340th place in the 2010 Hold Em Poker Tournament paid $42,000.00
three hundred and fortieth place.
They should talk to the poker promoters.
A Letter from Barry Behrman...anyone share the same opinions expressed here?
- Thread starter the77club
- Start date
340th place in the 2010 Hold Em Poker Tournament paid $42,000.00
three hundred and fortieth place.
They should talk to the poker promoters.
I was talking about Mr. Behrman not Mr. Trudeau , that is a totally different conversation that could be held.
If you truly think that he has lost his money every year to put on the tournament or that 99% of the other people who put on tournaments expect to lose money, I can't imagine what I could possibly say to you that would be helpful.
Easy as 1,2,3!
In the comment, "If you truly think that he has lost his money every year to put on the tournament or that 99% of the other people who put on tournaments," the answer is, yes they do lose money, why do think the pay-off sometimes isn't there, Barry's off in the Bahamas on that dime? Tournament didn't make the money!
(3) Well, I really don't know how to say enough to about people who devote their lives to build something like the U.S.Open. And I must add, the longest running tournament pool has ever had. And his efforts don't meet up to "Your" standards, get real, simple answer,$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Here are your original statements:
Who are you referring to in (1) with the reference to the IPT, with the 1 person to make money and the players to lose out? Sounds like Kevin to me!
In the comment, "If you truly think that he has lost his money every year to put on the tournament or that 99% of the other people who put on tournaments," the answer is, yes they do lose money, why do think the pay-off sometimes isn't there, Barry's off in the Bahamas on that dime? Tournament didn't make the money!
(3) Well, I really don't know how to say enough to about people who devote their lives to build something like the U.S.Open. And I must add, the longest running tournament pool has ever had. And his efforts don't meet up to "Your" standards, get real, simple answer,$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
This isn't about my standards, he made the statement "I wish I was 20 years younger" that implies he has some grand scheme that would work. He had a lot of time in the batters box what would he do differently? If you don't think this is all about not having the players organise and have a voice in his tournament and others, I believe you are mistaken. They have tried it several times and the egos and some personal issues got in the way of good business sense and the common good. I hope they get it right this time.
Do you think Allen Hopkins loses money every year ?
WSOP entry fee is $10,000. Oh, and anyone with a chip and a chair can win the WSOP (see Gold, Jamie or Moneymaker, Chris). If you think that you're going to get 7,000+ participants at $10k each to play in a pool tournament, you need to put down the crack pipe (2010 has 7,319 entries with a net prize pool of over $68 million).
Let's look at the 2009 WSOP numbers. You had a total of 6,494 players and the event paid out to 648 places. That means 10% finished in the money while 90% went home $10,000 lighter. You'll also note that pool tournaments pay a much healthier rate of anywhere from 25% and up. This isn't even an apples to oranges comparison. Its apples to Hondas.
Sponsore
Pool in the U.S's problem is that is has little if any television appeal. It's not worth a sponsor's investment to market their product(s) to the relatively small numbers of people that attend a tournament. And, it's very expensive to hold events in hotels, although casinos have an advantage with the gambling.
People in Europe and Asia watch pool on TV. Why not try to capitalize on this by staging an event in the U.S. where you could stream it through various media in targetted ways to reach the Asian communities, Europeans, and others that live in the U.S.? The event would have to be something new and exciting; like a Moscone Cup in Las Vegas where you had Team Canada, Team USA, Team Mexico, Philippines, Taiwan UK, Germany and so forth. You get the idea.
People would get interested and watch on TV for patriotic reasons spawning residual benefits with young ones maybe aspiring to play some day for team USA. just my 2 cents.
Pool in the U.S's problem is that is has little if any television appeal. It's not worth a sponsor's investment to market their product(s) to the relatively small numbers of people that attend a tournament. And, it's very expensive to hold events in hotels, although casinos have an advantage with the gambling.
People in Europe and Asia watch pool on TV. Why not try to capitalize on this by staging an event in the U.S. where you could stream it through various media in targetted ways to reach the Asian communities, Europeans, and others that live in the U.S.? The event would have to be something new and exciting; like a Moscone Cup in Las Vegas where you had Team Canada, Team USA, Team Mexico, Philippines, Taiwan UK, Germany and so forth. You get the idea.
