Do you think there shold be a dress code for pro pool players?

This is America a player should be able to dress anyway he feels like. If i wanted to look like my mama dressed me id go play golf. I like seeing the pros dressing normal in low life atire. When they dress up makes me think im in the wrong place. I get the feeling sometimes that the pool industry dose not like people like me they want an upscale customer base. Hey keep it up and ill go play poker they seam to like a guy with a little character. You do not have to sell pool, buddy hall said dont play shape if u already got it. Let it be what it be. U try to give people what u think they want u will lose everytime. What people want they are gona get on there own. I wanna play cheap sets of 9 ball. When i watch pros i wanna get insight from Billy incardona on the game. If he ever has a conversation with Danny about how well a male player is dressed. I breaking my pool stick and trading in pool table for a poker table..
Just a paying customer opinion.....
 
To me, it's all a question of how warm/cool are they going to have the rooms that the pool tables are in. If the temperatures in the room are going to hover in the mid-seventies or lower, then I think slacks and polos w/dress shoes should be worn. If the temperatures in the room are going to hover in the high-seventies or warmer, then a decent pair of cotton (cargo-style?) shorts should be allowed with a sleeved t-shirt and sneakers.

I remeber the Texas Open (?) several years ago that I believe was held in August and the A/C's went out. Temps in the room in the nineties. Most of the players played in shorts/sneakers or shorts/sandals, and I can't fault them a damn bit for it.

Pool should not be regulated to be a "perspiration sport"!!!

Maniac (but "sweating" is a whole 'nother matter :thumbup:)
 
110% yes they should.

The 10ft tournie should be this year, and i hope Jay decides that it is.

Any time you are scheduled for the stream table, you should have a dress code, the image of the sport/game is very important and is ruining some outside sponsorship i'm sure.


Lets clean up the game and make an effort to look good, you look good you feel good, you feel good you play good.
 
Much of it depends on who you are trying to market pool to. Middle-aged people like to see someone in at least nice casual dress clothes, like "Casual Day" at a major corporation. Khaki pants, shirt with collar, etc like Corey Deuel and SVB (most times).

Younger people would rather see them dressed in jeans and tee-shirts like they dress everyday at a software company. Nice casual dress clothes are a turn-off to young people.

The other consideration is that it's hard to keep nice clothes when you live out of a suitcase like many pros do.
 
Whats next tell the players no gambling, no smoking, no drinking, no long hair, no tattoos, look if you want to dress up to make u feel better go for it i just think a grown man can make his own decisions on what he feels appropriate to wear. I do not smoke and i hate smokey rooms but I will never support a no smoking law. Now the same type of people that just about killed some pool rooms with no smoking laws, are trying to tell us what to wear.. why dont we all wear uniforms why limit it to pro pool players. if it's such a wonderful thing to be dressed up everybody should do it. The whole world should wear black slacks and white button up shirts. The pool community will put enough pressure on individual they will dress appropriately anyway.
 
I think it depends on the tournament but I think most pro tournaments dress slacks and at least a polo shirt.
But maybe for a world championships, more along the lines of how Ronnie O'Sullivan dresses when playing pro snooker. As seen is a previous post.
 
I think so!!! I try my darnest to look sharp. And some times I'm creeped right out of my skin when I see what people will call "dressed"
 
The reason sponsors (both tournament and players) sponsor anything is to promote their brand and the sport in general as this is good for their sales. While you certainly want to get sales from those already in the sport, you also want to attract those that have not yet taken up the sport. Projecting a professional image by a professional of any sport should be a given. Nobody is trying to tell you or the pros how to dress or act on their own time but I don't think it's such a hardship to wear slacks and a polo shirt for a week long tournament....
 
dress code smell code

some people that go to these tournaments should be forced to shower or bathe because they fckn stink and it makes me wanna puke. i smell dirty moldy clothes and bad breath and greasy hair lol its sick.. that should be in the rules before we stop girls from wearing skirts eh?
 
