Where's the action? None in California!

thebigdog

thebigdog

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
California used to be a great place for action. What happened? Nobody matches up anymore. The strongest players only want a lock to play. I remember when there was big action every night of the week somewhere, now theres nothing. If a couple guys match up for $500 a set these days its news. I was wonderring, is it like this everywhere? There has to be some cities or states where there is consistant action for all speeds, but it aint California thats for sure!
I started playing again last year, after quitting for close to 10 years. Its hard to keep interested in it when there is nothing going on out here. Plenty of strong players in the bay area but nobody is matching up at all, and I am starting to find the poolhalls are getting very boring. Its hard to find people who will even play cheap unless they know they have the nuts. Well I am glad for this site, otherwise I think I would have already lost interest in pool over the last year.
So let me know Where is the action these days?
 
If you want action, go to a Poker Room with everyone else. Play pool because you love it. If it is just a vehicle to gamble for you, we are better off without you.
 
i dont know if you mean latley or not but i find pool is more of a winter sport then a summer more action in the winter IMO i do not know if you mean right now or even in the winter
 
Schmohawk said:
If you want action, go to a Poker Room with everyone else. Play pool because you love it. If it is just a vehicle to gamble for you, we are better off without you.
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Of course I love to play, do you think I would be here if I didn't. I don't know if you realized this or not but people gamble in poolhalls, I hate to be the one to break that to you but its true. I am not a big gambler by any means, I like to play one pocket for $10, or $20 a game, and 9-ball from $20 to $50 a set from time to time.
What I was referring to was the heavyweights don't matchup with each other at all anymore, they are all looking for something easy. I used to enjoy watching my favorite players match up with each other or with whatever road players came thru, occasionally I would get in on a sidebet. I really enjoyed the poolhalls back then.
I feel that adding a little money to the game makes things a lot more competitive, maybe you don't need that but I guarantee you if you did play for money you find the game a little different than what you are used to.
 
thebigdog said:
Of course I love to play, do you think I would be here if I didn't. I don't know if you realized this or not but people gamble in poolhalls, I hate to be the one to break that to you but its true. I am not a big gambler by any means, I like to play one pocket for $10, or $20 a game, and 9-ball from $20 to $50 a set from time to time.
What I was referring to was the heavyweights don't matchup with each other at all anymore, they are all looking for something easy. I used to enjoy watching my favorite players match up with each other or with whatever road players came thru, occasionally I would get in on a sidebet. I really enjoyed the poolhalls back then.
I feel that adding a little money to the game makes things a lot more competitive, maybe you don't need that but I guarantee you if you did play for money you find the game a little different than what you are used to.
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Well said.
 
thebigdog said:
Of course I love to play, do you think I would be here if I didn't. I don't know if you realized this or not but people gamble in poolhalls, I hate to be the one to break that to you but its true. I am not a big gambler by any means, I like to play one pocket for $10, or $20 a game, and 9-ball from $20 to $50 a set from time to time.
What I was referring to was the heavyweights don't matchup with each other at all anymore, they are all looking for something easy. I used to enjoy watching my favorite players match up with each other or with whatever road players came thru, occasionally I would get in on a sidebet. I really enjoyed the poolhalls back then.
I feel that adding a little money to the game makes things a lot more competitive, maybe you don't need that but I guarantee you if you did play for money you find the game a little different than what you are used to.
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I gambled probably before you did but i soon realized it was futile. You win today lose tomorrow. About 20 pros have learned this also including Earl. I play now becasue I love the game and love to compete. No Extra stimulation needed. You said you are losing interest due to the lack of match-ups. You don't have the same interst I have. I just want to play!
 
Well, i dunno about your area, but i know several guys here in Michigan who would take you for 500$ a set anyday. But i think its the same anywhere, its tough to find a game for any decent amount of money, expecially if your a name.

And yes now a days it seems like people do want to have a easy match, to make easy money, and nobody seems to want to work for the win. But also i think people are also playing smarter, expecially when it comes to big money games.

I mean i know when i am playing money games, i always set a limit of how much i can afford to lose before i stop playing.

But i have also seen guys get into money games, and get whipped in the first set, and then quit, thinking they have no chance and winning thier money back if they keep on playing.

Or the opposite, the underdog person, somehow comes away with the win, and just takes the money n runs, without giving the other person a chance to win thier money back. which i have seen happen before, lol

dave
 
Schmohawk said:
If you want action, go to a Poker Room with everyone else. Play pool because you love it. If it is just a vehicle to gamble for you, we are better off without you.
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Did you join this forum to bitch? You run your mouth in the Carolinas Open thread (was it on Scott Frost?).

