Earl Strickland v/s BJ Ussery This Sunday (8/19/2007)

I think you need some rest.
Reevaluate your position .
I think you will realize what the right business decision is!
What did you gain from the match if anything?
food ,drinks, excitement .
Didn"t you post about dvds, cover charge etc. ?
Didn't you post about a 100 dollar added 9 Ball tournament .
Let's get real.
Good luck and count your blessings!
 
My M.O. in my poolrooms was to comp Pros when they are practicing alone. If they get a game and are in action, they are going on the clock. Now they're trying to make money in there. One exception, if they were gambling with me. I would never charge them, win or lose.
 
Drater said:
Hey thanks!

Just so everyone knows, Earl *did* pay his pool time. I'm sure on the inside he understands that we're in business to make money.
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D-man,
A high profile professional like Earl is probably used to being "comped" his pool time. I think the majority of pool hall owners (in my personal experience) DEFINITELY do this for the famous players. While you have no obligation to do so; I think you are definitely in the minority on this one.

Being that you used his presence to tout your business, I think that many of us will feel that it would have been a classy gesture on your part to waive the table time. He has no right to complain; but you should not feel proud.
 
I'm Not Joking, Either

fish on said:
I think you need some rest.
Reevaluate your position .
I think you will realize what the right business decision is!
What did you gain from the match if anything?
food ,drinks, excitement .
Didn"t you post about dvds, cover charge etc. ?
Didn't you post about a 100 dollar added 9 Ball tournament .
Let's get real.
Good luck and count your blessings!
Click to expand...



I agree with your post. Drater should take the money that he got from Earl and double it...... and then spend it on some very expensive golfballs or a Free day on the golf course for Earl (or dinner for two at the most fancy local restaurant).
Charging Earl under the circumstances was out of line. Noone would have driven a long distance, stayed up all night reading online updates or paid a cover charge to watch/read about Jethro vs. Billy Bob.
Doug
( this should be corrected TODAY and an apology made to Earl.... imo )
 
This was a real high profile match . Once it became a room event it became time to take care of the guys who were responsible for the added monies that came in.
The owner gained short turn financially and long term as pool players were introduced to his room.
There was also other action games there that night because of the match.He was paid for that table time.
What is the difference between a added to pot event (U.S. Open)which draws the top players or being compted .
We should treat B.J. + Earl with the respect they deserve and they should have received the cover charge not you!
 
table time

Man I thought I was a ruthless business man .Earl had to
pay for the table time .Man , thats hard core
 
Just to clarify, Earl only paid for table time Saturday afternoon while he was practicing alone. We even held the table for him for a few hours (on a busy Saturday night) after he left because he indicated he'd return later.

That said, everyone's input on running a pool room and what pro's expect is appreciated and noted for the future. I've only been running a pool room for 10 days.

While y'all continue to discuss this, I'm getting back to work. Again, thanks for your input and support.
 
Lol

Matt90 said:
Man I thought I was a ruthless business man .Earl had to
pay for the table time .Man , thats hard core
Click to expand...


Anytime I have gambled and played I always PAID the table time if I won. And I expect the opposite as well. BJ should have paid the time if IT had to be paid. But they shouldn't have had to pay regardless. If anything throw them free food and drinks while they are playing for all the revenue they are generating for the room.JMO


Gary
 
Drater said:
Hey thanks!

Just so everyone knows, Earl *did* pay his pool time. I'm sure on the inside he understands that we're in business to make money.
Click to expand...

You charge a cover for people to watch him play and then charge him table time? Sure he appreciated that.
 
Where's Earls Cut?

