BCAPL Beer Bust... shady behavior of beer servers.

Cuebacca

Cuebacca

________
Silver Member
OK, this post is a few months late, but I think it was really wrong and never said anything until now. I had forgotten about this, but it came to mind again when I was reading another thread.

At the BCAPL Nationals in Vegas in May there was a "beer bust" which was a nice gesture by the BCAPL to serve free beer to pool players. I appreciate the fact that the BCAPL chooses "gives something back" to the players in the form of beer. :)

What royally pissed me off were the people who were put in charge of serving said beer. First, I'd like to know, were these people volunteers or were they staff paid to serve the beer? Who were these people?

Anyway, when I went up to grab a couple of beers for me and my friend, I heard one of them say, "2 beers for a dollar". What? I thought this was supposed to be a free beer giveaway? Well, it turns out that "a dollar for 2 beers" is what they were asking for as a TIP to serve this beer, which I discovered when they were called out their statement.

Now, don't get me wrong, I tip bartenders and waiters, and tip them well. Like it or not, it's part of the system. Whether or not these guys are bartenders is debatable, :rolleyes: LOL, but that's besides the point. The point is, I don't have a problem with people accepting tips. But these guys weren't just "accepting tips"; they weren't even just "asking for tips"; they were hiding the fact that they were serving free drinks, by setting a price for the drinks, and then collecting that money and then keeping it as if it were given to them as a tip. Wow!

In my opinion, this was a very scummy move, and was equivalent to them stealing this beer from the BCAPL (and its members) and then selling it to the very people who were promised to receive it for free.

Did anyone else witness this and find it to be completely wrong? I know the BCAPL does a lot for pool, so I'm not trying to nit pick them or make them look bad. I really doubt the actions of those staff members were condoned by the BCAPL, but unfortunately, they represent the BCAPL and this move made the BCAPL look bad. I hope actions are/were taken to help discourage their employees from behaving this way at future events.

I realize I'll probably take some heat for this post, but I just had to get that off my chest.
 
You have to remember, this was in Vegas. The volunteers probably live there and just like Hollywood, it's one of those places where people will do whatever they can to get ahead. As much as I love going to Vegas, there are some very "scummy" persons and activites going on all around you.

They probably were hired by the hotel/casino and not the BCAPL.
 
Cuebacca,

Wow, just like you, I forgot all about that fiasco. Like you I don't mind tipping for good service. This was way, way over the top. Unfortunately the beer was was marginal at best. I had always thought the beer and chips were provided by the Riviera not the BCAPL. We had the same stuff at the ACS event two weeks later. No hawking bartenders this time though.

Lyn
 
In most states, and I'm sure NV is included in this, to serve beer, even free beer, it has to be done by the establishment it's located in. You can't pick random people to serve beer at your event....
 
This is the first we've heard of this. It was a free beer bash as is done every year to let players relax, unwind and have some fun. There should not have been a charge or coercion to tip as what you described. This is not something we condone and not behavior that I imagine that the Riviera would approve of as well. Most likely a couple of bartenders who took to hawking for tips, which is never looked at favorably in the service industry. They may also thought they were kidding and were in reality being innapropriate and immature.

Overall though, I think it's a bit of a far stretch to call bad customer service by a couple of bartenders as being a catastrophe.

If you ever have a question or concern at a CSI produced event, whether the BCAPL National 8-Ball Championships or independent non-league event, such as the US Bar Table Championships, always feel free to contact our office at 702-719-7665 if you have questions or something takes place that you would like to give your input about.
 
Holly said:
This is the first we've heard of this. It was a free beer bash as is done every year to let players relax, unwind and have some fun. There should not have been a charge or coercion to tip as what you described. This is not something we condone and not behavior that I imagine that the Riviera would approve of as well. Most likely a couple of bartenders who took to hawking for tips, which is never looked at favorably in the service industry. They may also thought they were kidding and were in reality being innapropriate and immature.
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Holly,

It was hard to miss! If you even walked near the "free" beer booth, the guys behind the bar started yelling "free beer for a buck". Sometimes "two beers for a buck". I don't mind donating a tip. This was however way beyond what was acceptable. I would describe it as nearly intimidation. Although the individual bars within each room were slow during the week I attended the Nationals, I felt this was no way for them to act or make up for lost income. It also made the BCAPL look to be part of the show as they wore no clothing identifying their employer.

Lyn
 
cardiac kid said:
Holly,

It was hard to miss! If you even walked near the "free" beer booth, the guys behind the bar started yelling "free beer for a buck". Sometimes "two beers for a buck". I don't mind donating a tip. This was however way beyond what was acceptable. I would describe it as nearly intimidation. Although the individual bars within each room were slow during the week I attended the Nationals, I felt this was no way for them to act or make up for lost income. It also made the BCAPL look to be part of the show as they wore no clothing identifying their employer.

Lyn
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Typical group of whiners.

;-)

Lou Figueroa
 
I was there, drank some of the free beer which was not that good, and never heard anyone ask for any money.

But that doesn't mean it didn't happen.

My question is, did you you take the beer without paying the buck, or did you just pay it because they were asking for it. As I recall, they had trays full of cups of beer and were just handing them out.

I feel pretty sure this is just a misunderstanding.


Royce Bunnell
www.obcues.com
 
beer

Well, I was obviously there and I did not see any of this behavior and it was not authorized.

Sometimes Bartenders think they are cute to ask for $$$ when the beer is free.

Just to take away the boredom I guess.

Royce - call me if you can or I will see you tomorrow.

mark Griffin
 
Lyn, thank you for speaking up. :)

I'm not too surprised that the general sentiment is that we are over-reacting, but it makes me feel better that Lyn heard the same thing that I did.

Maybe you just had to hear it with your own ears to understand. :shrug:
 
RBC said:
I was there, drank some of the free beer which was not that good, and never heard anyone ask for any money.

But that doesn't mean it didn't happen.

My question is, did you you take the beer without paying the buck, or did you just pay it because they were asking for it. As I recall, they had trays full of cups of beer and were just handing them out.

I feel pretty sure this is just a misunderstanding.


Royce Bunnell
www.obcues.com
Click to expand...

Royce,

Cuebacca and me are not making it up. I must admit, if I had not seen his post, I would never had said anything. Forgot completely. I gave one of them a buck and took two beers. In a moment of anger I turned and said "if you hasn't asked, I'd have given you two". I guess I think small sometimes as well! Forgot to add a thank you for supporting the Joss 9 Ball Tour. Your products are some of the best and they fit right in with the quality of Mike's product.

Lyn
 
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Why would anyone be surprised by the attitude or business practices of anyone working at the Riviera and what is tolerated by management there? Unfortunately, the ends have to justify the means when it comes to the BCAPL and the relationship with the Riviera.
 
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