never heard of such chit before

The point is there wasn't such a rule until after he won, and the TD lied to him about playing the next week, telling him that it had already started, then allowing 2 more people to enter.

That's the whole gripe. Without the lying, there is no problem.

spot on dub. you get an A for comprehension. :thumbup:
 
yea... 2 things.

1. he lied about the starting time.

2. this was the 1st time he ever barred the previous weeks winner.


I don't know the details about your first point except that you were on the way when you called. Is it possible two people didn't show and they let others into the tourny?

Whether it was the first time or the 10th time they didn't let the previous winner into the tourny doesn't really matter. What matters is the TD decided to implement that rule. I see rules changes in tournaments all the time. For example, they allowed 8ball breaks for a win but changed it after a player got 3 8ball breaks one night.

On a personal note I actually like having that rule in place. It means some really good player cannot come and take the money every week.

Look at the good side. At least you didn't waste your time and show up only to be told you couldn't play. Win it next week and get your revenge :-)
 
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In the 50s there was a free 8-ball team tournament where you drew numbers for partners. First prize was a week of table time. If you won you had to sit out a week. This is not a new rule.
 
Horror story

last week a fellow league player told me about a local tournament she helps run at a dive bar not far from the pool hall i usually play at.

since our apa qualifier was cancelled due to lack of players i and a few other league players went with her to this tournament and i won it.

i found out they hold one every fri and sat night. after league fri i told her i wanted to play in it again fri night. she calls the other guy who also helps run it and says i am on my way with her to play in it. he says aint that the guy who won it last week, she says yea. he says tell him its too late and that we already started. he also told her since i won it last week i had to sit out a week before i could enter again.

when she told me that i really did not think much about it and went home. she heads to the bar which is about 10 minutes away to help with the tourny.

tonight at league she comes up to me saying when she got there fri night they were just about to start and in walks 2 more people which the guy running it lets enter the tourney.

now i could have been there 10 minutes before these 2 guys he let enter late but did not bother going because he lied to her about already starting the tourny.

have any of you ever had that shit pulled on you ?

If that's the worst that happens to you, consider yourself lucky!
Pool hall owners are not always into fairness.

About ten years ago I played in a local tourney and found myself undefeated and in the finals. As we were about to begin the match, the owner walks through, says something to the league director and walks out the door. The LD then informs me that they have a rule that someone cannot win the first tournament they play in at that establishment!!!
Bizarre, as I had played in the same tourney a few months before and gone 2 and out. Anyway, the TD told me I could either split first and second with the other player, or accept second place.

In my 58 years of playing, I've seen lots of that kind of crap...
 
I wouldn't let it bother you too much op. it's their tournament, and who really cares if he pulls stunts like that? Laugh at his chickensh1t antics and move on.

Incidentally, years and years ago I used to play in a Sunday rec level tournament in a small town.it was a fun little tourney, and sometimes (football season, lol) it would get a decent size crowd and payout ($300-400 winner amount, etc). Then three friends who were all a/minus type players started showing up and taking 1-2-3 every week. Crowd died out quickly, so the td instituted a rule that the tournament was for town residents only ( and they checked I'd!), so those three were out and everyone was pretty happy again except for those guys.

Incidentally, I was allowed to continue in the tourney for a month despite living an hour outside town. I had been playing in it for quite some time so maybe they knew me, or more likely knew how unspectacular I shot. But a month later some guy I beat got pissy and complained so i was out too. No big deal...I understand why they did what they did.

/longboringostoryover
 
I wouldn't let it bother you too much op. it's their tournament, and who really cares if he pulls stunts like that? Laugh at his chickensh1t antics and move on.

Incidentally, years and years ago I used to play in a Sunday rec level tournament in a small town.it was a fun little tourney, and sometimes (football season, lol) it would get a decent size crowd and payout ($300-400 winner amount, etc). Then three friends who were all a/minus type players started showing up and taking 1-2-3 every week. Crowd died out quickly, so the td instituted a rule that the tournament was for town residents only ( and they checked I'd!), so those three were out and everyone was pretty happy again except for those guys.

Incidentally, I was allowed to continue in the tourney for a month despite living an hour outside town. I had been playing in it for quite some time so maybe they knew me, or more likely knew how unspectacular I shot. But a month later some guy I beat got pissy and complained so i was out too. No big deal...I understand why they did what they did.