The question is do i think pro players need a dress code. I said no. I read the post where members say yes and point out that some people do not know how to dress and some need to be made to take a bath. Ok name the pro that needs to change or take a bath. Name names of the pros u think are bad for pool.
 
the ones running the tournaments have the power to make a difference

lstevedus said:
Recently I asked for some help finding photos of the Derby City Classic so a friend of mine that is going for the first time could see what the tournament site looked like. When I went to his house to play some 9 ball in his man cave, I asked him what he thought of the photos (Pool In Action.com), and this is his opinion not mine, he said he thought the players looked like bums with their hustler shirts and torn jeans. I am very much a t-shirt and jeans person, so I never really thought much about it, but I did notice how a couple of players really stood out when I was at the Southern Classic in Tunica last July, because they were well dressed, Stevie Moore and Corey Duel. I'm sure there were more, but these were the two I noticed, maybe because of Corey's red shirt, and Stevie's vest.

Lee Brett suggested in a thread about the 10 ball event that there be a dress code for the players. I think this would be a good idea. If you want to present a professional image to the public you should dress like it. If the players in the 10 Ball event were required to have a dress code, maybe someone watching might get the idea these guys would be a good thing to have on tv more often. What do you all think? Please share your thoughts.
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When I ran the Professional Cue Sports Association we had a suit and tie dress code and it made a HUGE difference in the overall look of the tournament. When players dress in a suit and tie/vest they use better posture, act more professional and it's impressive to anyone outside the pool world that happens to walk in.

They've done tests on dress and what I said has been proven and it goes for anyone that dresses up naturally acts different. The only dress that gets more respect than "suit and tie" is a police uniform....and that's a fact. The way pool has spiraled down in public respect we need all the assistance we can get.

This would be an aggressive first start and the ones running the tournaments have the power to make a difference. Will they? Probably not.....what a shame, when it would truly help the Game. 'The Game is the Teacher'
 
Polo's and khakis at the minimum, for pro (and pro caliber) events. Someone mentioned "business casual", and I agree with that term.

As for living out of a suitcase, I would assume that that individual is staying at a hotel. Hang up the khakis when you check in, and if necessary, 2 minutes with an iron (or less) isn't difficult, especially for someone who can shoot a masse or jump shot, maybe even off handed, in their sleep.

The basic image will not be the one deciding factor is whether or not pool becomes more successful. But every little detail counts, and image is definitely one of those details. Control what you can control, and image is one of those things that players can control.

For regional (non-pro caliber) events, well, perhaps it is a little less important. By "non-pro caliber events", if more than one name player is likely to show up, then probably that tourney is of a higher level, and ought to be respected and promoted as such.

Just my .02
 
CJ Wiley said:
When I ran the Professional Cue Sports Association we had a suit and tie dress code and it made a HUGE difference in the overall look of the tournament. When players dress in a suit and tie/vest they use better posture, act more professional and it's impressive to anyone outside the pool world that happens to walk in.

They've done tests on dress and what I said has been proven and it goes for anyone that dresses up naturally acts different. The only dress that gets more respect than "suit and tie" is a police uniform....and that's a fact. The way pool has spiraled down in public respect we need all the assistance we can get.

This would be an aggressive first start and the ones running the tournaments have the power to make a difference. Will they? Probably not.....what a shame, when it would truly help the Game. 'The Game is the Teacher'
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Vestus virum facet. (clothes make the man)
 
I’m all for a dress code, but I pity the poor tournament director who has to enforce it. Pool players are capable of not understanding the simplest language in a rule. They are “rule challenged.” I remember being at a tournament in Vegas or Reno about ten years ago at which the rule was that shirts had to have collars. How many players do you think showed up to play in shirts that had no collar? How many do you think argued with the director when he pointed out the rule?

