Pool in Taiwan

X Breaker

X Breaker

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hi everyone,
I have just arrived in Taipei Taiwan a few days ago. I am still recovering from my jet lag and trying to get used to the extremly hot and wet weather here.
The people here are so very friendly and helpful I think I am going to enjoy myself despite the weather.
I went to one of the local tour stop for the Taiwanese tour two days ago. I saw Fong Pang Chao and a lot of the top professionals. There was a TV crew there reporting the match. Before the tournamet, they had Chao, Jennifer Chen, and two representatives from the governament to do an official break on TV. The mayor of Taipei was also in attendence. There were lots of interviews on TV before and during the tournament.
The poolhall which the tournament was held also had an in-house professional pool commentator, his name is Simon Chang(spelling might be wrong).
The tournament was very professionally conducted with referee and a very well behaved and knowledgable crowd. No one was running or walking in front of the players and everyone was very quiet. The poolhall had no bar or restaurant--it was a poolhall built for serious players who want to play pool in a professional setting. I was very impressed.
Later on, someone told me now students can choose pool as one of their curriculums in high school. A lot of students are now choosing pool over other sports and they are being trained at a very young age.
When I watched TV at night, I saw a live coverage of pool between a very young player, whom I believe to be Wu, against Yang, who is the no.1 player in Taiwan right now I believe. I have just arrived and I could be wrong with the names, to my knowledge, I believe Wu beat Yang in that match.
I have visited a few poolhalls. They are all 24 hours and they are so closely located. I went to a highrise building. At the elevator, I saw signs of four poolhalls in the same building! Two of the poolhalls are located right next to each other and one belongs to Mr. Tu.
I will try to post some pictures later if possible. I need to figure out my ways around the city first. ;)
Richard
 
nipponbilliards said:
Hi everyone,
At the elevator, I saw signs of four poolhalls in the same building! Two of the poolhalls are located right next to each other and one belongs to Mr. Tu.

Richard
Click to expand...

I think I know which building you're talking about. Is the building across from a department store? The pool hall on the right used neon lights as decoration for some weird reason. The ph on the left is pretty good, always packed, and you can often see pros playing there.
 
SplicedPoints said:
I think I know which building you're talking about. Is the building across from a department store? The pool hall on the right used neon lights as decoration for some weird reason. The ph on the left is pretty good, always packed, and you can often see pros playing there.
Click to expand...

Yes...and there is no washroom in either of the poolhalls. There is only one washroom for each floor being shared by everyone working and visiting that floor. I think there is a night club, a love hotel, a KTV, and some companies in the same building. it is quite different from the poolhalls in the US.

I saw a few players playing there ( in the one with neon light ) last night. One of the Japanese player was on his way to Kaishong for the qualifier.

You are right. The tables are all Brunswick but the light is neon blue. They have two sets of balls, one is the Centennial with the regular centenial cue ball, the other set features the cue ball with all those red dots.

I believe Ga Young Kim practises in the adjacent poolhall which is the one on the left. It is a bit darker and bigger. It features regular lighting. That poolhall is owned by Mr. Tu.

I talked to a guy in one of the poolhalls and he told me he charged about $10 for a leather wrap. Also, a refinish job is about $60 for the whole cue! I think the price is even still negotiable!

I will try to post some pictures and reports when I go to Kaishong on 2 July.

In the mean time, I am going to try all these interesting looking foods on the side of the street... :p I saw someone selling what I believe to be pig ears. ;)
 
Last edited:
nipponbilliards said:
Yes...and there is no washroom in either of the poolhalls. There is only one washroom for each floor being shared by everyone working and visiting that floor. I think there is a night club, a love hotel, a KTV, and some companies in the same building. it is quite different from the poolhalls in the US.

I saw a few players playing there ( in the one with neon light ) last night. One of the Japanese player was on his way to Kaishong for the qualifier.

You are right. The tables are all Brunswick but the light is neon blue. They have two sets of balls, one is the Centennial with the regular centenial cue ball, the other set features the cue ball with all those red dots.

I believe Ga Young Kim practises in the adjacent poolhall which is the one on the left. It is a bit darker and bigger. It features regular lighting. That poolhall is owned by Mr. Tu.

I talked to a guy in one of the poolhalls and he told me he charged about $10 for a leather wrap. Also, a refinish job is about $60 for the whole cue! I think the price is even still negotiable!

I will try to post some pictures and reports when I go to Kaishong on 2 July.

In the mean time, I am going to try all these interesting looking foods on the side of the street... :p I saw someone selling what I believe to be pig ears. ;)
Click to expand...


