Houston USAPL

Blog

  • 01/21/2021

    Scores have been entered! Apologies for the delay, but we were waiting for a league system update to take place last night.

    Let’s welcome our newest member Dustin and welcome back to Ponce! Glad to have you two join us this session!

    As a reminder, bonus points and assigned tables will begin next week 1/26/21. A correction to the previous update: Bonus points will be 50 for matching scoresheets and 50 for league dues turned in at the end of league night, for a total of 100 possible bonus points.

    Assigned Tables for Week 3:
       Chalk is Cheap vs Night Moves: 21 / 22
       Lady & Champs vs Shot for Shot: 16 / 17
       Tuff Break vs Break & Juan: 18 / 19

    Congratulations to the following patch winners: Anthony G (8 WZ) and Daniel G (9 SNAP)

    Reminder to the rest of the league that the following Wednesday 1/27/21 begins weekly Ladies Night 8 Ball Tournaments! Spread the word and we hope to see the ladies out there! Guys are welcome to show up and support all the ladies present. 😉

  • 01/13/2021

    Welcome to the new session in 2021! We are glad to see members return and would like to welcome our two newest players: Joe B and Brett S. Here’s to a good 2021 season and to seeing this league grow.

    With the start of the new Spring session, please keep in mind requirements for qualifications. You can review eligibility requirements HERE.

    To touch on a few topics discussed last night:

    • As COVID is still an ongoing concern, we are sticking with the same requests made in the Fall session. Unless actively drinking or eating, please have your mask on at all times. Wash hands and sanitize regularly, and if you are feeling unwell in the slightest, please stay home! League is a team sport, and we are thankful for the opportunity to continue having the chance to run a league. This means we need everyone to be socially responsible to ensure the safety of yourself and of others around you.
    • Wednesday Ladies Tournament will begin 01/27/21 and take place weekly at 8:00 PM. We hope to increase female participation and possibly bring on Ladies League to H-Town Central. Spread the word and show your support!
    • Due to the short sessions we have had, we have been unable to fund a full team of 8 and 9 to Vegas for 2021 Nationals. We only had 19 weeks of play total between 3 sessions when a full year of 3 sessions generally consists of 45 weeks. As much as we would like to send teams in September, mathematically we are unable to do so. Rest assure, we are looking at other possible options to represent Houston in 2021. As soon as we have viable options, they will be shared with the league. We are open to any suggestions any members may have so feel free to speak with us at any time to discuss ideas. In the meantime, our goal is to send a full team of 8 and full team of 9 to Vegas for 2022 Nationals happening in March.
    • Bonus points and assigned tables will begin WEEK 3. 100 points for matching scoresheets and 100 points for payments received by end of league night.
    Scores have been updated for Week 1. Schedules and match-ups have also been updated. Congrats to the following players for winning patches: Jason K (8 TR & 9 SNAP), Sebastian M (8 WZ), Gabe K (9 SNAP), Steve C (9 SNAP), Kiem B (9 SNAP). If there are any questions, please let us know! We are here for you guys!

  • 12/16/20

    Good evening everyone. The final update for Fall 2020 Session has been completed. Please take a look at the final standings.

    Congratulations to 8 Ball Winner Night Moves and 9 Ball Winner Chalk is Cheap. Night Moves will automatically be entered into the Vegas Qualifier Tournament for 8 Ball. Chalk is Cheap has previously qualified as well as the 2nd & 3rd place teams. Therefore, the 4th place team Tuff Break will be entered into the Vegas Qualifier Tournament in 9 Ball. Congratulations to all the teams!

    Also, congrats to the following players for winning patches: Jong Y for 8 Ball WinZip patch and Andrea H for 9 Snap. Patches earned this Fall session will be handed out the first week of Spring session.

    Spring 2021 session will begin the second Tuesday in January (01/12/21). Please submit any roster change requests prior to the start of league so we can expedite the first night of Spring session a little quicker. We hope to see everyone returning next session and maybe even some new faces as well. If you know anyone who might be interested in league play, bring them onboard!

    We are currently working on some avenues to bring in new faces and spread the word about USAPL. In an effort to build a Ladies 8 Ball League, we will begin hosting Open Ladies 8 ball tournaments every Wednesday on Ladies Night at Slicks Montrose. The tournament will be open to ALL female players. More information to follow. If interested, please let us know and help spread the word!

