The sound of crashing pins, the squeak of rental shoes, and the unmistakable aroma of lane wax all hit you the moment you step through the doors at George Pappas’ Liberty Lanes in Gastonia.

No 17-page leather-bound tomes here with elaborate descriptions of “hand-crafted artisanal farm-to-table ... pool tables that give Booches its full name (Booches Billiard Hall) aren’t just decorative ...