People would get interested and watch on TV for patriotic reasons spawning residual benefits with young ones maybe aspiring to play some day for team USA. just my 2 cents.
What pool needs is another movie to spark interest. I've noticed lately that a lot of T.V. program's or commercial's has a pool table in it. I also know the IPT went bust after so much money was spent to promote it and there was a good business plan behind it. The IPT tournament of 2005 had about 200 people there to watch. I was shocked that there wasn't any real turnout to see the best of the best from past generations of pros to this generation of pros.
200 people and that is probably on the high side. With the final for $200k and still no spectators.
No wonder pool is in the dumpster but it has been for there forever except for a few years here and there.
Most pro's have little money to show for the hard work that goes into this sport or game whichever you choose. I would never want to play professionally even if i had the skills to do so.
Maybe one day someone will come up with an idea that will take hold. I like the USA vs. other countries idea but don't know how this would become a reality.
In the meantime i will play and watch some streaming but i wont worry about the sport in general because it will always be around in one way or another.
200 people and that is probably on the high side. With the final for $200k and still no spectators.
No wonder pool is in the dumpster but it has been for there forever except for a few years here and there.
Most pro's have little money to show for the hard work that goes into this sport or game whichever you choose. I would never want to play professionally even if i had the skills to do so.
Maybe one day someone will come up with an idea that will take hold. I like the USA vs. other countries idea but don't know how this would become a reality.
In the meantime i will play and watch some streaming but i wont worry about the sport in general because it will always be around in one way or another.
A letter
You may be too young, but I remember when the World series of Poker had 10 or 12 players.
Most years it was the same guys.
I'm sorry you missed my point, Poker and Fishing have done great ...pool still has some nice venues but they are few and far between.
I went to the US Open in Cheasapeake the year Buddy Hall won 1999 or so , I was there for 9 days I believe, I spent about 900.00 on the hotel which the tournament always gets a piece of , I bought 5 dollar sandwiches and 2 dollar cokes 3 times a day which are 80% profit, I don't remember what I paid for a entry card for the entire tournament , about $230.00 I think, I also bought a 15 dollar t shirt that cost less than $3.00 to make and although I only bought 1, I saw people buying 10 or 20 of them at a time. If they did not make any money with all of that going on, times all the people who were there, then there is no chance to make money at all.
You may be too young, but I remember when the World series of Poker had 10 or 12 players.
Most years it was the same guys.
I'm sorry you missed my point, Poker and Fishing have done great ...pool still has some nice venues but they are few and far between.
I went to the US Open in Cheasapeake the year Buddy Hall won 1999 or so , I was there for 9 days I believe, I spent about 900.00 on the hotel which the tournament always gets a piece of , I bought 5 dollar sandwiches and 2 dollar cokes 3 times a day which are 80% profit, I don't remember what I paid for a entry card for the entire tournament , about $230.00 I think, I also bought a 15 dollar t shirt that cost less than $3.00 to make and although I only bought 1, I saw people buying 10 or 20 of them at a time. If they did not make any money with all of that going on, times all the people who were there, then there is no chance to make money at all.
That money ALL comes from the players, who put up $10,000 each to compete. Pretty simple formula there, get 7,300 players to put up $10,000 each, take 6% off the top and pay out the rest. You do the math, I have. It ain't pretty.
The top players all boycotted the second Los Angeles Open in 1993, after the first one in 1992 paid out $140,000 in prize money (immediately, I might add). This was done on the advice of one Don Mackey who tried to muscle in on my business. I refused and he had the players boycott my event. I held it anyway and paid out $160,000 to the players who did come.
After that experience, professional pool had one less promoter to deal with. Stupid me thought the players would come anyway, even though Mackey was advising them not to. I thought they might show some loyalty to a promoter who had worked on their behalf for years, but I was wrong. When my own friends (and players) turned their back on me that opened my eyes to reality.