    Until the next session begins, we hope you take the time to relax and enjoy the holidays. Whatever you choose to celebrate … Merry Christmahanzakwanzaka! 🙂

  • 12/09/20

    Happy Wednesday everyone! We are excited to showcase a new way of displaying stats to everyone in the league. A big THANK YOU to our very own Kiem B for helping us out on this one.

    Current standings and scoresheets have all been combined to one screen. Header options are available to click through to view more specific stats for each category. Please see below:



    This allows everyone to see all information that is available, including how many weeks people have played to keep up with meeting qualifications. Be sure to switch between formats to view between 8 ball and 9 ball stats, as they will be different!

    If you have any questions on how to navigate through this, please let us know!

    Congrats to Adam S for winning an 8 ball WinZip patch!

    Next Tuesday will be the last week of this Fall Session. As a reminder, there will be no playoffs. Whichever team places first will automatically be entered for the Vegas Qualifier Tournament. Spring of 2021 session is currently being organized, so keep your eyes open for the start date. As soon as it’s set, we will send out an update.

    Houston USAPL is hosting an open 8 Ball tournament this coming Saturday, 12/12/20 at Slicks on Montrose, benefitting Toys for Tots. Entry fee is $20.00 and a new, unopened toy. Doors open at 11 AM, matches to start at noon. This is a “race to” tournament, BCA format, no handicap. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place payouts. Half of the proceeds will go to payout, the other half to Toys for Tots. Come out and support a good cause. We hope to see you there!

  • 12/02/20

    We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoyed the a week off from league! All updates have been done and standings are current for all teams through Week 3.

    We have noticed some players being lax with mask wearing, so we would like to remind everyone about wearing masks during league. Unless actively eating or drinking, please keep your masks on, even while playing. We are in close quarters and social distancing is not possible of having 6 feet between everyone. To ensure the safety of all players, please follow this guideline.

    Please welcome the newest member to USAPL: Sid S

    Congrats to the following players for patches earned in Week 3: Jason K (8 BR & 9 BR), Andra H (8 BR), Darrell W (9 Snap)

    Two more weeks of league left! Remember, there will be no playoffs this short session. Whoever comes in first place will automatically earn a spot in the Vegas Qualifier Tournament (if team is previously qualified, the qualification will move on to the next ranked team). Last push to get your team where you want to be.

    In other pool news: Who’s been keeping up with the Mosconi Cup?!

  • 11/19/20

    Happy Thursday everyone! The second week of league has been completed. All available scores have been updated. Please remember to SUBMIT your scores at the end of the night when all sets have been completed. This keeps updates as accurate as possible and maintains transparency of where teams stand within the league.

    Please welcome the newest members to USAPL: John E, Trey B, and Darrel W. We are glad to have you guys join the H-Town Central family!

    Congrats to the following players for patches earned in week 2: Jason K (8 WinZip), Matt G (9 Snap), and Doug G (9 Snap)

    Reminder to all players: We will NOT have league next Tues (11/24) due to Thanksgiving week. We will resume Week 3 league play on Tues (12/01).

    We are thankful for everyone who is a part of H-Town Central. As we take a week off to be with friends and family, we want to extend the offer out to everyone in the league: If you do not have family in town on Thanksgiving Day, hit us up! We are open to holiday “adoptions” and will celebrate together in one way, shape, or form. 🙂

    Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

  • 11/11/20

    Welcome back to Teams League play, folks! It was great to see everyone last night. We want to thank you for being a part of our 2020 Fall session and for being patient last night as we kicked off our first week back. Those we talked to expressed their excitement for returning and picked up right where we left off without many hiccups.

    As it is a new session, we want to provide a few friendly reminders in case anyone needs a refresher.

    • App scoring is up and running. If you are new to the league or simply want a refresher, please review the SCORING APP HOW-TO.
    • Since this is a short session, there will be no playoffs for Fall 2020. The team that places first in either 8 or 9 will automatically be entered in the Vegas Qualifier Tournament. Should the first team already qualify in a previous session, the 2nd place team will receive the automatic qualification.
    • To ensure safe play for all in attendance, mask wearing is to be enforced. Unless actively eating or drinking, masks must be worn, even while playing at the table.
    • To further promote safe practices, we are encouraging all members to pay digitally. Members pay their team captains, and the captains pay the league a lump sum at the end of the night for their entire team. We have 3 digital payment options:
        1. VENMO: @houstonusapl
        2. CASHAPP: $houstonusapl
        3. ZELLEPAY: admin@houstonusapl.com

    The new schedule, player database, match logs, and session information are all up and ready to be viewed. If there are any other questions or concerns that you may have, please contact us and let us know. We are open to discussion and want to hear what you have to share!