It’s interesting in this thread that for some of the respondents there seem to be only two levels of dress, “formal” and “casual.” A golf shirt and a pair of slacks is “casual.” Torn jeans and a t-shirt worn outside the belt line is not “casual.” Torn jeans and a t-shirt is “wash the car.” Perhaps we could say “utilitarian.”

To be truly radical, how about a dress code for the spectators? How many Accu-Stats tapes have you seen in which the spectators in view of the camera are not prepossessing? If anyone in TV is ever going to be interested in pool again, one of the things he is going to be interested in is the apparent income level of the aficionados of the game. Tank tops with shorts and baseball caps worn inside are not going to convince him that he has hit a rift rich with ore.

But not to be too hard on the pool players. Have you been to a funeral lately? If you have, I imagine you have seen plenty of people who did not look as if they were there to pay their last “respects.” I had to have a medical exam last week. The exam was conducted in a very nice facility with a beautifully appointed waiting room with paintings and aquaria. The people in the room managed to make it look like a Greyhound station.
 
Middle ground

lastdimetaker said:
Whats next tell the players no gambling, no smoking, no drinking, no long hair, no tattoos, look if you want to dress up to make u feel better go for it i just think a grown man can make his own decisions on what he feels appropriate to wear. I do not smoke and i hate smokey rooms but I will never support a no smoking law. Now the same type of people that just about killed some pool rooms with no smoking laws, are trying to tell us what to wear.. why dont we all wear uniforms why limit it to pro pool players. if it's such a wonderful thing to be dressed up everybody should do it. The whole world should wear black slacks and white button up shirts. The pool community will put enough pressure on individual they will dress appropriately anyway.
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There are lots of options and leeway between forcing players to wear a suit and tie and no rules at all.
Would you have people playing nude? In thongs? With obscene pictures on t-shirts?
Codes (of any kind) can be restrictive and discriminating, or logical and reasonable.

I always had mixed feelings about the dress codes at national amateur events. No t-shirts for example. Over the years I saw a number of teams show up in Vegas wearing very nice looking tees with sponsors or non-sponsor logos. They had to go out and buy new polo shirts to play. On the other hand, I understand why NOT wearing blue jeans or t-shirts full of holes and stains might help the image of pool. And when you see a room with 100+ tables and teams all wearing their matching shirts, it's pretty cool.

Back in the heyday of bowling, most amateur teams had sponsors who provided shirts. Two of my team sponsors provided shirts and slacks. It was pretty classy. I introduced this to pool leagues in the mid-sixties. While it wasn't mandatory, sponsors began furnishing shirts for their players. One of my teams even had matching winter coats. Sponsors clearly saw the benefits of sponsorship and the "free" advertising that logo shirts provide. This was common practice throughout the '70s and '80s, but began to tail off after that.

So bottom line for me is I like reasonable dress codes (classy doesn't mean uncomfortable), and I'd love to see businesses sponsor pool teams as they did years ago, with interest, cooperation and even team shirts!
 
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They have a dress code at the nationals in Vegas. It's not extreme but it is cool to see everyone in team shirts and looking like they are proud to be there. Would it be such a big deal to have something similar at pro events? I love the shorts and a t-shirt gig, but if I were ever lucky enough to play in a pro event, I'm dressing the part...not the bum part.
 
lastdimetaker said:
Whats next tell the players no gambling, no smoking, no drinking, no long hair, no tattoos, look if you want to dress up to make u feel better go for it i just think a grown man can make his own decisions on what he feels appropriate to wear. I do not smoke and i hate smokey rooms but I will never support a no smoking law. Now the same type of people that just about killed some pool rooms with no smoking laws, are trying to tell us what to wear.. why dont we all wear uniforms why limit it to pro pool players. if it's such a wonderful thing to be dressed up everybody should do it. The whole world should wear black slacks and white button up shirts. The pool community will put enough pressure on individual they will dress appropriately anyway.
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Isn't that basically what this thread is about?
 
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