A few players crossed the picket line and came anyway. They were rewarded with big payoffs. Mark Tadd, Billy Incardona, Roger Griffis, Steve Cook, Jimmy Fusco to name a few. Some of the others showed up on the last day and expressed their regret for not playing. Too late I told them. The L.A. Open is all over thanks to you and Mr. Mackey. To date, I have never attempted to produce a major pro event for a sport that I truly care about. I did create the U.S. Bar Table Championships to appeal to a wider group of players.
There's something about television coverage of pool that I don't think many of you truly understand. It is NOT about getting sponsorship ahead of time! Yes, you heard me right. It is ALL about getting the commitment from the television network to air the shows for X number of hours to X number of homes so that X number of people can watch, if they so desire. For a network (any network) to make such a commitment, they must feel the audience is out there. Once they can produce the necessary numbers (X million viewers) the advertisers will buy commercial time on the network for these shows. Ding ding ding, that's what makes it work!
How does a network create/find/develop this market for pool? Well they do it the old fashioned way, they promote the hell out of the shows and create interest in the upcoming tournament. Players are shown doing interviews about the upcoming event, shooting shots while they are talking, promotional spots are aired on a regular basis announcing the upcoming tournament, with the scheduled air times shown prominently and often! Has ESPN in the USA ever tried to develop this market? Barely in any way, shape or form have they done any of the things that have made pool work so well on television in Asia and Europe. I would give them a D rating on how they have publicized any pool show in America. For the actual shows, a D+ to a C- might be a fair rating.
A major pool event in Asia is number one, aired LIVE or on a short delay, similar to a golf tournament here. All matches are shown in their entirety! There are no short matches designed to fill an abbreviated time slot, which is what ESPN has been doing for years. The pool promoters have allowed them to get away with this forever now. Shame on them! I wouldn't go for it at the first L.A. Open which was televised by ESPN. When the producer told me the matches had to be shortened for TV, I told him to pack up his crew and leave. He was not going to butcher my tournament! He (and his crew) decided to stay after our little confrontation.
Bottom line, ESPN has never tried to develop the US market. They have used pool shows as filler, to fill otherwise undesirable time slots, and satisfy television sponsors who paid bargain prices for their commercials. We have been relegated to the scrap heap of sports television, somewhere alongside spelling bees and lumberjack contests. You have to be a genuine poolroom detective to even know when a tournament will air, and then it is ALWAYS after we know the winner anyway. What's exciting about that? Not much drama there!
I know that spiels like this make me unpopular in certain quarters but so be it. They don't own me and they never will. ESPN never hires me, probably because I'm so outspoken. Meanwhile, the other networks who value pool as a spectator sport value the contribution I make to their shows. For that reason I enjoy working for Sky and the various Asian networks. If I don't tell you this stuff, no one will. That is how this game is played. I've been around it long enough to see how things work.
There is another bottom line I want you all to be aware of. Pool DOES work on TV! It is actually perfect for television. A small arena, two combatants, lots of drama, great skill sets, amazing shot making, a captivated live audience. It has all the ingredients of a good sports show. That's why the television numbers are big in Asia (and Europe). The networks there know that pool works well, so they do everything they can to exploit this market. And the ratings are huge, with millions tuning in to see these live shows. Their audience knows who the star players are and they actively follow (and root for) their favorites. They wouldn't dream of missing a match that featured Efren, or Francisco, or Dennis, or Lee Van, or Chang, or Wen, or Yang, or Mika, or Ralf, or any one of their favorite players. These are their heros and they have been created as such by the networks and the Asian/European media.
Could pool work on television in the USA? Damn right it could! If there was a network with executives who gave a damn about our sport. So far this has not been the case.
How does a network create/find/develop this market for pool? Well they do it the old fashioned way, they promote the hell out of the shows and create interest in the upcoming tournament. Players are shown doing interviews about the upcoming event, shooting shots while they are talking, promotional spots are aired on a regular basis announcing the upcoming tournament, with the scheduled air times shown prominently and often! Has ESPN in the USA ever tried to develop this market? Barely in any way, shape or form have they done any of the things that have made pool work so well on television in Asia and Europe. I would give them a D rating on how they have publicized any pool show in America. For the actual shows, a D+ to a C- might be a fair rating.
