I was looking forward to reading your reply, as I knew it would be forthcoming once you recuperated from the Open.
I'm guessing the point may be that the new male professional pool organization made a demand to Barry Behrman before they agreed to compete that either the payout monies would be in escrow and/or on full display on the final day. This was a requirement that the organization wants to have in force, so as to avoid its members not getting paid.
I did read on an earlier thread where somebody got paid in twenty-dollar bills. At the Open, I think sometimes the players are paid with monies collected at the gate and other revenue sources while the tournament is in progress. Sometimes the players who got in the money want to be paid right away and not have to wait until the last day to get paid. They may want to leave early to save money on expenses, as an example.
Without Barry Behrman, the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship would have died years ago, but he's kept it going, sometimes losing money due to a variety of problems, one of the main ones being the unpredictable weather. I'm glad he hasn't given up. It is truly one of my favorite pool events, and I hope I get to attend another one before I die.
Again, if the demand made by the new pool organization was not met, that may be why some are upset, but one thing I've learned over the years about pool tournaments, you're never, never, never going to please everybody. Whether it's the rules, the payout division, the seeding, the dress code, the referee's call, there's going to be controversy. I'm glad Barry is able to overcome all the hurdles and bring the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship each year. It's a title that every pool player dreams of getting.
See this picture here? Well, that tent was obtained at the last minute by Barry, so the smokers could have a place to smoke and be shielded from the rain. In 2003, I think it was, Tropical Storm Isabel was not nice to the U.S. Open, as everybody lost power for a couple days. Pretty nice gesture on Barry's part, in addition to getting the generators to provide power to the Conference Center. I think he was the only one in Chesapeake with power the second day after the storm. Takes a big generator to power that Conference Center, expensive rental, but that's the kind of promoter he is. He's always trying to ensure the players and attendees are happy and is just one example of the miscellaneous expenses that inevitably will happen.
![Chesapeake_Conference_Center[1].jpg](/data/attachments/116/116959-c6c9ff74dcd70fe9242e4a8acdb33c63.jpg?hash=xsn_dNzXD-)