Think I had the incorrect thread. Sorry. One of the Vegas threads was deleted for sure.
Lyn
Lyn
Won't be coming back to BCA vegas for a while
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Tables
I was shown pictures of the table conditions at grifs...
The cloth was badly worn and the rack spots was so worn they'd looked to of not been replaced since the room grand opening....
This pool room is supposed to be world class and maintained by professionals....?
PS. The master rack spots give the simonis rack spots the 7out+breaks and a few games on the wire'
Rob.M
I was shown pictures of the table conditions at grifs...
The cloth was badly worn and the rack spots was so worn they'd looked to of not been replaced since the room grand opening....
This pool room is supposed to be world class and maintained by professionals....?
PS. The master rack spots give the simonis rack spots the 7out+breaks and a few games on the wire'
Rob.M
RIO is the biggest problem
The RIO itself is the biggest problem !
high prices and bad food !
Also the tables were playing totally different , some cushions were bouncing like hell and on some tables i played screwshots were the outcome a stop shot was .
I heard that this year the contract with the RIO ended so i hope they didn't renew the contract .
The RIO itself is the biggest problem !
high prices and bad food !
Also the tables were playing totally different , some cushions were bouncing like hell and on some tables i played screwshots were the outcome a stop shot was .
I heard that this year the contract with the RIO ended so i hope they didn't renew the contract .
I had hoped so also but the flyers were up already for 2018 at the Rio...
How about allowing talking during the Scotch doubles matches....I don't mean like it has been but free talking all the time and I mean you could literally stop your partner in the middle of a shot and bring her back to talk it over....Players over did it with the coaching by talking and talking and talking.....Matches starting running way behind....1 1/2 hours to 2 hours behind....My Scotch Doubles match we had to play 2 of our own teams from our hometown league back to back to back...Could'nt believe it...This year was a total mess....
All divisions were way down in entries..Way down...They better get it together because there were a ton of unhappy people this year...
Several vendors were not there that have been there for years...Rooms were quiet and not crowded as usual....
This was my 20th straight year and the worst ever....
I'll still be there next year but I hope they see what they are doing and fix it...
How about allowing talking during the Scotch doubles matches....I don't mean like it has been but free talking all the time and I mean you could literally stop your partner in the middle of a shot and bring her back to talk it over....Players over did it with the coaching by talking and talking and talking.....Matches starting running way behind....1 1/2 hours to 2 hours behind....My Scotch Doubles match we had to play 2 of our own teams from our hometown league back to back to back...Could'nt believe it...This year was a total mess....
All divisions were way down in entries..Way down...They better get it together because there were a ton of unhappy people this year...
Several vendors were not there that have been there for years...Rooms were quiet and not crowded as usual....
This was my 20th straight year and the worst ever....
I'll still be there next year but I hope they see what they are doing and fix it...
I'm also not a fan of the "able to talk all the time" new rule in scotch doubles. When the stronger partner can dictate how and what shot to play, it negates the advantage that an experienced team should have. Teams were often using the talking rule as a continuous time out after almost every shot - resulting in very slow play.
numbers at the BCAPL Nationals
The total numbers of this years event were very close to last years numbers. Every year we hear how everything is shrinking - but it is not true. Exhibitors come and go. We had several new one and a few old ones were not here. A couple have retired and other had 'situations' - to imply they 'skipped' this event is untrue and misleading.
I talk to the exhibitors every year. It was about the same as last year. I realize I have access to the real numbers. Hopefully this will help correct the errors in your info.
Mark Griffin
PS On a side note. The Rio is an excellent venue for our event. The room prices are better than anywhere else, there is no resort fee etc. All casinos have high prices, but the Rio is better than others. And there is no resort fee.
The total numbers of this years event were very close to last years numbers. Every year we hear how everything is shrinking - but it is not true. Exhibitors come and go. We had several new one and a few old ones were not here. A couple have retired and other had 'situations' - to imply they 'skipped' this event is untrue and misleading.
I talk to the exhibitors every year. It was about the same as last year. I realize I have access to the real numbers. Hopefully this will help correct the errors in your info.
Mark Griffin
PS On a side note. The Rio is an excellent venue for our event. The room prices are better than anywhere else, there is no resort fee etc. All casinos have high prices, but the Rio is better than others. And there is no resort fee.
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The amateur streams were setup for amateurs so their friends and families could see them. It was a success. Friends and families loved seeing their loved ones playing on a national stage. Please don't take that away from them.
Freddie
Some friends and family really didn't appreciate the horrible commentating while their loved ones were playing. In my opinion Commentators that sit there and bash the 420 Fargo player playing in a team match, are not very nice and should not be in the booth.
They need to realize these are not pros playing, to give good informative opinions on the wrong patterns etc is ok.
But bashing the player and making derogatory comments is just not nice.
I totally agree. I think our commentary was a huge success based on that. I can't speak for the other streamers, but the CSI commentating crew had specific goals for commentary: to highlight the amateur player.
To be clear and honest, our first team match of the event wasn't great. We weren't fully prepared. But we had entirely too many people coming back to us to give us praise after listening that I feel good that we accomplished our goal.
Freddie
You and George commentated on a friend's match, and you did a great job. The video is a big hit among our friends who've seen pro matches with commentary.
-My opinion is this event has went down every since Ozzy arrived.
