Johnnyt said:
About 20 more of them on the WPBA Tour need to do the same as Karen. I can't even see where that is legal. That's how they make their living. Karen makes out OK on the tour...but what about the 90% of them that don't? Johnnyt
Not only is it legal, but it's the formula that explains why the WPBA is still around after 30 years and no other American pool organization has survived.
The WPBA players, voluntarily, sign a contract annually and the provisions of that contract (devised by the players themselves) are made quite clear in its text. The contract, more or less, says that the player can participate in WPBA events and a) earn exempt status into every event through perfromance, b) gain TV appearances for which the WPBA itself will cover the production budget, and c) earn money from the prize fund made possible by title and venue sponsors attained by the WPBA. In exchange for providing these opportunities, the WPBA asks for, among other things, exclusive rights to the player, with the proviso that permission is required to play in any non-WPBA sanctioned or affiliated event. These days, permission is customarily granted when WPBA players ask to play in men's regional events having no TV coverage or internet streaming.
Why do exclusive rights matter? Because title and venue sponsors, assured that the stars of the WPBA will gain TV or internet coverage in WPBA events only, are willing to pay bigger sponsor and sanctioning fees because of it. By maintaining exclusive rights to its players, the WPBA has been able to sell its product much more easily, and that is one of the key reasons that the WPBA business model has worked for so many years.
I'm not going to argue for or against the current policy, and like you, I'd like to see WPBA pros have as many opportunities as possible to supplement their incomes. Still, your suggestion that there may be something illegal going on here is in error.
If John Q Public Fan could watch an Allison Fisher or Karen Corr live or on TV without attending or watching the telecast of a WPBA event, then title and venue sponsors know that the appearance of these players at their venue is made just a little less special.
Want to watch the best women in competition in America? Then, for the most part, you'll have to attend or watch WPBA-sanctioned events. It has been that way for a long time, and that's a big part of why the WPBA has stood the test of time. This is a true unity among the WPBA players, and the men have not had this kind of unity in recent decades.