Bonus ball professional league announced

@justin - Regarding the reality tv, I mentioned to Larry this is the way forward as it will be great viewing as we had some great laughs and some great stories when we filmed the promo. Also it would make the players and the game more recognized if it was a reality tv show as well, thus generating more dollars for the league to succeed.
 
vpbb123 said:
When we put on our first professional event it was a huge success! We sold sponsorship to many huge corporations but none of them where billiards related. We did not take an entry fee and we paid the players cash before they left the building and treated them like pros! We need and intend to proceed this way! Besides the odd fool that rips everything good on forums, it's all been positive. Criticism is positive if it is warranted. We can't announce the players until they have signed our agreements and that is just smart business sense on everyone's part. I can tell you, we have a hundred players wanting in if one says no! Watching any top player playing Bonus Ball is entertaining, even if the play Advanced league or not! The shots that this game forces out of you is the difference between this game and that game!

The balls could be the old traditional one's and you can use them if you wish. Matters not to us! What matters is that this game shows the billiard world that uniforms and teams and STATISTICS are important to be look at as professionals. These are just mute points. It's the way the league is going.

Having cities to promote to is common sense but building 12 state of the art venues is not feasible. That is why we chose Las Vegas as the center of the WPBL. Each team will have a name such as the Chicago Rockets, Atlanta Scorpions, Phoenix Flames etc. and uniforms and each team will have a schedule. Just like other professional sports. Relax everybody. Nothing unique here. Bonus Ball is not unique either. The game is the mixture of all other games and not one thing is really new. It's just better structured for top players and this includes anyone that desires to play strategic pool without boring an audience to death! LOL

I love all games and I play all games. I don't want to hurt the other games, I just want a piece of the untapped market of players that leave the game after mastering eight ball to the higher levels. It can't be argued that the top level leagues are always the small numbers. I believe, such as my case, they don't want to play the same thing over and over forever. This game will challenge them for sure! It also makes you a way better player!

Keep all the good or bad reviews coming in, Cleary, Im still waiting for you to say something intelligent! :wink:

Barry Bremner
Vice-president of Bonus Ball
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ALL criticism is warranted if it exists... It shows differing views than some truths we make truths only for ourselves....

I think the key distinction to make is to realize that while all of it is warranted some of it is not going to be constructive....

If it's not constructive figure out a way to make it so and if it's pure bashing then write it off as pure bullshit but don't write it off because of the tone or source or because it differs from what you have taken to heart....

I can give you some that is constructive right here...

It can be a short rack game if the balls spread right and if the players are just firing balls in I may turn away and forget who has what pockets...

How about having Nathan wire up some LED's down in the pockets to put off a nice glow to indicate which pockets belong to which team... He can even color code them to the team colors for each match......

I would also like to see the ball pocketed on the rails frozen to the foot and head rail instead of being put onto either the head or foot spot....
 
JCIN said:
If they can get 32 players to spend six months in Vegas without killing each other, going on strike or going completely bust it will be an amazing achievement in itself and one to be commended. I'm sure someone has had the idea to shoot a reality show behind the scenes and I think that would increase the chances of a success a great deal. I would sweat that for sure.

Production quality of the promo was good and I expect it will improve with stats and overlays. It wasnt clear in the PR if all the matches will be live or recorded so I'm curious to see how the whole PPV model works out. If they have four live matches a week thats a lot of PPV's a month. Pricing will play a big factor in how that works out. I haven't seen any industry sponsors attached to this yet so I'm curious to see if anyone gets on board supporting it financially. Same goes for sponsors outside the industry.

Opinions on commentary are subjective so no matter what anyone does someone will not care for it. In the beginning they will spend a lot time explaining the basics of the game I think.

Now that November 8th is the firm start date it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. A lot of people call me a hater for talking about the holes I see in it and thats fine. I honestly would love to see something like BB be a success for the simple fact it would benefit the industry and players as a whole. The bottom line is they have to do it. All the internet ra-ra in the world won't matter either way when the rubber meets the road.

Everybody loves a winner so if they get it rolling I see it working well. The flip side is that its a tough mountain climb to reach that tipping point. I'll watch it to see what its all about.
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Wait, what? All the matches are in Vegas? No "home-field" advantage? WTF is that about?
 
Oh I wish we had 12 different venues for home field advantage! Each team will be designated as a home team! They will get VIP service, cushy seats and all the perks! The visitors will not be as lucky! They will sit on the floor, not allowed to see what is happening and have to bring there own sandwiches! LOL

Seriously, they get choice of breaking first and get to set the line-up last, like baseball. That should be some kind of advantage. The decision to start the season on the 4.5 by 9's and not a 5 x 10 was made because the game of Bonus Ball is so much tougher than traditional games, we decided to hold off on that just yet! The grey cloth also makes the smaller table better for filming than we thought!
 
They are Brunswick Gold Crowns and they are 4.5 x 9. Rodney was thinking that we were going with 5 X 10's but as I explained is a previous post, not happening yet or maybe not at all!

THE FULL VIDEO IS LAUNCHED
 
watched the promo earlier. watching the full video now.

