A man walks into a bar. Not the metal kind, but the one with sticky floors, neon lights and a pool table in the back.
In Clemson, there are three bars of that sort. While neon lights embody every bar, only TD’s of Clemson, Tiger Town Tavern and Backstreets Pub & Grill are home to the colorful felt tables that students and locals alike have come to love.
So, line up your shot and get ready to break as we explore the solids and stripes of downtown Clemson’s pool scene.
On the corner of College Ave. and Old Greenville Highway lies our first stop: TD’s of Clemson.
Founded in 1988, students and alumni are no strangers to the bustling — sometimes intoxicating — nightlife atmosphere of TD’s. Home to two constantly occupied pool tables, TD’s breeds competition, whether it’s drunk students or a professional league.
On Monday nights, TD’s hosts a weekly pool league, and quite a prestigious one at that. Last year, TD’s pool league victor earned a trip to play in Las Vegas.
However, it’s not just for professionals, as students have come to appreciate the historic game as well.
“I wish we had more tables than just two, but a lot of times people come in here just to play pool, even just during the daytime,” bartender Emily Douglas said. “They’ll come in, just have water and play pool.”
Don’t worry about remembering your quarters: pool at TD’s is entirely free, making it the center of attention for all patrons. But those looking to chalk their cue on Saturday nights should beware of the ruckus of karaoke.
On the forefront of downtown, TD’s is a place where students and locals rack up together, bridging the gap between the campus crowd and the community beyond it.
Walk out the back door of TD’s and cross the street for our next stop: Tiger Town Tavern. Originally founded in 1977 as a pool hall, Triple is Clemson’s one-stop shop for billiards. With three tables downstairs for casual bargoers and three more upstairs for members, the space feels like two worlds of pool under one roof.
“I would say the quality of play is a little bit better up here,” bartender and manager Nolan Courvell told The Tiger in an interview. “And you probably get more of a chance to play than you do downstairs. There are just so many people packed down there that you might end up 10 people behind in line.”
The upstairs section of Triple also holds a pool league, which plays on Monday and Wednesday nights and brings in crowds on quieter nights.
Beyond its league, Triple’s depth of pool-playing possibilities brings about unique feelings of togetherness and friendly, or not-so-friendly competition.
“There’s always little camaraderie in it,” Courvell said. “People might buy each other a shot for winning or losing a game.”
Finally, just behind Triple is Backstreets, another bar with two floors of pool: two tables downstairs and one upstairs.
If the walls of Backstreets could talk, some competitive pool stories would lead the speech. Before COVID-19, Backstreets was home to a competitive billiard league — one that still remains in memory through trophies and plaques hung high above the tables.
COVID-19 tragically killed off the once great league, and now, it is the casual players who call Backstreets their home.
“Kids-wise, normally, they still play. Not as seriously as what they used to be,” Dave Simpson, owner of Backstreets, explained to The Tiger.
Despite the level of play dropping off, the pool tables still lure both young and old patrons to the bar.
“I mean, they make okay money, but it’s more of what it actually brings in,” Simpson continued. “Because it gives people something to do. People that actually like to shoot pool or just looking for a way to waste time.”
At Clemson, you can find a pool game for everyone. For some, it’s an upstairs Triple matchup as intense as nights in Death Valley. For others, it’s just a way to kill time in Backstreets. But anyone who has ever grabbed a cue and racked up the balls downtown would agree: there is something special in those tables.
