Mosconi cup attendance

S

spiraklas

Registered
Hey all,

I'm thinking to attend the Mosconi Cup in London this December since I am located currently in Greece and is a chance for me to go as I always wanted to experience the whole event. I saved some money and thought even to buy the VIP tickets. But I had a couple of questions so if anyone has ever attended before I'd love some input:

Does it worth buying VIP tickets or is it overestimated? Do you really get all those extras and the close-up seating to the arena or do random guys just might pop up in front of you?

What about the rest of the tickets? Does anyone use the platinum before or the cheaper ones and he was satisfied?

What are some tips that I need to take care of regarding the whole event? Like do I need to be there early as possible due to the crowded queue and how can I optimize the best experience for myself?

Furthermore how to settle accommodation? Airbnb? Hotels? I have a really nice classmate from uni leaving in London but still haven't reached him out. What are the options out there and what people do?

And lastly, I am completely alone and don't have any friends that want to join. Is there a place to search for people that have the same interest and would like to go together?


Thanks
 
If they bring in the usual set of MC bleachers you will want to be as close to the table as possible.

The bleachers they usually use have a shallow rise to them, so the further back you get the more difficult (impossible) it becomes to see the action and you basically end up watching on the TV screens.

Lou Figueroa
 
Whether the VIP seating is worth it to you depends on your budget. It is nice to have dinner with other fans along with the other perks, but is it worth $100/day or so? An alternative is to get the VIP for the first night and Gold for the next three.

I think the Gold is the best seating. It's close but far enough away that you can see the overhead monitors easily. You will spend a fair amount of time watching replays and shot angles on the monitors.

It's all assigned seating so you don't have to worry about the queue. Years ago it was by first in line. It looks like there are lots of seats available. Day tickets allow you to pick the exact seat.

There are a couple of hotels close to Alexandra Palace (Wood Green). One is listed now under $70/night -- check the reviews. I've stayed in central London and taken the underground+bus. The Wood Green stop is on the Piccadilly line which also goes to Heathrow.
 
Not sure about the Mosconi, but in 2019 the better half and I went to the Open in Vegas ( the first and only one to take place out there) and the VIP was well worth it! They had a 9ft table for any time use and a P3 with revo to try. Plus unlimited drinks. Overall worth it and quite the treat for our first experience with Matchroom.
 
I went to 2019 in Vegas. Had a wonderful time. Lots of nice people in the stands to talk to. I bought middle price level tickets. They were great. Really exciting. You don't usually see all that cheering at pool tournaments. I am considering next year. The USA must put together a competitive team. If USA loses I can live with that, but it has to be interesting. I dont want to see them out of it by day two.
 
kaznj said:
I went to 2019 in Vegas. Had a wonderful time. Lots of nice people in the stands to talk to. I bought middle price level tickets. They were great. Really exciting. You don't usually see all that cheering at pool tournaments. I am considering next year. The USA must put together a competitive team. If USA loses I can live with that, but it has to be interesting. I dont want to see them out of it by day two.
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I think you hit on it why watching pool isn't appealing to the average viewer. In the United States at least, there is no excitement. Except for the last couple of Mosconi cups that were played in Vegas. Most pool matches, to an average viewer is boring... a snooze fest. Might as well put cardboard cutouts in the audience like in 2020 baseball games. But the one thing they got right about the mosconi cup, is it has excitement.

And that adds pressure on the players, because they feel that excitement. Earl stated in his interview with matchroom that the mosconi cup is one of the highest pressure events a player can participate in. That's why I like it.
 
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buckshotshoey said:
I think you hit on it why watching pool isn't appealing to the average viewer. In the United States at least, there is no excitement. Except for the last couple of Mosconi cups that were played in Vegas. Most pool matches, to an average viewer is boring... a snooze fest. Might as well put cardboard cutouts in the audience like in 2020 baseball games. But the one thing they got right about the mosconi cup, is it has excitement.

And that adds pressure on the players, because they feel that excitement. Earl stated in his interview with matchroom that the mosconi cup is one of the highest pressure events a player can participate in. That's why I like it.
Click to expand...
I guess I'm an outlier here. I still enjoy watching a well played match between two very good pool players. Good shot making, great safety play and well played position shots remain quite interesting to me. I don't really care so much about their personality quirks or much else if they are playing good pool. There are exceptions though when a player exhibits unsportsmanslike behavior or becomes argumentative or disruptive. Thankfully there are very few pool players who get out of line that way, Earl being one of them. I can only think of two or three others who have been real troublemakers during tournaments. Not bad considering all the players we see competing on a regular basis in the major tournaments. Pool remains a civilized sport and I like it that way. Trying to add interest by injecting uncertainty and potential trouble is not something I would ever want to be a part of.

I will only add this. There is a beauty and purity to a well played game of pool that is unmatched in the sports world. Only golf comes close to matching it, and for that reason I like to watch golf too. I guess that makes me a dinosaur of some kind, but that's okay. I suspect I'm not the only one who feels this way. To be successful on the world stage, pool does not have to appeal to tens of millions of die hard fans, like baseball, basketball or football. If there are a million people out there like me, that's enough to make it a worthwhile endeavor for both players and promoters. I have personally been part of some very successful tournaments where the arenas were packed with standing room only crowds. And they all seemed to like what they were seeing. Nobody walked out in the 7th inning or left midway through the fourth quarter. Put that in your pipe and smoke it!
 
