Over the years, the pool hall, which has never sold alcohol, expanded to include ping pong and an arcade. "These types of rooms, which are rather large in New York City, are difficult because they take up so much space and it's hard for people to pay rent and taxes,” said Jean’s brother Paul Balukas. Balukas quit playing professionally in 1988 and is preparing to retire the business by selling the building and the pool tables.īalukas is only 60, but Billiards Hall of Fame has been behind the 8 ball. There's a lot of people who play this game,” she said.īut for the first time since it opened in 1964, there will be no more billiards at the 48-table pool hall.
"I was on a show called ‘Superstars’ and I got to meet Martina Navratilova, Jack Nicklaus, Joe DiMaggio, Susan Sarandon. Her family quickly changed the name of Ovington Billiards to Hall of Fame Billiards to reflect her new honor.
Hall of Fame Billiards was on the market since early 2018, and while it was no surprise the building was sold, locals still have a hard time believing a celebrated institution in the neighborhood is now gone.In 1985, when she was only 26, she was inducted into the Billiards Hall of Fame. The club was “a constant,” Gentile said, “a benchmark that you could always look back to and remember.” Things change and kids play video games now more than they play pool but I just hope more people will learn about Jean and it may inspire those in positions of power to promote diverse identities and to shatter the status quo.”Ĭouncil Member Brannan’s predecessor, former New York State Senator and Council Member Vincent Gentile, called the club’s closure “a passing of an era.” Gentile, who was a high school classmate of Balukas, said “We were always proud of the fact that we had Jean Balukas in our class,” as he reminisced about the time she shot pool with legendary Fats Domino. We are all sad to see Hall of Fame Billiards close but I think we know how lucky we are to have Jean’s legacy connected to Bay Ridge for so long through the pool hall. She was an icon in the fight for gender parity in sports.
Jean was a self-taught rebel who challenged the status quo. And the Hall of Fame Billiards Club was really synonymous with Jean, her family, and her story.
PLAY BILLIARDS APARTMENTS IN BROOKLYN PROFESSIONAL
She is basically the Billie Jean King of professional pool. Stop in for a last visit while you can.”Ĭouncil Member Justin Brannan, who represents District 43 which includes Bay Ridge, is a huge fan of both the club and Balukas, and expressed to us his own personal grief: I spoke with Jean today and the last day will most likely be this Sunday. Hall of Fame Billiards has finally been sold and will be closing it’s doors forever. On Instagram, professional pool player Ashley Burrows aired her regrets: “Sad day here in Brooklyn. Such an amazing place it sucks to see it go,” user OmarFT responded. Went there around a week and a half ago and was planning on going this week. Hoping something decent opens up in its spot,” said user nadirecur. Another bit of Brooklyn that we’ll never get back. On a Reddit thread lamenting the club’s closure, commenters weighed in over the last three days. Balukas cut her pool teeth at the club at a young age, going on to win a national title at 13 years old, and took over the club when her father died. The article describes a then 28-year-old Balukas sweeping the club’s (mostly male) competition after her shifts at the cash register. Last Sunday, it shuttered for good.īalukas’ father Albert purchased a former bowling alley - Ovington Bowling Lanes - in Bay Ridge in 1964 with his business partner, Frank, a world professional pool champion, a story in 1987 ran in the New York Times. Owned by Jean Balukas, one of the greatest pool players of all time and the first woman to compete in the sport with men, the club was one of the city’s oldest-running pool halls and a beloved haunt for those still devoted to the fading art of tabletop gaming. 3 min read Time machine Via Google StreetviewīAY RIDGE - Brooklyn’s changed a lot in the last 56 years, but Bay Ridge’s Hall of Fame Billiards Club had remained more or less intact.
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