let me say, i for one would love nothing more than to have pool as serious as a brain surgory operation. i appreciate the fact that good pool is skill at it's highest level. like golf, pool pros should be respected, and it should be looked at as a very involved (thinking ahead, pattern play positional skill, safteys, etc. etc.) i would love pool to finally after all these years get the respect it deserves, nothing would make me more pleased. but let us remember, everything comes down to money and television ratings, the ENTIRE ipt is based on ratings. the people who watch golf, in general are rich white republican men, who buy mercedes,and blue chip stocks, so the PGA has sponsorship, from these huge corporations, so that is how golf survives, mom's sisters, and grandmothers basically as a rule do not watch golf, thus the corporate sponsers do not care, because they have the rich white man supporting them, and that's all they care about. what i'm saying is this, the ipt's goal is to build an auidence, find an auidence, nuture the auidence. ratings is ALL important. now, i'm not saying pool players acting like clowns will be the ultimate answer, it won't, but pool players looking and thinking, looking and thinking, may not work either, agreed? what i am saying is that the reason why kevin is doing this in the first place is because he believes that pool can be profitable if shown to the "right" auidence. you see, ESPN was a HUGE failure, huge! they didn't and do not care about pool, they used it as filler! they only put it on when they needed to fill up space. thus, look who they got to watch pool~~~ not many people. the more mother's daughter's grandmothers and PEOPLE WHO DO NOT normally watch pool, tune in, the more success the ipt will have. so, as kevin said in the very first meeting, "television is everything", he went on to say, "this entire tour is based around television" "television comes first" and he is RIGHT! television should come first, let's face it, many, many millionaires, could have started a tour, but how many have the brains like kevin, to do it the right way, my answer, none of them, kevin, not only has the money, but the brains, to take the ipt and 8-ball into middle america, into everyone's homes, people will be saying, "i can't go out tonight veronica, the IPT is on, and on the coming attractions, mike sigel get's into a riff with c.j. wiley." now, there is TV. this is what will intrest middle america. not backspin, or inside english, no, personalitys, clashes, people human beings, under pressure, it's a new angle on pool, once again, they are NOT trying to make pool into circus, no, they will make it serrious, but with human drama, and inside,backround going on's with the players, and trying to survive. does this make sense? do you see the difference? it will feel as your there, sweating out the matches, and each week will bring more and more pressure and drama, until the finals! the auidence at home will come to love certain personalitys and hate other's, so that's where the ipt is at, it's not just pool like accu-stats or ESPN. it goes beyond that, it goes into the hearts and sweat of the player. i think i just won for longest post!