[cueandcushion]

I keep hearing so many people claiming all the reasons pool is shrinking. Video games, casinos, no smoking laws, $2 bottled water. I think the reason many people never address is young players.

When I started target shooting, it was my dad that taught me. Not the NRA
When I started weightlifting, it was my friends that joined me in the gym. Not Muscle and Fitness Magazine
When I started rock climbing, it was workout partners that went with me. Not REI sporting goods.
When I started fishing, it was my grandma and grandpa that took me. Not a Zebco rep.
When I started hunting, it was my cousins and best friend I went with. Not Winchester Firearms.

For pool, we should not expect the APA, BCA or any other group to be the primary tool for drawing new blood.

Too many pool players come to a room by themselves, expect to find new blood to play or gamble with. For being a social game there seems to be a lot of loners in pool halls. I think a major improvement for the LONG TERM survival of pool lies in bring in GROUPS of people. Not to gamble, not to be a pro. Just to have fun. You have to start making it enjoyable for the sport to grow. The small percentage of people that will take it to the next level will be found out of the larger pack that just wanted to have fun. Pool players should bring their kids or their family or friends from OUTSIDE the pool world to just have fun sometime. I almost never see that anymore. I think its the largest missed opportunity in our sport.

[EJmagnum186]

How about starting a High School League. We used to base it on the same basic format as the APA on either a Saturday or Sunday morning. Open it up a 2 hrs before your regular hours just for the kids league, open up the juke box so it is lively for the kids and encourage the parents to come and watch and upload some video to us stream and you have just created your next generation of customer base. I still end up having to see and play several of the kids I started in my high school league and that was 15+ years ago.

[Renegade_56]

Originally Posted by cueandcushion

I keep hearing so many people claiming all the reasons pool is shrinking. Video games, casinos, no smoking laws, $2 bottled water. I think the reason many people never address is young players.

When I started target shooting, it was my dad that taught me. Not the NRA
When I started weightlifting, it was my friends that joined me in the gym. Not Muscle and Fitness Magazine
When I started rock climbing, it was workout partners that went with me. Not REI sporting goods.
When I started fishing, it was my grandma and grandpa that took me. Not a Zebco rep.
When I started hunting, it was my cousins and best friend I went with. Not Winchester Firearms.

For pool, we should not expect the APA, BCA or any other group to be the primary tool for drawing new blood.

Too many pool players come to a room by themselves, expect to find new blood to play or gamble with. For being a social game there seems to be a lot of loners in pool halls. I think a major improvement for the LONG TERM survival of pool lies in bring in GROUPS of people. Not to gamble, not to be a pro. Just to have fun. You have to start making it enjoyable for the sport to grow. The small percentage of people that will take it to the next level will be found out of the larger pack that just wanted to have fun. Pool players should bring their kids or their family or friends from OUTSIDE the pool world to just have fun sometime. I almost never see that anymore. I think its the largest missed opportunity in our sport.

I agree completely,,,,,,very good post.

[Quesports]

I have said it so many times, without young players it's only a matter of time till pool halls are gone permanently. In the 60's and 70's you had to get on a list most of the time to get a table. The pool halls then always had sticks in the racks on the walls for people to use, you never see that anymore. It's one of the things that could get kids interested in pool. How many kids even own a cue? NONE so why don't pool halls have cues for new players? It just seems to me that most room owners have given up and resigned themselves to whining about the smoking bans. Talk to them about marketing and they look at you like your speaking swahili.. IMO the end of most pool halls will happen within the next 10 years.. Oh and BTW if you want to see kids just go to any mall, any weekend, anywhere, there wandering around wasting time and money while checking each other out. LOL!

[weakfingers]

I agree 100%. The reason I got into it was because of:

a) Free pool on Brunswick 9' tables at my college
b) A friend who was willing to teach me to play (he was serious into the game at the time)

Young players are where it needs to come from: maybe special deals for young players, selling a few cheap cues in the pool hall, etc... I know they can be obnoxious and annoying, but honestly that's where the blood comes from.

[Webbs Billiards]

Most of the places I've seen, here where I live that have pool tables, don't allow anyone under 18 inside. They claim its because of the alcohol, but bowling alleys sell beer too and are always packed with kids. I agree completely, by the way, that there should be a way to bring younger players into the game, have a youth league, and maybe even teams..like local football or baseball teams. I think it would probably work out better if the kids had access to tables that weren't in the "bar" environment, but that would require possibly the purchasing of new or used tables for rec rooms, or other public areas that kids frequent. A little marketing, and the support of the public, and this could be accomplished quite easily. Local businesses could sponsor the tables, and supplies, or the teams themselves. I'd bet if one town tried it and kept a record of their success, then others could follow. You'd want it to be very public, and publicized widely, or you'd end up with a chess club stigma though.