A major pool event in Asia is number one, aired LIVE or on a short delay, similar to a golf tournament here. All matches are shown in their entirety! There are no short matches designed to fill an abbreviated time slot, which is what ESPN has been doing for years. The pool promoters have allowed them to get away with this forever now. Shame on them! I wouldn't go for it at the first L.A. Open which was televised by ESPN. When the producer told me the matches had to be shortened for TV, I told him to pack up his crew and leave. He was not going to butcher my tournament! He (and his crew) decided to stay after our little confrontation.
Bottom line, ESPN has never tried to develop the US market. They have used pool shows as filler, to fill otherwise undesirable time slots, and satisfy television sponsors who paid bargain prices for their commercials. We have been relegated to the scrap heap of sports television, somewhere alongside spelling bees and lumberjack contests. You have to be a genuine poolroom detective to even know when a tournament will air, and then it is ALWAYS after we know the winner anyway. What's exciting about that? Not much drama there!
I know that spiels like this make me unpopular in certain quarters but so be it. They don't own me and they never will. ESPN never hires me, probably because I'm so outspoken. Meanwhile, the other networks who value pool as a spectator sport value the contribution I make to their shows. For that reason I enjoy working for Sky and the various Asian networks. If I don't tell you this stuff, no one will. That is how this game is played. I've been around it long enough to see how things work.
There is another bottom line I want you all to be aware of. Pool DOES work on TV! It is actually perfect for television. A small arena, two combatants, lots of drama, great skill sets, amazing shot making, a captivated live audience. It has all the ingredients of a good sports show. That's why the television numbers are big in Asia (and Europe). The networks there know that pool works well, so they do everything they can to exploit this market. And the ratings are huge, with millions tuning in to see these live shows. Their audience knows who the star players are and they actively follow (and root for) their favorites. They wouldn't dream of missing a match that featured Efren, or Francisco, or Dennis, or Lee Van, or Chang, or Wen, or Yang, or Mika, or Ralf, or any one of their favorite players. These are their heros and they have been created as such by the networks and the Asian/European media.
Could pool work on television in the USA? Damn right it could! If there was a network with executives who gave a damn about our sport. So far this has not been the case.
Last edited:
A letter
I for one value correct information, thank you Jay! I think you are 100 % correct, there are shows about trash pickers, pawn shops and alligator huntin swamp people on tv {I watch all of them }, if a pool players life isn't more fun to see than that somebody please shoot me. Of course there are things about pool that are unsavory but there are also great times, I have been in poolrooms where we laughed for hours gambled our brains out and wished it didn't have to end. There are more characters at pool than any thing else I know of ... I have been trying to send an email to the guy Jenks who has the show on MTV, that would be great if someone did a documentary maybe someone would pick it up as a regular show. Maybe you know someone to speak to Jay?
I for one value correct information, thank you Jay! I think you are 100 % correct, there are shows about trash pickers, pawn shops and alligator huntin swamp people on tv {I watch all of them }, if a pool players life isn't more fun to see than that somebody please shoot me. Of course there are things about pool that are unsavory but there are also great times, I have been in poolrooms where we laughed for hours gambled our brains out and wished it didn't have to end. There are more characters at pool than any thing else I know of ... I have been trying to send an email to the guy Jenks who has the show on MTV, that would be great if someone did a documentary maybe someone would pick it up as a regular show. Maybe you know someone to speak to Jay?
Jay is of course 100% correct what we need are TV Exec's who care about our Sport, unfortunately there aren't any out there. IMHO if we had even a single one out there to kick this off Pool in the USA could be a success. Nobody can tell me it wouldn't be a bigger hit than some of the shows I have seen out there, Camel Racing from somewhere I've never heard of let alone ever want to go. Timbersports, what the hell is that, some guy with a big axe cutting logs or standing on a tree in some water, what the F**k? If I ever need help sleeping I could go watch Poker, I have never seen anything so boring as that on TV, yet it's on 24 x 7. I saw people getting excited during the Olympics about things like Curling and somebody going down some ice on what looked like a tea tray.