/longboringostoryover

thanks for sharing your experience. apparently a lot of you have had the same experience i did last weekend. i have limited experience with these local tourney. as i stated earlier the last time i played in one was about 8 years ago.

i played in this same weekly tourny for about 4 months. the same guy almost always won it. there was no complaining or threatening to quit. it was always full with the same 25-30 guys every week.

the only talk going on was a lil trash talk amongst the players about who was coming in 2nd or 3rd because it was almost a forgone conclusion who was coming in 1st.

i did not get upset about not playing. i got upset about the way he handled it by lying.
 
The one detail I caught was that Lorider WAS going to go to the disputed tournament, but when he was told that it had already started, THEN he just decided to go on home.

A couple of posters appeared to think that since he couldn't go to the tournament anyway, then he shouldn't have a gripe. Just wanted to clear that point up. Lorider, feel free to correct me, if I'm wrong.

I see both sides of the argument. The owner/tourney director is protecting the "integrity" of the tournament and trying to ensure that there's as much participation as possible week in and week out.

HOOOOOWEVER, I personally still think it's horse$hit to protect the "lesser" players. But then again.....I'm the C-player that enters the Southern Classic in Tunica and the White Diamonds Calcutta in Lafayette full-well knowing I'll get my head handed to me.

And why do I do that you ask? Because I LOVE pool and I want to be a better player. Plus, I love mixin' it up with the big boys. I don't ask for a spot, whether I need it or not. School of hard knocks, I suppose. I wish everyone that played pool felt that way, but I digress.

At a local bar in this area, they have lil tournaments that are sudden death 1-game matches, double elimination. However, if you win the tourney, the next week, you have to win 2 games to your opponent's 1. If you win again, it goes up to 3 games the following week. And so on. I think if you don't win one week, your "handicap" drops back down a game. And so forth.

Personally, if I ran a place of fairly regular players, whether it be bangers or decent league players looking to shoot some on their "nights off", I'd set up a mini-format that went on for say, 3 months. Call it a quarterly. That would be 12 tournaments, at a rate of once a week. Every place in a weekly field earns points. If there's 20 players, then the winner gets 20 points. On down to 1 point for last. If there's 8 players, 8 points for first and 1 for last. Easy to keep up with. Put up a big tournament board over the bar. Make it look like you at least give a damn and promote it a bit.

If you win the weekly tournament, you earn an invite to an end-of-the-quarter money-added field. So, you'd have players scrambling to get that automatic berth (although, I'd still have them pay an entry fee into that big, final showdown).

You could bump a winner's handicap up every week that they take 1st, to make it progressively harder for them, with a cap of 3 victories. If they take 3 weekly's, tell them congrats, we'll see you at the end of the quarter (maybe give them some free table time or a steak dinner, as an incentive to keep showing up at your establishment) OR they could keep playing for weekly points, but wouldn't be eligible for any weekly money, since they've won their maximum 3 events.

The finals could be seeded by those earned points, so that there would be some incentive to keep participating and go for the high points to possibly get a bye or better draw.

Anyway, I'm a bit off-topic, but it seems like it's more than a bit of laziness to simply exclude someone because they win something.

Owners/directors should put on their thinking caps and figure out a way to increase participation and yet NOT punish people for being better players, whether it be one great night of shooting or a night in and night out kinda thing.

And IF ANYTHING, Lorider, would it have made you feel a bit better if the tourney director just pulled you aside and said to you mano y mano,....... "Listen, I know it sux, but you blew thru our field last time. It's nitty, but I'll have to make you sit out a week, because I hate to scare the lesser players off. I'd love to have you back the week after that, tho. We'll put you on a small handicap and and inform the regular players that we'll progressively make it harder for people to cherrypick. But, that it's still up to them to come in here and shoot good enough to earn the dough. I hope you understand."
 
Fathom, the bigger problem seems to be that the guy running the tourney made exceptions for people he knew and started a rule after an APA 5 took it down. If a tool like that runs it, I wouldn't waste my time going back.

I played in one similar to what you described. I did well the first time, taking the 8b tourney and then getting 2nd in 9b(held one after the one). The next time I showed up, I had to win an extra 3 or something. I don't think I went back after that, because I'm not big on throwing money away just to have a handicap drop to a reasonable spot.

