Judy Wolthausen

The IronOaks Ladies Billiards group meets weekly year round in the Billiards Room in the Oakwood Country Club building. We start warmup at 9:15 a.m. and play from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Tuesdays. Ladies living in Cottonwood, Ironwood, Oakwood, Sun Lakes Phase 1, and Palo Verde can join. You don’t have to have your own cue stick, as many of varying weights are available for use.

When I joined the group, I had just moved into Ironwood, and since I hadn’t played for years, I was concerned whether I’d even remember how to play! I spent a few hours with one of the members and was amazed at how fast everything came back! My fears of embarrassing myself or feeling like I might not measure up turned out to be a needless worry.

During the summer, we now hold weekly evening sessions every Monday at 4 p.m. to invite those who might want to know more about us and who might benefit from a little refresher play. (Other days/times can be arranged if Monday doesn’t work for you.)

Often, some of the team members come to practice, too, so you’ll get to meet some of our team. We begin by warming up, trying to hit any ball in for about 10 minutes, and then we play 8-Ball the rest of the time. We also pass out the rules for the three games we play (8-Ball, 9-Ball, and Cutthroat) and the team bylaws.

So, if you enjoy playing pool, no matter how good you are, you should check out our group. We are a fun-loving group who become fast friends. None of us are experts, but each of us tries to improve over time, and we offer help to each other with options for tough shots. This year we will, monthly, ask some more experienced players to give us tips so we can learn how to do some of the more difficult shots with some education under our belts. After the training, we will practice what we learned for 10 or 15 minutes and then return to standard play.

We also enjoy lunch together after play on the first Tuesday of each month, trying new restaurants or visiting our favorites to have time to get to know each other better. So, please accept our invitation and give it a try. I’m sure you’ll be glad you did. Please give me a call at 630-728-5937 to get started.