How to save professional pool...no, really.
- Thread starter Boxcar
- Start date
This is what this all comes down to. I don’t see big, non pool sponsors knocking on the door once pool players unite, and start wearing collared shirts.
I hope I am wrong, but the general public just doesn’t care about professional pool. To the average person, pool is not very exciting to watch.
I think you hit the nail on the head.
Far from it... who wants to invest in an unstable product. Even if they are wearing nice shirtsThis is what this all comes down to. I don’t see big, non pool sponsors knocking on the door once pool players unite, and start wearing collared shirts.
I hope I am wrong, but the general public just doesn’t care about professional pool. To the average person, pool is not very exciting to watch.
Watching a guy toss a bean bag into a hole shouldn't be entertaining to watch either...lol. The biggest difference...?..., emotion and crowd engagement.
Cornhole:
Note both are from 2019 for sake of pandemic comparison.
Now imagine the highlights from the 2019 World Cup of Pool if it had the atmosphere and engagement of the Mosconi. Seas of national flags in the background celebrating those great shots and cheering their teams on.
Half of the Board of Directors of the PGA Tour are heavy hitters in business and finance. Not elected players.
https://www.pgatour.com/company/board-of-directors.html
This is what this all comes down to. I don’t see big, non pool sponsors knocking on the door once pool players unite, and start wearing collared shirts.
I hope I am wrong, but the general public just doesn’t care about professional pool. To the average person, pool is not very exciting to watch.
This right here. The fact is that a relatively miniscule number of people are interested in watching pool. And even fewer are willing to pay to do so. And neither glue, PATs, unions, or limited streaming will change that.
I hope I am wrong, but I imagine it will still not draw the non pool playing audience.
When I was watching the Mosconi Cup, I had numerous friends make fun in me for being a ‘pool nerd’ and actually watching pool. I told them it was kind of a cool atmosphere, but they frankly didn’t care.
A players union would be a VIP gambling ring. Every sport has its high profile people, pool is no different.
You are not supposed to say the union is a gambling ring.
You are supposed to say its a community tool for a cultural exchange. Then promote issues like men should exercise more or drink less.
You are not supposed to say the union is a gambling ring.
You are supposed to say its a community tool for a cultural exchange. Then promote issues like men should exercise more or drink less.
Your statement is neither accurate nor complete. It isn't the truth.
Below, you will find the true story.
Rodman Wanamaker, along with several of his business associates and 35 charter members formed the PGA of America in 1917. Because of their commitment to the game of golf, The PGA of America has made over 3 billion dollars of charitable donations to worthy international causes, and provided the world with some of the most dramatic entertainment in all of recorded history. It all started with a dream. Who would have ever thought that one day people would watch men hitting a ball with a long stick on TV?
I hope you will enjoy the information below. It was easily found on the internet.
Who Owns The PGA Tour?
The PGA Tour is the premier tournament circuit for touring golf professionals and is essentially owned and run by itself, with a Board of Directors, Executive Leadership team and Player Advisory Council.
The Board of Directors is headed up by Chairman Ed Herlihy, Jimmy Dunne, Mark Flaherty, Mary Meeker and Randall Stephenson.
An Executive Leadership team made up of 11 individuals essentially runs the Tour and its day-to-day decision making, led by Commissioner Jay Monahan.
Monahan has held the role since 2017 after being promoted from Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer. He has been at the PGA Tour since 2008, leaving his role as Executive Vice President at Fenway Sports Group.
There are currently four player directors at the Tour - James Hahn, Charley Hoffman, Kevin Kisner and Rory McIlroy, who work with a 17-man Player Advisory Council that includes the likes of Billy Horschel, Jon Rahm and Will Zalatoris.
The PGA Tour was officially formed in late 1968 when the 'Tournament Players Division' broke off from the PGA of America. A Commissioner was put in place - Joe Dey - who served for five years before Deane Beman took over the reigns from 1974.
Tim Finchem became commissioner in 1994, with current commissioner Jay Monahan becoming the fourth man to hold the role in 2017.
The Tour is now based at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, after moving from Washington, DC in 1979. Sawgrass is home of the Tour's flagship event and golf's 'unofficial' fifth Major - The Players Championship.
The PGA Tour is officially a non-profit organization, with over $3bn raised for charity as of 2020.
It runs the main PGA Tour as well as the Korn Ferry Tour, PGA Tour Champions, PGA Tour Latinoamérica and PGA Tour Canada. It also has a strategic alliance with the European-based DP World Tour, with the two organizations working together closer amid the threat of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf.
The alliance saw the PGA Tour take a 40% stake in European Tour Productions and 10 tour cards offered to the DP World Tour's 10 best finishers each season.
PGA TOUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS
- Ed Herlihy, Chairman - Partner, Wachtell Lipton, Rosen & Katz
- Jimmy Dunne - Vice Chairman and Senior Managing Principal, Piper Sandler
- Mark Flaherty - Former Vice Chairman, Wellington Management Company
- Mary Meeker - Partner, Bond Capital
- Randall Stephenson - Executive Chairman, AT&T Inc.
