Duane,
I'd like to address some of the issues and comments you made. But first thank you for your appreciation of the work that CSI / BCAPL does. We love what we do and dedicate all that do to bring more opportunity for tournament and league play to as many people as possible.
Implementation of the new Advanced division was not a spontaneous decision. Organizationally CSI does not operate that way. Any decision made is discussed and really pulled apart and around as a team for months if not years before choosing to move forward or not. It is standard for us to announce any policy updates or changes immediately following the BCAPL nationals in May. Since it's announcement we have also been fully prepared and have answered all inquiries sent to us.
Our goal was stated in the initial press release: The Advanced Division was created to add a level of play that falls between the Open Division and the Master Division. The goal is to allow more players to participate and to further competitive opportunity.
We wish all players to compete in as close to an even field within their division as possible. In other sports, such as amateur tennis, there are numerous levels (as many as 7 or 8) or for example when I was competing in Golf as a teen we usually had 6 or so flights that players participated based on their skill level. It is a sign of growth and a desire to see people be able to compete should they choose to that expansion of divisions are created regardless of activity or sport.
I do not believe publicizing our lists is a joke, actually we are happy that we are so open to our league members and public. Our database is huge and like any databases, sometimes duplicates show up because (i.e, married vs. maiden names). However on a regular basis queries are ran to catch any updates or merges that need to take place and anyone in IT knows that database maintenance and reviews are standard operating procedures. However, I do agree with you that we should clean those duplicates up and are on it right now. It’s like cleaning out the garage, not necessarily the most enjoyable job, but important non-the less
Regarding the nicknames, that is the choice of the player themselves. We request legal names and enter that information into our system, but we also have a “nickname or goes’ by” type of field. This is the first name field you are seeing on the online lists. If someone prefers to go by Rich or RJ versus Richard, that is their prerogative and this is a sport that we all love to be involved, not a governmental agency.
Over the years I’ve heard, read, seen, observed, and fired back at any one-sided arguments about handicapped vs. non-handicapped tournaments or events. There is a place and room for both. There should be and always will be both. If we limit players in a manner where people from all walks of life and skill level do not feel they can enjoy healthy and hopefully as equitable as possible competition that would be unfair and self centered. Not everyone is created equal in ability regardless whether the activity is pool, tennis, golf or the shot put
, should that prevent them from being able to choose to compete with the hope of possible winning? Nope, that’s why there are flights in golf, levels in tennis and divisions in amateur and league pool.
One of the greatest gifts we have as human beings is the gift of choice. We at CSI choose to expand options for players, it is an individual’s choice to decide to participate and enjoy those options or not.
All the best,
Holly