The Wisconsin Billiards Hall of Fame is looking to grow the list of historical venues, but we need your help! A few that are listed below are missing information and many others need to be added over time. If you would like to contribute please send us an email to info@wibhof.org
Wisconsin Billiards Hall of Fame
WISCONSIN HISTORICAL VENUES
The Antlers Hotel, built in 1927 was located at 2nd and Wisconsin in Milwaukee, WI. Originally built as a budget hotel for men, it featured 450 rooms, a bowling alley with 16 lanes, the Knotty Pine tavern, a barber, and of course, a billiard parlor. Rooms at the hotel were available for three different rates, $1.00, $1.25, or $1.50 and tipping was strictly prohibited.
The billiard parlor was run by Joe Schardt and he held an annual 3-cushion billiard invitational tournament, featuring most of Milwaukee’s top players at the time. The format was a unique one, typically made up of a 12 player round robin event that took over a month to complete. Players set up and played their matches on their own initiative. They would come into Antlers, and if one of their opponents they hadn’t played yet was there, and if both felt like playing, they’d ask someone hanging around the room to officiate, and then play their match. A large chalkboard was on the wall for them to record match scores and results.
Schardt was also a large contributor to the formation and future of the BCW for the state, once called the Billiard Proprietors Association of Wisconsin, developing in the late 1960’s. The BPAW Championships held Class A and B divisions for straight pool and most of the top players were barred from playing in the event. Charlie Collins, who was the director of the Milwaukee Sentinel Sports, Travel and Boat Show used to frequent the Antler’s Hotel billiard room for lunch and to watch billiards, and became friends with Schardt. While looking for ways to improve the Sports Show, the two came up with the idea of bring pool competition to the event, run out of Bruce Hall in the Milwaukee Auditorium.
During its final decades of operation, the Antlers hotel housed many permanent, low-income residents during the 60’s and 70’s and was also used as a homeless shelter. In 1981, similar to many other businesses, it was torn down to make space for the Grand Avenue shopping mall.
*special thanks to the contributions of Bruce Venzke
Bo Dudley’s 2003-2006
Varsity Club 2007-present
Oshkosh, WI
In 2003, Fred Waterhouse officially opened Bo Dudley’s Billiards in downtown Oshkosh. At the time, it was one of the only poolhalls in the state to feature exclusively all Diamond pool tables, 21 in total. Hourly and group rates were available, and even offered punch cards for 10-hrs of play. Designed for players of all ages, the 10,000 square foot building became a great destination in the Fox Valley. In addition to pool, there was an arcade, ping pong table, air hockey, foosball and darts. Tournament and league play came to an end when the doors permanently closed in the Fall of 2006.
With bigger and better plans for the building, pool player and businessman Jeremy West moved from Madison, WI to Oshkosh and opened The Varsity Club on December 8th, 2007. His dedication to the pool players and running a successful business has established what is one of the most respected pool halls in the state today. One of Jeremy’s early goals was to bring back the authenticity of the building, back to the day of the Gibson Chevrolet and Automobile Agency who constructed the building in 1921.
Today, the Varsity Club features many leagues and tournaments on its twelve 7’ Diamonds and its nine 9’ Diamonds. A newly remodeled bar area and a large menu continue to please local patrons, while many more pool players consistently travel to The Varsity Club as an excellent billiards destination.
Expanding the business opportunity even further, West purchased the space adjacent to the Varsity Club and opened Fletch’s Local TapHouse on May 6th, 2017. The business features more than 20 tap lines and plenty of live music, plus easy access between the two businesses.
When Claudio Parrone Sr. moved from Italy in 1971, he may not have known the importance he would play in the future of billiards, especially in the Kenosha area. He started playing pool at age 16 at Kenosha Christian Billiards and advanced quickly. By 1986 he was a well-known master level player. Setting his sights on a pool hall of his own, “Claw” as he was known by then found out it would be a difficult task because in 1983 a former pool hall owner had an unfriendly dog that bit some of the customers. Because of that, the city didn’t want another pool hall. Attempts by Claw and his brother to form a new billiards venue for the city of Kenosha were unsuccessful.
