WPS - I like the format a lot

iusedtoberich

iusedtoberich

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The WPS has really grown on me.

I like the race to 6, best out of the sets. It keeps the game exciting! It keeps the fan viewing. The shootout at first I thought was gimmicky, but it too has grown on me.

I like the commentary. Varner is superb. He talks slow, but every word out of his mouth is useful, and not wasted. His insight is appreciated. Lerner is obviously not a champion, but he is great with the mic. He adds some nice personality to the commentary, and to the interviews. Chris Melling was great also. He is like Varner, in that he is champion, but he talks fast and gets more information out, and has a more detailed analysis of the game. All of the commentators thus far have been professionals (at commentating), and have stayed focused on the games at hand, and not flying off on too many tangents.

The camera work is great also. The views are interesting, and they camera switching is logical with its timing and viewing angle.

I give the overall experience of the tournament as a fan viewing from home an A.

My only disappointment with the event, is with the American players who did not show up. Here you have people traveling all the way around the world to play, and the top US guys did not bother to show their faces.
 
I hate the fact that it's on FB and flash is required....
...I can watch it at home on my computer....but FB gives me only about 80% of the table.

is this 'take what you make?...if so, another thing I dislike.


wish Fast Lenny was doing it
 
I hate fb too, but it does add more viewership. I thought I saw around 10K viewers at one point during the semis.

Got tied up at work and couldnt pay close attention to the finals.
 
pt109 said:
I hate the fact that it's on FB and flash is required....
...I can watch it at home on my computer....but FB gives me only about 80% of the table.

is this 'take what you make?...if so, another thing I dislike.


wish Fast Lenny was doing it
Click to expand...

I appreciate that compliment but they are a full crew doing a full on production and I am a one man army using minimal equipment, haha. I set up my equipment in 30-45 minutes and am ready to go. They did a good job for their first time out without question and I am sure they will continue to improve. I do have some suggestions for them besides streaming to multiple places that if contacted I will provide to them via PM.

I think they need to not only stream to Facebook but also Ustream and YouTube at the same time. I know Facebook only will allow you to stream to them and no one else when you do it but there is a way around that so you can get it out to more places. As of late I am streaming to Ustream and YouTube so people can choose which works best for them. I know Facebook is blocked in many work places but then again people should be there working. haha :p
 
iusedtoberich said:
The WPS has really grown on me.

I like the race to 6, best out of the sets. It keeps the game exciting! It keeps the fan viewing. The shootout at first I thought was gimmicky, but it too has grown on me.

I like the commentary. Varner is superb. He talks slow, but every word out of his mouth is useful, and not wasted. His insight is appreciated. Lerner is obviously not a champion, but he is great with the mic. He adds some nice personality to the commentary, and to the interviews. Chris Melling was great also. He is like Varner, in that he is champion, but he talks fast and gets more information out, and has a more detailed analysis of the game. All of the commentators thus far have been professionals (at commentating), and have stayed focused on the games at hand, and not flying off on too many tangents.

The camera work is great also. The views are interesting, and they camera switching is logical with its timing and viewing angle.

I give the overall experience of the tournament as a fan viewing from home an A.

My only disappointment with the event, is with the American players who did not show up. Here you have people traveling all the way around the world to play, and the top US guys did not bother to show their faces.
Click to expand...

I really enjoyed it very much too. I think it is a step in the right direction with 8 ball being the most popular game on the planet. The shootout is interesting but I know the loser is sour grapes after shooting spot shots to lose the match. I always thought bank the 8 would be interesting or kicking 2 or more rails at a ball if it is hanging.
 
I dont like the idea of pushing the break so far to the side

I think the area from the 2 diamonds to the rail is enough, dont need to narrow that to half diamond

I like the win by 2 racks than the shoot out

other than that, everything is perfect and matches are worth every second to watch.

off-topic: why Shane didnt Shane feature in any of these Series?
 
I like the tight pockets on the tv table also. Along with the the take what you make aspect to make 8b for pros more difficult.
 
Fast Lenny said:
I appreciate that compliment but they are a full crew doing a full on production and I am a one man army using minimal equipment, haha. I set up my equipment in 30-45 minutes and am ready to go. They did a good job for their first time out without question and I am sure they will continue to improve. I do have some suggestions for them besides streaming to multiple places that if contacted I will provide to them via PM.

I think they need to not only stream to Facebook but also Ustream and YouTube at the same time. I know Facebook only will allow you to stream to them and no one else when you do it but there is a way around that so you can get it out to more places. As of late I am streaming to Ustream and YouTube so people can choose which works best for them. I know Facebook is blocked in many work places but then again people should be there working. haha :p
Click to expand...