I'm sorry, but can you do away with the over sized jerseys? The idea was there but the execution wasn't. Secondly, instead of the girls placing the ball, why is the ref not replacing it like in snooker?
 
Fast Lenny said:
I think the ball set is very well made along with the software. Lots of people have laptops and its no big deal to bring one with you to the poolroom or have it set up at home, adding a technology aspect to the game in the computer age is pretty cool.
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Ya, it's not like anyone ever gets their cues and cases swiped at a poolroom, there shouldnt be any downside to bringing your computer there too. :p

I think the only thing that really appeals to me about the whole thing is the team concept. The mosconi cup format gets plenty of attention and is popular enough without having to add new gimmicks and scantily clad women to spot balls.

But hey who knows right? One of the biggest sports today came from some dudes tossing a soccer ball into peach baskets hanging from a wall...lol. If the creators can get enough sponsors to support bonus ball and to see if it can gain viewers then thats great, i for one would not pay to watch it though.

Edit: I though of another positive. If there are 32 good pros in vegas for months at a time maybe we'll get some good TAR matchups :D
 
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Careful Lee, we don't allow bashing of other members here.

Mike

lee brett said:
The main knocker is cleary, a new t shirt for you should say "you're a tit", we now why you don't like it, so if you got nothing good to say, then say nothing at all. Cleary don't be a tit all your life.
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Lumocolor said:
Ya, it's not like anyone ever gets their cues and cases swiped at a poolroom, there shouldnt be any downside to bringing your computer there too. :p
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Ain't that the truth! My cue and case were stolen yesterday while I was busy putting my laptop away. My cue was the one I had pictured in my avatar the past couple of years. Now that it's gone, I decided to change the avatar back to the old picture of me.

But enough of that. I just finished watching the Bonus Ball video, and I would like to congratulate everyone involved in its production. I think it is definitely a step in the right direction. Nathan from Run Out Media seems to know his business very well. Sure there were a few hiccups, such as inexperienced commentating from Rodney and Stevie; but I can overlook that for the moment because they will surely get better and better as time goes on. And sure, the jerseys may look a little like oversized night shirts; but nobody seems to care about that same look on hockey players. And maybe the team names may sound a little silly to some; but is that so different from team names in other professional sports? For instance, could someone please define what a Laker is outside the realm of basketball? To me, that's an example of a really silly name.

Anyway, I think the Bonus Ball people have the right concept, and I wish them great success. I can't wait to follow my home team. Go Phoenix Flames!

Roger
 
AzHousePro said:
Careful Lee, we don't allow bashing of other members here.

Mike
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Usually I see along many of the same lines as cleary but in this instance I see nothing but bashing and nothing constructive from his comments.

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3797192&postcount=9

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3797195&postcount=10

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3797348&postcount=16

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3797418&postcount=28

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3797473&postcount=32

I think Lee was being pretty nice based on his involvement with Bonusball...

I also think being a moderator is a thankless job... I just wanted to point out that cleary was not innocent in this....... He is entitled to his opinions but we know he can express himself constructively without the photo-shopping, hookers and hotdog comments....
 
From a business perspective, if you have a product nobody wants, you don't just throw it in a new packaging, you change the product. BB seems to understand that, and are trying something different. I am not so sure about the risk vs reward on this venture for the investor, but good for him for trying and lucky us if we get to see some great shooting by pro players for a decent price.
 
Good luck to everyone involved in this venture.

Just a general comment about human behavioral patterns. People usually are attracted to watching games that they are familiar with and/or play themselves. Over the years, the major established sports have not strayed too far from their basic games in order to maintain their already established support base. I wonder why the pool world "executives" would want to abandon basic, established, games with 100 plus years of proven staying power to re-invent a game which may not even retain it's own established base following. I know I found it difficult to watch the entire promo video without losing interest.

Not bashing, just a little puzzled...good luck again.

J
 
jimmyg said:
Good luck to everyone involved in this venture.

Just a general comment about human behavioral patterns. People usually are attracted to watching games that they are familiar with and/or play themselves. Over the years, the major established sports have not strayed too far from their basic games in order to maintain their already established support base. I wonder why the pool world "executives" would want to abandon basic, established, games with 100 plus years of proven staying power to re-invent a game which may not even retain it's own established base following. I know I found it difficult to watch the entire promo video without losing interest.

Not bashing, just a little puzzled...good luck again.

J
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Very good comments... Basically from the sidelines what I see is an evolution in BB.... They at first started it out to be a new game... A new breath of air... But the pool world rejected it.... A scoreboard and a new ballset??? Really????

Then they looked further into a way to make things viable... Teams and leagues...... That's where the payoff is.....

Now if you can make the teams city or state related well then everyone has a reason to get behind something... Regardless of the game.....

Mosconi-Cup lite, so to speak... Most cities have an identity... They have people that will turn out in mass if it's about you versus us..... Especially if they are from the North....

Hell... Knoxville TN is dead for pool but if someone said we were going to have a team..... AND that we were going out to represent my city.... I'd likely consider putting time in to make the cut to be on said team.... AND I don't think we would be at a disadvantage much at all once the star struck aspect WORE off......... That wears off real quick since real character trumps talent most of the time wen you consider the professionals of the last few go-arounds......
 