I think we have the perfect vehicle, The Mosconi Cup. It has everything any sport could want, highs, lows, drama, skill, crowd interaction and it's the USA v Europe! Americans by their very nature are truly one of, if not, the most Patriotic Nations on the face of this Planet. Yet it still doesn't happen, I am truly at a loss to explain it.
I think we have the perfect vehicle, The Mosconi Cup. It has everything any sport could want, highs, lows, drama, skill, crowd interaction and it's the USA v Europe! Americans by their very nature are truly one of, if not, the most Patriotic Nations on the face of this Planet. Yet it still doesn't happen, I am truly at a loss to explain it.
The Mosconi Cup garners huge television audiences where it is shown live or in a short delay. Good example! Why it isn't shown live (or one day delay) in the United States is beyond me. It would definitely be a hit show if promoted properly here. But alas, no networks want to buy the rights to this show. Sometimes Fox will show well edited versions (six hours of pool condensed to a one hour show) of a prior Mosconi Cup months after it has been played. Again, same problem. We all know who won by now and there is no drama. Plus, not much excitement watching the last one or two games in a match. And never do they announce or promote it here in advance. You just have to be lucky and see it listed on the day it is shown. Like I said - filler!
P.S. They have bought these "packages" of shows for a greatly reduced price. Old TV shows, particularly sports, come cheap.
Last edited:
Jay
It's pretty sickening to see where the Cup will be shown live or on short delay, I believe earlier this year I saw that it would be shown outside Europe in at least these:
South Africa, Australia, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Canada, Taiwan, New Zealand, Phillipines, India, Singapore and right throught The Middle East.
Last time I checked it was still USA v Europe and none of these countrys had any players in either team:frown:
Entertainment value is what it all comes down to.
The only entertaining pool shows I've seen have been the legand series on ESPN Classic. The players on TV during play are just boring. 9 ball is just boring to watch live or on TV.
At least when I'm playing or practicing, I put on a show. I try to bring a little character to my playing. I laugh, smile, frown, talk to myself,the balls the table and so on.
The game can be boring, but my style of playing does not need to be.
FWIW.
The only entertaining pool shows I've seen have been the legand series on ESPN Classic. The players on TV during play are just boring. 9 ball is just boring to watch live or on TV.
At least when I'm playing or practicing, I put on a show. I try to bring a little character to my playing. I laugh, smile, frown, talk to myself,the balls the table and so on.
The game can be boring, but my style of playing does not need to be.
FWIW.
You can add Japan and Thailand to that list, for a few million more viewers!
jay is right!
Very well put!
All major sports rely on corporate sponsors buying skyboxes. These are marketing expenses here in the united states and many sales offices give these seats out to top clients as perks! To date: I have never seen a corporate executive entertaining clients at pool tournaments!
Second, Asia does not bring clients to pool tournaments as perks to major clients! Asian business is filled with pay offs and kick backs. Plus, its kind of hard to compete with the bath houses and strip clubs for those marketing dollars!
Media is changing very fast! Napster and file sharing has changed media forever! Record labels are going the way of the dinosaur! artist are self promoting and self marketing their music and cutting out the middle men called the record label.
Pool needs to be ahead of the curve and embrace technology and unify. Create its own website and web broadcast. Make it exclusive to their site and sell advertising directly and charge viewers to watch the matches. Use the UFC and MMA format to have live pay per view matches! Pay per view is very easy given cable networks have thousands of channels. Verizon Fios has 2000 plus channels and several pay per view that only work for the occasional fight. Why cant pool be pay per view??????
Second, why cant the players form a corporation and invest in one another. Why not buy the pool tables and lights, balls and etc to have as a one time cost along with webcams and streaming equipment. The one time investment is cost effective and they can write it off as an expense and depreciate it over the years.
based on stream numbers of 1000 to 2000 times $20 per viewer gives you a purse for prize money of $40,000 to $20,000 per tournament. Two events a month give $80,000 to $40,000 a month in prize money! That gives you $960,000 to $480,000 a year divided by say 64 players! Plus the 64 players would have profit sharing from advertising and sponsor dollars!