"We are better off without you." I don't know who you are trying to speak for, but gambling is usually what makes head-up competition interesting. Really shows who has the nuts. So this Bud Light is to you, ethical pool-playing likely-to-be-glove-wearing fram-artist marauder of the green felt. Pool and gambling are here to stay, and the majority of the top players will keep gambling.
 
thebigdog said:
California used to be a great place for action.... Where is the action these days?
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In Northern California, I think your best chances are Family, CBC and Hardtimes. If seeing good players in tournaments is sufficient, go to the monthlies for nine ball and one pocket. Get on Gene Miller's mailing list for tournament updates or see the schedules in the free, monthly regional pool newspapers -- of which we are fortunate enough to have two in this area.
 
Bob Jewett said:
In Northern California, I think your best chances are Family, CBC and Hardtimes. If seeing good players in tournaments is sufficient, go to the monthlies for nine ball and one pocket. Get on Gene Miller's mailing list for tournament updates or see the schedules in the free, monthly regional pool newspapers -- of which we are fortunate enough to have two in this area.
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Family is my home room, I was on their membership until recently. There is no action there in the afternoons. I like tournaments, but they are too time consuming for me and I think that gambling is a whole different ball game. I enjoy playing in tournaments a lot more on weekend afternoons as opposed to weekday nights. My job has me waking up every day at 5am so I can't hang with these tournaments at night. Also I feel that gambling is a better guage on who is playing better on that particular day.
 
thebigdog said:
... There is no action there in the afternoons. ....
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This may be part of the problem. I think there is no action anywhere in the afternoon unless it is continuing from the previous night. In my experience, 9PM is early for action to start.
 
shawnNC said:
So this Bud Light is to you, ethical pool-playing likely-to-be-glove-wearing fram-artist marauder of the green felt. Pool and gambling are here to stay, and the majority of the top players will keep gambling.
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Shawn,
OUCH!! I wear a glove, but will gamble with anyone who wants. Man its hard enough to put that glove on now, hopefully "glove-wearer" isn't the worst that could happen to a player. I think John Schmidt wears a glove, and he seems to have a little gamble.
 
You answered your own question

thebigdog said:
Family is my home room, I was on their membership until recently. There is no action there in the afternoons. I like tournaments, but they are too time consuming for me and I think that gambling is a whole different ball game. I enjoy playing in tournaments a lot more on weekend afternoons as opposed to weekday nights. My job has me waking up every day at 5am so I can't hang with these tournaments at night. Also I feel that gambling is a better guage on who is playing better on that particular day.
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The reason there is no action in the afternoon is the same reason you cannot play at night "WORK" However most pool rooms go through phases and at times during the year there are a lot of players available for money games in the afternoon because of the type of job they have, their days off and their hours of work. You cannot make a judgment on one room. They may be going through a dead period. Now if you want to play a player that has no job he is probably too good to play for big money.
For your information there are quite a few players that gamble a lot and for whatever at Fast Eddys in Santa Cruz(Capitola). Most of the following are available on Mon., Wed., and Fridays and are in games all the time.
Al,Diego, Jeff, Larry, Luis, Dick, Lee, Billy, Jose, Sal, Jerry, Randy.
Now keep in mind the above all have jobs, but love to play from 5 to 500.
Also keep in mind winter is a lot more busier also.
 
Thebigdog,


Top players do not want to play each other because it is just too hard to win against each other period. Why work hard when you can bait a lesser player or an up and comming player for their bread. About 15-20 years ago, big players matched up for the money, today they don't. If you go to Derby City in January you can catch a good match between good players...
 
thats my point

JustPlay said:
Thebigdog,


Top players do not want to play each other because it is just too hard to win against each other period. Why work hard when you can bait a lesser player or an up and comming player for their bread. About 15-20 years ago, big players matched up for the money, today they don't. If you go to Derby City in January you can catch a good match between good players...
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When did things change? It used to be, you won some money then challenged that guy who was always giving you a tough time. Thats the way people would improve by beating other guys and using that money for the tough matchup. My dad used to own a poolroom and he was one of the better players in Southern California. Over the 5 years he had the place matched up with just about every good player from Southern California and whatever road players came thru as well. Back then people would match up nightly even in the smaller poolhalls. But a place like Hard Times in Bellflower, that place was action paradise. Always big action in there with road players coming thru to play the locals, many a road player went broke at that place.
I know one day I would love to check out the DCC, but I hope I don't have to go all the way to Louisville to witness some heavyweights matching up.
 