Give me a shout when you get here, I just arrived in Kaohsiung just now and its raining. Funny thing was the South Dakota Kid was on my flight and I didn't notice it until we where both just leaving the airport.

BTW, don't buy those pig ears you would look silly :D

PS
Apparantely snake alley is the place to visit at night if your into exotic night markets.
 
TheOne said:
Give me a shout when you get here, I just arrived in Kaohsiung just now and its raining. Funny thing was the South Dakota Kid was on my flight and I didn't notice it until we where both just leaving the airport.

BTW, don't buy those pig ears you would look silly :D

PS
Apparantely snake alley is the place to visit at night if your into exotic night markets.
Click to expand...

I am not buying the pig ears to put on my head--the pig ears are supposed to be snacks, or at least that is what I thought when I ate them.

And the jello serving on the side of the street is served with sliced lemon and ice and they are very good. It is their tradition to put it in a big Chinese Wok to attract customers.

I tried some rice that cost me less than $1. It is like sticky rice. It was served in a bowl with a brown boiled egg and some brown sauce. I think it is called oil rice in Chinese. It cost me less than $1.

I am in Taipei now and I am arriving Kaoshiung on the night of 1 July. I might not have Internet access in Kaohsiung but we will see. I heard Kaoshiung is hotter than Taipei.

I went to a night market at 3am and everyone were very busy eating and chatting. There were all kinds of dessert with all sorts of color and condiment imaginable.

I also went to a very big and fancy KTV. Actually, it is the fanciest KTV I have ever been to. KTV is obviously a big part of the entertainment culture in Taiwan. They have Internet access int he KTV room.

I was invited to a foot message place. It has to be one of the most unexpected and interesting experience I have had so far in a foreign country. I was taken to this message parlor at 1 am in the morning. The place was packed with customers waiting to have either a full body or a foot massage. I sat down and ordered a foot message for about $20 and the whole message lasted about an hour. They also provided other services at a very low fee such as picking and cleaning the ears, taking away dead skins, messsaging the breasts (which was not applicable to men ). Out of curiousity, I asked them to clean my ear for me. They called an ear cleaning expert over. The guy had in his shirt pocket a lot of tools which looked also very similiar to those used by a dentist. He took over 10 minutes to clean up my ears for me. It was an interesting experience but I think I will be more comfortable staying with my Q-tip from now on.

I was driving on a two lanes street and there were about five vehicles all driving side by side with also many scooters going left and right everywhere. It was like a very challenging video game to drive in Taiwan. You have to be really alert and quick in response.

I have to go to sleep now, the foot message has made me very sleepy.

Richard
 
Last edited:
I had the pleasure to join a meeting of a bunch of cue collectors here in Taipei. The meeting was arranged by the owner of a cue forum in Taiwan www.cue.bz.

One postes on az had shown up. Out of respect for his privacy I do not want to mention his name. He is one of the most well known cue collector in Taiwan. He showed me the most beautiful ivory engraved Soutwest cue I have ever seen. This Southwest has ivory inlays with music note engraved on the ivory. The music note inlays were very tastefullt done. I think the curved of the music note adds a lot of harmony to the square wood blocks and sharp points found on the cue.

This pool hall we went to was called Open Billiards. It features a nice dinning area, a bar, and a lot of very comfortable leather couch. The tables are so far apart there is no way I would hit the person on the next table.

We played on a Brunswick and the balls were al super Aramith Pros. The best part was that it was only $10 for 3 hours of play despite the number of players. We got to try a lot of cues and hit a lot of different shots. I showed everyone in the meeting my Layani cues. It is the first time a lot of them have seen the cue. Some professional players also showed up. They all like the way the cue hit. Everyone was very interested in the cue and asked me a lot of questions. Eventhough there were a lot of Southwest, Paul Mottey, Wes Hunter, John Guffey and things like that, they told me my Layani hit real nice.

As a matter of fact, we decided to go have a drink and talked about cues after pool. Next thing I know, I was still talking at 7 am with four other people I just met in the poolhall. It was a really nice experience.

The people in Taiwan knows a lot about cues, and they show a real passion and love for finer cues with great workmanship and a great hit. They also know a lot about how and why a cue would hit better and they in general know what they are looking for. I am very glad that they like my Layani cues even though it is a very new name in Taiwan.

The people I talked to was so friendly they wanted to take me to another poolhall at 2am to meet other pros because they wanted me to show them my cues.

A lot of the players I met also were real strong. There were two amatuer players I met who were capable of running over 120 balls in 14.1.

