11/25/2024
As some of you are aware, and for those who haven't heard, Palmetto Billiards Academy is officially closed. It's been about a month now, and as we go into the week of Thanksgiving, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on this journey, give thanks, and share some favorite memories.
For those who want to know "what happened?" - it's a simple matter of a start-up business not having enough start-up capital to see through renovations and getting it up and running until it was self-sustaining. Lots of lessons learned there. But so many successes along the way - bringing the most pro players to SC ever (Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) tour stop), and bringing the first Junior American Series tour stop to SC. We reached an international audience via social media before we were even open, and got calls, emails, and visits from pool enthusiasts across the globe. Being featured in SPM Billiards Magazine was so exciting! And bottom line, we put something in motion and tried; bringing ideas to life isn't easy, but we committed to that.
Thank you to everyone who supported us, who rolled up their sleeves and helped bring it to life, who came and shot pool, and who shared our vision of a professional facility for training, play, tournaments, and league. Thanks to Predator Cues, Steve Rau Pro Billiards, Ira Lee, Samantha Bass, Ricky Shaw, Bob Evans, CB Prime Distribution , and more. And thanks to Jordan Thompson, Jason Bolen, Tristan Mills, Trinity Strauss, Crystal Langley, Michael Powers, and many others for your help.
And memories! I got to meet so many of my pool idols!! From our grand 'opening' celebration featuring Sofia Mast - Pink Dagger and Major Payne McBride (and many thanks to their parents), to participants at the WPBA including my very first pool idol ever, Allison Fisher MBE, along with many others - Kelly Fisher, Kristina “The Krystal” Tkach, Kristina Zlateva, Margaret Fefilova Styer - Professional Pool Player (and a surprise visit from Tyler Styer), Savannah “The RoadRunner” Easton, Lonnie Fox Raymond, Janet Atwell, Monica Webb, Kari Anderson, Brittany "The Bombshell" Bryant, Emily Duddy “The Billiard Bombshell”, Dawn Oldag “The Dagger”, Ra Hanna and more... and it continued with so many up-and-coming junior players! Posting some of my favorite photos.
--Shane Mills and Reid Strauss
