SHOOTIN' POOL

Billiards, pool, 8-ball, sticks. . . whatever you may call the game, students can be thankful for the abundance of good shootin' in Bloomington. \nThe billiard table is a popular fixture in bars and pubs everywhere, but a six-foot table in a crowded bar like Upstairs Pub or Kilroy's Sports Bar, where constant pauses in action are needed to ask socialites unaware of the current game to please get out of the way, is not for the avid player. It's another task to try to find a straight stick with the preferred weight.\nBut the Bloomington pool aficionado need not frequent a crowded sports bar to find a worthy game of pool. \nQ Billiards, or better known simply as the "Pool Hall" for its simple white and black bold sign adorning its old entrance, is an elite facility for gurus and casual billiard players alike. \nAt the beginning of the semester, patrons of Q Billiards were treated with a brand new building, equipped with two floors and 26 tables. Compared to the old, smoky building two doors down, this is a major step up. \nKyong Jun Hong, a staff member at Q's, notes it has always been a popular student hang-out -- and increasingly so with the new facility. \n"We get more students than locals (even though we're downtown)," he says. "Everything we have here is new. New TV's, tables, pool sticks -- we're getting one or two new plasma screens in soon too. We put about $700,000 into the move." \nAmong the improvements is new felt for the original nine-foot tables. Also, the larger building offers the hall a second floor, filled with all new tables (three eight-footers and nine six-footers) for beginners who may become frustrated with the difficulty of the nine-foot tables. Since Q Billiards now has more than twice the tables, there are seldom lines even on crowded Friday and Saturday nights. \nPool enthusiast Casey Lowery says he makes trips to Q's about twice a week. Lowery finds the social and competitive aspects of pool a perfect match. \n"It's a game of skill, it's competitive," he says. "I like to win, sit and hang out with my friends. But I also like drinking $1 beers." \nOh yes, $1 beers. Every day, every hour. \nThe prices at Q's ($7 an hour on regulation tables and $1 bottles, imports and domestic) is something hard to find anywhere. Lowery, who prides himself on his beer knowledge and appreciation, praises Q's wide selection. \n"You can experiment with the variety beers if you haven't tried any," he says. "There's so many of them. It's good to drink a nice beer for $1 when a six pack somewhere would cost you $9." \nLowery, who frequented Q's long before its facelift, was pleasantly surprised to come back for the spring semester and discover the upgrade. \nBut he claims the reason he keeps coming back to Q's is the perfect poolhall environment. \n"People come here to play pool and drink good beer, not to get wasted," he says. "Everyone is on the same agenda. It's so much more spacious, no one's ever in the way." \nBut Q Billiards is a 21+ establishment and doesn't open its doors until 8 p.m., leaving under-aged students and afternoon pool sharks looking elsewhere to refine their skills. So where do you go if you're itching for a little nine-ball in the afternoon or you're not of age? \nBelieve it or not, the answer is as close and convenient as the Indiana Memorial Union. \nKenny Daily. a senior who is a regular to Q Billiards also finds afternoon refuge frequently in the Back Alley at the IMU. \n"I try to play pretty much everyday," Daily says. "I like playing here. It's only $3.50 an hour. You can't beat that." \nEven if Daily has as little as 20 minutes to kill between classes, he still finds time to squeak in a quick game of nine-ball or practice some tough shots, even if he can't find anyone else to play with. \nDaily says it's the quality of the hall and the atmosphere that keep him coming back. \n"The tables are nice, and they're full-sized nine-footers. A lot of bars can't fit that, and they're also too crowded," he says.\nAlso, the price of playing at the IMU offers a bargain to those who don't need a cold one to enjoy the sport. \nTina Salomito, an assistant at the IMU commons, says the tables are rarely crowded. \n"It's never full in the afternoon," she says. "The only time you have to wait for a table is on Friday and Saturday nights." \nDespite the rise in popularity on weekends, the price per table remains the same. The billiard room in the IMU is also non-smoking. \nSometimes a quick game of pool in a bar is just what the night calls for. But when billiards is the main thirst for the evening, Q Billiards and the IMU are both more than accommodating.