Around 8 years later, along with a new group of investors, Claudio gave it another shot, this time successfully, and he officially opened Classic Billiards on August 1st of 1994. Over the next 14 years, many top players would make their way through the new pool hall, including the likes of Alex Pagulayan, Corey Deuel, Niels Feijen, Allison Fisher and more. The nine pool tables were more than enough to keep the action flowing year after year.
By 2008 it was time to expand, so he sought out a new location that could house his leagues, tournaments and lessons as he has helped teach others the game for more than 40 years. With a new location came a new name as well. Sticking with the iconic name given to him, Claw’s Billiards was officially open for business on October 18th of 2008 and continues the legacy today.
In a new age of pool halls where 7′ tables have become the norm, Claw’s sticks to tradition with its eight 9′ Brunswick Gold Crown pool tables. They also have a Kim-Steele billiard table, something only a few venues in the state still have today. In addition to the larger tables, one seven foot Valley bar table is there for Claudio’s patrons.
Claw’s is open from noon-midnight 7 days per week and is alcohol free. For a modest rate, 2 players can rent out a table for only $7 per hour. Lessons are always available and they host seasonal handicapped 9-ball tournaments on Monday nights.
Cue- Nique Billiards was established in 1973 by Wisconsin native, Jerry Briesath. The pool hall was located at 317 West Gorham Street in downtown Madison, just off of State St. At the time, Jerry was already a state champion and played actively on the Midwest professional tour. He twice played in the U.S. Open.
Available in this iconic upstairs pool hall were 16 nine-foot Brunswick gold crowns, four Valley Bar Boxes, three 3-cushion billiard tables and one 10 ft gold crown snooker table. They built huge box lights over all the tables. The lights were almost as big as the pool table and each light had four 8ft fluorescent tubes which made for excellent Lighting on the tables.
In the middle of the room there was a beautiful 100 gallon fish tank with all kinds of exotic fish for the customers to look at and enjoy. In the back of the room there was a private room with four tables which we use for private parties and lessons. Lessons were a big part of Cue-Nique as Jerry’s teaching style and ability to convey the complicated intricacies of the game made him into a world class instructor. Top player after top player evolved under Jerry and by the mid 70’s he had many regular students in his “Home of the Pool School” which today is the longest running billiards school in the country.
Cue-Nique also featured a control desk was one of a kind in the United States. There were four push buttons, an indicating light and a meter for each table. The four buttons were used to indicate how many players were on the table. If one player was on the table the first button would be pressed which would activate the table lights, a timer and a meter would indicate the amount owed As Time passed. Likewise if two players were on the table the second button would be pushed which turn the light on the table and started the meter at the two-player rate. Also, each table had a button which activated a two-way intercom so the front desk could communicate with any table. This was before computers so all the wires were run and hand-wired from the table lights back through the ceiling down the wall under the floor and up into the control panel. It was truly state of the art for its time. The “Back Room” that originally had 4 tables that was used for private parties was reduced to 2 tables to make room for Cue-Nique Micro-Logic Manufacturing, the company Jerry started to manufacture and sell the cash management computer he designed. It was called the Micro-Logic 980, based on the Sept. 1980 launch date for the company, and they sold hundreds to pool rooms across the U.S.
After 25 years of trying to do it all, Jerry decided it was time to focus on just teaching the game he loved. In September of 1998 he sold Cue-Nique Billiards to Matt McCabe and Larry Walsh of Madison. In November of 2003, Matt McCabe succeeded Jerry Briesath as the sole proprietor of the pool hall. While trying to maintain the traditions of the past, McCabe was committed to the innovations necessary to expand the venue. There was regular Thursday evening 9-ball tournaments played on the 9’ tables. 8-ball and 9-ball leagues always had excellent participation. BCW tour stops were also held regularly.
Similar to other billiard venues in the state, the smoking ban had a downward spiral effect. Because of the history of smoking in pool halls, this new shock to the system led to decreases in business. The end of one of the greatest pool halls in the country occurred on March 6th, 2008 when everything was auctioned off and the doors permanently closed.
