I used to shoot pool constantly. I have made my share of contacts doing so too. Most pool players are low life bums though. I actually know and have shot with the top players in Vegas.
Up until recently I was playing a lot of poker though. Many poker players are also low life bums, but there are lots with loads of money too!

Many poker players that I have played with have mutiple investments.
Bar hopping will do the trick to network sometimes. It's a hit or miss.