A little tease.....

This league will not be lacking in star power..... Everything is being kept under wraps for now but I have some insider "teaser" info that .....

A) At least 16 of the top 25 players in the current BCA men's rankings (located on the AZ rankings page) are registered to teams.

B) Johnny Archer is not the only BCA Hall of famer that will be playing

C) At least 2 Filipino players are verbally committed

:wink:
 
meximan2469 said:
This league will not be lacking in star power..... Everything is being kept under wraps for now but I have some insider "teaser" info that .....

A) At least 16 of the top 25 players in the current BCA men's rankings (located on the AZ rankings page) are registered to teams.

B) Johnny Archer is not the only BCA Hall of famer that will be playing

C) At least 2 Filipino players are verbally committed

:wink:
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There is no STAR power.... I don't really care about who they have from the top 25.....

I could skip down MainStreet America arm and arm with the entire top 25 and NOone would know any of them.... Make it about cities.. make it about borders... The pros are great for the rollout but have them go HOME and build teams as captains and bring them back....... Otherwise we watch Rome burn as Nero plays the fiddle yet again...
 
The Renfro said:
Very good comments... Basically from the sidelines what I see is an evolution in BB.... They at first started it out to be a new game... A new breath of air... But the pool world rejected it.... A scoreboard and a new ballset??? Really????

Then they looked further into a way to make things viable... Teams and leagues...... That's where the payoff is.....

Now if you can make the teams city or state related well then everyone has a reason to get behind something... Regardless of the game.....

Mosconi-Cup lite, so to speak... Most cities have an identity... They have people that will turn out in mass if it's about you versus us..... Especially if they are from the North....

Hell... Knoxville TN is dead for pool but if someone said we were going to have a team..... AND that we were going out to represent my city.... I'd likely consider putting time in to make the cut to be on said team.... AND I don't think we would be at a disadvantage much at all once the star struck aspect WORE off......... That wears off real quick since real character trumps talent most of the time wen you consider the professionals of the last few go-arounds......
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There is no question about the immediate "identity" benefit of teams, the larger the city, the larger the potential pool. Uniforms, cheerleaders, playoffs, rivalries, they are all proven tactics. But my puzzlement remains, why put all this effort behind a totally new game which must first be sold, especially when there are already established, time tested, pool games centuries old. Just seems like an added hurdle, and possibly not a small one.

Another question: Do you intend on cannibalizing the current league memberships for your membership, or do you believe that it will be from newly interested players?

Again, good luck to you all.

J
 
jimmyg said:
There is no question about the immediate "identity" benefit of teams, the larger the city, the larger the potential pool. Uniforms, cheerleaders, playoffs, rivalries, they are all proven tactics. But my puzzlement remains, why put all this effort behind a totally new game which must first be sold, especially when there are already established, time tested, pool games centuries old. Just seems like an added hurdle, and possibly not a small one.

Another question: Do you intend on cannibalizing the current league memberships for your membership, or do you believe that it will be from newly interested players?

Again, good luck to you all.

J
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To succeed they will have to cannibalize somewhat... Not every existing league player will aspire to represent their city playing bonus ball but it will spawn local spinoffs BB leagues for those who do......

I have no insight to their profit model but I do know it must exist for their continued persistence... I can guess at much of it based on what I know of demographics but the hard numbers are their own projections....

With that said I think it's high time that I could take a team from Knoxville out to let's say Cincinnati and remind them why when the dead were counted at the end of the civil war 2,458,186 yankees took a dirt nap while 851,556 of god's people went to sing Dixie.....
 
jimmyg said:
or do you believe that it will be from newly interested players?

Again, good luck to you all.

J
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Actually answering this part will have merit... I would not call the player attracted as newly interested... I think in many league environments you get to a point where it's just not
worth it... There are not enough teams in let's say the APA 8ball league to let all of the better players play.... unless they start teams,the APA model pretty much......

This is one of the main reason of the APA bashing... A player can't find a home because of the max handicap rules..... Give these players a venue and you mobilize players that have been dormant because they have been stripped from their friends/teammates and left by the wayside......
 
The Renfro said:
There is no STAR power.... I don't really care about who they have from the top 25.....

I could skip down MainStreet America arm and arm with the entire top 25 and NOone would know any of them.... Make it about cities.. make it about borders... The pros are great for the rollout but have them go HOME and build teams as captains and bring them back....... Otherwise we watch Rome burn as Nero plays the fiddle yet again...
Click to expand...


For the most part the Captains of each team were chosen for certain cities due to their geographical backgrounds IE: Johnny Archer Atlanta, Corey Deuel Miami....etc from there they were given the freedom to choose which players they wanted to fill out the rest of their team with..... The idea in the initial launch is to create an association with those cities as well as the individual players..... and to build a relationship with the fanbase utilizing both ..... these players are full of character and that is one of things that we plan to try and bring out into a more visible light through different venues including...player spotlights and a possible Ultimate fighter style reality showcase......
 
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