[Quesports]

I have given the issue of getting younger kids into pool for a while and a couple thoughts come to mind. I started to play at the age of 14 but got much more interested when I was 16 and by 18 was running 40+ balls in straight pool occasionally. I would market to the 16 - 18 age group by offering free pool between certain hours on Saturday and Sunday daytime hours noon till 6 pm or so. Give them cues to use and encourage them to ask for pointers about playing. I would head to the local Jr and High Schools for permission to market to them or through sports related organizations that are already existing. Soda's and food is the place to get some return. My thoughts are that most pool halls are dead during those hours anyway so why not give it a try.

[Renegade_56]

Originally Posted by Quesports

I have given the issue of getting younger kids into pool for a while and a couple thoughts come to mind. I started to play at the age of 14 but got much more interested when I was 16 and by 18 was running 40+ balls in straight pool occasionally. I would market to the 16 - 18 age group by offering free pool between certain hours on Saturday and Sunday daytime hours noon till 6 pm or so. Give them cues to use and encourage them to ask for pointers about playing. I would head to the local Jr and High Schools for permission to market to them or through sports related organizations that are already existing. Soda's and food is the place to get some return. My thoughts are that most pool halls are dead during those hours anyway so why not give it a try.

Yup,,,,,,,,maybe Saturday Morning Youth Leagues

[buddylee]

Originally Posted by cueandcushion

young players.

I have tried and tried to get my local pool hall to adapt to this strategy. 5 years ago he basically ran out all the top level players. The mid level and below followed suit to play at only bar tournaments. Start with the young get mommy and daddy involved start selling them "starter equipment" and keep the customer for a lifetime.


I started out in a jr league in 1992 and still speak with the owners of my, what was then local pool hall, today. When in town I always stop by for a few min to show my appreciation that some one took the time to get me playing in the right direction way back then.

Whenever I stop in I still see the same people along with a ton of new faces and the kiddos in the corner playing on a reasonably maintained bar box for the low low price of FREE just as it was 21 years ago. When the table is jammed they open a 9 footer for them right next to it. Every time I mention the place everyone in the little town speaks highly of the local pool hall commenting on how they are kid friendly and manage to keep them all in line. I had a lot of great locals pull me off that table for a match or 2 and teach me a lot of great things I pass on to my friends and other young players.

Players attract players, I wish some of the owners could understand you can give a little to gain a lot in a shrinking community. Don't give away the house just give away a good sample....

[waylander]

I started early in high school because there was little else to do and it was CHEAP!! $2.50 an hour between 4 guys and you could have fun for 4 hours at $2.50 a person...

The local hall didn't chase the kids away which for some reason, cranky old owners tend to do a LOT... why? Kids just need to have some fun to, their money is just as good as the old guys in the other corner but if the kids are just a bit too loud and someone complains they get kicked out... even if there's only 2 tables in use, why would you kick out 1/2 your customers? Plus teenagers tend to get treated like crap by a lot of owners just for being teenagers...

It's not just our responsibility as pool players but pool hall owners responsibility to attract their next generation of customers. The fact that pool halls are closing... well sometimes that's no one else's fault than the pool hall owners.

Just to be clear, I'm not saying all pool hall owners are this way but some definitely are. There's also the disrepair of tables, crappy pool cues, expensive food/drink.... etc. There's only 2 places that I'll really play here and that's because they have good tables in good condition with good hot food that's not over priced and both are busy.

[kaznj]

The down turn in pool in not necessarily caused by anything that is being done incorrectly. Times change. Some things go out of style. Blockbuster in all but dead. Who would have seen that coming.
Forty years ago kids did not have 200 tv channels. Video games on demand. Pool does not have the same attraction as other options. These newer options have more appeal. Non smoking rooms, poker, video games are just some of the reasons.
High school leagues are a great idea, but pool rooms have always had a seedy undesirable image. Smoke filled rooms with guys just waiting to hustle some young kid out of his money. These images make some parents and schools reluctant to expose their kids to these images. Many pool rooms are nice places to spend an afternoon with some friends, but the image is hard to shake.

[rlingenf]

You'd want it to be very public, and publicized widely, or you'd end up with a chess club stigma though.

It's of my opinion that pool can't end up with a chess club stigma. Making a shot in pool looks hard (especially banks) to those untrained. Name one time that moving a chess piece looked awesome.