  • Fall 2020 League Play

    Thank you to everyone who participated in the League survey, as well as to those who showed up at the Players’ Meeting this past Saturday (10/03/20). From the votes and speaking with people (both in group settings and one on one), the majority vote was for league to start back up. While there were still a few concerns, the general consensus was to still do a double header night on Tuesday. The reason being is that the league as a whole will have less teams (and therefore less players) and can comfortably play at the 12 tables we have available for us on Tuesday night.

    We will begin Fall 2020 League on TUESDAY, 11/10/2020 at 7:30 PM. This will be similar to Fall 2019 session – Short & Sweet. Taking into consideration weeks off for the holidays, we will have 5 weeks of league play with no playoffs at the end of the year. Whichever team places first will automatically qualify for the Vegas Qualifier Tournament (date TBD). Both 8 Ball and 9 Ball will be played the same night.

    We pushed it out to start in November so that players can get together and form teams at this time. You have 5 weeks starting from today to get a team together or join a team that is returning. Once a team has been decided, please complete the Team Registration form as soon as possible (even if it’s with the same people returning from the same Spring team). If looking for a team, please reach out to us and we will find a spot for you.

    We know this will be a short session and teams may not all stay the same from sessions prior. Keep in mind that this is to also help with maintaining eligibility for other CSI sponsored events and tournaments that any USAPL members can participate in, not simply the Vegas Nationals. We want to get the ball rolling with league again, even if it may start out a little slow. Every trip begins with a step, even if it’s a baby one. We hope to see your faces out there (behind a mask) come November 10th!

  • Restarting League – Poll

    It has been 6 months since we last had league. At this time, we want to see how viable it is for league to start back up. We have been in contact with Slicks Montrose management to determine the setting in which we will have for League play. It is up to the players to decide how comfortable they feel with the arrangement going forward.

    To provide with some general information, here is what we can expect:

    • We are looking to start league back up in October, either the first or second Tuesday. This will allow for 8 to 9 weeks of play time, taking into consideration 2 weeks off for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. This will also allow for one week of playoff at the end of the year.
    • We will maintain the same area for league play (coming in from the front door, we will occupy the right side of the establishment).
    • There are 2 options to consider:
      1. Maintain a double header league night where both 8 & 9 are being played. This means all tables will be occupied back to back.
      2. Split 8 & 9 into two separate days to allow for an unoccupied table space between matches. This means league night will end earlier, but it will also be two separate nights of league. At this time, we are looking at 8 ball for Tuesday and 9 ball for Thursday.
    • Upon entry, there is hand sanitizer available for all to use. Masks are required to enter Slicks. However, wearing a mask is not mandatory when playing at your table and while eating/drinking. When stepping away from your table (ie to the bathroom), masks are required. If you wish to wear your mask the entire time, that is fine.
    • Slicks team members have customers’ safety in mind. Their practice at this time: After a table is used, the following are sanitized: pool table, pool balls, pool rack, house cues, tables & chairs wiped down. No ordering at the bar – wait staff orders only.

    We want to know who is willing and comfortable with returning to league play (either double header or separate days) and under what circumstances. Please participate in the poll so that we have a clearer picture of what to expect. We will keep the poll open until end of September (2 weeks). At that time, we will make a decision based on the majority vote and let everyone know of plans (if any) going forward. We also ask the team captains to reach out to their fellow team members to participate in the poll, in the event they are not active on social media or the website.

    We have all been itching to get back into league. Let’s try and make it a reality SAFELY, and see what we can do to bring a little bit of normalcy into this crazy year.

    Create your own user feedback survey

  • 06/25/20

    Spring 2020 Playoffs happened more than a week ago on Tuesday 06/16/20. We want to thank everyone who came out to participate and those who showed their support during these crazy times. Apologies for the late update! We needed to get back into the groove of paperwork after being off for three months, even if it’s for two matches. 🙂

    Without further ado, please congratulate Lady & the Champs for winning the 8 ball playoffs, and to Chalk is Cheap for winning the 9 ball playoffs! The two teams will be joining the first place teams in the Vegas Qualifier Tournament in January 2021.

    At this time, there is no set date to begin league play for the next session. With the increase of cases in Houston and surrounding areas, we need to take a step back and re-evaluate our day to day activities and interactions to ensure our health is still our number one priority. We will definitely keep everyone posted when we do plan to start again (when safe to do so) and give ample time to gather the teams together. Until then, stay safe and stay healthy!