Get a streamer on payroll and a expense account and the Pro Pool Players Association is off and to the races. No more promoters! Players run the gate and vendors! What ever they make they made themselves. like a pimp said "No none ever gave me anything in life, I had to go out and take it"
Pool players are waiting for a golden promoter to be the golden goose and lay the gold eggs! They don’t want to be the one laying any golden eggs themselves!
Kid Dynomite
Very well put!
All major sports rely on corporate sponsors buying skyboxes. These are marketing expenses here in the united states and many sales offices give these seats out to top clients as perks! To date: I have never seen a corporate executive entertaining clients at pool tournaments!
Second, Asia does not bring clients to pool tournaments as perks to major clients! Asian business is filled with pay offs and kick backs. Plus, its kind of hard to compete with the bath houses and strip clubs for those marketing dollars!
Media is changing very fast! Napster and file sharing has changed media forever! Record labels are going the way of the dinosaur! artist are self promoting and self marketing their music and cutting out the middle men called the record label.
Pool needs to be ahead of the curve and embrace technology and unify. Create its own website and web broadcast. Make it exclusive to their site and sell advertising directly and charge viewers to watch the matches. Use the UFC and MMA format to have live pay per view matches! Pay per view is very easy given cable networks have thousands of channels. Verizon Fios has 2000 plus channels and several pay per view that only work for the occasional fight. Why cant pool be pay per view??????
Second, why cant the players form a corporation and invest in one another. Why not buy the pool tables and lights, balls and etc to have as a one time cost along with webcams and streaming equipment. The one time investment is cost effective and they can write it off as an expense and depreciate it over the years.
based on stream numbers of 1000 to 2000 times $20 per viewer gives you a purse for prize money of $40,000 to $20,000 per tournament. Two events a month give $80,000 to $40,000 a month in prize money! That gives you $960,000 to $480,000 a year divided by say 64 players! Plus the 64 players would have profit sharing from advertising and sponsor dollars!
Get a streamer on payroll and a expense account and the Pro Pool Players Association is off and to the races. No more promoters! Players run the gate and vendors! What ever they make they made themselves. like a pimp said "No none ever gave me anything in life, I had to go out and take it"
Pool players are waiting for a golden promoter to be the golden goose and lay the gold eggs! They don’t want to be the one laying any golden eggs themselves!
Kid Dynomite
Numbers..? Viewership..? Very good questions.
I read all the posts & there are some very good ideas. Here is a few of mine.
Numbers mean things to advertisers, sponsors, promoters & especially the media. Our VOICE is splintered, in my opinion. I'm not in favor of quitting everything & going off to one arena, but I do think a single "unified arena" with millions of members, might get some attention. What would $50 a year, per member, times 20 million + members do for our sport..?
A single website getting millions of hits will gain attention from advertisers. An organization with millions of members has a VOICE & that voice could spark some interest in the media (TV, newspapers, magazines & so on).
$50.00 might get us a single source for news, with 24-7 access. Steaming Pool from around the world (with minimum sensorship) and-or from a huge database archive might be fun to watch, especially if there was a box full of money involved & lots of railbirds chirping. There would also be enough instructional material to get anyone up to speed.
Myself, I'd like to see a weekly show about Pool & Billiards. Maybe some instant replays of big tounaments, personal interviews, trick shot pool, Fast Shooting & Break Shot contests. I'd also like to se a column in my newspaper, so I could read about what goes on in my area, my state, the USA & the world. The USA today would do a column if it garnered 3 million subscriptions in North America.
My daddy told me once, "if you go to the bowling alley & throw the ball into the gutter when you play, very soon you won't go to the bowling alley. You won't even drive by the bowling alley, because of the bad memories.
BUT, if you throw strikes all the time, the Bowling Alley will become your second home.
It's about having fun...
Good Luck to all of us. Keep coming with the great ideas...
I read all the posts & there are some very good ideas. Here is a few of mine.
