Big Al's - New giant Sports bar in Vancouver, WA

UWPoolGod1

UWPoolGod1

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Someone just opened a new Sport's bar in Vancouver, WA. I am going to go check it out today but here are they things I have found out about it through word of mouth. I'll try to take some pics and post em later.

Heres a non-finished website for it.
http://www.ilovebigals.com/
60,000 sqft space which cost $12million to build/renovate
30 Bowling Lanes in one area
12 Bowling Lanes in a lounge area probably to allow drinking
8 - 9ft Brunswick pool tables (I'll let you know which models) ($12/hr I heard)
Sports bar and Restaurant with tons of big screens and sport on
Dance floor for dancing some times.

This area has been expanding and having tons of houses built so it is a good location. I may talk to someone in charge over there are see if it would be a possible Pechaeur Tour stop but not sure if the players would enjoy any roudiness going on.

Think I found my new second home.
 
Sounds pretty nice, but that $12/hr is kinda steep to a poor bum like myself. :eek:

We still need to get together some time so I can get my butt handed to me. No rush, tho. :p
 
Yeah I kinda thought the same thing as far as per hour price. Places I played in Seattel were $8/hr. Maybe that was at peak Friday/Saturday night prices. Maybe cheaper during the day. I'll let ya know
 
Review...

Just got back from Big Al's. Parking lot was full. Walk through the front door and there are 30 bowling lanes to the left packed with families and kids in a cosmic bowling setting. To the left is the arcade spitting out tickets to trade for items that are valued significantly less than the money spent to get them. Straight ahead is another bowling section with 12 lanes with couches with nice displays and projectors playing music videos above the pins. Down a hallway to the right is the Sports bar. Nice, big and wide open. Three projectors playing three college football games on the wall. Lots of flat screens all areound the room. In an arch around the center of the room are 6 9 foot brunswicks with Red Cloth. The table played fast and true. Black plastic brunswicks with silver colored end caps. Above the tables is a raised sitting area to eat. Below is a lowered area where you can sit and watch the games along a 40' bar. All in all it wasn't bad but its a little pricey. I got a burger with side salad, microbrew and 1/2 hr pool for $20. Its more of a Jillians atmosphere to have a good time.
 
UW,

Does the Halftime still have those good barbox tourneys? Seen Al Perez lately? Rick Hodges? Glenn Atwell? I remember seeing a lot of really good players in the Halftime Tavern.

Russ
 
Russ Chewning said:
UW,

Does the Halftime still have those good barbox tourneys? Seen Al Perez lately? Rick Hodges? Glenn Atwell? I remember seeing a lot of really good players in the Halftime Tavern.

Russ
Click to expand...
Russ
Yes Halftime still has the best tourneys around in Vancouver. We had 26 players on this past Monday (*cough* which I won) and it is a tough tourney being a race to 2 both sides. Averaging 5 BCA Masters per night and 15 other players that can run out and win a race to 2. I have not seen Rick Hodges in a while. Glenn does not come to this tourney, I think there is a better one somewhere in Portland that he goes to. Last time I saw Al Perez was about 3 months ago at a tourney in Longview. He just showed up for the action and he got into a game with Raul from Seattle and lost a few sets for a couple hundred per set. He loves to get into bad matchups. Pat Schumacher comes in most often.

Halftime has league nights every night of the week, whether it is APA, BCA or ACS. Free pool during the middle of the day, open 24 hours. Weekends the tables are packed with drinkers at night. Still 8 tables, decent enough.
 
UWPoolGod1 said:
Russ
Last time I saw Al Perez was about 3 months ago at a tourney in Longview. He just showed up for the action and he got into a game with Raul from Seattle and lost a few sets for a couple hundred per set. He loves to get into bad matchups. Pat Schumacher comes in most often.
Click to expand...

I always heard Raul plays STRONG, and that his break is the only thing holding him back. Does Pat live in Portland now? Is Brad Gowin still in the area?

A funny story about Portland.. I am down there for a Halftime tourney one time, when still developing my game. I lose my first match, and am told I won't play for another 4 or 5 hours, so I ask about a nice pool ahll in the area to go hit some balls, and maybe somebody around my speed to play with.

A local steers me to a place, and says, "You can play the owner's son there, but he plays pretty good. He'll play fairly cheap tho, so you shouldn't get hurt too bad."