A cover Charge to watch two guys shoot pool seems to be an admission that the reason that people came to a poolhall on a sunday night to not shoot pool was to watch these guys play. Not only did they play, they also brought in business the likes of which the bar has never seen. I've worrked for several bands and they always get a percentage of the door because it is the assumed admission of the establish that they are entertaining and that is why they paid and it turn the bar gets all the bar sales and food and anything else they can sell.....the saying on the road is "We fill the seats, you keep receipts" it is a travesty that the entire "Show" was billed and sold on the idea that Earl and BJ were playing...that is the sole reason that people were there packed in on a sunday night on high point road...no other reason.....all that said it was a great crowd and very much like a family reunion for me I got to see friends that I haven't seen in years it was a funtime for all......andwhile everyone is questioning it; I gladly paid Earls fees Saturday Night because PGA players don't pay Greens Fees congrats to BJ and hopefully we'll see Earl play like Earl again soon
 
Shame, Shame, Shame.... (right your wrong)

Drater said:
Just to clarify, Earl only paid for table time Saturday afternoon while he was practicing alone.
While y'all continue to discuss this, I'm getting back to work. Again, thanks for your input and support.
Click to expand...


How can you work at a time like this ? I haven't seen one single person take your side in this outrageous behavior. Poor Earl, having to once again suffer this indignity.
Doug
( shame on you )
 
I gotta go with the don't charge the entertainers crowd. If you charge a cover to watch a match then the guys providing the draw are at least comped on whatever they consume, including drinks, food and table time.

I think it's fantastic that we got to sweat this match via the net but honestly I would have rather that Earl was treated like any other private citizen and had his privacy respected if he was gonna be treated like any other customer.

Essentially this match was billed as an exhibition of sorts, people came to see it based on it's advertising and were charged for the privelege.

I think the player deserve a part of the gate. Which I am sure wasn't much but it's symbolic nonetheless.

I would love to see a time return when poolrooms get packed to watch matchups like these. In the old days players were able to travel and give exhibition "action" matches where they negotiated which percentage of the gate was to go to the winner on top of the stake they were playing for.

I would love to see a culture develop where players are headhunting and it's all public. And when a young gun like BJ challenges a champion like Earl it's an event that brings in a thousand people to fill a small venue. When a Johhny Archer challenges an Efren Reyes then it fills 5000 seats. Farfetched? Maybe, but it all starts with recognizing and compensating those who have the power to draw spectators - and love him or hate him Earl Strickland is one such person.
 
First of all, let me clarify one more time. We charged Earl *only* for his practice time Saturday afternoon. Just like we charge every other customer during normal business hours. Hell, my parents came in on opening night and were charged pool time.

The only people that shoot for free are my employees. Beyond that, league and tournament players get free practice time before and of course during their events. We collect reasonable greens fees for tournaments.

And of course Earl was *not* charged for the time he spent gambling with BJ.

Secondly, Earl's backer called on us to setup a gambling match with BJ. In fact, he walked into the bar and asked Michelle (Trevor's wife) if BJ was up for gambling with someone. After a minute or two of back-n-forth, he finally admitted that he was staking Earl. From there, Michelle gave him Trevor's cell number and they negotiated the terms. (Michelle & Trevor are my other two partners in this business). Trevor and I were covering the bet for BJ.

If instead they wanted to do an exhibition kind of thing where it was a "challenge match" or something similar, then *we* would have *paid* Earl. However, they wanted to gamble. When someone comes in to *practice* on a table, during our busiest day of the week, with the specific purpose of beating my house pro out of hard-earned cash, your damn right I'm charging them for that time. I am making no excuses for that.

Concerning the $5.00 door charge. BJ brought it to our attention that it is indeed customary to cut the players in on it. We didn't know. Like I said before, only been at this for 10 days and have (obviously) never coordinated something like this before. My bad. Next time we'll make sure to get details like this nailed down up-front.

Please know that BJ is being taken care of. We would have taken care of Earl, however part of the terms was that if after 8 hours the two sets weren't finished then they'd resume where they left off at a mutually agreeable day & time. Earl made it very clear that a) he wasn't coming back to Shooters and b) he wasn't playing BJ again. I left early and missed the end-game drama, but from what I understand from Trevor, Earl was upset with BJ's cheering section. I'm sorry if that's the case but it seems reasonable that the local guys are going to pull for their local player.

If he decides to come back and finish the second set, then absolutely we'll take care of him too. He's invited and I'd love for him to come back. No cover charge if he does come back to finish. You heard it here and every one of you are more than welcome to hold me to it. I've been nothing but brutally honest with youse guys from the beginning.

