What do you think is the reason for so many good pool halls closing?

Bar business is generally down since the recession. Way down, in some places. The industry magazines and trade groups all talk about this pretty often.

I freely admit that I don't know details about the bar business. However, I do believe people have entertainment budgets (be it trips to the bar, cable TV, home internet and smart phones, etc.) and they're just not choosing to spend it playing pool.
 
Why I think Pool Halls Close

My thought is that there just aren't enough pool players to maintain many more pool halls then there already is. Interest is sliding. We all saw The Color Of Money and likely many of us started playing because of that movie, but that was several years ago and quite frankly, "it ain't as easy as it looks." So, passions cool, and popularity drops off. Another major movie with a major star would do wonders for the sport. This new one about to be released, the one with Jennifer Barretta, what's it called? 9 Ball, the Movie, that will be nice (maybe?) for the pool player but I doubt that it will draw much of a crowd. I saw a movie a while back called Kiss Shot, with Whoopie Goldberg. An absolutely awful movie with an awful script - Major actor, rotten movie, and there have been others. I thought Poolhall Junkies was not to bad, but it didn't have a major star and consequently it had a very small, select viewing audience. I wouldn't put Chaz Palmentari or Christopher Walken in the same category as Tom Cruise and Paul Newman. But getting back to the main point, the interest just isn't there like it was several years ago and the industry doesn't generate the money necessary to sustain many more pool halls in many towns. To open a new up to date pool hall would likely mean the closing of an older pool hall and the the interest of the Saturday Night, neon light, fusion food and martini crowd isn't consistent and pool just isn't main stream enough to generate the necessary funds. The Men's Tour folded, I've read in some blogs that some bigger tournaments didn't pay out, this doesn't help. I think Pool and/or Billiards in general isn't taken seriously by most of the American Public because it's still seen as a basement game or a smoky bar back room game played by unsavory types. There was a push some time ago to get it into the Olympics. That wouldn't be a cure-all, but it would be a step in the right direction.
 
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My thought is that there just aren't enough pool players to maintain many more pool halls then there already is. Interest is sliding. ....

I agree. Attracting new people to the game is key. There are some snobs that look down on beginners and women. Discouraging people for not being good enough. They should be doing exactly the opposite if they want to keep the pool hall open.
 
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I freely admit that I don't know details about the bar business. However, I do believe people have entertainment budgets (be it trips to the bar, cable TV, home internet and smart phones, etc.) and they're just not choosing to spend it playing pool.

Oh I agree there completely, people have more options, plus sitting at home and using internet/fb/computer games etc are all definitely on the rise. Was just commenting on bars in the recession...trust me they are feeling it too. :)
 
This is not new. Poolrooms are always closing and will continue to close. They are always closing for the same old reasons. We need to be concerned that there are so few new rooms opening.
 
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The reason why pool rooms are closing in my opinion, is that the competition is lots better than years ago and you cant get better at pool from the couch. To many people that used to hang out in pool rooms think they dont have to practice and still win money. When it all falls back get off the couch.
 
Locally, we have about five real pool rooms, with more than ten 9 foot tables each. In the last ten years we've seen two others close down- one for poor management (duct tape holding rails down, etc.), and one because the owner died and the wife never liked pool anyway.

If you're a B player you've got tournaments every night of the week and Saturday afternoons. Sundays you can easily do two tourneys in one day. If you're an A player, you've got 3 or 4 per week plus an extra two per month. Leagues are strong but they mostly stay in bars, with about ten percent of the players involved in room tourneys, too.

Our economy is bad- I've been to countless store closing sales in the last three years, saying goodbye to a variety of retail shops i loved... This Wednesday even a large grocery store is closing.

Thinking about our own town, I'm wondering if the wide supply of pool competition helps each room and bar- the playing community is large and less dedicated to just one roon, because of the many options.
 
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it is not true that pool isn't expensive. The average cost for an hour in the pool rooms in my hometown is 9€ ( almost 12$). Usually when you play against other people if you lose you pay the table time. So if you lose a match which lasts 1 hour you have to pay 9€. Because I usually play more than 1 hour ( usually 3 hours a day), can happen I lose 2 or 3 matches ( which can happen if you play stronger players) and at the end of the day I could have to pay almost 30€ ( almost 40$). For a single day are a lot of money ( considering all the other expenses like food, fuel for the car, cellphone,ecc). I work, so I can sustain that kind of expenses, but what about the people in the 14-18 range?
 