I go to the place, ask for the owner's son by name, but he is not there. I ask for the balls for the Brunswick GC they have there, and just start hitting balls. A younger kid, maybe 10 or 11, asks if I want to play, for fun. I say sure, and he racks for 9 ball.

Now, at this time, as I was mostly a bar table player, I had a MONSTROUS break. I promptly put a 5 pack on the kid, mainly because I was breaking so good. After another game or two, I pack up and head back to the tourney at the Halftime.

I always wonder what that conversation was like later on.

"Hey Jimmy.."

"Yeah?"

"Some kid was in here wanting to play you for a little something. Ran 5 racks on little Brad there."

"Oh S**T!"

Russ
 
Russ Chewning said:
I always heard Raul plays STRONG, and that his break is the only thing holding him back. Does Pat live in Portland now? Is Brad Gowin still in the area?
Click to expand...

Yeah Raul plays pretty sporty. Loves to gamble. When I was first starting out going to school at U of Washington I would go with the upperclassmen to the 211 Club when I was 19. It was 21 and over but since they knew my older freinds they assumed I was older. We would practice and then play in the tourneys they had up there. Raul would play and at that point I was a good shotmaker on the 9 footers but still mainly an 8ball player so I needed those extra couple balls to rely on when I got out of shape. After a few months I played Raul again and when he beat me 3-2 he said "You gonna be a good player some day". Of course I have improved alot since then but I took that as a super compliment and used it to fuel my desire to get better. That day that Raul beat Al Perez I almost wanted to go up to him and say "Remember me?" We played his team that day and I did beat him the game I played him, but he would not have remembered me.

Yeah Pat lives in south Portland I believe and drives up to the Halftime tourneys cause its a good turnout and added money. I do not personally know Brad Gowan but know he is still in the area. I have seen his name shown on some local tourneys in the paper and I THINK he was involved on some APA teams.

Is your name Russ Chening or is that just a handle?
 
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Russ Chewning is my name. You'll only find me in one Cue Ball Gazette, taking third in a B tourney. I did beat Joey Panganiban in that one though. I was improving fast, but still needed to play the top dawgs more for seasoning. That result was prior to me taking a month leave to practice 12 hours a day.

There was a regional tourney at City Lights in Tacoma that I played in. John Kenyon won it, you'll find record of it in RSB. Guess who his first round opponent was? :eek:

I got 5 games on him in a race to 9, and he was pretty much my first good player I got to play in a regional 9 foot tourney. I played pretty well, but marriage cut me off just as I was starting to improve very fast. Looking at his game, I personally thought I could be at least as good as Tim Tweedel, and probably better. I was very dedicated to the game. Starting out with nothing in marriage, along with being in government housing in Germany, did not afford me the opportunity to further practice and improve.

I have debated moving back to Washington or Oregon, as my wife has family in the area. I don't know, though. I know pretty much all the players, but now that the 211 Club is closed. I mean, my gawd! That was one of the MAINSTAYS of Seattle pool.

Convince me to come back, UW. Tell me what's going down in WA/OR. PLEASE! I'd love to hear who's playing what speed, etc.

Russ
 
Very nice. Tim Tweedel has moved down here to the Vancouver area (Battle Ground) and I have only seen him play in one three man tourney. I guess he is working alot of hours doing whatever he is doing. I used to go up to Dr. Cues on Friday nights and watch him play some great one pocket. smooth stroker. He is still a fine player.

Basically down here where I am in vancouver it is mainly bar pool since there are only a limited number of 9 footers. Portland has a couple poolhalls, only one I would call a poolhall and the rest would be clubs like Jillians. Glenn Atwell is still the main stick in the area and made it to the 2nd round of the IPT tourney going on right now. Not very many poolhalls in the area like I played on in Seattle. The B.C. players (Vidas, Tourangeau, Pickering, Portier, Horsfal) have been kind of dominating the pool scene in the northwest a little inthe past few years. There are still some damn fine players to be found in the Seattle poolhalls waiting for some action (J.D., Zimmerman, Todd Marsh, Raul etc, etc). I wish there would be some larger televised tour or some bigger action come to town so that is would be a spectacle to watch.

I miss the 9 footers which I learned on. The past three years I have played on 9 footers maybe 10 times. Sad. My fault for not wanting to drive a half hour but so be it. Can't wait to get into a house at the start of the new year with a Gold Crown. When that happens any AZB'er who comes through town has a place to stay and some competitive pool to play.
 
