The Emerald City will feature four more large green areas from August 28, as the snooker players of Seattle will have a new focus for their attention, Ox Billiards, which is located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood on the iconic corner of Broadway and Pike.

Ox Billiards is housed in a 5,500 square feet basement space that boasts four Star Tournament snooker tables with heated slate, Strachan No. 10 cloth, and professional championship pockets. Also included is eight 9 feet Rasson Ox pool tables with Simonis tournament blue cloth.

Ox Billiards is housed in a 5,500 square feet basement space that boasts four Star Tournament snooker tables with heated slate, Strachan No. 10 cloth, and professional championship pockets. Also included is eight 9 feet Rasson Ox pool tables with Simonis tournament blue cloth.

The proprietor of Ox Billiards is Michael Dominguez, who previously opened Baize Snooker Club in Seattle.

"After a year of Covid and the closing of Baize Snooker Club, I was determined to find a way to save snooker in Seattle," Dominguez told SnookerUSA.com. "I had no idea how it was going to happen, but I knew that I had to try. As I was working at finding a way, with my head down, moving ahead one difficult step at a time, I saw an opening and developed a plan.

"Once I secured a space for the new club, I started thinking about a proper name. One that would tie in both snooker and pool. I had to incorporate pool tables into the new club because I took on two amazing equity partners, Christian Youngers and Phuc Dang, and also my wife Jaime Miller became a partner too.

"My new equity partners wanted to see pool tables in the club, and I wholeheartedly agreed. I felt that after this pandemic people would go back to what was comfortable and if I was going grow snooker, then pool tables had to be in the same room.

"But what was the name of the club? 'On the Hill' was one I thought of, because we are on Capitol Hill and it was a term used in pool. 'Slate' was another because both pool and snooker tables have slate. There were others as well. 'OX' popped in and out from time to time, but it wasn't until late in the decision process that I gave it serious thought. It is the year of the Ox, I am an Ox, the Rasson tables I am getting are called Ox. Maybe this is the name? I thought to myself but wasn't sold.

"This went on for months and for a while the name was going to be 'Slate'. However, it just did not feel right. So I did something that cemented the name for good.

"Since I could not decide between 'Slate' or 'OX', I picked up a book about Alex Higgins (the two-time World Snooker Champion from Northern Ireland) and asked him to give me a name. I flipped through The Turbulent Life and Times of Alex Higgins without looking and stopped on a random page. I started reading just to find inspiration. There is something I am missing, so maybe I can find it in here.

"I read a few lines and got chills all over my body. I read about the time Alex almost killed himself and was in a coma for a couple of days. The doctor told his wife that he was not going to make it. Then suddenly, he pulled through. His wife Lynn said: 'He must have the constitution of an ox.' The goosebumps ran all over my body and I called my friend who was designing the logo (once I found a name) and told him what happened. It was so inspiring that the next day he had the perfect logo for our club now named, Ox Billiards."

About the club, Dominguez commented: "I designed this huge space through a player's lens and made sure there was enough room to play and practice. On the snooker side of the room, there is at least 8½ feet between tables which allows plenty of room and few distractions. And on the pool side, there is at least 7 feet of room between tables.

"We are building on a strong pool community that wants to branch out into snooker. There is a paucity of snooker clubs in the US and OX is helping to fill the gap because there are plenty of cueists in America that can play snooker if given the chance, and OX aims to give them that chance.

"OX is for all-ages and there are plans to start a junior league for both snooker and pool. We are also tied in closely with APA and BCA pool leagues and will host several teams/leagues at OX.

"OX is not a bar, but we do sell beer and snacks. We are able to rent out the space for special events and can bring in a caterer and bartender if someone wanted to have a private party here."

Ox Billiards will have daily public hours from 3pm until midnight, and also offer memberships which will provide 24/7 secure access. Members will also enjoy a 20% discount on public hourly rates, in addition to low After-hour rates. See below:

Happy Hour Table Rates - Every day
3pm - 7pm: $12 per hour

Evening Table Rates - Sunday to Thursday
7pm - midnight: $15 per hour

Evening Table Rates - Friday & Saturday
7pm - midnight: $20 per hour

After-hour Table Rates
$8 per hour

Ox Billiards
1432 Broadway
Seattle WA 98122
Tel: (206) 376-5763
Website: https://www.oxbilliards.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ox_billiards/
Washington State Snooker And Pool Group Page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/washingtonstatesnookerandpool