Is it poor Management? Money problems? Not enough customers? Or perhaps a sign of the hard times? Thanks.
Many Regards,
Lock n Load.

I didn't read this entire thread so if I'm repeating something that has already been said, I am sorry about that.

I thought about going into the pool hall business. My dad was retired and a friend and I were thinking about going into business together. We researched the risk/benefit ratio and decided not to do it. This is the main reason we declined:

Let's say you have to pay $3.00 a square foot to lease a commercial building. Just do the math and count the square footage of the number of pool tables you have. Look at the prevailing prices for an hour of pool and you will soon see that it is a bad business decision to open a new PH. We figured if we rented all of our tables every hour of the day we were going to be open, we wouldn't make much money. I don't see how traditional ph's make it today.

One of the places where I live that did make it made it on everything but pool. The owner had about 100 video games, a restaurant and covered many of the pool tables and converted them to pizza party tables for families.
 
it is not true that pool isn't expensive. The average cost for an hour in the pool rooms in my hometown is 9€ ( almost 12$). Usually when you play against other people if you lose you pay the table time. So if you lose a match which lasts 1 hour you have to pay 9€. Because I usually play more than 1 hour ( usually 3 hours a day), can happen I lose 2 or 3 matches ( which can happen if you play stronger players) and at the end of the day I could have to pay almost 30€ ( almost 40$). For a single day are a lot of money ( considering all the other expenses like food, fuel for the car, cellphone,ecc). I work, so I can sustain that kind of expenses, but what about the people in the 14-18 range?

I thank you for your input very much. How are you doing way over there? In the USA the winner pays the time. As he has won and has all of the money from the match that he won! It is high for pool time over there per hour. We have specials over here where you can play all day for $6.00, I don't think that is bad at all. Do you have very many pool halls over there?
Many Regards,
Lock N Load.
 
I thank you for your input very much. How are you doing way over there? In the USA the winner pays the time. As he has won and has all of the money from the match that he won! It is high for pool time over there per hour. We have specials over here where you can play all day for $6.00, I don't think that is bad at all. Do you have very many pool halls over there?
Many Regards,
Lock N Load.

here we don't play money matches. We have no kind of "special", we have three rooms in town. Here pool is not taken seriously.
 
here we don't play money matches. We have no kind of "special", we have three rooms in town. Here pool is not taken seriously.

I thank you for the info. Only 3 pool halls in your town? Man that is not a lot.
How big is your town? Thanks for your input.
Many Regards,
Lock N Load.
 
I thank you for the info. Only 3 pool halls in your town? Man that is not a lot.
How big is your town? Thanks for your input.
Many Regards,
Lock N Load.
you can find some pool tables in other places, but we have only three pool rooms in town.

we are 800.000 or a little more than that.
 
you can find some pool tables in other places, but we have only three pool rooms in town.

we are 800.000 or a little more than that.

Hello Sih,
I am glad to meet you. I thank you for the info. It is very good to hear from you too! Happy Easter.
Many Regards,
Lock n Load.
 
it seem to me that all the owners wanna take in alot of money but not give any back pool is not a fast cash business takes time
That's quite a generalization you're making.

"All of the owners"..?!?

And while there are some greedy...or stupid owners, the majority of pool players are the ones who give back so little. This has been discussed many times, but we all know of the cheapskates who go to the room, hang out all day, or for several hours, and won't buy a sandwich or a bottle of water...but of course they want the VERY BEST of everything when they walk through the doors because they can play a little.

Works both ways.
 
I didn't read this entire thread so if I'm repeating something that has already been said, I am sorry about that.

I thought about going into the pool hall business. My dad was retired and a friend and I were thinking about going into business together. We researched the risk/benefit ratio and decided not to do it. This is the main reason we declined:

Let's say you have to pay $3.00 a square foot to lease a commercial building. Just do the math and count the square footage of the number of pool tables you have. Look at the prevailing prices for an hour of pool and you will soon see that it is a bad business decision to open a new PH. We figured if we rented all of our tables every hour of the day we were going to be open, we wouldn't make much money. I don't see how traditional ph's make it today.

One of the places where I live that did make it made it on everything but pool. The owner had about 100 video games, a restaurant and covered many of the pool tables and converted them to pizza party tables for families.

It is good to know that you are a capitalist. Costs versus Revenue.

Of course many halls are located in the low rent district to attack the costs.
 
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