Conditions to participate in the upcoming U.S. Open

[jay helfert]

This just in, 32 minutes ago as of the time of this post.

Emily Frazer posted in response to folks questioning the 12.1 rule.View attachment 605211

Then this "condition" makes no sense in the first place since there are no other U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships and haven't been since Pat Fleming changed the name of his two years ago. This is kind of a weird way to say "never mind."

 

[skogstokig]

Interesting how quickly she corrected this. I suspect she was the one who wrote the original as well.

i suspect they hired some brit law student on the cheap, with little knowledge of the pool landscape. in the end it meant nothing.

 

[buckshotshoey]

i suspect they hired some brit law student on the cheap, with little knowledge of the pool landscape. in the end it meant nothing.

Law student? I doubt it. My grandson could have written it better in crayon.

 

[alstl]

In reading through this thread there are some really intelligent thoughts and some that clearly drink too much of the kool-aid.

I think the first thing that we all have to come to terms with is that Matchroom’s number one priority is to make money. All the messaging about wanting to grow the sport is nice, but make no mistake, Matchroom multi-sport is interested in profits.

When you look at Matchroom-Multisport as a whole, they list Pool and Snooker at the bottom of their sport offerings on their website. What comes first well… Basketball, Boxing, Darts, Fishing, Golf, Gymnastics, Netball, Ping Pong, Pool, Snooker, Ten-Pen, and Poker.

Any sound marketer knows there is a hierarchy to what one presents and you can see where pool really ranks in that order. That’s smart business - nothing wrong with that.

What is wrong? Well, I don’t see how Matchroom can claim in good faith that they want to grow the game. How could they, when they are not respecting other licensed trademark holders and events associated with the same game? More events, even those that are not as well funded or well packaged as Matchroom still hold an important place in the game’s ecosystem and are more easily primed to impact local markets and local businesses.

Here is the actual trademark information on file.
View attachment 605155

In considering the loose, and poorly constructed language sent out by Matchroom, I am reminded of how Matchroom handled forcing players to wear a competitor’s logo (Predator) at the CLP event. In short, they made a bad deal (with Predator) and tried to pass the problem on to the players, no matter the consequences with the players’ contracted sponsors – that doesn’t grow the game. In the new US Open case, I see players being asked to sign something that in theory, has the potential to limit their ability to play in other events – This doesn't grow the game. At the very least Matchroom should be legally required to define what a US Open styled event is in their opinion.

I believe Matchroom’s approach here is dead wrong and bad for the game and worse for the players. The one thing that is clear, is that the language was included for a reason. My best theories as to why this language was included are;

• Matchroom is trying to devalue the other US Open trademarks owned by Mark Griffin
• Matchroom is trying to eliminate competition from Accu-Stat’s International Open
• Matchroom is trying to exercise some control over CSI/Predator’s US PRO BILLIARDS SERIES of which Matchroom is not affiliated
• Matchroom is trying to protect their event format, something one can’t typically treat as intellectual property.
• All of the above…

At the end of the day, the BCA has really failed in being stewards of the game when language like this is released and impacts events in the United States. The BCA in some form needs to behave like the USGA and consider the sport and all of the stakeholders.

I believe a lot of us think "Pool" needs to evolve, but Matchroom and Predator aren’t always the right way to get there. They certainly deserve some credit for their contributions, but that doesn’t entitle them to bully or monopolize the game or it’s events.

I apologize for the lengthy post, AZ clearly got more than my two cents here, more like $2.50… but I can’t stand a bully, and with each passing month Matchroom looks more and more the part.

End of sermon

I never understood the attraction of fishing on tv. Guy throws his line in the water. Gee I wonder what's going to happen. Throws his line back in the water. Catches another fish. Throws his line back in the water....

 

[SBC]

What is the penalty if you did okay in a US open style every???

People wonder why pool goes nowhere in this country.....one word...
Greed

 

[SBC]

I'd tell Barry, son Eddie and that Emily chick to go piss up a rope. Fkng dictator shit.

Pretty sure Barry is pretty dead ...like 5 years so ...

 

[jasonlaus]

If that's the case then Poker would be before Pool.

Poker requires no physical skills, so it's not listed with sports, it's listed after sports

 

[garczar]

Pretty sure Barry is pretty dead ...like 5 years so ...

Pretty sure Barry is pretty dead ...like 5 years so ...