-I think the RIO does not help either (I dont mind it), it's higher priced, and all food is higher then when it was at The Riv. This definitely has a big effect as well.
-Another factor could be summer, some have to miss as they have kids out of school and take them on vacations to beaches, theme parks, etc. Vegas is really not a kids spot although there are things for them.
Curious as to what others think is the slow downfall.
** This (BCA) was always my favorite tourney also. I cant stand the APA. I sure hope they get it corrected in the next few years before it has a huge dropoff.
-I think the RIO does not help either (I dont mind it), it's higher priced, and all food is higher then when it was at The Riv. This definitely has a big effect as well.
-Another factor could be summer, some have to miss as they have kids out of school and take them on vacations to beaches, theme parks, etc. Vegas is really not a kids spot although there are things for them.
Curious as to what others think is the slow downfall.
** This (BCA) was always my favorite tourney also. I cant stand the APA. I sure hope they get it corrected in the next few years before it has a huge dropoff.
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I'm indifferent to the Rio. I think the food options are awful as is the service. However, the Riv was much smaller & couldn't accommodate near as many people. Ive never stayed at the Rio so no opinion on rooms/prices.
I've never played VNEA at Ballys so can't say how that is but I love the location.
Westgate is simply different, not better or worse IMO. I think it actually has worse food options. Also not on the strip but there's a tram that runs to the strip.
I think it's a combination of the event being in the summer & overall rising Vegas costs (obviously not a CSI issue). Personally, I have no interest in spending a 10 day vacation in 110 degree weather to play multiple events. Especially coming from a cold climate where summer is only 4 months long so spending 2 weekends away isn't ideal.
This said, I played teams this year & had a blast. I intend to go for singles next year.
Jojo,
Played VNEA at Bally's the last two years. Actually, Bally's has better food options as Paris is right next door. The food court is pretty good as well. This year, Bally's introduced the much hated $10 per day parking for non-Nevada residents. As I still carry a New York drivers license and drive rental cars when in Vegas, it was an additional $90 for me. Can assure you Bally's or any "The Strip" hotel is not the answer. All the properties charge for parking. Perhaps it can be negotiated away?
Also played the ACS event at Tropicana. Even less choices for food. Only saving grace is the lack of the door nazis. Trop did not charge for parking this year. Understand they will institute the parking charge for next year. Specially as preparations go forward for the Las Vegas Raiders stadium. It is about a mile away across I-15.
Perhaps someone who has played in either the APA or US Bar Box can chime in on the Westgate and its facilities. FYI, the "Strip" in Vegas is generally considered to begin at the junction of Sahara and LV Blvd and go south. Anything north is "Downtown". Most people consider the Stratosphere at part of the "Strip" as well.
Lyn
There is one reason that there are still so many amateur tournaments in Las Vegas. You can get the ballroom space for free based on room occupancy. If you bring enough people there you won't be paying for that huge ballroom. That alone makes it a good deal. On top of that they will give the promoter a kickback on the room rentals as well, usually something like 10-20% of the rental rate. These are two pretty big perks and when you throw in the food and drinks concession on site, that makes it even juicier. And there's more, if you are a licensed Junket Operator (I was) you can even get a small percentage of the players "drop" in the casino. Of course to do that they must be able to identify the player with a players card that matches their name on the room list. Starting to sound better all the time isn't it. 
I personally know several vendors that attend every year, and the biggest thing I heard from most of them was having the pro events moved away from the Rio. If the pros played at the Rio, there would have been a lot more folks at the Rio that could have made purchases. I have to admit that I see their point, and understand why they were unhappy. There is enough room at the Rio to have them set up as they were at the old Riv so it must be "economics" to have them moved away is what I would assume.
Back in the day when the pros played at the Rio and there was a charge to watch them play, I had no issue spending $35 to get a VIP pass for the day, every day. Having them play on bar boxes the last few years held almost zero interest for many folks that attended including myself. As far as getting a shuttle to go to a pool hall, and then pay to see them play, I have absolutely zero interest and do not plan on attending if it's handled in the same manner in the years to come.
I am sure that this makes little difference, as I am only one person, and I heard the crowd was pretty good at the pool hall so I look for more of the same in the years to come.
There were fewer teams and fewer singles that last year, you can see that on the boards, so the attendance was down from last year. Friday there were MANY open tables on which to practice, and that was not the case last year.
Actually, though there were fewer teams, numbers were up this year compared to last for 9-Ball mixed singles and 8-ball mixed singles (the one that gets separated into bronze, silver, gold, and platinum).
What about the Scotch doubles being behind 1 1/2 hours and more with the new talking all the time rule? You didn't answer to that...Lots and lots of complaints about that...Are you going to keep it that way or go back to how it was before?
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I haven't played BCA for awhile and when I did the Rio Hotel was a good venue. I think the problem might be there are less good events for "skilled players." The lack of players entering those higher skilled events brings the prize pool down in my opinion. When you have only a hundred or so players in an event, first thru fourth places get most of the money and the drop off is considerable from there on. For an average duffer like myself to enter means I have to crack the top four, highly unlikely. So to attract players in the mid-range skill sets, player fields have to be large in order to win a little something. I don't presume to have the answer nor am I complaining but rather stating the harsh reality of tournament pool as it exists now.