Mickey’s Billiards and Pizzeria 2005-2014
Schofield, WI
In 2005, Jack Beilke, Mike Masgay and John Sondelski opened Mickey’s Billiards and Pizzeria in Schofield, WI near Wausau. The venue featured not only a bar and restaurant, but also nine 7’ Diamond pool tables on one half of the building, and hosted numerous leagues and tournaments during its 9 years. One of the first poolhalls in Northern Wisconsin to have what is known as the best pool tables a pool hall could have, Diamonds became a standard for excellence, and Mickey’s was the place to go, especially for serious players. On the opposite side of the building stood one of the state’s toughest 9’ Diamond tables. Patrons could enjoy the bar and restaurant or take in live music, while watching many players try their luck on a professional full sized and tight pocketed Diamond. Like many poolhalls, Mickey’s also provided other services including a lathe and equipment shop on site for cue repair needs. Since 2014, sale of the business has transformed the once poolhall into Sconni’s Alehouse & Eatery.
Rotten Rodney’s, Campus Cue Club – Madison: January 4, 1980-late 80’s
In the Fall of 1979, friends Gordon Hart, Jim Hosking and Bruce Venzke became partners to form a new pool hall in Madison. The building (519 N. Lake St., 1/2-block off State Street) was built for — and originally housed on the ground floor — an Arby’s restaurant. Originally planned as a single story structure, the city demanded that it have two stories to satisfy “aesthetic standards in the area.” So Arby’s and the builder satisfied that requirement with essentially an unfinished 2nd story shell (spancrete floor, concrete block walls, and bare structural ceiling). Then they sought a tenant, and Hosking brought the idea to Hart. Gordon pitched Venzke, and they decided it was a go, and signed a lease. Contractors were hired for pouring the floor, installing a drop ceiling, and doing the electrical work, carpeting, plumbing, etc., while Hosking and Venzke spent about three months in the fall doing carpentry and other construction tasks in preparation for opening.
The opening was on January 4, 1980. Operations began with 15 Gandy 4-1/2 X 9 tables illuminated by custom fluorescent fixtures. A small service bar was at the end of an elevated deck that ran along the wall and overlooked the main floor playing area. Along the outside wall of that deck, a bank of video games held court.
Later, four bar tables were added to facilitate conducting tournaments on 3-1/2 x 7s. Throughout their ownership, they also used the room to showcase and sell antique tables. (see photos) They also obtained a beer license after a short while, and added a full liquor license later.
In April of 1980, the first of nearly a thousand tournaments of all shapes and sizes that would eventually be held at the room took place, as Venzke started a series of Thursday Night Handicapped Nineball events. That event proved to be quite popular, and was still going along nicely after 30 years (but not without some adaptations). It became apparent that the new owners of RR’s weren’t really in “tournament mode,” so after a few months, he arranged with Jerry Briesath at Cue-Nique Billiards to move the tournament there. It continued to thrive in that excellent environment, and had about a 10-year run there. Venzke personally retired from running it in the midst of that period (2002 actually) after doing so for 22 years, 2 months and 2 weeks (and 1,111 tournaments). In later years, when Cue-Nique began to falter, the event was transferred again, this time to the Brass Ring. Again a few years passed successfully… but ultimately the tournament outgrew the 8-table limitations there, and the tournament was finally discontinued for good.
The mid-1980s saw two changes in the drinking age (first from 18 to 19 in 1984, then from 19 to 21 in 1986), and that stressed operations at Campus Cue Club, which depended heavily on a UW student clientele. So the owners reluctantly decided to sell, which they did in 1987. Two more different owners operated the room for several years each, after which the building was razed to construct student housing on the site, ending the run for Rotten Rodney’s/Campus Cue Club.
(thank you to Bruce Venzke for his contributions)
Shark’s Club 1995-2014
KK Billiards 2014-2016
Appleton, WI
What started as a passion for pool and a dream turned an existing health club into a pool room in 1995. Owners Mitch Roepcke, Keith Schuh and Eugene Roepcke took on three long months of remodeling the 14,000 square foot space, and Shark’s Club officially opened on September 20th, 1995.
The newest addition to downtown Appleton featured 20 pool tables, a Pro Shop and a full Bar & Grill. Early sales growth was slow, but steady. The main advancement for Shark’s Club was in 1998 when the State of Wisconsin passed a new law which allowed a pool room to have minors in the business and still allow the sale of alcoholic beverages. From that point on, over the next eight years sales took off.
In 2000, the Shark’s Club expanded the room to 24 pool tables due to the increase in demand. During this time it was not uncommon to have a 2 or 2 ½ hour wait just to rent a pool table. The early 2000’s were very good and the pool room fourished.
