Got Strong-Armed for my Winnings Last Night (long story, small amount, but amazing)

No that's not the place. I really need to clarify...everytime sometime says that it was a pool hall, everyone starts calling it a pool hall--it was a bar. Someone says that it is a hick bar and a dive--and everyone starts saying that it is a hick bar or dive. It is actually one of the nicest bars that I have been to.

One of the reasons that I decided to keep going there was that it is a very nice place--in appearance and decor, etc., and I figured that it would be the safest place to play for money. The other bars that I go to I usually just play for fun, but at this bar the people seemed to be more affluent (generally), they dress nicer, it's not all young people, and the people are usually willing to play for $5 or more a game with no problems.
 
Get_A_Grip said:
No that's not the place. I really need to clarify...everytime sometime says that it was a pool hall, everyone starts calling it a pool hall--it was a bar. Someone says that it is a hick bar and a dive--and everyone starts saying that it is a hick bar or dive. It is actually one of the nicest bars that I have been to.

One of the reasons that I decided to keep going there was that it is a very nice place--in appearance and decor, etc., and I figured that it would be the safest place to play for money. The other bars that I go to I usually just play for fun, but at this bar the people seemed to be more affluent (generally), they dress nicer, it's not all young people, and the people are usually willing to play for $5 or more a game with no problems.
Click to expand...

Ottos is a bar... Ok at least tell us what city its in? Northern Illinois is a big region...
 
1pRoscoe said:
Man, I'd believe that in a heartbeat, based upon the crap I have encountered in dive bars like that.... which is why I only gamble in pool halls, with gamblers.
Click to expand...

I'm with 1pR on this one. I play in bars, just for fun, but gambling is limited to "Wanna play for a drink?" and only if the other guy asks. Then a lot of times, I'll buy the guy a beer even if I do win.

I'll NEVER try to match up in a bar, where people are drinking or running in the bathroom to do a line or two, and tempers tend to run short, unless it's with someone I know REALLY well.

Later
Bob
 
i hate when that shit happens,something similar happened to me a few years back,when i ran out of money to gamble with and the guy running the table wouldnt play for fun i got really pissed off and said if i cant play then none of you m.f.ers are gonna play and i grabbed the cueball and put it in my pocket and everyone looked at each other and said ok. about 5 mins later the bouncer came up to me and asked for it back and suggested i leave, i did and never went back.
 
There's as many bar rules as there are bars:
* Open off break/take what drops
* Call kisses (usually yes)
* Call side rails on 1-rail bank shots
* Call side rails on 1-rail bank shots except when it hits inside the last diamond
* Base of ball vs. all of the ball out of the kitchen
* 8-ball has to go clean/doesn't have to go clean
* Scratch on break=loss
* 8-on-Break = win; 8-on-Break = loss
* Failure to contact 8-ball = loss (Usually, you just have to touch the 8-ball, not get a rail.)
* Spot a ball following a scratch if they're all in the kitchen
* Can't use any of the other guy's balls in a combo, even if you hit your own first.
* 8-ball is neutral (can be hit first in a combo)
* No safeties
* Last pocket vs. straight in (e.g., when you get down to the 8 and call it, they say, "hey, we always play last pocket here." This usually happens right after you shoot your last ball in a side pocket.)

And probably a bunch more I'm not remembering at the moment. What do you do when someone comes up with a crazy rule? Well, I'm just a B player, but that makes me a pretty heavy favorite in a bar like the one you describe (that is, not a pool hall). And if I'm not the favorite I can usually figure it out pretty quickly.

So when I'm not in my home bar and one of those rules come up, I just say, "Oh, that's how you play it here. Fair enough" and play accordingly. I'm the favorite either way, and it keeps things friendly while letting me lose a few games along the way, which also helps keep things friendly.

The two things I always ask before a game are (1) Is the table open off the break? and (2) Does the 8-ball have to go clean. The rest are pretty minor and you can deal with them as they come up.

Cory
 
Close to Wisconsin....That says it all right there. Bar rules in wisconsin bars are quite different and goofy.
 
