[POOL] Pool players wanted

[Craig Stacey]

Hey, folks.  The Argonne Pool league is starting play two weeks from  
tonight, and our team is looking for players 21 years of age or older.

When I say "our" team, I mean the team that once upon a time was  
almost exclusively MCSers, but is now a mix of folks from  
everywhere.  Still, I like to think of it as our team. :)

Some details about the league is below, but here's the crux of it: If  
you think you're too bad a player to play in the league, don't.  When  
I joined I was pretty green.  By the handicap I have, I'm still  
technically the worst player in the league with a rating of -20- 
something.  I've been as low as -36.  The best player in the league  
is handicapped around 150, so you can see there's quite a range.  But  
regular play makes you a better player.  Trust me.  We have fun, it's  
very loose, and we're all about simply enjoying the game.

About the league: The Argonne Pool League (APL) plays every Tuesday  
night through a session, and is comprised of 8 teams.  We play at Q  
Billiards on Cass Ave (just north of I-55).  There are two sessions,  
the fall (starting on the 19th) and the winter/spring (starting in  
January), plus a 3 week playoff round with a banquet at the end.  The  
cost to play is $10 per session, plus $6 any night you play a match.   
The $6 also gets you a complimentary beer or drink.  A team must play  
5 matches in a night.  It's a handicapped league, so players of all  
skill levels are welcome.  Matches are determined by handicaps with  
matchups ranging from 2-2 (first player to win two games wins) to  
10-1 (higher ranked player needs to win 10 games, lower ranked needs  
to win 1).  You must play at least 4 nights to be eligible to play in  
the playoffs.

There is a practice table available.  You sign up on a whiteboard,  
and the game fee is $1, paid by the loser.  Our team also has a  
tendency to rent a table for the night, with those playing splitting  
the fee (usually about 5 or 6 bucks each).  That's optional.

Fees go to support the club's costs and prizes.  Prizes are  
distributed at the end of every session.  Our team is going out to  
dinner tonight with the proceeds from our play last year (3rd place  
in 1st session, 5th in 2nd session, 2nd in playoffs).

Our team is The Moe Syzlak Experience Featuring Homer, (or, simply,  
Moe).  Currently, it's got a few MCSers, a few other ANLers, and some  
non-ANLers as well.  Ideally, we'd have about 10 players to ensure we  
can put up 5 in any given night.  So you don't *have* to play every  
week.  But we'll certainly accommodate those who *want* to play every  
night.

It's a blast, come join us.  Our team page is at http:// 
www.mcs.anl.gov/pool and our mailing list is mcs-pool at mcs.anl.gov.   
Let me know if you want to join.  Thanks!

--
Craig