attendance..IPT tournaments

cueball1950

cueball1950

AzB Silver Member
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I was just wondering how many people here on this board will actually go to an IPT tournament in person? The costs of attending 1 has to be expensive with air fare, hotel costs, cost of getting in and not to mention food. I was just curious is all.............................mike
 
I plan on attending either the first one in Vegas or the Reno one.

For those attending Reno might be a cheaper trip. Hotels there are more reasonable especially if your looking to catch an event that is stretched over 9 days or so.

I am looking forward to going and seeing the players on a grand stage.
Its what we have asked for as pool players so we need to support it.

It helps that I am close enough for cheap airfare or can drive to
Vegas and Reno.
 
by the look of the televised games, didn't look like there were many filled seats either.
 
I have the money and the time to go and ticket prices are dirt cheap but I just don't have the ambition to fly there. And then with all the Katrina transplants I don't want to get caught in their crossfire.

But I sure would love to go.

But then I do have a train show to attend on the 22nd. Tickets there for 6 hours cost me a heck of a lot more than tickets for a week in Vegas.

I suspect it will be one spectacular event.

Jake
 
bruin70 said:
by the look of the televised games, didn't look like there were many filled seats either.
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To me, it was very representative of how pool as a culture is embraced in America.

On the one hand, most in the States are wont to *****ing and moaning about how awful the IPT and other events like it are, and on the other hand, there is another school of thought that the IPT may be the much-needed change agent to make pool a legitimate sport.

The IPT has certainly caught the attention of every serious red-blooded pool player in the world, and if the IPT goes overseas, then the Americans can ***** and moan about how awful it is that it didn't stay here. It's too bad that Mike Sigel didn't wear a tan jacket on Session 2 of the KOTH on OLN as opposed to a black jacket, and what a pity that KT has a Yankee accent.

Other than the players themselves, it is the "WHO" who came to the IPT in Orlando that was very revealing to me. They were the movers and the shakers in the American pool world, not the *****ers and the moaners, IMHO.

EDIT: Shame on me for using the word that begins with a "B" and ends with a "H." If you fill in the blanks, that's the word that should be filled in for the 5 asterisks above.

JAM
 
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JAM said:
To me, it was very representative of how pool as a culture is embraced in America.

On the one hand, most in the States are wont to *****ing and moaning about how awful the IPT and other events like it are, and on the other hand, there is another school of thought that the IPT may be the much-needed change agent to make pool a legitimate sport.

The IPT has certainly caught the attention of every serious red-blooded pool player in the world, and if the IPT goes overseas, then the Americans can ***** and moan about how awful it is that it didn't stay here. It's too bad that Mike Sigel didn't wear a tan jacket on Session 2 of the KOTH on OLN as opposed to a black jacket, and what a pity that KT has a Yankee accent.

Other than the players themselves, it is the "WHO" who came to the IPT in Orlando that was very revealing to me. They were the movers and the shakers in the American pool world, not the *****ers and the moaners, IMHO.

EDIT: Shame on me for using the word that begins with a "B" and ends with a "H." If you fill in the blanks, that's the word that should be filled in for the 5 asterisks above.

JAM
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Tan jackets and yankee accents?

This post confuses me. I don't understand your intent at all, Jam.
 
I think for pool, a sport all too often associated with hustling and con men, to advance to a legitimate sport, it needs to not be sponsored by a guy (KT) who is one of the biggest con men in the country. The image needs to be changed.
 
bizboy313 said:
I think for pool, a sport all too often associated with hustling and con men, to advance to a legitimate sport, it needs to not be sponsored by a guy (KT) who is one of the biggest con men in the country. The image needs to be changed.
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And lets not forget the 50% of them who think winning is the most important thing. To hell with honesty and integrity. Birds of a feather flock together. That's why they support KT and his scams!
Purdman:cool:
 
bizboy313 said:
I think for pool, a sport all too often associated with hustling and con men, to advance to a legitimate sport, it needs to not be sponsored by a guy (KT) who is one of the biggest con men in the country. The image needs to be changed.
Click to expand...

I respectfully disagree.

You don't see people staying away from Las Vegas, even though the history of how it began was sketchy, to say the least.

Is KT a guy I would want to be in business with? No.

But, he has proved his ability to market and sell a product, like him or not. He knows how to market. He understands the game needs an icon, Mike Sigel, someone that people can associate with the game. He also, BTW, has the finical backing to jump start the game. He has done that; you see dudes coming out of the woodwork, back from the scrap pile, with the hopes of IPT glory/cash.

Think about how many, young, great players (Thorsten Hohmann comes to mind) who cannot afford to continue to compete, because the cannot make out.

The IPT can change that.

Look at this list of names, who got paid just to show up. If this doesn't help keep the game alive, what will?