Cory in DC said:
There's as many bar rules as there are bars:
* Open off break/take what drops
* Call kisses (usually yes)
* Call side rails on 1-rail bank shots
* Call side rails on 1-rail bank shots except when it hits inside the last diamond
* Base of ball vs. all of the ball out of the kitchen
* 8-ball has to go clean/doesn't have to go clean
* Scratch on break=loss
* 8-on-Break = win; 8-on-Break = loss
* Failure to contact 8-ball = loss (Usually, you just have to touch the 8-ball, not get a rail.)
* Spot a ball following a scratch if they're all in the kitchen
* Can't use any of the other guy's balls in a combo, even if you hit your own first.
* 8-ball is neutral (can be hit first in a combo)
* No safeties
* Last pocket vs. straight in (e.g., when you get down to the 8 and call it, they say, "hey, we always play last pocket here." This usually happens right after you shoot your last ball in a side pocket.)

And probably a bunch more I'm not remembering at the moment. What do you do when someone comes up with a crazy rule? Well, I'm just a B player, but that makes me a pretty heavy favorite in a bar like the one you describe (that is, not a pool hall). And if I'm not the favorite I can usually figure it out pretty quickly.

So when I'm not in my home bar and one of those rules come up, I just say, "Oh, that's how you play it here. Fair enough" and play accordingly. I'm the favorite either way, and it keeps things friendly while letting me lose a few games along the way, which also helps keep things friendly.

The two things I always ask before a game are (1) Is the table open off the break? and (2) Does the 8-ball have to go clean. The rest are pretty minor and you can deal with them as they come up.

Cory
Click to expand...

How aboutyou dont have to hit the eight as long as you go three rails?

It is all of the above that makes 8 ball the worst game on the planet.
 
Nostroke said:
How aboutyou dont have to hit the eight as long as you go three rails?

It is all of the above that makes 8 ball the worst game on the planet.
Click to expand...

I've seen that one two. In fact, we could probably start a "craziest bar 8-ball rule you've ever seen" thread. Still, I like 8-ball, though I like it more when there is a well-defined set of rules that includes ball-in-hand.

Cory
 
I think your perspective on the whole situation is outta whack, Get_A_Grip.

YOU were in there to play some pool and try your hand at playing for money, failing to understand THEIR house rules and how the house rules could be changed at a moments notice to suit their whim.

But even at that, THEY weren't in there to necessarily play pool. Their purpose was to stir shit and prove that they were the "cock of the walk".
Pool was only the kettle. It was about screwin' with someone...intimidation...and fighting.

You WEREN'T even playing the right game. In this case, be glad you didn't get pounded into the ground with some missing teeth. Sometimes shit happens...next time recognize the game and the rules.
 
I just have a couple things to say. First of all, you said that you have GAMBLED at this place before. $1 or $3 a game is not gambling. Also, the way your making the story sound, you almost got beaten up really bad or killed for a grand total of $15. If $15 is worth that much to you, you have some major issues.
 
drivermaker said:
I think your perspective on the whole situation is outta whack, Get_A_Grip.

YOU were in there to play some pool and try your hand at playing for money, failing to understand THEIR house rules and how the house rules could be changed at a moments notice to suit their whim.

But even at that, THEY weren't in there to necessarily play pool. Their purpose was to stir shit and prove that they were the "cock of the walk".
Pool was only the kettle. It was about screwin' with someone...intimidation...and fighting.

You WEREN'T even playing the right game. In this case, be glad you didn't get pounded into the ground with some missing teeth. Sometimes shit happens...next time recognize the game and the rules.
Click to expand...

What made the situation even worse I think, was that even though the guys were planning on twisting everything to their advantage...I still don't think that the guy could beat me. That means that eventually things were going to come to a head when I tried to walk out with their money.

Remember, I did eventually give in and play the ball with their rules after the bouncer (the objective one...HA!) made the ruling. Nobody seems to be focusing on the fact that my opponents big buddy moved my ball on the table during the game. I don't think that there is any circumstance where that would be considered appropriate, and at that time, no one was too mad...it was more like posturing...
 
Get_A_Grip said:
What made the situation even worse I think, was that even though the guys were planning on twisting everything to their advantage...I still don't think that the guy could beat me. That means that eventually things were going to come to a head when I tried to walk out with their money.
Click to expand...


