What did the IPT do that was right?

Wags

Wags

2 pocket-one pocket table
Silver Member
So now that time has passed and maybe all the hurt feelings are gone, what did the IPT do that was right? Maybe this will give us a list of some positives to make the game go forward.

RULES: Only one positive per post. Please, no negative posts.

I will try to summarize every few days if necessary.

8-ball. They played the game that everyone in the world knows and has experienced. The world may not know the finer rules but people do know solids and stripes and how hard it is to run a table. That also played into the base of league pool players.
 
Wags said:
So now that time has passed and maybe all the hurt feelings are gone, what did the IPT do that was right? Maybe this will give us a list of some positives to make the game go forward.

RULES: Only one positive per post. Please, no negative posts.

I will try to summarize every few days if necessary.

8-ball. They played the game that everyone in the world knows and has experienced. The world may not know the finer rules but people do know solids and stripes and how hard it is to run a table. That also played into the base of league pool players.
Click to expand...

They had a great tournament format and they took care of the hall of fame players.
 
$$$

The main thing which I think was important was that he put out a lot of money that benefitted quite a few pros; including all the Hall of Famers which he gave $30,000 just to show up one tournament (IIRC) and he provided some nice venues and perks....I know some people were disappointed, but I think he really tried............
 
In hindsight, given the choice of KT/IPT or no KT/IPT, I have to give the effort the thumbs up. It is unfortunate that KT took a clobbering. If he had succeeded, all of pool would have benefited. He spread a lot of money around to a bunch of people who had little professional future who weren't doing anything anyway. He took a big chance and lost big. If nothing else, he proved that bloated purse sizes are not the answer.

To that point, the spectacle and production was the best to date (in the US).
 
Last edited:
I really liked the round robin format. I liked the slow nap cloth and tight pockets. Having a King of the hill was cool too.
 
+ one more for the format.

I loved it, it was exciting and 8 ball is prolly the best game to promote to the non-playing public.

But i do realize the round robin format provides opportunities for players to make deals.
 
Loved the format. Brackets, everyone playing each other, two moving on. It was great! Loved it.
 
They almost killed me. At the time this was going on I got so excited I was trying to play pool again. I was an undiagnosed diabetic and didn't know it.

Or maybe it saved my life. it got me moving around a little more.

I think it is the best thing that has happened to pool for a long time.

Maybe it will happen again?
 
1. They had a website that was fairly well designed.

2. The scores would update live on all the tables on the website, so that you could follow along.

3. They kept really good stats on the performance of each player.

Sorry I broke your rule of only 1 good per post...
 
Summary 1

Summary all ready.

1. 8-ball. They played the game that everyone in the world knows and has experienced. The world may not know the finer rules but people do know solids and stripes and how hard it is to run a table. That also played into the base of league pool players. From Wags

I loved it, it was exciting and 8 ball is prolly the best game to promote to the non-playing public. From Cameron Smith

2. They had a great tournament format. From Blackjack

I really liked the round robin format. From Pulzcul

+ one more for the format. From Cameron Smith

Loved the format. Brackets, everyone playing each other, two moving on. From cbi1000

loved the round-robin format. From TimKrazyMon

3. They took care of the hall of fame players. From Blackjack

4. Put out a lot of money that benefitted quite a few pros. From Wahcheck

It had lots and lots of money. From Masayoshi

5. The event venue was first class. From SpiderWebComm

6. If nothing else, he proved that bloated purse sizes are not the answer. From Paul Scholfield

7. The slow nap cloth and tight pockets. From Pulzcul

8. To that point, the spectacle and production was the best to date (in the US). From Paul Scholfield

9. Secured television coverage. From jimmyg

10. They had a website that was fairly well designed. From iusedtoberich

11. The scores would update live on all the tables on the website, so that you could follow along. From iusedtoberich

12. They kept really good stats on the performance of each player. From iusedtoberich

13. They created real excitement over a sport that is traditionally pretty pessimistic. From cueandcushion
 
Outside the obvious economic/financial factors, I think the IPT did nearly everything right. The game (8-ball), conditions (diamond tables on tough cloth), format (round robin), the live web updates (I can remember being glued to my computer for a week straight hitting refresh), the streaming (watching Efren win the World 8 ball live was epic), and the scope (cue artists [not just pool players] from across the globe came out to participate in the qualifiers)...all superb. Pool hasn't had nearly the same buzz and excitement since.

The one thing they definitely should have improved was the quality of the TV program on Versus. The episodes were utter crap (what is KT doing in the booth?). If the IPT somehow made a quality program, maybe the financial situation could have turned out to be drastically different. Maybe.
 
The best thing about the International Pool Tour (IPT) is that it attracted players from around the world, as well as brought back players who had more or less gave up on pool. Scotty Townsend, C.J. Riley, Dave Matlock, Dee Adkins, and Jon Kucharo come to mind.

IOW, it gave aspiring professional players hope, something that was sorely needed in the pool world, that they could actually carve out a professional career via the International Pool Tour. Kevin Trudeau's vision was quite attractive: real pool, real rules, and real money.

Well, the pool and the rules worked out, but the money dried up. With the lack of interest in pool from mainstream media, the IPT sank like the Titanic. Actually, it sank in less than two years, truth be told.

In the end, I beleive Kevin Trudeau was misinformed by his inner circle. If he had known what most of us AzB-ers know about pool, he would have *never* had such high payouts from the get-go. Scaled down, I believe the IPT could have worked, if given a chance to grow.

Never before had players seen this kind of venue. When you walked into the playing field, there was a big sign that said "Welcome Athletes." It gave professional-caliber players a new sense of pride and something to strive for.
 

Attachments

  • Starship Stage 2.JPG
    Starship Stage 2.JPG
    44.4 KB · Views: 380
poolsnark said:
Hey assclown, thanks for giving my computer a drive by virus. Serves me right for clicking on your sig link to see what your company is all about I guess.
Click to expand...


Ok, I am offering you a final word of advice.

If you get sharp tongued just once more, you will win a nice long break from AZB. I have recieved several complaints regarding you and you can add to the pile.....that if you don't know who to leave rep and report a bad post and I get this message "Your link in your sig file gave me a virus when I clicked it. Douchebag." and find the balance of your nastieness here, you can be assured that I am not amused.

This is your final warning.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top