8 man private at home league

I would consider a local lodge like the Moose or Eagles for this private league. Most of them have tables, some are very nice and most of the time they are free.

I might be moving in with my girlfriend in Issaquah, WA and the Eagles there has a free table, but it is in quite poor condition. Not sure if a refelt and new rails (if needed) could save it.

I play at the Moose Lodge in North Bend, WA and they have two nice Valley tables (one was donated), both with 680 felt and good rails on the main table and excellent ones on the donated one. Lighting could be much improved for both, but it is free pool on good tables.

I'm surprised more tables aren't donated to places like our Moose and hopefully / similarly the Issaquah Eagles, given all the light use people report (a good percentage of the time) for home tables and friends that don't come to join them for a match, plus the challenges of trying to sell a used home table...
 
Better off just putting money on the rail and finding a gambling 8 ball game. Leagues are too hard to run. The round robin breaks down because people always quit mid-season. Also how did you come up with a $500 buy in?! That's way way way too high.
 
Sheldon said:
It inevitably worked great for the first weeks, and then it was tough to get matches played, with some players dropping out each time.
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This is usually the case.
Funny as shit...we had a Monday night league in S. Florida. Senior 9 ball. The other team's captain would call and ask if they could postpone and play during the week as they wanted to play cards. I politely said "It's a Monday League..why the fk did you join if you kept canceling". People got pissed at me when I told them Play or Forfeit.
 
What is up, man! We are practically neighbors. I would definitely be down to do something like this.

Don’t like making excuses, but let me go ahead and make some:

My wife wouldn’t be a fan, but I could make it work. However, ain’t nobody gonna want to play at my place. I don’t have a finished basement and there is a pole to navigate. I subconsciously avoid it, but I can see how that would go when the game is on the line. I’d gladly forgo my home field advantage and play elsewhere.
 
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iusedtoberich said:
Better off just putting money on the rail and finding a gambling 8 ball game. Leagues are too hard to run. The round robin breaks down because people always quit mid-season. Also how did you come up with a $500 buy in?! That's way way way too high.
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Valid points most have made. As for the 500 mark. Let's say you are in a league. Your typical night if you drink 2-3 beers, eat, pay league fees and table fees you end up around 40 an evening of league. 14week @40 bucks =560.
 
You sound just like me. I've been playing mediocre pool for a long time. Last year I joined a USAPL league and stayed with all the sessions for an entire year. I never want to do a league like that again for a bunch of reasons.
  • Sandbaggers that use the league to keep Fargo down so they can get good handicaps in tournaments, I hated the app for scoring.
  • I don't like the handicap systems. I'm not a good player at all but I love to play. I don't care if I win or lose but I'd rather play straight up races.
  • I want to shoot and relax and I didn't like having to sit there and be on my phone the entire time I wasn't shooting.
  • The place we played on everyone made a big deal about them being on Diamond tables but it was a bar and they were not taking care of. Felt stained and loose, balls filthy, bathrooms disgusting.
  • And I hated the late nights because I get up early.
All just personal preferences that others probably have no issues with.

I've thought about, like you, a league at home with a small group. However, I don't have a ton of pool playing friends and the small group of acquaintances I have I wouldn't want the majority of them in my house. LOL I do think about it often though. Another dream of mine would be to find or run a small local league someplace where we could do it early morning on Saturday or Sunday for us early birds.

Good luck to you!
 
Maybe you should consider finding 8 people and doing a club like these folk in Finland:

Poolmanis

Post in thread 'You will see this kid later...'

GoldCrown said:
Beautiful club.
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This is 4 pool tables and 2 snooker side
poolpuoli.jpg
Here is Kaisa tables big room
main room 1.jpg
Another side same room. Notice platform at middle with small tables , people can sit higher and watch games better and have some drinks
main room.jpg

Kitchen where you can store and make your food
PXL_20250609_123449182.MP.jpg
An artist made paintings . Subject is medieval times our city history. About making the Tar to ships and bringing it to sea.
taulut.jpg


We also have showers and upstairs also room to almost 10 people to sleep. So you can live 24/7 in club some time if you want haha...
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  • Love
 
MrTbolt64 said:
Valid points most have made. As for the 500 mark. Let's say you are in a league. Your typical night if you drink 2-3 beers, eat, pay league fees and table fees you end up around 40 an evening of league. 14week @40 bucks =560.
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On most leagues the dues are paid by the week. It's usually $5-$15. Most of the players are not eating and drinking $25-$35 of food. More likely they play and go home for that $5-$15.

Paying up front for the whole session is too expensive.

There is nothing better than gambling. You play all the time. No waiting in your chair for your match to start. You play the game you want. You play the opponent you want. You start and stop when you want. You and your opponent both have the motivation to play your best. It trumps leagues, it trumps tournaments.

IMO:)
 
iusedtoberich said:
On most leagues the dues are paid by the week. It's usually $5-$15. Most of the players are not eating and drinking $25-$35 of food. More likely they play and go home for that $5-$15.

Paying up front for the whole session is too expensive.

There is nothing better than gambling. You play all the time. No waiting in your chair for your match to start. You play the game you want. You play the opponent you want. You start and stop when you want. You and your opponent both have the motivation to play your best. It trumps leagues, it trumps tournaments.

