IPT Players Cue Survey...

[SirBanksALot]

Don't know how many were paying attention to the Cue Survey going on in the IPT forum but it was interesting to note not only who was using what particular cue but that many of the big name top dollar cues highly touted as having the "...best hitting" reputation had little or no representation in that survey.

I understand that many IPT players listed on that survey do have sponsorships. I would assume (ass u me) that the unsponsored IPT guys are going to use the best cue (shaft) combination that gets the job done - regardless of reputation and hype and $$$.

That explains why the $500 titanium driver I just bought still has a tendency to go into unchartered waters and my 4 year old tried and true Fairway Flyer does just fine !!!

* Zimmerman uses a Roger Pettit cue. Pettit has a huge following in the Pacific Northwest. There's a butterfly Pettit on EBay right now that's going to fetch its owner a pretty penny.

 

[rackmsuckr]

* Zimmerman uses a Roger Pettit cue. Pettit has a huge following in the Pacific Northwest. There's a butterfly Pettit on EBay right now that's going to fetch its owner a pretty penny.

Roger usually makes all of Mike's cues, but Dave Jones does some beautiful work and has given Mike a cue to play with. He is in the Blue Book this year. However, Mike still prefers the hit of the Pettit cue. Roger works on his own timetable, but his work is flawless, plus he has a bunch of OLD wood he makes his cues from. Roger also is the only one that we consistently use to put on tips for us, or does our shaft work.

 

[Timberly]

I understand that many IPT players listed on that survey do have sponsorships.

I would guestimate that no more than 10 of the 150 are sponsored by a cue company.

 

[SirBanksALot]

Pettit

Roger usually makes all of Mike's cues, but Dave Jones does some beautiful work and has given Mike a cue to play with. He is in the Blue Book this year. However, Mike still prefers the hit of the Pettit cue. Roger works on his own timetable, but his work is flawless, plus he has a bunch of OLD wood he makes his cues from. Roger also is the only one that we consistently use to put on tips for us, or does our shaft work.

A local player in our area has a classic looking four point 3 veneer cue that Roger made for him out of an old house cue. It plays very nice. He has always spoke in glowing terms about Roger and says Roger is building him a titlist coversion as we speak.

You Pacific NWers have some outstanding cuebuilders in your neck of the woods!

 

[rackmsuckr]

A local player in our area has a classic looking four point 3 veneer cue that Roger made for him out of an old house cue. It plays very nice. He has always spoke in glowing terms about Roger and says Roger is building him a titlist coversion as we speak.

You Pacific NWers have some outstanding cuebuilders in your neck of the woods!

Yes, besides Roger and Dave, we also have Dave Tice, (gorgeous inlays and point work!), had Bill Webb and Big Joe in Bellingham. I know there are more, but their names escape me at the moment.

 

[mnShooter]

I would guestimate that no more than 10 of the 150 are sponsored by a cue company.

I believe it is much higher. Probably closer to 50%. There is a local player around here who isn't even pro who is sponsored by predator.

 

[Timberly]

I believe it is much higher. Probably closer to 50%. There is a local player around here who isn't even pro who is sponsored by predator.

It might be higher than 10 but it's no where close to 50%. Very few pro players have a real cue sponsorship. Some players are given a cue free of charge and they call that sponsorship. Some are given a cue free of charge and then given a cue x amount of times per yr for them to sell and make a little money. I'm talking about the sponsorship like Mika with Mezz, Ralf with Joss, Allison & Earl with cuetech.... these are real sponsorships. They're not only given a cue, they're also bringing in a salary.

If you're talking about folks that were handed a cue free of charge to use... sure, the numbers go up. When you're talking about a sponsorhip that helps to pay the bills.... not many over 10 as best as I can tell. I also don't know who all is sponsored by whom. Just going over the IPT player list and counting them off the top of my head... I can't see it being too much over 10.

I could be wrong and I hope that I am. If I'm wrong then that means the players are getting more than they used to get. It just seems like there's a huge misconception about players and sponsorship. Most of the folks on here think that the players are getting more than they actually get.

In another thread in another forum section someone was under the impression that players are given a small fee to use break cues by the companies that produce break cues. That isn't the case.... not even close. Pro players rarely have to pay for a cue but that's usually where the perks stop. They rarely get paid by the company to use the cue.

 

[Timberly]

I believe it is much higher. Probably closer to 50%. There is a local player around here who isn't even pro who is sponsored by predator.

I'll bet you a beer that they were probably given a shaft & maybe even a cue. In return, they have to wear the predator patch.

 

[Tokyo-dave]

As was stated in another post, simply being given a predator shaft or cue in return for wearing a patch is far from being sponsored. I don't know about numbers, but I'm sure several players are playing with cues they got for free from various cue makers, but that's not what I would consider sponsorship. Sponsorship would be recieving a determined yearly salary for using a particular product, and in more lucrative sponsorships, expenses including entry fees, air fare, hotel, meals. That's sponsorship. Here in Japan, winning a medium size 70 player or more house tournament with a couple of pro entries will almost certanly result in phone calls from Adam and/or Mezz, and/or a dealership offering predator shafts for free, but it stops there. That's not sponsorship, that's free publicity for a certain product maker/dealer.
dave

 

[rackmsuckr]

I would agree with Timberly and Tokyo Dave - most players ENDORSE products that are given to them free, in exchange for some advertising and recommendations. When I list my sponsors, Viking and Talisman are on there, but they don't give me money. Product is almost as good as money, though.

 

[Timberly]

I would agree with Timberly and Tokyo Dave - most players ENDORSE products that are given to them free, in exchange for some advertising and recommendations. When I list my sponsors, Viking and Talisman are on there, but they don't give me money. Product is almost as good as money, though.

ENDORSE was the the word I was trying to come up with and couldn't. Thanks Linda!

Product sponsorship can be as good as money when it's a good product. You not only save money by not having to purchase it for your personal use but you can also sell the product that they give you in order to put some cash in your pocket for expenses like dinner while on the road.