Place Player Name Prize Money
1st place Efren Reyes $200,000.00
2nd place Mike Sigel $100,000.00
3rd place Francisco Bustamante $70,000.00
5th place Johnny Archer $50,000.00
14th place Jim Rempe $30,000.00
8th place Lou Butera $30,000.00
8th place Mike Massey $30,000.00
8th place Nick Van Den Berg $30,000.00
14th place Robin Dodson $30,000.00
14th place Loree Jon Jones $30,000.00
8th place Ray Martin $30,000.00
14th place Ewa Laurance $30,000.00
7th place Nick Varner $30,000.00
8th place Buddy Hall $30,000.00
 
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Gregg said:
Tan jackets and yankee accents?

This post confuses me. I don't understand your intent at all, Jam.
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From reading the discontent of some readers of this forum about the recent IPT broadcast on OLN, there is one school of thought that the KOTH was not a good broadcast because of the color of the jacket that Mike Sigel was wearing and Kevin Trudeau's Yankee accent. Hope that helps clarify any confusion about the intention of my post. :p

JAM
 
But, he has proved his ability to market and sell a product, like him or not. He knows how to market. He understands the game needs an icon, Mike Sigel, someone that people can associate with the game. He also, BTW, has the finical backing to jump start the game. He has done that; you see dudes coming out of the woodwork, back from the scrap pile, with the hopes of IPT glory/cash.


I agree he is a brilliant marketer and very good at what he does. I think the difference between Vegas and KT is that with Vegas it was an invisible type of corruption and con that everyone knew about but could ignore because it wasn't so visible. Unfortunately, most people understand who and what KT is because he has become the embodiment of the TV con and because of his huge celebrity, the IPT will continue to be associated with him and not be known simply for the beauty and skill that the game offers.
 
cueball1950 said:
I was just wondering how many people here on this board will actually go to an IPT tournament in person? The costs of attending 1 has to be expensive with air fare, hotel costs, cost of getting in and not to mention food. I was just curious is all.............................mike
Click to expand...


Yes I plan on attending an IPT event, but not in the near future. I will graduate from college this fall and once I get back to work it will be much more feasible for me financially. I can't wait for when I do attend an event however!
 
JAM said:
From reading the discontent of some readers of this forum about the recent IPT broadcast on OLN, there is one school of thought that the KOTH was not a good broadcast because of the color of the jacket that Mike Sigel was wearing and Kevin Trudeau's Yankee accent. Hope that helps clarify any confusion about the intention of my post. :p

JAM
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I have to claim guilty on both counts. While I was poking a little fun at KT for his pronunciation of drawing and recommended that one of the announcers should wear a color other than black because they all blended together on TV, I am the last person on here who is B****ing and moaning about anything the IPT does.

What got me excited about the IPT from its first rumblings was that here was a vehicle to bring legitimacy to pool and that finally the players who have scrounged all their lives playing the game would be paid their due.

I may not agree with every little thing that the IPT has done, but it is not for me to agree or disagree, KT has his own vision and thank God for it! Just look what has happened in this short time frame...players feeling joy for the game again, coming out of poker and back into pool, televised pool all over the world, and exciting tournaments with unprecedented payouts, playing a new format that every average Joe can appreciate.

No matter what the organization is - BCA, VNEA, APA, ACS, TAP, UPA, USPPA, WPA, WPBA, etc. on down to the regional tours and even an individual tournament, someone will find fault with it and the way they run things. What they don't appreciate is that someone got off their duff, used their precious time and resources to get things going, and they did it for the love of the game, and yes, if there is some monetary reward at the end, then all the better, IMHO.
 
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JAM said:
*****ing and moaning

***** and moan

, not the *****ers

EDIT: Shame on me for using the word that begins with a "B" and ends with a "H." If you fill in the blanks, that's the word that should be filled in for the 5 asterisks above.

JAM
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All this time, I thought you were writing "piss." I guess anything would have fit.

Fred <~~~ went to the Orlando event
 
I would have been going to Vegas in July for the IPT tournament but I have family visiting that will prevent this unfortunately :-(

I think any Pool tournament, no matter the players and the organization, will have problems filling even 25% of their seats for week-day early rounds. With the IPT's round-robin tournament structure leading to many more games in the early rounds than most traditional double-elminiation tournaments this issue is highlighted, as it needs a very large room(s) with lots of tables for this format.

By the weekend at the end of the tournament though it will be a different story.

I also think their insistence on not selling tickets during the event itself, especially for the weekday round-robin sessions, is a mistake in a town like Vegas where there is a lot of passing trade that could potentially be attracted, especially with some decent promotional efforts.
 
bruin70 said:
by the look of the televised games, didn't look like there were many filled seats either.
Click to expand...

The early matches were on weekdays, and were spread out. Even if there were a thousand people there, it would have looked like a lot of empty seats.

The tickets were purchased ahead of time, so if you didn't go on the week day, your seat wouldn't get filled up.

In the "Mother Ship" matches (the central final arena), there weren't many seats available.

Fred
 
Gregg said:
Tan jackets and yankee accents?

This post confuses me. I don't understand your intent at all, Jam.
Click to expand...

She's jabbing at the posts that seemed to be complaining about these trivial items.

Fred
 
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