in Downtown L.A. for one night, any good rooms?

LightsOut

LightsOut

Jason
Silver Member
Staying at the JW Marriott LA Live for work tonight, have some free time 3p to 11p or so, anyone have a nice pool room recommendation? I have been to Piccadilly and played 3C in Koreatown, but not really my game. I love it but possess no adequate knowledge or skill to play here. I could rent a car if it'd be worth it to drive somewhere but also good to stay downtown if the room is nice (and safe)...

Anybody got a suggestion? Not a big gambler but fine to play cheap sets...
 
jtompilot said:
I go to Sportsman’s Family Billiards. It’s a dump, tables are pretty good, players are friendly. Park in the neighborhood. Good 1P action.

The other room I go to is Mr. Lucky’s, not much action but it’s a nice room.
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Thx for the replies. Sportsmans looks promising as it's less than 6 miles from my hotel. Should be a cheapish Uber ride. Would you describe this area of LA as generally safe?
 
I did a trickshot show at this room last year. Nice tables. All 9ft gold crowns. They have a really tight table up front. Food isn't bad but its typical pool room food. Depends on what you view as safe. I parked off a side street and there was a beater car with a club on it. It isn't like downtown LA and was in a poorer part of the town. I didn't feel unsafe while in the room. I probably wouldn't walk outside a long distance but that is just me.
 
Stay Strapped. Use a rental car with insurance (its going to get broken into). Used Needles are everywhere. Throw away your shoes for there is shit all along the sidewalks. You can steal from most places without the police being called, but keep it under $900. Pro Tip: Go to the nearest Goodwill and use those cloths so as to not stick out and get robbed. Otherwise welcome to LA !
 
I don't really know the area all that well, but I was there for a couple of months recently and Mr Lucky's in Torrance is the best place I found; small room with only 4 9 footers and maybe 6 7 footers. If you want a bigger place, Good Times in Lakewood isn't too bad, either.
 
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Sherman Oaks House of Billiards is a nice room in a nice area but there is very little action. Tables are fine, many recently recovered.

They are all Gold Crowns.
 
I was amazed to hear that Hard Times in Bellflower closed, sigh of the times I guess. Northern Ca. still has a few good places, Hard Times in Sacramento, California Billiards in Fremont ,Edgies in Milpitas Family in SF nothing like it used to be after the Color of Money came out.

California is too damn expensive to open anything up and be profitable, especially in the SF Bay Area. Shame
 
thanks for all the replies, I love this forum. My coworker and I took a taxi over to Sportsmans at about 4:30pm today. Was kind of funny how the old gentlemen driving the taxi asked us, "why you stay at the JW Marriott and then come over to this area?". The room was nice, we played about 3 hrs on table 2 (pretty tight pockets) and had a great time. Everyone in the room was friendly and welcoming, overall an excellent experience. I concur the area didn't look 'nice' as we drove in and out, but we didn't venture outside or stay late into the night. Took an Uber back, picked us up right out front so no trouble whatsoever. If we had a car i would've gone further away I believe, probably to Sherman Oaks as that room looked nice and in a decent area to park.

Thanks again to everyone for the advice, always enjoy checking out the pool scene when traveling for work!
 

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LightsOut said:
thanks for all the replies, I love this forum. My coworker and I took a taxi over to Sportsmans at about 4:30pm today. Was kind of funny how the old gentlemen driving the taxi asked us, "why you stay at the JW Marriott and then come over to this area?". The room was nice, we played about 3 hrs on table 2 (pretty tight pockets) and had a great time. Everyone in the room was friendly and welcoming, overall an excellent experience. I concur the area didn't look 'nice' as we drove in and out, but we didn't venture outside or stay late into the night. Took an Uber back, picked us up right out front so no trouble whatsoever. If we had a car i would've gone further away I believe, probably to Sherman Oaks as that room looked nice and in a decent area to park.

Thanks again to everyone for the advice, always enjoy checking out the pool scene when traveling for work!
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Glad you had a good time and you did it right: in and out while the sun was still up. I've lived in LA for over 45 years (Pasadena area) and I wouldn't venture to that neighborhood after dark.
 
Lawnboy77 said:
Say it ain’t so Joe! A city the size of LA has no good rooms? The Bay Area has Hard Times, but LA has nothing?
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All the good ones are gone: Hard Times, Golden Cue, Charles Billiards, House of Billiards Santa Monica, etc., etc., etc.

Commercial real estate is too expensive just about everywhere in So Cal. This coupled with high utility costs (among other things) make it almost impossible to turn a profit. Unless you own the building, it's a very risky venture to start.
 
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