PGA TOUR EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
- Jay Monahan, Commissioner
- Ron Price, Chief Operating Officer
- Rick Anderson, Chief Media Officer
- Len Brown, Chief Legal Officer & Executive Vice President Licensing
- Tyler Dennis, Executive Vice President & President, PGA Tour
- Allison Keller, Chief Administrative Officer
- Jay Madara, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
- Laura Neal, Executive Vice President Media Content & Communications
- Andy Pazder, Chief Tournaments & Competitions Officer
- Neera Shetty, Executive Vice President - Social Responsibility & Inclusion and Deputy General Counsel
PGA TOUR PLAYER DIRECTORS
- James Hahn
- Charley Hoffman
- Kevin Kisner
- Rory McIlroy
PGA TOUR PLAYER ADVISORY COUNCIL
- Peter Malnati - Co-chairman
- Webb Simpson - Co-chairman
- Patrick Cantlay
- Austin Cook
- Joel Dahmen
- Harry Higgs
- Max Homa
- Billy Horschel
- Russell Knox
- Justin Lower
- Maverick McNealy
- Keith Mitchell
- Trey Mullinax
- Brandt Snedeker
- Kevin Streelman
- Will Zalatoris
HISTORY OF THE WANAMAKER TROPHY
The Wanamaker Trophy, awarded to the winner of the PGA Championship, has been around since 1916, and its birth symbolized everything we now love about the professional game, so let's start right back at the beginning.Early in 1916, Rodman Wanamaker, a sportsman and heir to a department store empire, summoned some friends including prominent golfers like Francis Ouimet and Walter Hagen to discuss the formation of a national organization for professional golfers.
At the time, professional golfers were still considered hired help, and Wanamaker wanted to change that. His 1916 meeting resulted in the formation of The PGA of America, which would host a professional only tournament. The rest is history.
Pool deserves more than it has right now. For that to happen, change must come. The future is bright. There is nothing to fear.
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So much effort in retorting about the history of the PGA and it's player's association, but not a single comment about who has done in the past what Matchroom is doing now for the game of pool....lol. Even though you claimed it's been done before.
Not sure what draws in anyone cold turkey that's not already interested in a game/sport at some level. I'd venture to say most just aren't wired that way and need to be exposed via another person.
Rather than chasing the non-player. They should focus on developing content that the pool player will pony up to see. I'm a perfect example. I've been playing/competing in some form of billiards for ~30yrs. However I have not and most likely will not pay for low production streaming content. I'm just not a fan of it. Double edged sword I know, but it is what it is. MR content is the closest thing I've seen to something I'm willing to pay for. UpStateAl's Turningstone content during this last event was worth the money imo. You don't need commentators on every table, and in all honesty I'd rather not listen to him pronounce Shaw's name so badly...lol
The point is... The pool viewing market could be quite large. Even if all they did was engage the cheap asses like myself.
Sorry, was a YT video posted by InsidePoolMagazine 7yrs ago, showing a tournament 20yrs older, played by men in their 80's, a comparison to what Matchroom is currently doing with the professional game globally...? ...or is it just meant to be an example of the broken content that ESPN would televise when nothing better presented itself..?
You have to be kidding me....lol
I appreciate that you didn't respond with a 5 page post on the history of youtube, which might have been appropriate.
Gee, without all of the cut and paste attempted obfuscation, this is exactly what I said. Half the Tour's Board of Directors is composed of heavy hitters from business and finance. But congratulations on finding such a richly rewarding site to troll.
I always considered pool players were by and large sharps, alive to deception, personally devious to one extent or another, seizing every advantage. Personally I am clearly a flat.
Yet it is amazing to see the degree to which all of you sharpies fall for the most obvious trolling over and over again.
Sure smells like one.
Just cruised his history, took a while to get back to Sunday.
Thank you. I tend to agree.
Barry Hearn founded Matchroom in the basement under a snooker room in 1982. The first time Matchroom covered the Mosconi Cup was in 1994, nearly 30 years ago. So, after 41 years in business and after promoting 9-ball pool for 30 years, Shane Van Boening, arguably the best active player today has amassed a "lifetime earnings" total of approximately $2,124,000.00. Recently, Rory McIlroy won 1,890,000.00 in "one event." Why is there such a gaping disparity in the earnings of two young men, both at the top of their games?
The answer is TV. Not pay-per-view, but real old fashioned TV. With real old fashioned sponsors.
Shane's lifetime of work - $2,124,000.00
Rory's 4 days work - $1,890,000.00
I'll take the 4 days work, thank you very much.
It's very interesting to me that in 2021, Eddie Hearn had a net worth of 60 million dollars. How many 9-ball players working for Matchroom can say that? Why is there such a gaping disparity between the earnings of Shane Van Boening and Eddie Hearn?
One of the things I have found while reading JAMs excellent thread and also reading this thread is that there are a lot of people who are really good at telling other people what won't work.
Yes, and no doubt, you'd rather be James Simons than Rory McIlroy.Shane's lifetime of work - $2,124,000.00
Rory's 4 days work - $1,890,000.00
I'll take the 4 days work, thank you very much.
Simons is a hedge fund manager who made $3.4 billion in 2022, which comes to roughly $9,300,000 a day, and, therefore, likely made about $37,000,000 during the four days in which Rory made his $1,890,000.
Whether you are SVB, Rory Mcilroy, or James Simons, you get paid based on the revenue you create for others.
I'll take the $9,300,000 a day, thank you.