Lorider, maybe the TD was like a friend of mine.. he saw a 5/6(or 6/6 maybe) shooting one time and came next door to tell me about this way underrated player that shot better than so-and-so, better CB control than me, blah blah blah. When he told me the nickname(somebody I have played a few times), I think I laughed my friend out the door. You probably did play well enough to get them all butt-hurt. Give yourself a pat on the back and see if you can find another one to rob. ;)
 
dude....

This is one way to keep the "Cherry Pickers" from including every ballbanger tournament in the area into their weekly income agenda. Usually those that win those tournaments week after week, rarely ever get up the nerve to gamble with a real player. Swindling beginners and laying down for B players is their forte. I like to call them pickpockets to their face, and I do.

Oh Great.... Now my Moniker is tainted!!! ;):eek:
 
This is one way to keep the "Cherry Pickers" from including every ballbanger tournament in the area into their weekly income agenda. Usually those that win those tournaments week after week, rarely ever get up the nerve to gamble with a real player. Swindling beginners and laying down for B players is their forte. I like to call them pickpockets to their face, and I do.



Hard to cherry pick a race to 1 weekly. Only recently i played a weekly for the first time in a long time and it was a race to 2 winners and 1 losers.I'd consider it motivation to improve if some guy was running over the tournament all the time.Are we talking 5 and 10 dollar entry weekly's? I play them to get out and do something i enjoy and people spend more on a pack of cigarettes or smokeless tobacco or a certain beer brand and bar prices.

It would be nice to play a weekly that drew at least 20 on a consistant basis that was played on decent tables.It would be nice to live close to some place like the Carom Room.
 
Some pool players show up, drink water, and win the local tourney. As an owner now.....no thanks.

Hell, if I show up, they prolly get the winnings back in beer sales!
 
Some pool players show up, drink water, and win the local tourney. As an owner now.....no thanks.

I used to shoot fairly regularly in a small, local 8-ball tournament on Friday nights in a small bar (4 tables) that I shot APA leagues out of. There were mostly regular bar patrons and players entered ($5 entry fee) that shot leagues in this bar and the rules were always APA rules. Well, the bar owner decided to start adding enough money to where the winner of this tournament got $100. Guess what happened after that? Yep, players started coming out of the woodwork to play in this tournament and there was this one guy that after he snapped it off a couple times without ever so much as spending a dime in this place, got barred permanently from playing in the tournament. Eventually, the bar owner wouldn't let anyone play in the tournament who didn't play APA leagues in our League Area. That made the regulars/league players a lot happier.

The one thing I didn't like about this tournament was that it didn't pay anything for second place. I told the bar owner many times that this is going to hurt the tournament's participation eventually, and it did. In about 3 months, there was no longer enough showing up to have a decent size field.

I won that tournament a few times and always threw $25 or $30 to the second place finisher. The rest I spent on buying a round of drinks or two (or three) for my good friends.

Maniac
 
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Something Like That

Me, my brother, and a friend of mine all loaded up one evening and decided to play in a tournament about an hour away from our usual spot. We got there and didn't know that many people, but had seen a few around here and there. The owner of the pool hall seemed nice and we shot for a while before the tournament started. Well to make a long story short, it came down to me, my brother, and the owners "best guy". The "best guy" got beat and the owner told me, my brother, and friend that we could not come back anymore because we were too good.

I think it has something to do with the connection between an owner and their people that are regulars. When a stranger comes in and beats someone that is always supposed to win then you are automatically the bad guy because his game isn't what they thought it was.

Thanks, Adam
 
i had a bye this past fri night in league so i thought i would go back to this weekly tourny again after sitting out last week.

i get there early and grab a beer and put some quarters up on a table after asking the 2 players if they mind me getting in a game with them.
this place has 8 tables and all of them were being used. this place was packed.

a lil while later the td comes by and says he cant get enough players to have a tournament. before i had a chance to say anything he turns around and heads out the door leaving the bar. i musta stood there with a wtf ? look on my face for a minute or 2 then just laughed it off and went back to playing. i was just wanting a warm up for a jack and jill scotch doubles tournament i was playing in the next day.

instead of making one long ass post here let me tell you about it in another post.
 
last week a fellow league player told me about a local tournament she helps run at a dive bar not far from the pool hall i usually play at.

since our apa qualifier was cancelled due to lack of players i and a few other league players went with her to this tournament and i won it.

i found out they hold one every fri and sat night. after league fri i told her i wanted to play in it again fri night. she calls the other guy who also helps run it and says i am on my way with her to play in it. he says aint that the guy who won it last week, she says yea. he says tell him its too late and that we already started. he also told her since i won it last week i had to sit out a week before i could enter again.

when she told me that i really did not think much about it and went home. she heads to the bar which is about 10 minutes away to help with the tourny.

tonight at league she comes up to me saying when she got there fri night they were just about to start and in walks 2 more people which the guy running it lets enter the tourney.

now i could have been there 10 minutes before these 2 guys he let enter late but did not bother going because he lied to her about already starting the tourny.

have any of you ever had that shit pulled on you ?

