The glorious American pool table

The American pool table is considered the original when it comes to the game of pool. They are large 9 foot long tables for the tournament size table and use 2 ¼ inch balls. The cues also have larger spikes than their English counterparts with a diameter of 12-13mm compared to the smaller 8-9mm in the English game. They are also growing in popularity in the UK, with many of them in Riley clubs. Many people think that this is the way pool should be played and that the smaller pool tables in English pubs are a poor imitation. Regardless of what you think, great pool tables certainly look good and there are some outstanding examples of the American pool table. The big players in the US for pool tables are Brunswick, who is the father of pool tables in the US; They began making tables in the early 1800s, and Olhausen has a wide variety of designs available, some traditional and some contemporary to match modern decor.

And there are a host of other smaller manufacturers that also make custom American pool tables. In the UK, the main provider is Sam Leisure and BCE. The Sam Leisure K steel is a renowned table widely used in clubs and is considered to be one of the best.

The cloth in American pool is always speed cloth, with no nap as on British tables, so the ball goes straight in whatever direction it is struck and the pockets are correspondingly larger to accommodate the larger ball size as well. great. Home tables are usually made of wood and are fabulous pieces of furniture in general, with some very nice designs and can cost anywhere from £1500 to £6000. Often home pool tables are made with open pockets only, no refunds. balls as this would spoil the look of the table, whereas club tables always come with ball return and are often coin operated. Tables made for clubs are usually made with steel or aluminum frames and are extremely strong to withstand the harsh environment and are virtually indestructible apart from the fabric.

Pool became even more popular with the movies “The Hustler” and “The Color of Money” and one of its main characters, Minnesota Fats, was actually a pool player from the old days. The American version of the game is alive and well and American pool table sales are assured for years to come, and if you want to play pool the way it should be, get yourself an American pool table.