Talk to everyone later,
Richard
 
Richard, I was wondering what the cost would be for a trip to Taiwan for the World Pool Championship. Do you mind telling me approximate budget that would be necessary for such a trip? Also, are you allowed to visit mainland China?
Thanks,
JoeyA
 
JoeyA said:
Richard, I was wondering what the cost would be for a trip to Taiwan for the World Pool Championship. Do you mind telling me approximate budget that would be necessary for such a trip? Also, are you allowed to visit mainland China?
Thanks,
JoeyA
Click to expand...

It is peak season now and the ticket is over $2000 from the US. I think it is quite fully booked as well especially if you want to transfer form Japan to here. Hotel can be cheap or expensive depending on your choice. I am not staying in a hotel so I really do not know. But everything is basically a lot cheaper here than in the US. There is no tips required either--service charge is included. I took a cab for almost 30 minutes and it was only about $10. A lot of food are just a couple dollars. Pool is also very cheap. But I was told that is is expensive to buy a house or a car here.

As far as I know, you do not need a visa if you are staying for less than 30 days. I do not know if I can go to China. I think it should be OK.

If you are coming, please send me a PM.

Richard
 
Last edited:
JoeyA said:
Richard, I was wondering what the cost would be for a trip to Taiwan for the World Pool Championship. Do you mind telling me approximate budget that would be necessary for such a trip? Also, are you allowed to visit mainland China?
Thanks,
JoeyA
Click to expand...

Ya joey count me in....im sold. I wanted to go to Japan but looks like its Taiwan now!! keep us updated Nippon, im interested.

Mack
 
nipponbilliards said:
I had the pleasure to join a meeting of a bunch of cue collectors here in Taipei. The meeting was arranged by the owner of a cue forum in Taiwan www.cue.bz.

One postes on az had shown up. Out of respect for his privacy I do not want to mention his name. He is one of the most well known cue collector in Taiwan. He showed me the most beautiful ivory engraved Soutwest cue I have ever seen. This Southwest has ivory inlays with music note engraved on the ivory. The music note inlays were very tastefullt done. I think the curved of the music note adds a lot of harmony to the square wood blocks and sharp points found on the cue.

This pool hall we went to was called Open Billiards. It features a nice dinning area, a bar, and a lot of very comfortable leather couch. The tables are so far apart there is no way I would hit the person on the next table.

We played on a Brunswick and the balls were al super Aramith Pros. The best part was that it was only $10 for 3 hours of play despite the number of players. We got to try a lot of cues and hit a lot of different shots. I showed everyone in the meeting my Layani cues. It is the first time a lot of them have seen the cue. Some professional players also showed up. They all like the way the cue hit. Everyone was very interested in the cue and asked me a lot of questions. Eventhough there were a lot of Southwest, Paul Mottey, Wes Hunter, John Guffey and things like that, they told me my Layani hit real nice.

As a matter of fact, we decided to go have a drink and talked about cues after pool. Next thing I know, I was still talking at 7 am with four other people I just met in the poolhall. It was a really nice experience.

The people in Taiwan knows a lot about cues, and they show a real passion and love for finer cues with great workmanship and a great hit. They also know a lot about how and why a cue would hit better and they in general know what they are looking for. I am very glad that they like my Layani cues even though it is a very new name in Taiwan.

The people I talked to was so friendly they wanted to take me to another poolhall at 2am to meet other pros because they wanted me to show them my cues.

A lot of the players I met also were real strong. There were two amatuer players I met who were capable of running over 120 balls in 14.1.

Talk to everyone later,
Richard
Click to expand...


Glad you're having such a great time in Taipei. You are in for a real treat once the pool starts.Please give us some commentary on some of the more notable matches.

I've heard the pool talent over there in general is very very strong.I know some people from Taiwan (who now live in Vancouver) who are A level players here,however,only rated C+ in Taiwan.Apparently handicap tournaments over there are unheard of.There are so many players that the C's play the C's, the B's the B's etc etc.As you improve you move on to the next group class and play against players of your level.Apparently there is never no shortage of players when it comes to local weekly tournaments. Also I heard they offer pool as a class you can take in school. They are absolutley bannanas about pool over there.I think player's from Taiwan will be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.As a pool player it must be great to be in such an environment.

As far as cues go,I've never seen (other than pictures) a Southwest, Paul Mottey, Wes Hunter or John Guffey cue. I'm sure they are great cues.I do own a Layani,however, and it's a great hitting cue as well.I'm glad people over there also think so.Take care, RJ
 
Celtic said:
Curious, "love hotel"?
Click to expand...

Yes, Love Hotel as in the hotel which you rent for a couple hours to do the love act.

On the ground floor, I just realized there is a big store called The World Of Condom. The government has just passed a new law so all stores selling condom would need a licence from the health department. And the condom has to pass an inspection before it can be sold. A lot of condoms were made in the form of a superman or what not and they cannot be sold any more.