UWPoolGod1 said:
Can't wait to get into a house at the start of the new year with a Gold Crown. When that happens any AZB'er who comes through town has a place to stay and some competitive pool to play.
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Really? Hmm.. I think I'm going to need a place to stay umm.. let's say Friday and Saturday nights? Thanks and see ya then! :D

I'm still working on the little tourneys close to home in southeast (sucks to be lazy), though I should be trying Oregon City or something.
 
UWPoolGod1 said:
Someone just opened a new Sport's bar in Vancouver, WA. I am going to go check it out today but here are they things I have found out about it through word of mouth. I'll try to take some pics and post em later.

Heres a non-finished website for it.
http://www.ilovebigals.com/
60,000 sqft space which cost $12million to build/renovate
30 Bowling Lanes in one area
12 Bowling Lanes in a lounge area probably to allow drinking
8 - 9ft Brunswick pool tables (I'll let you know which models) ($12/hr I heard)
Sports bar and Restaurant with tons of big screens and sport on
Dance floor for dancing some times.

This area has been expanding and having tons of houses built so it is a good location. I may talk to someone in charge over there are see if it would be a possible Pechaeur Tour stop but not sure if the players would enjoy any roudiness going on.

Think I found my new second home.
Click to expand...

How about a Viking Tour stop instead? :D Have them contact me. Thanks!

Linda

Oh yeah, their name...I envision big gals sliding down a pole? :confused: :( :rolleyes: :eek:
 
Banks said:
Really? Hmm.. I think I'm going to need a place to stay umm.. let's say Friday and Saturday nights? Thanks and see ya then! :D

I'm still working on the little tourneys close to home in southeast (sucks to be lazy), though I should be trying Oregon City or something.
Click to expand...

Yeah if you also want some competitive tourneys, Oregon City is the place to go. KC's Midway gets alot of strong players heading in there. Like you I have only been to that tourney once since it is kind of a drive to get down there. But I think it is on Saturday night and there is nothing going on in Vancouver then so it might be worth the drive. I like a few nights off of pool during the week though. :)
 
rackmsuckr said:
How about a Viking Tour stop instead? :D Have them contact me. Thanks!

Linda

Oh yeah, their name...I envision big gals sliding down a pole? :confused: :( :rolleyes: :eek:
Click to expand...

Nah, after being there I do not think that it is a place where you would want to run a big pro tourney. People would be very close to your tables and there would probably be alot of misses based on loud noises, etc. But that is for you to decide. There should be some contact info on their website I would think. Send an email directed at their Director of Events.
 
Sounds like

a catch-all Bowling Alley to me. I thought Pool tables in Bowling Alleys went out of fashion in the early 70's.
 
UWPoolGod1 said:
Yeah if you also want some competitive tourneys, Oregon City is the place to go. KC's Midway gets alot of strong players heading in there. Like you I have only been to that tourney once since it is kind of a drive to get down there. But I think it is on Saturday night and there is nothing going on in Vancouver then so it might be worth the drive. I like a few nights off of pool during the week though. :)
Click to expand...

Yep, and I hear Nighthawk has some pretty good players (I think they held a pechauer stop there this summer?). Umm.. Classics has some, with a few guys usually playing golf or one-pocket or something. I hate driving and paying so much for table time, though. A couple of pretty good players can be found at umm.. Mike's Maxima lounge on beaverton-hillsdale once in a while.. they got pretty much all of the players and teams from Amazon, which include a couple of masters and such. And Pub 181 has some good players I hear, but again with the drive.

I'm just trying to work myself slowly through the circuit with small bar tourneys right now. Most of the ones close by hardly seem worth the drive for what's offered, though.
 
a few additions Brad gowin has not played for two years, i still see him once in a while, pub 181 sat 9ball has the most consistant competition,Pat Schumacher only plays NON-SMOKING tournaments, Rackemsucker birthday!!! and the IPT is the best pro event ever!!!!

now for Big Al's I have not been there yet but i have herd it is a big place I do want to hear more about it
 
sharandrew said:
a few additions Brad gowin has not played for two years, i still see him once in a while, pub 181 sat 9ball has the most consistant competition,Pat Schumacher only plays NON-SMOKING tournaments, Rackemsucker birthday!!! and the IPT is the best pro event ever!!!!

now for Big Al's I have not been there yet but i have herd it is a big place I do want to hear more about it
Click to expand...

Hi Andrew,

It was great seeing you in Reno, even though I didn't get to do more than wave from across the room. Thanks for the birthday wishes. Hope to see you at another tournament soon.

Linda
 
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