I can vividly recall the sound of a ball falling into the pool table pocket at the old pool hall where I learned to play. As a teaching tool, my mentor told me to "watch the ball fall" when I made a shot. It was a smoky old joint, with some interesting characters (and great players) and it was filled with old beat up Brunswick gully-return tables.

Today I mostly play on an older, but nice oak Olhausen table with leather pockets. I prefer regular pockets over the gully-return type, but somehow I miss hearing that comforting "clunk" and subsequent roll down to the end. I still expect to hear it every time I make a shot. Pool is a funny game like that.

One problem I have found with having leather pockets (and children playing near them) is that they do not last forever. One pocket has had a hole ripped in it, while two others have been basically ruined by someone who decided to break into my house and play pool.

The Good News: Leather Pool Table Pockets Can Be Replaced

The good news is that I will be able to replace my pool table pockets. I'll probably do it in another year or two when I have new felt put on. Maybe I'll be able to find some that sound like those old tables from my younger days? But I guess then I'd have to fill my house with smoke and shady characters. I'll stick with leather.