Different Barry. I'm talking about Hearn.

 

[jay helfert]

Poker requires no physical skills, so it's not listed with sports, it's listed after sports

It's a damn shame that so many people look at Pool in much the same way. They fail to see the complexities of the game. I have often said that Pool combines both mental and physical skills in equal amounts.

 

[realkingcobra]

And still with all this talk about who can do this, that, the other. Who owns what events....no one has said a single word about money, who's kicking in the money, or is it still expected to come from the players?????

 

[realkingcobra]

Because if 90% of all the money in ALL those mentioned events is coming from the players....ain't nobody owns shit, not when the PLAYERS are doing the funding!!!!

 

[realkingcobra]

If someone comes in with funding, watch and see how fast the players jump ship, and THAT right there will let EVERYONE know beyond a shadow of doubt, who controls what!!!

 

[Fatboy]

How did the IPT go again, was a long time ago. I kinda forgot? Did it work out?


Fatboy

 

[jay helfert]

Because if 90% of all the money in ALL those mentioned events is coming from the players....ain't nobody owns shit, not when the PLAYERS are doing the funding!!!!

FYI Glen, in the upcoming U.S. Open 9-Ball the purse is $300,000 of which only $128,000 comes from entry fees. That leaves $172,000 or nearly 60% of the purse being made up of money added by Matchroom.

 

[AtLarge]

And still with all this talk about who can do this, that, the other. Who owns what events....no one has said a single word about money, who's kicking in the money, or is it still expected to come from the players?????

FYI Glen, in the upcoming U.S. Open 9-Ball the purse is $300,000 of which only $128,000 comes from entry fees. That leaves $172,000 or nearly 60% of the purse being made up of money added by Matchroom.

Was the entry fee reduced to $500? I read that it is $750. If so, the 256 players will contribute $192,000, or 64% of the prize fund of $300,000, and the added money would be $108,000. As for Matchroom events beyond that, it is Barry Hearn's hope and intention to reduce the degree of funding from entry fees. Here is what he said on that in the current issue of Billiards Digest:

"I think we’ll create two or three new major events next year. In the long term, this can’t be a sport reliant on entry fees. Entry fees at the start are essential. But it can’t become a barrier to entry. At one point in snooker, instead of using entry fees to pad the prize fund, we simply cancelled them. But not just any player can sign up for a tournament. With proper qualification comes the bonus of not having to pay an entry fee. Pool is not there yet. But we’ll get there. We’ll get to the point where the prize fund is developed through the commercial exploitation of the sport."​

​

Edit: Matchroom websites, in different places, say that the prize fund is both $300,000 and $375,000.

 

[garczar]

Poker requires no physical skills, so it's not listed with sports, it's listed after sports

Pushin' those chips around gets heavy after a while.

 

[SBC]

Different Barry. I'm talking about Hearn.

There's only 1 Barry when it comes to the US Open.

 

[jay helfert]

Was the entry fee reduced to $500? I read that it is $750. If so, the 256 players will contribute $192,000, or 64% of the prize fund of $300,000, and the added money would be $108,000. As for Matchroom events beyond that, it is Barry Hearn's hope and intention to reduce the degree of funding from entry fees. Here is what he said on that in the current issue of Billiards Digest:

"I think we’ll create two or three new major events next year. In the long term, this can’t be a sport reliant on entry fees. Entry fees at the start are essential. But it can’t become a barrier to entry. At one point in snooker, instead of using entry fees to pad the prize fund, we simply cancelled them. But not just any player can sign up for a tournament. With proper qualification comes the bonus of not having to pay an entry fee. Pool is not there yet. But we’ll get there. We’ll get to the point where the prize fund is developed through the commercial exploitation of the sport."​

​

Edit: Matchroom websites, in different places, say that the prize fund is both $300,000 and $375,000.

I'm pretty sure they cut it in half. Somone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[garczar]

There's only 1 Barry when it comes to the US Open.

Not anymore.

 

[8cree]

I never understood the attraction of fishing on tv. Guy throws his line in the water. Gee I wonder what's going to happen. Throws his line back in the water. Catches another fish. Throws his line back in the water....

It's a damn shame that so many people look at Pool in much the same way. They fail to see the complexities of the game. I have often said that Pool combines both mental and physical skills in equal amounts.

Same things, different angles. It's all about perspective and what you enjoy.



As far as the original topic goes, glad it got cleared up-ish...