In many ways I feel safer in NYC than I did in my old city of Newcastle. While there are obviously considerably more murders here, violence isn't just about killing, and I saw more violence in Newcastle in one year than I have during 12 years in New York.

Bar fights and the like seem a lot more common in the UK. Brits just love to fight! There are probably many historical reasons for this. But I couldn't go out in Newcastle without seeing at least one brawl. I remember one night in a fairly quiet bar in a nice area of the city in which a friend of mine put his money down on the pool table and ended up playing this rough looking guy who was there with a few girls. My friend wiped the floor with this tool and in his humiliation he tried to save face in front of the girls by pulling out a huge wad of cash and challenging him to play for money. He politely refused, and the next thing I knew he was being chased around the table with a pool cue before someone threw a pint of beer at him which smashed on his head. Then all hell broke loose. There were chairs being smashed on people's backs, heads put through windows and someone got slashed. All over a game of pool.

Another difference I've noticed between here and there is that back home it was so easy to get into trouble with the local hooligans just by walking past them in the street at night. They'd yell something at you and you'd ignore them, which would enrage them even more and the next thing you know you're running for your life. I got the crap kicked out of me by packs of scumbags in Newcastle more times than I care to remember. But oddly enough, I don't feel in the least bit threatened walking through Harlem at night.

I know there is a difference between playing pool in a bar and playing in a pool hall.
 
I've experienced both since I was 15 and started my first set-down gig in a local nightclub.
 
The pool hall in town had a long history.
In the 50's to late 60's it was a ruff place.
It had a bar table (quarters) a snooker table and three regulation that were very well kept and rebuilt by the same manager until it closed in the early 80's (best I remember).
There was an upstairs for card gambling until sometime in the sixties. To much trouble and culture change eliminated that.
 
During the years that I was a serious player there was simply a code of conduct that was expected. If new players didn't understand they had a chance to learn or get moved to the quarter bar table or escorted out...they had the choice of how things went.
 
It was a very cool place with excellent local shooters and one could enjoy playing or just sitting on the side-line watching players from all over the US play some local shooters in high-dollar 9 ball.
Lawrence, the manager racked all 9 ball games- high dollar or not. He was tipped every rack. That was smart too as it eliminated the trouble that could start about the racking.
 
My point to this other than maybe sparking some pool stories is that it's interesting to me there is without doubt "unwritten rules", that seem to me to based from the local culture. Since I never gambled or played pool much outside of my local I didn't realize how much difference there obviously is, until now.
 
When one grows up "knowing" how dirty "dirty pool" is -even though it's legal- and it seems to be fine and just part of the game, it's just weird is all and like I stated...I'm sure there are many that wished I didn't know how to use those tactics with that on-line game LOL. I guess it's the musician in me...name the tune and I'll play it or give it my best shot anyway.
I don't agree with how the on-line games are setup so I won't become a member and I'm sure nobody there cares one bit...I know I don't and glad to know I was taught the game the way that I was.
Fortunately I get a chance to play with one of the best from those days. He owns a couple of nightclubs in AZ so I get to add to the great memories of the game and now I have something to talk to him about and get his take on it next time we talk.
 
 
 
 

paulo
I must be missing the point.......
It's not compulsory to play pool if you come here ya know !
 
 
I can relate to your story though......many moons ago I was in a strange bar (to us) with a pal. It was early on and we were only there waiting to meet up with someone else and then planned to move on somewhere else. The place was more or less empty and the pool table was vacant, so we decided to have a quick game while we were waiting. As I racked up the balls a guy entered the bar and said that we couldn't play each other because it was "his" table. Turned out that according to him, as he won the last game the day before, the next player along had to play him first and see if they could beat him. If they couldn't it remained "his" table and the next player also had to play him until he was defeated. Even better (for him) was that the "challengers" had to pay for the game, so he was getting a free ride too. I tried to explain that we were only there for a few minutes, didn't know about "the rules" so we would just play out one game and then it could still be "his" table as we were leaving anyway. The guy wouldn't have it and sat on the table so we couldn't play. Being a lover not a fighter I said...right, come on then I'll play you.... and proceeded to pot every ball without him even getting a shot. Never done it before and never done it since ! My pal was creased up in the corner watching how it all unfolded. At that point, the person we were waiting for arrived so I bid farewell to my new "friend" and have to admit I was rather enjoying the moment until he stood in front of me and informed me that I wasn't allowed to leave as it was now "my" table, so no-one else could play if I left. Yeah, right, ok mate.....The guy was still yelling out the door as we got in the car and drove away. :)

 
Love it!
 
I've heard similar stories about guys trying to control a dartboard...
 

I've heard stories about guys trying to control a forum.
 
I personally have not seen it.