GUILTY of being too good to play in the Women's Masters
She'll have to play in the Advanced Men's Division, WHAT???
Our feature article this month in our 3 pool magazines is GUILTY!
You can also read it in the magazine at www.onthebreaknews.com
GUILTY of being too good
In My Opinion
by: Don & Mary Akerlow
I eluded to a follow up to my Chalk Talk column last month. The player in question was Jessica Frideres from Fort Dodge, IA.
Jessica’s story begins over a year ago. Since Jessica starting playing pool some 16 years ago, she has participated in local leagues and statewide tournaments. In the Iowa area there are two large tournaments every year. The Midwest 8-Ball Championships and the Great Plains 8-Ball Shootout. These tournaments are for singles and teams. Jessica competed in these events and it wasn’t until 5 or 6 years after she started playing that she had her first win at the state tournament in the Open Women’s Division. Her first win as a Master player came a couple of years later. While Jessica usually wins or finishes in the top 5 places, she is not unbeatable.
Jessica is not a pro player. She has never played on the WPBA tour. In her only attempt to qualify for the WPBA, she didn’t finish in the money. She has never even played on a 9’ table! So where should she rank in the scheme of things? Jessica is obviously a good bar box player. One of the best in the Iowa area. It was not until a year ago that Jessica achieved the designation of Grand Master with the BCAPL. In talking to Jessica, she expressed no interest in becoming a pro, she plays when she can, doesn’t always win but loves playing the game. Isn’t that what every amateur pool player does? Don’t we all just love to play, sometimes win and sometimes lose? Some of us are big fishes in our little ponds, so why is Jessica being kicked out of the pond?
The Midwest Tournament Association told Jessica in a phone call that she could no longer play in the Women’s Master Singles divisions in their events. Even though she meets all the qualifications, she cannot play. She asked for their decision to be put in writing and they sent her an email that stated the following:
“The decision in regard to Jessica’s status for Midwest and Great Plains 8-Ball Shootout was the result of a 2 or 3 year discussion, not just a quick thought.
To you this may seem negative but looking at it with a more positive spin it could be taken as the highest form of honor since this is the highest rating given to a female player in the history of the Midwest Association.
Jessica’s record of achievement is unprecedented. She has won our highest skilled female singles division 10 of the 11 times that she played from 2003 - 2013.” (excerpted from an email dated 7-19-13)
They also went on to tell her what divisions she qualified for, basically as a Singles player she would only be allowed to play in the “Open” Intermediate or “Open” Master Divisions. We all know that “Open” is another way of saying “Men’s”.
In response to this Jessica asked to be allowed to speak at the next meeting of the Midwest Tournament Association. They granted her request and she was given 10 minutes, which she did along with giving the committee a petition signed by 400 pool players. The petition was circulated at every event Jessica played in and 95% of the Master Women Jessica could find, signed the petition. If these women don’t have a problem playing against Jessica why does the Midwest Tournament Association?
The answer may be in what happened after Jessica spoke. The committee finished their meeting with Jessica sitting about 20 feet away. Close enough to hear what was being said but not being allowed to be heard, even when statement were being made about her that in Jessica’s mind were totally untrue. Since when in the United States have we been denied the right to face our accusers and offer a defense? This may not be a trial but the Midwest Tournament committee is sitting in judgement of Jessica.
As I read the Midwest Captains Guide (available from the Midwest Poolplayers Association website) there are some 47 women designated as eligible for the Women’s Master Singles Division and only 1 woman designated IOS or Intermediate Open Singles. In other words, Jessica now cannot play in the Women’s Masters or the Open Regular Men’s Division but has to play in the Men’s Intermediate Division. The rating committee has obviously decided that Jessica is too good to play with the other Master Women and too good to play with the Regular Men’s Division but good enough to play in the Intermediate and Master Men’s Division. How is that right?
So if you would reverse this can a man play bad enough to play in the Women’s Division? It would only seem “fair”. And if not why not? Perhaps the old adage “what’s good for the goose is good for the gander” and also in reverse.
