When l started playing l put enough money up to play 3 games but l was told the minute l won the first game the amount of quarters l put up did not matter l had to play the next person that had put up quarters. Is this the normal way?

Yep..that is usually the unwritten rule..since the table essentially 'belongs' to everyone in the bar..you basically put down enough money to reserve your place in line..if you keep winning, great!..if you lose, you have to reserve your place in line again..'tis the way it is been done waaayyy up here for decades..many a pool cue has met its demise upon some pushy player is noggin cuz he tried to get greedy..LOLOL..

The quarters on the pool table are place holders. If you have enough quarters on the table for 3 games then the other player has to wait. Until you are done playing out your quarters. Then the other person plays the winner of the previous game. The winner always has the table. The person putting up the quarters always plays the winner.

theyre both right....

Hi Martin -

Yes. It is quite normal barroom etiquette that even if u line up an entire roll of quarters, u cannot monopolize the table. The only way to assure that u will not have to sit out after ur game when people have quarters on the table, is to win the game. Playing bar pool is a great incentive to play ur best pool.

#1: If u win, u do not have to pay for ur next game (or any games, as long as you're winning).

#2. If u win, u do not have to get back in line & wait to play.

Many bars have resorted to using chalkboards to alleviate the ''battle of the quarters'' & to better keep track of who has the next game. Keeping quarters off the table in bars, also keeps people from pulling on the rails, or from using the rails as a ''balance when they bend down to rack the balls.

When bars get really crowded, & patrons r drinking, the quarter battle can get out of hand, as people bicker who had their quarters up first.

l prefer chalkboards to stacking quarters when it comes to bar pool for the reasons mentioned above.

''Krazy'' is right. Yes, Martin - no matter how many quarters u have lined up, u cannot hold the table unless u win. If you're looking to play a series of games with a specific friend or alone, l suggest playing in a bar that has several pool tables where u & a friend can play by yourselves. Even then, if someone comes up to challenge ur table (even if there r open tables) u CAN ask the person if they would mind playing at another table & express that u r having a pool session with ur friend. In most cases, the upcoming opponent will respect ur wishes. But the bottom line is that if they want to challenge ur table, no matter how many quarters u have lined up, it IS their right to challenge you.

Take 'em up on the challenge! It is a great incentive to play good pool & to ''protect'' ur table --and hey -- the game is free when someone challenges ur table.
;-)

Good luck, pool player -

LAG

Yes in Britain that is the way, you get on the table again when everybody elses coins have been used up, you might ask them if they would like a game of doubles, that is if there isnt a whole bunch of others waiting.

In Perth W.A, we pay $2 a game it is a good incentive to play good pool,what l do is put up a different type of coin($1 or 50c ) up so l now which one is mine if there is no blackboard handy.
Also it is a good idea to find out what the local rules are before you start playing it keeps everybody happy then with out any friction being generated/fights or arguments starting

yeah it does not matter how much u put on the table u only ment to put enough to play one game

yep, you can not monopolize the table, it just poor sport to do so.

l agree with most. There should never be more slots taken than the number of people waiting in line to play. Of course common sense is useful also, If it looks like a guy is on a date with a girl or something, l would not challenge his table if there are tables with just guys playing or something. If you want to play without challenges check out a poolhall that has pay by time tables, then you have the table reserved just for you.