didn't want to work with the room with the best tourneys in the country Any more... The carom room. Not to mention they screwed over the acs and didn't hold up their end of the deal with the last tour willing to waste time on their room.

State and Madison in Rockford, gloomy, uninviting, horrible equipment.

Main st Billiards in Algonquin- mediocre equipment, horrible staff -they actually tell people to "go next door for food, it's way better than ours...", the bar tender never makes rounds to the people outside if the bar.

Hammerheads in west Dundee- they are too cheap to do anything the right way, that includes keeping their promises to people who promote their room and run their tournaments...

Quentin- looks nice at first, barboxes are inconsistent from table to table, their 9 footers all have bad rolls with the exception of their "action table" which has improperly installed rails... No alcohol doesn't help either... If your going to be one of the last true "pool halls" in Illinois. Do it right! I bet Ames' tables were kept up.

Lee st Billiards- the people working don't even have keys to the merchandise that's for sale... Need I say more?

Chris' cuephoria- yeah let's build a $40,000 2nd bar in the middle of the room that will never be staffed and never get used. It'll only take up so much room that we'll have to eliminate half our tables but WTF?! Who cares?! It's not like this is a pool hall?! Lol!

Chris'- this is the one place you can still smoke at! Just not jn the front room... I've voice my opinion of Chris' before so if you want to know why this place is still alive, I'll offer this as speculation. It's the cheapest place you can go to at 1am in the morning in Chicago when you're Mexican and want to get your drink on with store bought booze...

Green pocket- closes after smoking bam
green room downers grove-closed after smoking bam
green room aurora-closed after smoking bam
palace Billiards- closes after smoking bam but their location was simply too expensive with like $30,000 a mont in rent or something crazy like that...
Oscars- closed right? Shortly after smoking ban...
Rudys in aurora- awesome equipment, good food, awesome staff, consistent tournaments, outdoor heated smoking accomodations... But they aren't really a pool room, just a nice bar with great tables.
Red shoes- the best around.
Palace- good food, nice staff for the most part, successful leagues, CRAPPY equipment. Every other table has bad rolls to it. It's like playing on a 9ft barbox...
63rd-st downsized recently and looks alright. Not real familiar with their business though... Guess that tells you something as I've been in there 1 time in 5 years.
Protyme- Amazing equipment and layout, but unsuccessful attempts at weekly tournaments, and the owner can be the biggest jerk in Illinois with the flip of a switch.
Shark city is cool, mostly because they don't pay attention to the people who are on their league tables playing for free... If it wasn't free I wouldn't be there playing at all honestly... The diamond tables looked pretty bad with all the drink stains on the tables the last time I was there...

what's te main money maker that almost all of these have In common? Alcohol. Quentin and Chris' will be closed within a couple years if something major doesn't chang. For Quentin, they need alcohol and to keep up their equipment. For Chris', the need to replace that asshole tournament director, get some barboxes in that place, clean it up and take some pride in their business, promote it and it could be back to what it once was, even in this economy and the ne alone will will keep it afloat...
All the rest of 'em will conitinue to do okay ad long as they renew their liquor license. But the point is, the days of the "chicago poolhall" went away with the ban of smoking inside public places in Chicago.
There are things that can be done to improve conditions for some of the businesses that offer Billiards as entertainment, but those same changes were ones that could have been implemented before the smoking ban and that was years ago and I don't see many of them happening any time soon...
RJ, you live in a dream world if you don't think room have closed due to the smoking ban. The pool loft has been scrapping bottom ever since just like everyone else since the ban. It's just that some room owners have enough money to lose and stay open for a few years more than others...

Good Point Dan !! My son is 11 and it's tough to get him to play pool in my own basement....likes all the electronic stuff. Just glad he likes baseball (my fav sport) otherwise I'd have to start playing video games......

Amazes me that none of the pool halls have a pro shop to sell decent cues, cases, etc....not just tip shapers. Lot of lost income there. Plus, run more tourneys, get folks in the door and sell them some food and drink. Maybe they will like your place and come back for some more and tell their friends.

But to the OP. We don't know why the PoolLoft is shutting their doors, but I can tell you a smoking ban that is already 3 years old is not it, especially since bars have it,and not too many of them shutting down. Lots of restaurants are struggling too ! FOlks are not spending like they use to.

 

[JoeyA]

There wasn't enough smoke haze in our local poolroom last night, so the tv production crew had to blow in fake smoke to get the atmosphere just right. A little water and peanut oil and you've got smoke that won't kill you. Oh yeah, but you need a fanner to spread it out real nice.

Pool rooms are closing just like other businesses are closing.

Until the dollar shrinks to the point where it doesn't pay to send jobs overseas, you will continue to see businesses close. The government isn't finished with us just yet. The taxpayer is still gasping for air. They don't want everyone out of a job so they are printing more money to throw at the problem. Continued devaluation of the dollar means a greater opportunity of keeping jobs at home and a better chance to sell our products overseas.

 

[JolietJames]

Until the dollar shrinks to the point where it doesn't pay to send jobs overseas, you will continue to see businesses close. The government isn't finished with us just yet. The taxpayer is still gasping for air. They don't want everyone out of a job so they are printing more money to throw at the problem. Continued devaluation of the dollar means a greater opportunity of keeping jobs at home and a better chance to sell our products overseas.[/QUOTE]

Yeah sure we can go that route until everyone is unemployed or underemployed and has to rely on the government for survival. Personally, I would prefer not to live in a socailist welfare state. We could choose to impose the same regulations and restrictions on imports as we do products made stateside and fix much of the problem before everyone goes broke.