Cuteone said:
pooljunkie, you said that you didn't want this guy alvarez representing you at the worlds. i say that a spineless jerk like you who lies about people and their family members on faceless forums don't derserve someone with such class reprsentating them. i'm just a girl....
I don't think anybody is doubting Frank Alvarez's integrity, and as far as him being a player, he's definitely a fine professional and worthy of representing America at the WPC.
Mike Zuglan as Man of the Year? That is the first time I heard about that one. Mike Zuglan, an established pro player from the State of New York and the tournament director for the Joss Tour, has been a mainstay in pool for decades now, long before some of the UPA board of directors were even born.
When he was asked about UPA sanctioning for the $25,000-added Joss Finale, his loyalties remained with the players on his tour. How could he allow sanctioning, UPA seeding of touring pros who had never attended a Joss event, at the finale and be fair to the other players who played in three or more Joss events? What followed, however, was poor judgment on the UPA's part. The UPA posted on their website that the Capital City Classic tournament, a UPA-sanctioned event, was to occur at the same time as the Joss Tour Finale.
When the CCC TD was queried about this scheduling on the same day as the Joss Tour Finale, he knew nothing about it and had not planned on any dates for a CCC. It seemed odd that after Zuglan did not accept UPA sanctioning that the UPA would schedule a tournament on the same days as the Joss Tour Finale, which was later withdrawn. It was a blatant attempt to hinder the success of a major event.
During its first year in operation, the UPA attempted to prevent existing pool players, known pool players, from participating in UPA tournaments unless they became a member, when all other players, non-UPA members, could attend by paying a $25 waiver. Five existing pro pool players were singled out and were told they could not attend a UPA event unless they became a member.
Truth be told, for somebody to be a UPA touring pro AND on the UPA board of directors AND representing Dragon Productions, the organization that is producing three of the five UPA Tour events, he's wearing too many hats, and it does not lend itself to the UPA being fair and unbiased.
Only time will tell how well the UPA will fare among its existing members down the road. Some of its current members are disgruntled about the current state of affairs relating to ranking and selection processes for various high-profile tournaments such as the BCA Open and the WPC.
I believe Frank Alvarez to be an honest and dedicated individual, and he has always returned my phone calls. As it stands now, with a five-tournament UPA Tour, the UPA members who did not attend the BCA Open will remain at the bottom of the ranking charts for the remaining UPA season, and many UPA members, those who thought they were ranked in the top 32 at the time of the Vegas event, are questioning the value of their UPA membership when it seems to only benefit some individuals time and time again.
Most desire the UPA to be successful and elevate the men's tour, but to be quite honest about it, Frank Alvarez can only do so much. He doesn't make any of the decisions.
As with any "new" organization, there will be growing pains, and the change that has occurred is not welcome by some as it affects them individually. Change is difficult sometimes. It would seem to me that it would be helpful if the UPA went public with their selection process to avoid misconceptions or any misunderstandings. The UPA is lucky to have a guy like Frank Alvarez on their team IMO. So let's not kill the messenger here.
We should all be rooting for our players in Taiwan now. It isn't comfortable traveling abroad these days with potential terrorist threats and the like. I wish them all godspeed and look forward to an exciting WPC!
ManlyShot