Finally, I realize that I'll never be able to please all of you. If some (or even all) of you here at AZB think we're a bunch of dorks then I'm sorry. We at Shooters are trying to do something good for pool here in the Greensboro, NC area. Last night we had a world champion playing a local pool hero. For only being in business for 10 days, I think that's pretty darn good. As time goes on we plan on doing a lot more and I sincerely hope y'all will be involved.

Thanks and have a good evening!

eric ridge
 
Eric,

The people are right.

Earl could drive right over to Friendly Ave. and get all the free pool he wants. Like he's been doing for years. Breakers will take good care of him, just like they have been doing. (NO charge of course!) Earl always took care of the bartender nicely. Just for giving him the rack of balls.

Table 5 there, is STILL Earl's table whenever he wants to take advantage of it, he can. They'd be more than happy to see him a LOT more often. He gathered a crowd whenever he was in there. Beatin' balls by himself, he can gather a hell of a crowd. People used to line up outside the windows in the cold, just for a glimpse of the Mighty Earl.

I'm still trying to figure out why they played at your place?


No jellyroll?? Earl deserves one....I know your chances of ever getting him back in there would greatly improve.

Good luck with the new place.


Rick S.
 
Drater said:
First of all, let me clarify one more time. We charged Earl *only* for his practice time Saturday afternoon. Just like we charge every other customer during normal business hours. Hell, my parents came in on opening night and were charged pool time.....
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Eric,

Don't sweat the opinions here, you can bet that any issue on this board will be beaten to death, then killed again, then run over by a car, then poisoned(sp?), then......you get the picture;) ;)

Nice work, on the match, it was like the big tourney that Dan Tull put on here, 18 players had a shot at 22k, 16k, 11k and 5k. Every loser and their friends/stakehorse complained about the format and all Dan was trying to do was give everyone a shot at a really nice score.

Good Job Keep It Up, if I ever make it to SC, I will stop by your room

-don
 
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Eric, you don't have to get defensive about it. You have your hands full - literally. It's all a learning process - and it sounds as if Earl wasn't the gracious guest as he is super tough to fade when he starts going off on the conditions.

I am sure the LAST thing your partner wanted to do is be nice to a guy who said you should burn all your tables. :-)

As a room owner you have to get to know how to handle these situations and this is just an experience. As you get more experience then the right thing to do will come naturally. Just take everyone's advice as constructive criticism. No one here wants to see you fail and we ALL appreciate the opportunity to sweat Earl's return to action.

To echo Jay's input - when I owned the room in Germany and had tournaments then I charged all players time who were playing in the tournament UNLESS I got a commitment to participate from players I invited like Ralf Souquet. Then I would use their name on the flyer and they didn't pay anything.

If anyone got in action at our place then they were on time and I trained my staff to serve them but stay out of their way. I also asked the spectators to be respectful of them.

We also had a wall that the pros would sign. It was pretty cool to come in the room and read a list of all the pros who had been there. Just ideas of things we have done.

Last thing: Here in China each pool room has a house pro who is available all the time to play anyone who walks in the door - the pro plays for table time and it costs more per hour to play them. Most pros here will play for small stakes if the customer asks them and will offer up a spot if one is warranted. The pros also give free training and the customer only has to pay the higher table time. I don't know if that's already part of your system but it works well here to bring in lots of amateurs to a higher awareness of the game and sells more table time and cues.

Anyway, take care man and get some art on those walls :-)

Give my colleagues a call at Sterling and they will hook you up on some pool art - 877-283-7444

John
 
Free Time

Here in China and in Taiwan table time is always charged for practice time and during each tournament match. In every tournament match the loser pays time. Which is why they have races to 13 all the time :-)

Seriously, I think it's a fair system, the most you can pay time is twice in a double elimination tournament and that's it. I don't really get why players should get to wear out the tables for free. And no, as a player and a former room owner I don't think the profits from the food and drink cover the wear and tear to the tables. I think it's just the way the culture has developed in the States.

Well anyway, that was off on a tangent....
 
this room is great. more action than i've seen in awhile. great room owners, great action,great food and a hell of a good dirty martini.catch a buzz and bet it up.
 
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