Promoting a pro tournament
- Thread starter steveharn
- Start date
Sure if you like adding the money, begging for a venue and working for free, have at it.
Oh boy. Here we go. Seriously? Answers are: 1.Not easily. 2. No. You'll lose your shorts. RUN, don't walk away from this idea. Besides, RKC already has it all figured out.
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Bookee?
Sounds like you got the same amount of experience at booking as the OP has at
running tournaments.
:grin:
The details are all in how you spell things. I didn't say I was a Bookie so now its all legal.
I am the Bookee so give me your moneee!
Oh boy. Here we go. Seriously? Answers are: 1.Not easily. 2. No. You'll lose your shorts. RUN, don't walk away from this idea. Besides, RKC already has it all figured out.
You sure like pushing his buttons, dont you.
Respecting the OP's question. No is the short answer. There's a lot of things that go into it were I to boil it down......You need added money to draw the Pros out and the room owners sometimes really don't need you there if you're going to use Pool Rooms so it ends up being very tricky the way you arrange things, if you intend to sleep in a hotel vs. your car etc and if you intend to get paid. There is a lot to it and its not like the old days when some of these companies supported the events in my opinion.
Pool is a Product and in order for companies to pony up added money, you have to prove to them that they are going to get eyeballs to justify the money they give you.
This topic is almost as old as "what's the best ld shaft". Dude should know, if he's been on here any time at all, that the "i want to promote pro pool" deal is like stepping in quicksand. If he thinks someone is going to hold his hand and walk him thru this then he's more delusional than RKC. If that's possible.
Wonder if the young hoppe has any thoughts on the matter?
Anyone know what Brian Parks' Fargo Rating is? :grin:
I'm kidding! Brian seems like a good dude. Just wish the APA didn't have to use him as their poster child.
Sad but true that the short answer about anything pro-tour related ends up being NO.
I put on large scale events in the oil and gas industry for a living so this is an interesting topic for me. In response:
1) In order to put one together, I would say that it would need to be more broad than just a pro tournament - maybe have the tournament with an expo and a couple of clinics attached to it - promote the clinics and expo directly to the local league players - you need people on site and engaged beyond just watching the pros play.
2) You wouldn't be able to do it profitably without a) gate revenue, b) sponsor revenue and c) some type of small trade show attached to it imho.
You'd need to secure sponsorship from local companies, have a defined set of features and benefits that each would receive, plus negotiate a very good contract with whatever venue you host it at and whatever hotel you utilize for sleeping rooms. I'd probably try and have it an upscale(ish) hotel and tie discounted rental for the tournament room/expo into the number of room nights that the hotel will receive from players/spectators. You'd also need to work directly with a table mfg if you did it in a hotel - sponsorship of the event plus cash if they agree to install and remove the tables you need for the tournament.
Even if you do everything right on the front end, I wouldn't proceed with the event until I had enough sponsor dollars committed to cover my venue, table and marketing costs, plus the added money. Just my .02.
1) In order to put one together, I would say that it would need to be more broad than just a pro tournament - maybe have the tournament with an expo and a couple of clinics attached to it - promote the clinics and expo directly to the local league players - you need people on site and engaged beyond just watching the pros play.
2) You wouldn't be able to do it profitably without a) gate revenue, b) sponsor revenue and c) some type of small trade show attached to it imho.
You'd need to secure sponsorship from local companies, have a defined set of features and benefits that each would receive, plus negotiate a very good contract with whatever venue you host it at and whatever hotel you utilize for sleeping rooms. I'd probably try and have it an upscale(ish) hotel and tie discounted rental for the tournament room/expo into the number of room nights that the hotel will receive from players/spectators. You'd also need to work directly with a table mfg if you did it in a hotel - sponsorship of the event plus cash if they agree to install and remove the tables you need for the tournament.
Even if you do everything right on the front end, I wouldn't proceed with the event until I had enough sponsor dollars committed to cover my venue, table and marketing costs, plus the added money. Just my .02.
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Well said. Pretty much covered all the bases.
Steve,
As another poster said, "this thread subject has been beaten to death". Yes, NO is the answer!
If you really want to proceed, take a few days and attend the Super Billiards Expo next month. Spend a few hours talking with Allen Hopkins. If, after speaking with him, you still wish to proceed, have at it! Pro pool is a money pit in the US. Amateur league pool is thriving.
On the positive side, pool is being subtlety promoted on tv on a regular basis. Just watch how many commercials have a pool table in the background. Notice how much fun the "players" are having? Sadly, it's nearly always a bar table.
The sad thing is you wouldn't get it. The sponsors in this industry wouldn't touch it until you had everything in place and only to suit them. You would be 100% a sole proprietorship on this. I even thought once about forming committees and selling shares of the event to the people on the committees and each committee member had to come up with low investment to get a stake of the proceeds in the event but.....
You could everything right and still get lackluster attendance unless you have everything including geographical location right.
Danny DiLiberto has a good line...
This reminds me of one of my favorite Danny DiLiberto lines, something like "You don't shoot that unless you hate your money."
It seems like if you want to promote pro pool, you have to have a love of pool and a hate for your money.
This reminds me of one of my favorite Danny DiLiberto lines, something like "You don't shoot that unless you hate your money."
It seems like if you want to promote pro pool, you have to have a love of pool and a hate for your money.