Shark’s Club was definitely a hub for top-tier pool players in the Fox Valley. They hosted leagues that would challenge most in the state for competitiveness. Tournaments were constantly being held, both for house events and tour stops like the BCW.
Unfortunately for business, 2005 brought with it the Appleton Indoor Smoking Ban. The new law had a drastic effect on the business. Within four months sales had declined by about 60%. What the owners had built over the previous eight years was lost.
Over the next nine years they tried to recover the luster that was once the outstanding business of the early 2000’s. Sales rebounded slightly, but never regained the level of sales that existed prior to the smoking ban.
In 2014, after 19 years in business, they decided it was time to move on and the business was sold to a billiards husband and wife duo, Chris and Penny Knutson of KK Billiards in Green Bay. With a new vision for the space they set their eyes on expanding the business to Appleton. One of the first improvements was the replacement of all the pool tables and upgrades to Diamond Tables.
Unfortunately, KK Appleton would only last a year and a half. New owners of the building began construction on the upper floors. Due to unforeseen circumstances, demolition of certain parts of the building resulted in massive flooding other areas, including KK Billiards. Insurmountable damages occured, and ultimately the decision was made to close the doors on January 17th of 2016.
The Green Room – Madison
We would love to see the list of historical venues grow over time. If you or someone you know would like to contribute to the history of The Green Room, please send us an email.
The Sports Show/BCW
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Sports and Boat Show formed in 1940 and today is one of Wisconsin’s largest and longest-running events dedicated to the outdoors with fishing, hunting and boating products. Things have changed a lot over the years for the show which typically began by a loud cannon’s boom, quieted by today’s noise ordinances. Running for more than 75 years, the show has featured everything from trout ponds for fishing, to jousting on canoes, shooting competitions, to even men wrestling live bears in a cage during the 1960’s.
While most of the sports competitions held at the show were dedicated to the outdoors, there were also others like volleyball, and eventually even billiards. Charlie Collins was the director of the Milwaukee Sentinel Sports Show and carried with him an interest in billiards. So much in fact, that he frequently visited the Antler’s hotel for lunch and watched players at the billiard parlor that was run by Joe Schardt. Collins was always looking for ways to increase the excitement for the Sports Show, and through his friendship with Schardt, the two brought billiards to the event in 1970.
Schardt was willing to be the director of the competition on behalf of the billiard room owners organization, and Collins agreed to help in supplying tables, put up lights, print signs and even put up half of the prize fund for the players. In March of 1970, the Sports Show tournaments became the state’s 14.1 Straight Pool Championships. It was made up of small fields competing in four divisions and only on two tables crammed into the hallway area of Bruce Hall of the Milwaukee Auditorium. The divisions were: Pro Men’s Open, Pro Women’s Open, Junior Amateur, and Class A. Only Wisconsin residents were allowed to compete.
By the time Schardt was in his mid-70’s, the billiards competitions had grown in popularity by both the competitors and spectators. After having a few volunteers assisting him, it was time for him to finally pass the torch. In 1975 the transition began with Bruce Venzke and Dave Batchelor co-directing along with Schardt and they officially took the reins in 1976. During the next 17 years, Venzke brought the Championships to a whole new level, by not only growing it, but making it run smoother as well by using more established playing schedules. The timing of matches was often difficult due to the Sports Show’s mandatory closing hours.
Seeing an opportunity for further growth, Venzke developed what would become known as the BCW for Wisconsin. This new idea was comprised of hosting a series of qualifying tournaments at different venues, all culminating in one state championship. It would provide a platform to give the state’s players a year-round opportunity for organized competition and also to play the shorter rack game of 9-Ball which was slowly growing in popularity around the country. BCW member rooms accepted the concept and one such member, Bill Finney, the owner of West Allis Pool & Supply, agreed to co-sponsor the tour. The result was the BCW Open Nineball Tour and State Championships. The first ever BCW ten-stop tour launched in 1977 and continued until Venzke’s retirement in 1992 when the organization would yet again change hands.
*special thanks to the contributions of Bruce Venzke
Thank you for the many people who have helped in contributing to content like these on the site. We don’t want to stop here! There are so many venues from our history that are missing yet from this directory.
They are the foundation of pool in our state and they should always have a place where they can live on forever for future generations of pool players to enjoy. We are honored to be the platform that can preserve that memory.