They should be honoring Jessica, not vilifying her. Perhaps there are other reasons that we don’t know about, one must ask the question. 95% of the master women agreed with Jessica by signing a petition to let her play in the Women’s Masters. Shouldn’t that be enough? Who does it help if Jessica doesn’t play? Who has suffered from Jessica winning? Maybe they shouldn’t even play a tournament at all but give everybody a “participation” medal! Pool is about competition, about honing your skills, perfecting your game, becoming a better player. Maybe someone on the Midwest committee can’t take the competition?
The midwest tournament Association, headed by Marshall Kohtz of VVS in Nebraska has not given Jessica an answer since her appearance before the committee in June. They will not take up the discussion again until their next meeting at the end of August. How do you leave a pool player in limbo for over a year? How hard can it be to make a decision? Or see that the decision that was made was not a good one? Who will they do this to next? ? And so on and so on until there are no women’s divisions left. Does this sound just a little bit extreme? If it does then so does all of this. Maybe Jessica could play with one hand tied behind her back! That doesn’t sound any more ludicrous than making her play in the Men’s division.
Jessica’s petition reads simply:
“Petition For Jessica Frideres to be able to play in
the Midwest Pool Tournamnet.
For those of you that don’t know, Jessica was told she could never play in the Women’s Masters Tournament at the
Midwest Association again, basically, because she plays too good.
Jessica deserves to play in the Women’s Masters division. She is not rated anywhere in the country as a pro pool player.
She is 36 years old, and has been told she can never play in the Midwest women’s division again. How is that right for a game that she truly loves. This is wrong and something needs to be done.
If you would like to support Jessica please sign and date the petition below.” - The petition has over 400 signatures.
We will contact Marshall Kohtz and the Midwest Tournament Association for a response and their side of the story and bring that to you in the September issue.
We would like to hear your thoughts on this subject. Should Jessica be allowed to play in the Women’s Masters?
Send your comments to: opm@onthebreaknews.com
You can also go to Facebook and see other comments that pool players have made.
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
What is your opinion? We would like your feedback
She'll have to play in the Advanced Men's Division, WHAT???
Our feature article this month in our 3 pool magazines is GUILTY!
You can also read it in the magazine at www.onthebreaknews.com
GUILTY of being too good
In My Opinion
by: Don & Mary Akerlow
I eluded to a follow up to my Chalk Talk column last month. The player in question was Jessica Frideres from Fort Dodge, IA.
Jessica’s story begins over a year ago. Since Jessica starting playing pool some 16 years ago, she has participated in local leagues and statewide tournaments. In the Iowa area there are two large tournaments every year. The Midwest 8-Ball Championships and the Great Plains 8-Ball Shootout. These tournaments are for singles and teams. Jessica competed in these events and it wasn’t until 5 or 6 years after she started playing that she had her first win at the state tournament in the Open Women’s Division. Her first win as a Master player came a couple of years later. While Jessica usually wins or finishes in the top 5 places, she is not unbeatable.
Jessica is not a pro player. She has never played on the WPBA tour. In her only attempt to qualify for the WPBA, she didn’t finish in the money. She has never even played on a 9’ table! So where should she rank in the scheme of things? Jessica is obviously a good bar box player. One of the best in the Iowa area. It was not until a year ago that Jessica achieved the designation of Grand Master with the BCAPL. In talking to Jessica, she expressed no interest in becoming a pro, she plays when she can, doesn’t always win but loves playing the game. Isn’t that what every amateur pool player does? Don’t we all just love to play, sometimes win and sometimes lose? Some of us are big fishes in our little ponds, so why is Jessica being kicked out of the pond?
The Midwest Tournament Association told Jessica in a phone call that she could no longer play in the Women’s Master Singles divisions in their events. Even though she meets all the qualifications, she cannot play. She asked for their decision to be put in writing and they sent her an email that stated the following:
“The decision in regard to Jessica’s status for Midwest and Great Plains 8-Ball Shootout was the result of a 2 or 3 year discussion, not just a quick thought.