IMO:)
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You do realize there is an entire world of people out there who could care less for gambling, right? I mean seriously, it is illegal and it is highly addictive, which can destroy lives. You do know that not everyone fits into your world view about that, right?

Just saying.
 
Banger said:
Same here. Only my closest friends get to play in my house, and that's not often, because they are bigger bangers than I am. Scott Lee did stop by and give me a lesson once.
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Scott came to my house also. Had no idea who/how he was. Total stranger but had a rep. Pool changing experience.
RIP.
 
Badpenguin said:
You do realize there is an entire world of people out there who could care less for gambling, right? I mean seriously, it is illegal and it is highly addictive, which can destroy lives. You do know that not everyone fits into your world view about that, right?

Just saying.
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Of course we know not everyone agrees. We even have a name for them: wrong.

Cash is the best way to keep score. Really.
 
MrTbolt64 said:
Valid points most have made. As for the 500 mark. Let's say you are in a league. Your typical night if you drink 2-3 beers, eat, pay league fees and table fees you end up around 40 an evening of league. 14week @40 bucks =560.
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Maybe I'm missing something, but you are comparing league fees, plus a couple drinks and some food with instead having it at your house for just a couple bucks less. Do you mean to imply you are going to include drinks and food at your house also?
Part of league shooting is getting out with people and friends, for some that is not what they want and I understand, but your price for shooting only, on one table with 8 guys, seems quite high. You can't compare that with what someone spends out on league that includes some drinks and food, with just shooting, no drinks or food included. Not only that but with 8 people and one table, there is going to be some long wait times to shoot and not much actual shooting per night.
I shoot two leagues, one a two person league, and one a 3 person. Two person is $10 and 3 person is $20. The 3 person you shoot 6 times, the two person you shoot from 4-7 times. One other thing our fees cover green fees, and at the end of league we have a party paid by establishment and all excess league funds after green fees and expenses are paid back with varying amounts at end of year.
We placed near middle on both leagues and I received back under $300 per person on one and about $380 on the other. These leagues run from mid Sept to mid June and are 16 team leagues. To get the funds up on the $10 league we also do a 50/50 drawing every night.
So actual league costs are minimal, and if you place at near the top, almost nonexistent. The only actual league issues for us are the winter weather, but thankfully the last two years has been mild by comparison.
So, I'm not sure how all leagues are run, but ours are great, fun, and inexpensive, with almost no waiting to shoot.
In a home get together environment, I wouldn't worry about an actual league, just have a night get together for whoever shows and have them kick in a couple bucks for table usage if you want. In such a casual setting as you propose, you are really going to have problems getting people to show consistently I would think. Just ideas to consider.
Forgot to mention, tables are opened up for free shooting apx 1 1/2 hr before league starts for practice.
 
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muskyed said:
Maybe I'm missing something, but you are comparing league fees, plus a couple drinks and some food with instead having it at your house for just a couple bucks less. Do you mean to imply you are going to include drinks and food at your house also?
Part of league shooting is getting out with people and friends, for some that is not what they want and I understand, but your price for shooting only, on one table with 8 guys, seems quite high. You can't compare that with what someone spends out on league that includes some drinks and food, with just shooting, no drinks or food included. Not only that but with 8 people and one table, there is going to be some long wait times to shoot and not much actual shooting per night.
I shoot two leagues, one a two person league, and one a 3 person. Two person is $10 and 3 person is $20. The 3 person you shoot 6 times, the two person you shoot from 4-7 times. One other thing our fees cover green fees, and at the end of league we have a party paid by establishment and all excess league funds after green fees and expenses are paid back with varying amounts at end of year.
We placed near middle on both leagues and I received back under $300 per person on one and about $380 on the other. These leagues run from mid Sept to mid June and are 16 team leagues. To get the funds up on the $10 league we also do a 50/50 drawing every night.
So actual league costs are minimal, and if you place at near the top, almost nonexistent. The only actual league issues for us are the winter weather, but thankfully the last two years has been mild by comparison.
So, I'm not sure how all leagues are run, but ours are great, fun, and inexpensive, with almost no waiting to shoot.
In a home get together environment, I wouldn't worry about an actual league, just have a night get together for whoever shows and have them kick in a couple bucks for table usage if you want. In such a casual setting as you propose, you are really going to have problems getting people to show consistently I would think. Just ideas to consider.
Forgot to mention, tables are opened up for free shooting apx 1 1/2 hr before league starts for practice.
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I think he meant this to be a singles league. 2 people meet at one location (1 being the homeowner) and they shoot pool, they rotate opponents and houses every week. If that is in fact the format there would be no standing around, only shooting.
 
Badpenguin said:
You do realize there is an entire world of people out there who could care less for gambling, right? I mean seriously, it is illegal and it is highly addictive, which can destroy lives. You do know that not everyone fits into your world view about that, right?

Just saying.
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It's not illegal. (At least in the USA, IDK about other countries).

The OP sounds like a serious player who is sick of watching drunks play in leagues bunting balls, while he sits on the stool all night waiting his turn. Gambling, even if it's just for table time, is the time honored way to play competitive pool. League is to get drunk and socialize.
 
fastone371 said:
I think he meant this to be a singles league. 2 people meet at one location (1 being the homeowner) and they shoot pool, they rotate opponents and houses every week. If that is in fact the format there would be no standing around, only shooting.
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That makes a lot more sense.
 
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