Article: What we need is a posh billiards parlour.

G

gerryf

Well-known member
www.lootpress.com

What we need is a posh billiards parlor with all particulars

What Beckley needs is an upscale sports bar with plush billiard tables. Now hold on a minute, before you reach for the phone. Let me finish. I am not
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"All over the country, in fact, there’s increasingly posh poolparlors. These centers are emerging as pool hovers near an all-time high in popularity. According to the Billiard Congress of America, the number of pool halls has grown in the past few years from 6,000 to 8,000 nationwide.

And that is not all. According to the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America, the number of people shooting pool at least once a year has shot up from thirty-five million in the 1980s to 50 million today.

The increase seems driven, unbelievably, by an influx of wealthier players. The number of players with an annual income above $80,000 has increased 145 percent in the last decade.

The sport’s popularity, meanwhile, among those in the under $30,000 bracket has dropped by almost 20 percent."

... and ...

"Local staff and the upscale atmosphere undoubtedly discourage pool sharks and hustlers from playing in the lounge area, where the tables feature higher nap felt that slows the billiard balls and makes the tables less attractive for advanced players."
 
Well in a Phoenix AZ, Pool Room have gone away, place to replace are not opening.

Rent of space is high, and turning profit is tough.

I am lucky we have 29 table private room, member & guests only.

Mike from me so I can walk there, even have beer available.
 
I’ve been in a couple of billiard ‘palaces’ in Shanghai,China that look like they are out of a 1960’s James Bond movie filmed in Monte Carlo. Hostess dressed to the Nines at the door and then escorted to a Snooker table. I must have disappointed them when I didn’t make a 147 or even a century. However I played a lot better than our Chinese colleagues who were more obsessed with ostentatious luxury…so much for a Proletarian society.
 
gerryf said:
www.lootpress.com

What we need is a posh billiards parlor with all particulars

What Beckley needs is an upscale sports bar with plush billiard tables. Now hold on a minute, before you reach for the phone. Let me finish. I am not
www.lootpress.com www.lootpress.com


"All over the country, in fact, there’s increasingly posh poolparlors. These centers are emerging as pool hovers near an all-time high in popularity. According to the Billiard Congress of America, the number of pool halls has grown in the past few years from 6,000 to 8,000 nationwide.

And that is not all. According to the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America, the number of people shooting pool at least once a year has shot up from thirty-five million in the 1980s to 50 million today.

The increase seems driven, unbelievably, by an influx of wealthier players. The number of players with an annual income above $80,000 has increased 145 percent in the last decade.

The sport’s popularity, meanwhile, among those in the under $30,000 bracket has dropped by almost 20 percent."

... and ...

"Local staff and the upscale atmosphere undoubtedly discourage pool sharks and hustlers from playing in the lounge area, where the tables feature higher nap felt that slows the billiard balls and makes the tables less attractive for advanced players."
Click to expand...
When was that written 1963?

It would be nice to have posh places to play, with rent at $3/ft I’m not sure how well they will do in Los Angeles. Nice thing to think about.

Best
Fatboy
 
CocoboloCowboy said:
Well in a Phoenix AZ, Pool Room have gone away, place to replace are not opening.

Rent of space is high, and turning profit is tough.

I am lucky we have 29 table private room, member & guests only.

Mike from me so I can walk there, even have beer available.
Click to expand...
Yeah, in my area two major pool rooms closed, but there are still eight open. It's not bad for a city with 250K people. What has been impacted is the number of competitive players. Most of the local top players don't get out much. A table mechanic says he's been very busy the last couple of years installing tables in homes. I assume that's where they all went.
 
gerryf said:
Yeah, in my area two major pool rooms closed, but there are still eight open. It's not bad for a city with 250K people. What has been impacted is the number of competitive players. Most of the local top players don't get out much. A table mechanic says he's been very busy the last couple of years installing tables in homes. I assume that's where they all went.
Click to expand...
Don't let coco fool you. The greater Phoenix area has plenty of pool rooms left. Main Street Billiards, IMHO, is the best room I've ever been to. Bullshooter's is enormous and awesome. Skip and Jan's, Jesters, Jicky Jacks, Mill's Modern Social (Formerly Freezer's Ice house)... Pool is fine here.
 
gerryf said:
The article was published yesterday.

I questioned a lot of the 'facts' listed in the article.
Click to expand...
It’s fun to dream.

Actually in LA pool has been gone so long, roughly 20-25 years-even if a posh room opened with everything possible. The pool tables would very little use. Pool is gone in LA for all practical purposes considering the population size.
 
