The founders of Topgolf and Puttshack are having another go at the so-called “eatertainment” category.
Steve and Dave Jolliffe, brothers who created both Topgolf and Puttshack initially in the U.K., have raised $34 million for the creation of the new concept Poolhouse, a tech-enabled variation on the nearly 700-year-old game of pool.
The seed round was led by Sharp Alpha, a U.S.-based leisure-focused venture capital investor, along with dmg ventures, the consumer venture capital fund of U.K.-based portfolio manager DMGT.
Other investors include David Blitzer, owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, as well as Simon Sports, a co-owner of Ipswich Town F.C., and Active Partners, an early investor in Soho House.
The investor group also includes Chicago-based Emerging Fund, which has ties to Puttshack, the darts-focused Flight Club, baseball-centric Batbox and the Formula One-themed F1 Arcade.
Poolhouse promises to “revolutionize the game of pool” as brands like Topgolf and Puttshack did for golf, according to press materials.
The Jolliffes have developed proprietary technology that will live inside the balls to keep track of scores and offer interactive games for all levels of skill.
“Poolhouse is the most ambitious and scalable concept my brother and I have created, representing the pinnacle of our lifelong work,” said Steve Jolliffe, in a statement. “Whilst we have a strong track record of incorporating technology into golf balls, this project has been our most challenging endeavor yet.”
The plan is to open first in London, and the company plans to license the technology to other operators around the world. The goal is to bring the concept to the U.S. in 2026.
“Site search is underway, and we recently enjoyed a very productive trip across five major U.S. cities,” said Poolhouse CEO and co-founder Andrew O’Brien, in an email. O’Brien is also a board member at F1 Arcade and formerly at Credit Suisse.
Poolhouse promises to have a world-class food-and-beverage program, with drinks being curated with Three Sheets, a well-known bar in London described as a staple on the World’s 50 Best Bars list. The group has also brought in a former chef from the Gordon Ramsay Group, the company said.
The venue is described as having a “vibrant, vintage Las Vegas-inspired” ambiance.
“The game of pool is so perfectly woven into the fabric of bar culture, and knowing the quality of the venues we are designing, I think people will be absolutely stunned,” said O’Brien.
Signature Hospitality Group, one of Australia’s largest operators, also has taken an equity stake in Poolhouse and has signed a franchise agreement with the brand.
Still, food-and-games chains are showing signs of struggle in the current climate.
After being acquired by Callaway Brands five years ago, Topgolf is being prepared for a separation in the second half of this year, which will either be a spinoff or sale. Last month, Topgolf announced that home-office layoffs were planned.
Dave & Buster’s had a tough 2024, saying same-store sales fell 7.2%, including a 9.4% decline in the fourth quarter. The CEO Chris Morris stepped down, and interim CEO Kevin Sheehan last week blamed the weak performance on past “mistakes” that need to be unwound.
The bowling-and-bocce concept Pinstripes also received word in March that it would be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange after a little more than a year as a public company. The Northbrook, Illinois-based company’s market capitalization had dropped well below the required $15 million.
O’Brien, however, argues that Topgolf has enjoyed two decades of success and “few other concepts have emerged to properly challenge its dominant market position,” he said.
Last year, off-course golf—of which Topgolf claims 85% market share—outranked on-course golf for the first time in the U.S., he said.
Fundamentally, he and investors see a “flight to premium” in the food-and-game space.
“If you look at the performance and profitability of Puttshack, F1 Arcade (I sit on the board of this company) and Flight Club, we absolutely believe the entertainment sector has a huge future, but only for the right brands and for concepts that are perfectly executed,” O’Brien said. “Poolhouse, in my view, could be a real challenger in this space.”
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