Also, when you come to Taiwan, you better check to see if you can receive cell phone signal from the US. I cannot get any signal from mine so I cannot even use text message. If you are here for business, you may want to rent a cell phone.


Richard
 
recoveryjones said:
Glad you're having such a great time in Taipei. You are in for a real treat once the pool starts.Please give us some commentary on some of the more notable matches.

I've heard the pool talent over there in general is very very strong.I know some people from Taiwan (who now live in Vancouver) who are A level players here,however,only rated C+ in Taiwan.Apparently handicap tournaments over there are unheard of.There are so many players that the C's play the C's, the B's the B's etc etc.As you improve you move on to the next group class and play against players of your level.Apparently there is never no shortage of players when it comes to local weekly tournaments. Also I heard they offer pool as a class you can take in school. They are absolutley bannanas about pool over there.I think player's from Taiwan will be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.As a pool player it must be great to be in such an environment.

As far as cues go,I've never seen (other than pictures) a Southwest, Paul Mottey, Wes Hunter or John Guffey cue. I'm sure they are great cues.I do own a Layani,however, and it's a great hitting cue as well.I'm glad people over there also think so.Take care, RJ
Click to expand...

I totally agree with you. I wish I could see pool being promoted in the US and Canada like they do here in Taiwan.

Most of the pros here have fans and they are being asked for autographs all the times. Some of these pros are just high school students! it is really amazing!

I will for sure try to provide some updates for the WPC but I am not sure if I can get Internet access there. I will stay till the end and I will also join the after party, which is to be held in Jennifer Chen s new night club. I will try to take lots of pictures and post them here one way or another.

Richard
 
I paid $1150 return from San Fran to Taipei less than a week ago and I only booked a few days before. My hotel has free ADSL, Cable (with free porn lol!), fridge, breakfast inc etc and is only a stones throw from the WPC venue. Interestingly a free condom is besides the bed also, along with the pen and notepad etc!

You can get a pre padi simm card from the airport and other places for US$10! which is very cheap and this includes $10 of credit which is great for sms etc.. no need to use expensive roaming really other than to keep same number?
 
Enjoying Taiwan.

Richard and Craig, thanx for the good stories and happy to hear that you're enjoying your stay in Taiwan.

One question, no nitelife stories yet?

Hint: The things that really guys do. :)
 
TheOne said:
I paid $1150 return from San Fran to Taipei less than a week ago and I only booked a few days before. My hotel has free ADSL, Cable (with free porn lol!), fridge, breakfast inc etc and is only a stones throw from the WPC venue. Interestingly a free condom is besides the bed also, along with the pen and notepad etc!

You can get a pre padi simm card from the airport and other places for US$10! which is very cheap and this includes $10 of credit which is great for sms etc.. no need to use expensive roaming really other than to keep same number?
Click to expand...

There you go...from Seattle to Taipei was over $2000. May be I was looking at the wrong place.

Are you staying till the end of the tournament?

I will be there on 2 July.

Hope to see you.

Richard
 
BlowFish said:
Richard and Craig, thanx for the good stories and happy to hear that you're enjoying your stay in Taiwan.

One question, no nitelife stories yet?

Hint: The things that really guys do. :)
Click to expand...

Any suggestions? ;)
 
Ya gotta love a country that makes its national sport "POOL".

I am interested in going there. It just isn't the right time. I am headed to Washington DC for this weekend's tribute. If there are any players that want to meet to do a little battle on the field of green in D.C., my brother and I are staying at the Courtyard by Marriott on Connecticut and may be able to squeeze in a few hours in D.C. as we will have no vehicle, except for one electric scooter.

PM me for cell phone and other info. Dates July 1-July4.

Thanks to everyone who is posting the good information about Taiwan Pool.

It sounds the average Taiwanese has pool on the brain about as bad as any of us.
Warm Regards,
JoeyA




stolz2 said:
Ya joey count me in....im sold. I wanted to go to Japan but looks like its Taiwan now!! keep us updated Nippon, im interested.

Mack
Click to expand...
 
You where there.

nipponbilliards said:
Any suggestions? ;)
Click to expand...

That building with a condom store, a nite club, a ktv and a love hotel. ;)

They are pretty good in putting the right establishments/entertainment centers in one place.

And you stayed until 7am? I won't get into that. :D
 
Last edited:
BlowFish said:
That building with a condom store, a nite club, a ktv and a love hotel. ;)

They are pretty good in putting the right establishments/entertainment centers in one place.

And you stayed until 7am? I won't get into that. :D
Click to expand...

So, what are you doing working in HK? Lets have some fun... :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top