Back in the mid 80’s, I lived in Arlington, TX. It is geographically positioned between Ft. Worth and Dallas.
Mostly played at Rusty’s but the Dave & Buster’s in Dallas was exactly like described in the article. It was
exquisite where the pool tables were sectioned off by drapes on the exterior walls, great spectator chairs,
seating for food & drink adjacent to the pool tables, you were escorted to the tables where the employee
brushed the table, asked what game you’d like racked & there was an intercom system for ordering drinks
and food. The tables were in great shape, the pool balls were new & clean and a full blown restaurant menu.
 
easy-e said:
Don't let coco fool you. The greater Phoenix area has plenty of pool rooms left. Main Street Billiards, IMHO, is the best room I've ever been to. Bullshooter's is enormous and awesome. Skip and Jan's, Jesters, Jicky Jacks, Mill's Modern Social (Formerly Freezer's Ice house)... Pool is fine here.
Click to expand...


But the short list of closed places is long.

Clicks

Ox Bar

Northern Lounge

Alexanders

Uncle Charlie’s

Golden 8 Ball

Plus many more, but EasyE is new to area, so he don’t know how it was.

We even had two Pool Newspapers, now none.
 
From just the article title I thought it was from the 1800s or maybe 1980s with the color of money boom.

There have been a few "high end" pool halls opened around Boston, none of them are still around.
 
What is the billiards and bowling institute of America? Where are they getting their numbers and how old is the data? And it’s great that popularity amongst people with an income of 80k+ has increased, but how many of them reside in that town?

I remember that participation peaked in the mid 00s at around 65 million, but it declined during the recession and never fully recovered as of 2013 or 2014. That was the last year the year reports were free to access.

Anyway, the idea of a family friendly establishment is not new, but I don’t see an upscale room working unless you can keep costs manageable. As a consumer, if you try to charge me $20/hr for pool and drinks, we will just go elsewhere for the drinks and save money on the pool. It would work if you could just make it seem upscale. Forget the valet parking too,
 
Well in Willie Mosconi’ Book, Willie’s Game, it was said Pool was never as big in USA as year Willie was born -1913.

Good read if you can snag copy.
 
gerryf said:
www.lootpress.com

What we need is a posh billiards parlor with all particulars

What Beckley needs is an upscale sports bar with plush billiard tables. Now hold on a minute, before you reach for the phone. Let me finish. I am not
www.lootpress.com www.lootpress.com


"All over the country, in fact, there’s increasingly posh poolparlors. These centers are emerging as pool hovers near an all-time high in popularity. According to the Billiard Congress of America, the number of pool halls has grown in the past few years from 6,000 to 8,000 nationwide.

And that is not all. According to the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America, the number of people shooting pool at least once a year has shot up from thirty-five million in the 1980s to 50 million today.

The increase seems driven, unbelievably, by an influx of wealthier players. The number of players with an annual income above $80,000 has increased 145 percent in the last decade.

The sport’s popularity, meanwhile, among those in the under $30,000 bracket has dropped by almost 20 percent."

... and ...

"Local staff and the upscale atmosphere undoubtedly discourage pool sharks and hustlers from playing in the lounge area, where the tables feature higher nap felt that slows the billiard balls and makes the tables less attractive for advanced players."
Click to expand...
The most posh pool hall I know of is in Fargo N.D. Called Fargo Billiards and Gastropub.
 
The "Beckley" referred to is in West Virginia. Probably not LA rental rates. Wasn't John Schmidt's room in WV?
 
Yo
CocoboloCowboy said:
But the short list of closed places is long.

Clicks

Ox Bar

Northern Lounge

Alexanders

Uncle Charlie’s

Golden 8 Ball

Plus many more, but EasyE is new to area, so he don’t know how it was.

We even had two Pool Newspapers, now none.
Click to expand...
You'd agree that pool is thriving in our valley wouldn't you? Every league seems to have a waiting list and there are tournaments every night of the week. Maybe it's better off with less rooms.
 
easy-e said:
Yo

You'd agree that pool is thriving in our valley wouldn't you? Every league seems to have a waiting list and there are tournaments every night of the week. Maybe it's better off with less rooms.
Click to expand...


Can not say both Newspaper are gone, Billiard Table Talk, and Mike Howerton Paper that was BEST, that were easy to find, and read what is happening.

Well someone tried to have BCAPL out of were I live, INTREST was ZERO.

My experence with League was once, it was dis & unorganized, not for me.

Miss the Tournment at OX Bar & Northern Longe that closed, it was my regular thing.

So let say I am disconnected, because no print media.
 
logical said:
They cite both The Billiard and Bowling Institute of America, and The Billiard and Bowling Congress of America.

Do either even exist?

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...


Well Bowling Alley use to all have Pool Rooms. In the PAST.
 
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