I have seen places where they take the winners photo and place it in display for the month they have to sit out.
 
this was an apa jack and jill scotch doubles tourny. it a a combined 10 handicap limit. it drew 24 teams iirc. between the 10 per team entry, bar added money and the calcatta it was over 1,000.00 in prize money. i dont know the break down but they payed to 4th place.

my tue night captain asked me to be her partner, she is only a 2 and i figured we aint got a chance in hell to win but it only cost 5.00 a piece and i said ok because i just love to play pool:D

as i said this was a 10 s/l handicap. i am a 5 and she is a 2.

our 1st opponents were a combined 10, both players are 5's. the race was 4-3. we won 3-1. i thought wow :eek:

2nd match was against a 5 and a 3. we won 3-0. again i thought wow !

3rd match was just like the 2nd . again wow !.

we had a 2 hour wait till our next match. against a 6 and a 3 . we lost 4-2.

the last match we lost 4-2 against a 7 and a 2. we were on the hill and my teamate rattled the pocket on a real easy shot on the 8 ball. it was a heartbreaker as we finished in 5th, 1 spot outa the money.

a while later i went outside for some fresh air and also to check on my bike. i found my partner outside with tears in her eyes. i asked whats the matter ? she said she was sorry she let me down. she said we finished 1 spot outa the money and it was her fault. i said hey you aint the 1st person to ever chole on the 8 and darn sure wont ne the last.

i said besides i made a mistake or 2 in the 1st match we lost . she said what mistakes ? i said a couple of times i got out of position leaving you harder shots than i should have. i said that is what put us in the losers bracket to begin with. i said if we had won that game we was guaranteed 4th anyway no matter what we did after that match.

i said we both shot real well and that i was suprised we made it as far as we did. i told her we will do better next time. she said , you mean you would play with me again, i said sure why not ? after all its only a game:wink:
 
this was an apa jack and jill scotch doubles tourny. it a a combined 10 handicap limit. it drew 24 teams iirc. between the 10 per team entry, bar added money and the calcatta it was over 1,000.00 in prize money. i dont know the break down but they payed to 4th place.

my tue night captain asked me to be her partner, she is only a 2 and i figured we aint got a chance in hell to win but it only cost 5.00 a piece and i said ok because i just love to play pool:D

as i said this was a 10 s/l handicap. i am a 5 and she is a 2.

our 1st opponents were a combined 10, both players are 5's. the race was 4-3. we won 3-1. i thought wow :eek:

2nd match was against a 5 and a 3. we won 3-0. again i thought wow !

3rd match was just like the 2nd . again wow !.

we had a 2 hour wait till our next match. against a 6 and a 3 . we lost 4-2.

the last match we lost 4-2 against a 7 and a 2. we were on the hill and my teamate rattled the pocket on a real easy shot on the 8 ball. it was a heartbreaker as we finished in 5th, 1 spot outa the money.

a while later i went outside for some fresh air and also to check on my bike. i found my partner outside with tears in her eyes. i asked whats the matter ? she said she was sorry she let me down. she said we finished 1 spot outa the money and it was her fault. i said hey you aint the 1st person to ever chole on the 8 and darn sure wont ne the last.

i said besides i made a mistake or 2 in the 1st match we lost . she said what mistakes ? i said a couple of times i got out of position leaving you harder shots than i should have. i said that is what put us in the losers bracket to begin with. i said if we had won that game we was guaranteed 4th anyway no matter what we did after that match.

i said we both shot real well and that i was suprised we made it as far as we did. i told her we will do better next time. she said , you mean you would play with me again, i said sure why not ? after all its only a game:wink:

Very cool.

And I bet she doesn't stay a 2 very long, either. Sounds like she is engaged in the game, and with people like you helping her, she'll only get better. It should be fun to watch her progress.
 
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