Which brings it right back to what I was saying...the game was NOT pool!
 
Opie said:
I just have a couple things to say. First of all, you said that you have GAMBLED at this place before. $1 or $3 a game is not gambling. Also, the way your making the story sound, you almost got beaten up really bad or killed for a grand total of $15. If $15 is worth that much to you, you have some major issues.
Click to expand...

I could have cared less about the money. I only started playing for money because I believed that I could do so "safely" in that place. It was more a thing of me being naive and not wanting to believe that they would really take it to a physical level for that amount of money. They had just gotten there and weren't drunk. The fact that the big guy was pre-planning to muscle anyone that took their money was not immediately apparent to me.
 
Get_A_Grip said:
I could have cared less about the money. I only started playing for money because I believed that I could do so "safely" in that place. It was more a thing of me being naive and not wanting to believe that they would really take it to a physical level for that amount of money. They had just gotten there and weren't drunk. The fact that the big guy was pre-planning to muscle anyone that took their money was not immediately apparent to me.
Click to expand...

I doubt their thing is going to bars and playing for $1.00 and strong arming people out of their money. All that happened was when you asked to raise the bet they thought you were trying to put them down and one thing lead to another. It could just as easily been a argument over football.
 
I think your kinda making this into a bigger deal than it was. I mean, you played pool for money with some redneck, drinking, ball-bangers. What did you expect would happen? I think your "theory" of them using strong-arm tactics as a regular hustle is pretty ridiculous. I think probably what happened is you beat them, they were drunk and got pissed, and you got punched. This happens all the time in bars. I REALLY doubt that these guys and the bouncer were conspiring to rob you out of all that money. (15$ :D) The reason the bouncer probably didn't do anything was that those guys probably come in there 4 or 5 times a week and are regular spenders. You said you came in there what, a total of 4 times? Bouncers are ALWAYS gonna take the side of the regulars versus that of the outsider. JMO.
 
I've played in hundreds of bar tournaments and never got myself it as big a mess as Get-a-Grip describes. I would also be quite bemused if not angry about the situation.

I think many hot-heads would have acted more foolishly than he did and got into worse problems.

But from what he explained about their behavior (telling you to put the dollar up on the table several times in an arrogant manner), I probably would have purposely lost the first game and then kept away from them. No point making enemies with people who have no sense of decent behavior.
 
1. I always play the ball has to be completely
out of the kitchen and have never played any other
way.
2. You should have said well if that's the way you
guys play whatever.
3. I'd have never called them cheats over that small
an amount.
4. The response in West Virginia would have been
that you were looking to get your ass kicked and
you would have.
Hope that helps.
 
whitewolf said:
Papa Joe's, a strip joint in Roanoke, Va. The bartender had 30 baseball bats he handed out to the locals when trouble started. Let me repeat that: THE BARTENDER. The Va. Tech cadets would come there and get the sh*t pounded out of them.
Click to expand...

Yeah that would fly real well in a country that you can sue a fast food joint and WIN because you split your coffee on yourself and it was hot...

First bystander just trying to walk away that got cracked would own the bar in no time and some people would be spending a year or two for aggravated assult.
 
whitewolf said:
This is one of the stupidest things I have heard so far. You just might end up eating your own phone.
Click to expand...

Not stupid. Smart. This is what a person should do when being physically threatened. It's against the law. It's called assault and the police don't put up with it either.

Chris
 
Get_A_Grip said:
I then decided that I’m going to try to tell my story to the bartender (happens to be a female). While I’m walking towards the back of the bar, my opponent's friend ("big guy" as it were) turns me to the side, crouches down and gives me a quick jab/punch right in the nuts. .
Click to expand...

Right then you needed to punch him or hit him with whatever was close (if he was that big) as hard as you could, you can't go through life avoiding these situations and even if you get your ass kicked at least you take out one of them, in turn you keep your cash and your pride. I can't even imagine something like this happening, it's inconceivable. BTW who doesn’t have a cell phone in this day and age?? You should have called the cops yourself, even if you did it from outside in your car.

Jim
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top