I assumed this was the case, even though I've never been to Derby. Of course, the format of the Derby means that 4 hour matches impact the schedule for the entire tournament. It should be a priority to make sure these "hacks" aren't playing each other in the first couple rounds of the events.
SJM at the 2024 Derby City Classic
- Thread starter sjm
- Start date
Thanks for your very kind words. I thought I had my bases covered. Had the final finished by 9:00 AM, I'd have been on time for my car to the airport. Perhaps you're right, though, and maybe I need to stay an extra day.
Tossing my derby into the Derby discussion …
The DCC has become a spot of bother so far as many players and spectators are concerned. I’ve attended only once, so I don’t pretend to understand the complexities and challenges.
However, I have gone to numerous business conferences, conventions, and expos where attendees range from a few hundred to over a hundred thousand. (I suspect that DCC could benefit from some savvy software tweaks that would streamline the processes.)
The TV Table seems — to this outsider — to be one area that might be relatively easy to improve. There is simply too much down time,
Last year when I walked the room — upstairs and down — there were almost always matches going on that would have been ideal for the streaming table.
This year — in addition to the dead time — we stream-viewers were subjected to early-round nine-ball matches while some of the best players in the world were competing on the outer tables in the late stages of one-pocket.
Adding insult to injury, some of the matches that were streamed had only a single camera, no referee, no shot-clock monitoring, no commentators.
The solution probably isn’t as simple as it seems to me. But I would let the tail wag the dog. Prioritize putting matches on the TV Table. There are usually enough top players in action to fill the down time. Send a couple of them to the Accu-Stats Arena when it’s sitting vacant for hours at a time.
On a side note, how about cutting a deal with the casino to allow food trucks (perhaps in the parking garage?). Give the casino a share of the revenue. If that means charging more for decent food … well, I bet a number of us would cheerfully pay a little extra for some tasty grub.
In my next two White Papers, I shall address world peace and climate change.
Sunny
The DCC has become a spot of bother so far as many players and spectators are concerned. I’ve attended only once, so I don’t pretend to understand the complexities and challenges.
However, I have gone to numerous business conferences, conventions, and expos where attendees range from a few hundred to over a hundred thousand. (I suspect that DCC could benefit from some savvy software tweaks that would streamline the processes.)
The TV Table seems — to this outsider — to be one area that might be relatively easy to improve. There is simply too much down time,
Last year when I walked the room — upstairs and down — there were almost always matches going on that would have been ideal for the streaming table.
This year — in addition to the dead time — we stream-viewers were subjected to early-round nine-ball matches while some of the best players in the world were competing on the outer tables in the late stages of one-pocket.
Adding insult to injury, some of the matches that were streamed had only a single camera, no referee, no shot-clock monitoring, no commentators.
The solution probably isn’t as simple as it seems to me. But I would let the tail wag the dog. Prioritize putting matches on the TV Table. There are usually enough top players in action to fill the down time. Send a couple of them to the Accu-Stats Arena when it’s sitting vacant for hours at a time.
On a side note, how about cutting a deal with the casino to allow food trucks (perhaps in the parking garage?). Give the casino a share of the revenue. If that means charging more for decent food … well, I bet a number of us would cheerfully pay a little extra for some tasty grub.
In my next two White Papers, I shall address world peace and climate change.
Sunny
Aw shucks.
A lot of good ideas here. As for the stream table, I'm as surprised as you, for there has been considerable improvement in reducing stream table downtime at the International Open, also an Accu-Stats production, so there must be a route to making similar progress at the Derby.
InsertCleverNameHere
Well-known member
Agree with everything but the last sentence.
For example, if the fields are too big by 100 players, that's 50 extra matches in round 1 and, assuming a 60% buyback rate. an extra 30 matches in round 2. As there are about 40 tables, that means two extra sessions of play in each event. Across the three events, that means six extra sessions of play, and that's a big part of why the event takes forever and a day.
... and that's ignoring the impact of the slow matches on the length of an average session that results from the greater number of dead money players in the field.
InsertCleverNameHere
Well-known member
I dont personally believe the fields are too big. I think the management of the event is too relaxed and the 9 ball races to 9 are the main issue. If they are keeping with the spirit of the rest of the event(ams having a shot against pros etc) it should be a race to 7. At one point it was and it should go back to that. The 9 ball is the main issue. Start those matches earlier in the week! And Bigfoot too. Get that over with sooner so those players matches in the main events can proceed orderly.
I love the derby. Just wanna see it continue to flourish!
I love the derby. Just wanna see it continue to flourish!
Sounds like a plan.Worse case scenario -- Sunday breakfast with sjm. Or "Stu for breakfast". A Super secret, top quality, VIP's only deal. With maybe one exception for BasementDweller.
You're right, of course, but most take the view that the administrative inefficiency in the allocation of tables during the Derby is a given, so we look for other solutions, the most obvious of which is limiting the fields to realistic numbers,
As for race to seven, this event could no longer carry ranking points if that switch were made. Nonetheless, that doesn't mean it shouldn't be considered if Diamond insists on these giant fields. Of course, the fact that the DCC 9ball carries Matchroom ranking points is a lure for top players, and a switch to race to seven might cause some of them to skip the event.
InsertCleverNameHere
Well-known member
I could definitely see that being the case, some skipping, based on that and their perceived value/return being greater at other events with higher prize money too.
Having said that Fedor Frost and others have said publicly they think hybrid like race to 7 for first 7-8 rounds then race to 9 later would be a strong change that could solve some problems.
I think trial and error is likely the only way to fix anything there. But my 2 cents is a race to 7 is going to push the event along much quicker/smoothly.
Yup, that makes sense.
How many of the Europeans that try to get on the MC were here?
To your other comment earlier about it taking an extra 2 rounds for each event for a total of 6 for the whole thing.
That’s about how long they went over if you think about it.
Start earlier in the day over the 9 days.
if you play an extra round at night it cuts into the time people start ‘paying’ for tables, an extra revenue source and a big one.
Omitting Gorst, who is now considered American by Matchroom, I count six: 1) German Josh Filler, 2) Brit Jayson Shaw, 3) Spaniard David Alcaide, 4) Lithuanian Pijus Labutis, 5) Russian Vitaliy Patsura and 6) German Thorsten Hohmann all posted top ten finishes in the 9ball, which is the only event offering Matchroom ranking points.
Good point. I hadn't considered this.
Makes sense.
Not many, that was my point. It wasn’t worth it to a lot of players to come here.
The Filipino contingent used to come steal all the money.
The European contingent took over and drove the Filipinos away.
Now just 2 people…Filler and Gorst are keeping them all away.
With one of those two almost Guaranteed to win all the events at DCC…there’s not good money left for anyone else.
gees steve, you are one of the only ones that see the forest through the trees.
if in a tournament that has an outstanding group winning all the money. one option is to take much more of the money and spread it out down the line.
they did that in poker and the fields grew. along with other reasons of course. one of which the blinds went up faster(added more luck) and more amateurs could get in the money. the top pros still come.
if in a tournament that has an outstanding group winning all the money. one option is to take much more of the money and spread it out down the line.
they did that in poker and the fields grew. along with other reasons of course. one of which the blinds went up faster(added more luck) and more amateurs could get in the money. the top pros still come.
When Shane Van Boening was the one winning all the time he didn’t bitch about the money below the finalists.
Now that he’s not doing all the winning he’s asking to spread the money around.
What’s that tell you?