I like the YouTube hook-up....works best on my iPad and computer.

If I ruled the 8-ball world....I would make it 'win by two'.....no call shots....and 'last pocket'.
.....absolutely no 'take what you make'....that's 'level the field' league thinking...
...these players are the best in the world....let the cream come to the top...
...we're looking for a champion....
...winner breaks, for me also....let somebody run the set out...and if they're way behind....
...give them that light at the end of the tunnel...just one more turn..to runit out.
 
I agree to what the OP said + it's so much better than that overkill Chinese 8-ball game...the WPS TV table had tight pockets in every aspect but not to an extent where the table will make a Pro look like an amateur because of missed shots.
 
pt109 said:
I hate the fact that it's on FB and flash is required....
...I can watch it at home on my computer....but FB gives me only about 80% of the table.

is this 'take what you make?...if so, another thing I dislike.


wish Fast Lenny was doing it
Click to expand...

If you uninstall flash from your machine, FB will play all of your videos as HTML5, a much better format. I refuse to install Flash on my Mac.
 
pt109 said:
I like the YouTube hook-up....works best on my iPad and computer.

If I ruled the 8-ball world....I would make it 'win by two'.....no call shots....and 'last pocket'.
.....absolutely no 'take what you make'....that's 'level the field' league thinking...
...
Click to expand...

Not sure which you prefer:
"no call shots" or "no 'take what you make'"

In my circles
call shots = no slop
take what you make = slop

No doubt I'm missing the meaning of one of those two.
 
Ched said:
Not sure which you prefer:
"no call shots" or "no 'take what you make'"

In my circles
call shots = no slop
take what you make = slop

No doubt I'm missing the meaning of one of those two.
Click to expand...

'Take what you make' refers to....if you make a low ball on the break, you have to take that
group....some of the skill in 8-ball is what group to take...'take what you make' eliminate
that skillful choice.
 
I had split ideas about the "take what you make" at times.

Now I think the table should be open after the break, whatever they make.

That adds more element of choice and decision, and that is easily the biggest decision to make in a rack, so dont take that away with "take what you make"
 
Can't please everybody. I think this is the best compromise possible, plus the shootout is great!
Jason
 
I don't much like using a spot-shot shootout to determine who wins a pool match, because it is a different sort of competition from the games in the match that led to the tie. Potting long, difficult shots is just one of the many skills used in the games, and to decide the match on that one skill seems wrong to me.

I know it is sort of like shootouts in hockey or soccer, and some people consider it "exciting." As for me, bah ... (But I understand the arguments in its favor.)

[Maybe we'll start breaking NBA ties by shooting 3-pointers from assigned spots.]
 
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I like it a lot. I like the tight pockets, I like the take what you make, I like the shootouts. Here's an interview with Darren where he talks about the latest tournament and future plans. I especially like that he's talking about starting small and looking towards long-term growth. I'm not as sure that 8-ball is the right game for viewers - I'm sure it's more popular to play, but I still think 9-ball may be more straightforward and more fun to watch. But 8-ball is fine.

My criticism has to do with the rules - they should be simpler and cleaner. For example, the WPS rules on jump cues are that you can't use them if you hooked yourself, only if your opponent hooked you, and then with a limit of 3 times per match, or if using sets, 1 per set. Just go ahead and ban them, or not. It's as if some people wanted them banned, others didn't, and so they kind of went half way. A lot of the rules seem that way: Like they wanted single elimination, but some people complained, so they made the early stages double elimination.

The rules change too much from round to round. Sometimes it's double elimination, other times single. Sometimes there are sets, other times it's a single race. Sometimes win by two, other times not, even in the shootout. In general it seems like the rules are over-thought, like they're trying to make things exactly perfect. But tweaking rules can only improve things so much, and then you begin to lose simplicity and clarity, which are especially important for viewership.
 
I really like it. I think Darren understands that if you want to bring money into the game you have to have more excitement and viewers and fans. Too often in pro pool the rules and formats cater to the players and purists by making things the most fair and taking luck out of the game. Unfortunately that also often makes it quite boring. I think Darren has done a nice job of balancing it. The shootouts and take what you make add excitement and make games more interesting for viewers. Longer races, call shot, and tough equipment make things more fair.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk
 
BRussell said:
... Here's an interview with Darren where he talks about the latest tournament and future plans.
...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link. I think Darren really has his head on straight about this whole thing. One thing that he didn't mention in that interview about the future (but has previously mentioned) is that 8-Ball may not be the only discipline eventually. They might also hold events in 9- or 10-Ball or something else. It'll certainly be interesting following this "promoter" forward.
 
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