Hey Everyone,
I know this is a national pool forum (and the premier one), but wanted to post this up there for anyone that knew Ted Minassian and/or have ever been to Marie's Golden Cue in Chicago. Since it was one of the oldest pool halls in the city, I figured some of you have been through it. It closed back in February of 2017 when Ted decided to retire and sell it to the new owners. It has since been remodeled and renamed Surge Billiards.
But this post is about the man who owned it. I remember when I first decided to take pool seriously in 2011, Ted was one of biggest influences in my billiard life. It's funny because if you read old yelp reviews about Marie's Golden Cue, you hear negative reviews about a "crabby old man behind the counter". He sure did hate sassy youngsters lol. The funny thing is once you got to know him, he was the opposite.
When I was on one of the center tables, trying to do a cool draw shot but not knowing a lick about having good technique, he comes by and starts giving me advice. I would go there with friends and he'd be very warm and welcoming, while making the usual crass jokes. It was a great place to hang. Even after playing for a couple of hours, we'd spend even more time just hanging around Ted for longer just to shoot the breeze. He'd make fun of my "cue of the week" as I kept buying/trying something new for my to find that magic cue.
He was always there to give good advice and help out too. At one time I might've been the brokest I've ever been, he bought my meucci sneaky pete from me for well more than what it was worth to help me out. He's taught me and allowed me to work on my own tips and even build an extension for one of my cues.
He even transformed a cue from a bad deal to probably the best cue i've ever owned (and coincidentally the biggest selling regret I've made)
Thank you to Angel Levine for keeping us posted. I figured I'd make a post on here for those friends who aren't on facebook, but still frequent here.
I know this is a national pool forum (and the premier one), but wanted to post this up there for anyone that knew Ted Minassian and/or have ever been to Marie's Golden Cue in Chicago. Since it was one of the oldest pool halls in the city, I figured some of you have been through it. It closed back in February of 2017 when Ted decided to retire and sell it to the new owners. It has since been remodeled and renamed Surge Billiards.
But this post is about the man who owned it. I remember when I first decided to take pool seriously in 2011, Ted was one of biggest influences in my billiard life. It's funny because if you read old yelp reviews about Marie's Golden Cue, you hear negative reviews about a "crabby old man behind the counter". He sure did hate sassy youngsters lol. The funny thing is once you got to know him, he was the opposite.
When I was on one of the center tables, trying to do a cool draw shot but not knowing a lick about having good technique, he comes by and starts giving me advice. I would go there with friends and he'd be very warm and welcoming, while making the usual crass jokes. It was a great place to hang. Even after playing for a couple of hours, we'd spend even more time just hanging around Ted for longer just to shoot the breeze. He'd make fun of my "cue of the week" as I kept buying/trying something new for my to find that magic cue.
He was always there to give good advice and help out too. At one time I might've been the brokest I've ever been, he bought my meucci sneaky pete from me for well more than what it was worth to help me out. He's taught me and allowed me to work on my own tips and even build an extension for one of my cues.
He even transformed a cue from a bad deal to probably the best cue i've ever owned (and coincidentally the biggest selling regret I've made)
Thank you to Angel Levine for keeping us posted. I figured I'd make a post on here for those friends who aren't on facebook, but still frequent here.
