How many players in the US are too good (or would not be allowed) to play in the APA?

Once again, please invest in a class for adult learning so that you can learn to read and comprehend what you read before responding.

The fact that a tiny minority of APA players who are 7+ ranked are ALSO pro or shortstop speed doesn't mean that the MAJORITY of them are.

One thing is 100% true, you can go on and on.

The question the OP asked is are there a lot of players who are too good for the APA who would be barred and the answer is that in some cases yes but in MOST cases no.

Here's the thing though, while statistically there is but a tiny % of the 250,000 apa players who truly are super 7s and 9s, they are almost always all there at nationals. Day to day league is a mind numbing experience that makes you want to stab yourself in the ear with the pen you are using to score a 47 inning race to 2 between two terrible players, but it's not always like that.

Case in point. At nationals I've seen 4 racks run so many times I've lost count. In fact I've been in a match where I broke and ran 4 racks in a short race and lost FIVE times in the past three years. If I told you the names of the players who did this to me, some might say wtf?! THAT guy plays apa?

Local apa is full of bangers, no disagreement there. Come to nationals to get the bigger picture of who are the killers in apa. It might surprise you.
 
Here's the thing though, while statistically there is but a tiny % of the 250,000 apa players who truly are super 7s and 9s, they are almost always all there at nationals. Day to day league is a mind numbing experience that makes you want to stab yourself in the ear with the pen you are using to score a 47 inning race to 2 between two terrible players, but it's not always like that.

Case in point. At nationals I've seen 4 racks run so many times I've lost count. In fact I've been in a match where I broke and ran 4 racks in a short race and lost FIVE times in the past three years. If I told you the names of the players who did this to me, some might say wtf?! THAT guy plays apa?

Local apa is full of bangers, no disagreement there. Come to nationals to get the bigger picture of who are the killers in apa. It might surprise you.

Did you see above where I mentioned I have seen people playing as fives in nationals who can spot me.

And I run four packs too occasionally so it doesn't take a much better player than me to run them. I never said that there aren't very good players in APA. I said that the gulf between the very good ones and pros is still a large one. Of course I have seen shortstop players in the APA. Still the vast majority of 7s are B players per my experience. And I think that the point of all this is that there isn't really a top end speed for APA. Meaning that once you reach 7 then you are on the same footing as a 15 who is also ranked a 7 because there is no higher ranking. (in 8 ball).
 
APA disqualifies some players for exhibiting pro characteristics. The national office fields inquiries concerning this on a regular basis. regional pro level players are seen at apa nationals every year I've gone. For most, they are trying to cash in 10k/15k first prize before they get kicked. It's not such an easy feat to accomplish as the bottom 32 bracket of the 7/9s is stuffed with the top players nationwide that play APA.

Nationals is a race to 5 in 8ball, racing to approximately 7 in nineball, winner breaks and every player in the bottom 32 imo is a solid A/AA with a few AAAs maybe in the mix. It's modified double elimination, so after 3 rounds it's single elimination. Plus apa seeds the boards from worst to best by record, so the bottom guy has the best record and second from bottom has the 2nd best record, etc. lose early and the bracket is designed so you stay within your group of 8, you do not move to other boards. This unusual seeding and bracket means that for the guy coming out of the bottom 32, the matches get easier. Semi finals and finals often has the bottom 32 winner steamrolling the 32 bracket winner above his and then massacring the top 64 winner above that. To emerge from the bottom 32 is quite a feat. Just take a look at the last 5 years winners and you will see that all those guy PLAY.

The original poster asks if apa allows pro players. My answer would be they try to weed pro level players out but they often overlook many. Those pros play bc they are playing position to snap off nationals. Playing 8b and 9b its theoretical possible to win 25k. Many of these undercover players are moving towards graduation to pro status. Along the way they are cashing amateur tickets as much as possible. Some really cash in and often even get more chances before apa wises up and bans them. Kirkwood and Eric horliefson come to mind in that.
 
APA disqualifies some players for exhibiting pro characteristics. The national office fields inquiries concerning this on a regular basis. regional pro level players are seen at apa nationals every year I've gone. For most, they are trying to cash in 10k/15k first prize before they get kicked. It's not such an easy feat to accomplish as the bottom 32 bracket of the 7/9s is stuffed with the top players nationwide that play APA.

Nationals is a race to 5 in 8ball, racing to approximately 7 in nineball, winner breaks and every player in the bottom 32 imo is a solid A/AA with a few AAAs maybe in the mix. It's modified double elimination, so after 3 rounds it's single elimination. Plus apa seeds the boards from worst to best by record, so the bottom guy has the best record and second from bottom has the 2nd best record, etc. lose early and the bracket is designed so you stay within your group of 8, you do not move to other boards. This unusual seeding and bracket means that for the guy coming out of the bottom 32, the matches get easier. Semi finals and finals often has the bottom 32 winner steamrolling the 32 bracket winner above his and then massacring the top 64 winner above that. To emerge from the bottom 32 is quite a feat. Just take a look at the last 5 years winners and you will see that all those guy PLAY.

The original poster asks if apa allows pro players. My answer would be they try to weed pro level players out but they often overlook many. Those pros play bc they are playing position to snap off nationals. Playing 8b and 9b its theoretical possible to win 25k. Many of these undercover players are moving towards graduation to pro status. Along the way they are cashing amateur tickets as much as possible. Some really cash in and often even get more chances before apa wises up and bans them. Kirkwood and Eric horliefson come to mind in that.

At one time they had a list of Tourneys if you finished top 10 you could not play APA similar to the SBX. Thing with Kirkwood is he doesn't enter many but he's there making money in the action rooms , so there is nothing on record to go by untill someone who knows him sees him playing and puts a halt to it

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