To you this may seem negative but looking at it with a more positive spin it could be taken as the highest form of honor since this is the highest rating given to a female player in the history of the Midwest Association.
Jessica’s record of achievement is unprecedented. She has won our highest skilled female singles division 10 of the 11 times that she played from 2003 - 2013.” (excerpted from an email dated 7-19-13)
They also went on to tell her what divisions she qualified for, basically as a Singles player she would only be allowed to play in the “Open” Intermediate or “Open” Master Divisions. We all know that “Open” is another way of saying “Men’s”.
In response to this Jessica asked to be allowed to speak at the next meeting of the Midwest Tournament Association. They granted her request and she was given 10 minutes, which she did along with giving the committee a petition signed by 400 pool players. The petition was circulated at every event Jessica played in and 95% of the Master Women Jessica could find, signed the petition. If these women don’t have a problem playing against Jessica why does the Midwest Tournament Association?
The answer may be in what happened after Jessica spoke. The committee finished their meeting with Jessica sitting about 20 feet away. Close enough to hear what was being said but not being allowed to be heard, even when statement were being made about her that in Jessica’s mind were totally untrue. Since when in the United States have we been denied the right to face our accusers and offer a defense? This may not be a trial but the Midwest Tournament committee is sitting in judgement of Jessica.
As I read the Midwest Captains Guide (available from the Midwest Poolplayers Association website) there are some 47 women designated as eligible for the Women’s Master Singles Division and only 1 woman designated IOS or Intermediate Open Singles. In other words, Jessica now cannot play in the Women’s Masters or the Open Regular Men’s Division but has to play in the Men’s Intermediate Division. The rating committee has obviously decided that Jessica is too good to play with the other Master Women and too good to play with the Regular Men’s Division but good enough to play in the Intermediate and Master Men’s Division. How is that right?
So if you would reverse this can a man play bad enough to play in the Women’s Division? It would only seem “fair”. And if not why not? Perhaps the old adage “what’s good for the goose is good for the gander” and also in reverse.
They should be honoring Jessica, not vilifying her. Perhaps there are other reasons that we don’t know about, one must ask the question. 95% of the master women agreed with Jessica by signing a petition to let her play in the Women’s Masters. Shouldn’t that be enough? Who does it help if Jessica doesn’t play? Who has suffered from Jessica winning? Maybe they shouldn’t even play a tournament at all but give everybody a “participation” medal! Pool is about competition, about honing your skills, perfecting your game, becoming a better player. Maybe someone on the Midwest committee can’t take the competition?
The midwest tournament Association, headed by Marshall Kohtz of VVS in Nebraska has not given Jessica an answer since her appearance before the committee in June. They will not take up the discussion again until their next meeting at the end of August. How do you leave a pool player in limbo for over a year? How hard can it be to make a decision? Or see that the decision that was made was not a good one? Who will they do this to next? ? And so on and so on until there are no women’s divisions left. Does this sound just a little bit extreme? If it does then so does all of this. Maybe Jessica could play with one hand tied behind her back! That doesn’t sound any more ludicrous than making her play in the Men’s division.
Jessica’s petition reads simply:
“Petition For Jessica Frideres to be able to play in
the Midwest Pool Tournamnet.
For those of you that don’t know, Jessica was told she could never play in the Women’s Masters Tournament at the
Midwest Association again, basically, because she plays too good.
Jessica deserves to play in the Women’s Masters division. She is not rated anywhere in the country as a pro pool player.
She is 36 years old, and has been told she can never play in the Midwest women’s division again. How is that right for a game that she truly loves. This is wrong and something needs to be done.
If you would like to support Jessica please sign and date the petition below.” - The petition has over 400 signatures.
We will contact Marshall Kohtz and the Midwest Tournament Association for a response and their side of the story and bring that to you in the September issue.
We would like to hear your thoughts on this subject. Should Jessica be allowed to play in the Women’s Masters?
Send your comments to: opm@onthebreaknews.com
You can also go to Facebook and see other comments that pool players have made.
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
What is your opinion? We would like your feedback