nfty9er said:
The reason there is no action in the afternoon is the same reason you cannot play at night "WORK" However most pool rooms go through phases and at times during the year there are a lot of players available for money games in the afternoon because of the type of job they have, their days off and their hours of work. You cannot make a judgment on one room. They may be going through a dead period. Now if you want to play a player that has no job he is probably too good to play for big money.
For your information there are quite a few players that gamble a lot and for whatever at Fast Eddys in Santa Cruz(Capitola). Most of the following are available on Mon., Wed., and Fridays and are in games all the time.
Al,Diego, Jeff, Larry, Luis, Dick, Lee, Billy, Jose, Sal, Jerry, Randy.
Now keep in mind the above all have jobs, but love to play from 5 to 500.
Also keep in mind winter is a lot more busier also.
Click to expand...
It seems like you could always find action before. Rooms would have an afternoon crowd, then an evening crowd. The evening crowd at Family on non tournament nights is a young, non serious playing crowd. There are plenty of people willing to play me, especially now since I haven't been playing much. But what I was trying to bring up was the lack of action between the top local guys. I see a few guys who are willing to play but not many. I don't think this is a seasonal thing, people just don't seem to be matching up to me.
 
TBD,

Over the last 15 years there use to be a pro tour(s)(no longer around), Camel tour (folded like a pancake) and many regional tours (Viking, Joss, SE tour, Florida Tour, West Coast tours which are doing very well and are more managable then the large major tours) and alike. Also with some major events like US Open, Derby City, Big Apple Challenge NY, Reno open, HardTimes tournament as so on.
Alot of the big money players, top pros and road players started playing in these events against each other and to be brief about it, they played each other enough in tournament play that playing for money would be to tough to grind it out for the money against each other. Also, for alot of players, life and its growing responsiblities (wife, kids, job etc..) catches up with them and pool is all they have known for many years. Now with alot of tours going under, only the top 5-10% of American players (check AZ Billiards money list of players winnings) can make a decient living playing pool and not just pool alone, they are sponsored by cue makers, table makers and so forth....
Yes, I do agree with you, most pool rooms around the country as well as California have closed there doors or just put in a bar to make money, because pool is no longer a money maker on its own. Also, with the rest of the world comming to America and winning most of the tournaments...... Pro Bowlers make better livings then pool players (sad, very sad). And for some reason, Beer maufactures and cigerette manufactures refuse to sponsor a billiard tour or tournaments for that matter (pool players helped ruin the Camel Tour)....Not too many people want to live in a pool room 20 hours a day anylonger. I guess to get back to your original thread, if a top player doesn't cash at the top of a major tournament, he is looking to take down a lesser player for the cash or a Whale of a Backer because the bills have to be paid. And a top player will not go head to head for the money with another top player, the percentages are not in his favor....I personally know a few of those kinds of players and they know nothing else (and I mean nothing else) other then pool, gambling and Poker....Nice people, but they ended up trapping themselfs with that life.....A little long winded, thanks for reading.
 
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Action

There is still action around but nothing like it was. Stakehorses move on, guys match up so often it is hard to arrange a real good $ game. But in the past week I've watched several $ matches at HT (Bellflower) Morro is pretty much always available, along with several others. I watched 2 guys match up in a Sportsbar last night (9'tables) for 500.00 a set races to 7 and they could never match up with the guys at HT. When Tony, Bryce and the rest of the guys get back from the road, maybe already, you can have quite a bit of action. Either in San Jose or Sactown. PM Tom from Cincy he can probably steer you.
 
Williebetmore said:
Shawn,
OUCH!! I wear a glove, but will gamble with anyone who wants. Man its hard enough to put that glove on now, hopefully "glove-wearer" isn't the worst that could happen to a player. I think John Schmidt wears a glove, and he seems to have a little gamble.
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John Schmidt and Mike Davis both. Hey, there are exceptions to the rule. :)
 
The excitment for the game has diminished. Pumped up after the movie the "Color Of Money". Even though more people play pool now. The subculture of gambling has evolved into tournaments and national leagues systems. Watching the action is what got me into pool. Seeing to top players playing on their own money all night and into the morning. Most needed the action and the money for other things like drugs or for playing cards.The image needed an up left and that part of the game seemed to be something that needed to go to give credibility to the SPORT.

The stakehorses all have burned out by being cut up and without them pumping up the action means less games. Not many play on their own money and have expected stakehorses to fund them. There is still action but not nearly as much. I think in some areas of the country there is more economic depression. In the 70's and part of the 80's there were many jobs & people had more spare money. With less money available its hard to spread it around with the state and national lotterys and dog racing etc....

The new young players comming up somehow don't stay playing, maybe because the old gaurd beat them out of all their heart. These players had to be cultivated and some make it through the gauntlet.

I used to see action & road players all the time. In ten years I have only seen Tony Fargo and John Schmidt. I miss action/rail part of pool. The action to see who (on that day) is the best is a lost art. I can only speak about for my area. There are good players every where but but they are all friends and don't match up anymore. They are waiting for the road players that never come around. Or the new player who doesn't know what to do with thier lunch money.....I don't know how much action is left in California, but I use to hear the stories from the road players.
 
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