Numbers mean things to advertisers, sponsors, promoters & especially the media. Our VOICE is splintered, in my opinion. I'm not in favor of quitting everything & going off to one arena, but I do think a single "unified arena" with millions of members, might get some attention. What would $50 a year, per member, times 20 million + members do for our sport..?
A single website getting millions of hits will gain attention from advertisers. An organization with millions of members has a VOICE & that voice could spark some interest in the media (TV, newspapers, magazines & so on).
$50.00 might get us a single source for news, with 24-7 access. Steaming Pool from around the world (with minimum sensorship) and-or from a huge database archive might be fun to watch, especially if there was a box full of money involved & lots of railbirds chirping. There would also be enough instructional material to get anyone up to speed.
Myself, I'd like to see a weekly show about Pool & Billiards. Maybe some instant replays of big tounaments, personal interviews, trick shot pool, Fast Shooting & Break Shot contests. I'd also like to se a column in my newspaper, so I could read about what goes on in my area, my state, the USA & the world. The USA today would do a column if it garnered 3 million subscriptions in North America.
My daddy told me once, "if you go to the bowling alley & throw the ball into the gutter when you play, very soon you won't go to the bowling alley. You won't even drive by the bowling alley, because of the bad memories.
BUT, if you throw strikes all the time, the Bowling Alley will become your second home.
It's about having fun...
Good Luck to all of us. Keep coming with the great ideas...
ESPN (as loathsome as they are) isn’t to blame for the lack of interest in America for pool on TV. People routinely compare the US to Asia and Europe in that regard. That’s an ‘apples and oranges’ comparison market-wise.
The American sports enthusiasts simply have MANY more options (almost of geometric proportions relative to the number of hours) available to them- to satisfy their thirst for televised sports- than any other country in the world. If you consider only the major sports (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL), the sports-oriented networks can nearly fill each and every day with games and/or peripheral programming. They’re not desperate to fill hours. It’s up to the pool industry to make it too irresistible for them to pass up. Unfortunately, that’s not something the industry has shown an inclination toward, nor aptitude for.
Generally speaking, the pool world has been ill-served by its incessant reliance on tournaments to generate activity. Other professional sports operate completely differently. Their tournaments occur at the end of a “Regular Season”- not incidental to, or independent of, one. In other words, we have tournaments without a qualifying process by which the cream rises to the top. Anyone (within reason) can participate in these tournaments. It’s simply not conducive to creating an exciting (and consumable) experience.
I’ve always felt that the entrepreneur who could convince enough professionals (someone who can herd cats if you will) to organize into a “League” structure (as opposed to a tournament tour) whereby they can qualify for playoffs, then on to the “Super Bowl of Pool”, would having a winning, entertaining, and marketable (to TV) product.
I also believe that a unicorn will deliver me to my home tonight after a handful of Bud Lights…
The American sports enthusiasts simply have MANY more options (almost of geometric proportions relative to the number of hours) available to them- to satisfy their thirst for televised sports- than any other country in the world. If you consider only the major sports (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL), the sports-oriented networks can nearly fill each and every day with games and/or peripheral programming. They’re not desperate to fill hours. It’s up to the pool industry to make it too irresistible for them to pass up. Unfortunately, that’s not something the industry has shown an inclination toward, nor aptitude for.
Generally speaking, the pool world has been ill-served by its incessant reliance on tournaments to generate activity. Other professional sports operate completely differently. Their tournaments occur at the end of a “Regular Season”- not incidental to, or independent of, one. In other words, we have tournaments without a qualifying process by which the cream rises to the top. Anyone (within reason) can participate in these tournaments. It’s simply not conducive to creating an exciting (and consumable) experience.
I’ve always felt that the entrepreneur who could convince enough professionals (someone who can herd cats if you will) to organize into a “League” structure (as opposed to a tournament tour) whereby they can qualify for playoffs, then on to the “Super Bowl of Pool”, would having a winning, entertaining, and marketable (to TV) product.
I also believe that a unicorn will deliver me to my home tonight after a handful of Bud Lights…