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jay helfert said:
I guess I'm an outlier here. I still enjoy watching a well played match between two very good pool players. Good shot making, great safety play and well played position shots remain quite interesting to me. I don't really care so much about their personality quirks or much else if they are playing good pool. There are exceptions though when a player exhibits unsportsmanslike behavior or becomes argumentative or disruptive. Thankfully there are very few pool players who get out of line that way, Earl being one of them. I can only think of two or three others who have been real troublemakers during tournaments. Not bad considering all the players we see competing on a regular basis in the major tournaments. Pool remains a civilized sport and I like it that way. Trying to add interest by injecting uncertainty and potential trouble is not something I would ever want to be a part of.
Click to expand...
I do agree with you. But I said, " for the average viewer". I can do without some of the bad behavior and the European audiences. But the excitement level does put extra pressure on the players. That's what I like.
 
buckshotshoey said:
I do agree with you. But I said, " for the average viewer". I can do without some of the bad behavior and the European audiences. But the excitement level does put extra pressure on the players. That's what I like.
Click to expand...
No question that the excitement level is amped up in the MC. The short races, worldwide coverage and huge prestige involved definitely adds to the pressure on every shot. I've seen many meltdowns take place in that environment. Noteworthy to me are the large arenas packed with fans who pay good money to watch this event. There is money to be made promoting professional pool and that translates to more money for the players as well. All good as far as I'm concerned.
 
jay helfert said:
I guess I'm an outlier here. I still enjoy watching a well played match between two very good pool players. Good shot making, great safety play and well played position shots remain quite interesting to me. I don't really care so much about their personality quirks or much else if they are playing good pool. There are exceptions though when a player exhibits unsportsmanslike behavior or becomes argumentative or disruptive. Thankfully there are very few pool players who get out of line that way, Earl being one of them. I can only think of two or three others who have been real troublemakers during tournaments. Not bad considering all the players we see competing on a regular basis in the major tournaments. Pool remains a civilized sport and I like it that way. Trying to add interest by injecting uncertainty and potential trouble is not something I would ever want to be a part of.

I will only add this. There is a beauty and purity to a well played game of pool that is unmatched in the sports world. Only golf comes close to matching it, and for that reason I like to watch golf too. I guess that makes me a dinosaur of some kind, but that's okay. I suspect I'm not the only one who feels this way. To be successful on the world stage, pool does not have to appeal to tens of millions of die hard fans, like baseball, basketball or football. If there are a million people out there like me, that's enough to make it a worthwhile endeavor for both players and promoters. I have personally been part of some very successful tournaments where the arenas were packed with standing room only crowds. And they all seemed to like what they were seeing. Nobody walked out in the 7th inning or left midway through the fourth quarter. Put that in your pipe and smoke it!
Click to expand...
I agree pool is the best sport to watch, I also watch a little golf and I don't even play.

I couldn't name 20 professional athletes from all other sports combined.
 
buckshotshoey said:
I do agree with you. But I said, " for the average viewer". I can do without some of the bad behavior and the European audiences. But the excitement level does put extra pressure on the players. That's what I like.
Click to expand...
I love the European fans and would want to sit right in the middle of all of them at an event. The rest of you can sit with the fat Americans falling asleep or on their phones just like we see at every streamed event.
 
jay helfert said:
I guess I'm an outlier here. I still enjoy watching a well played match between two very good pool players. Good shot making, great safety play and well played position shots remain quite interesting to me. I don't really care so much about their personality quirks or much else if they are playing good pool. There are exceptions though when a player exhibits unsportsmanslike behavior or becomes argumentative or disruptive. Thankfully there are very few pool players who get out of line that way, Earl being one of them. I can only think of two or three others who have been real troublemakers during tournaments. Not bad considering all the players we see competing on a regular basis in the major tournaments. Pool remains a civilized sport and I like it that way. Trying to add interest by injecting uncertainty and potential trouble is not something I would ever want to be a part of.

I will only add this. There is a beauty and purity to a well played game of pool that is unmatched in the sports world. Only golf comes close to matching it, and for that reason I like to watch golf too. I guess that makes me a dinosaur of some kind, but that's okay. I suspect I'm not the only one who feels this way. To be successful on the world stage, pool does not have to appeal to tens of millions of die hard fans, like baseball, basketball or football. If there are a million people out there like me, that's enough to make it a worthwhile endeavor for both players and promoters. I have personally been part of some very successful tournaments where the arenas were packed with standing room only crowds. And they all seemed to like what they were seeing. Nobody walked out in the 7th inning or left midway through the fourth quarter. Put that in your pipe and smoke it!
Click to expand...

very well put. and i don't really see a conflict between an engaged crowd and games being played beautifully. just not mosconi-level of engagement/inebriation, all the time. it's a once a year thing and should stay that way. i think the early noughties world championships were great, in cardiff, manila, taiwan. lots of crowd, lots of pressure, but not completely crazy. and you did some good commentary there too, iirc.
 
Bob Jewett said:
Whether the VIP seating is worth it to you depends on your budget. It is nice to have dinner with other fans along with the other perks, but is it worth $100/day or so? An alternative is to get the VIP for the first night and Gold for the next three.

I think the Gold is the best seating. It's close but far enough away that you can see the overhead monitors easily. You will spend a fair amount of time watching replays and shot angles on the monitors.

It's all assigned seating so you don't have to worry about the queue. Years ago it was by first in line. It looks like there are lots of seats available. Day tickets allow you to pick the exact seat.

There are a couple of hotels close to Alexandra Palace (Wood Green). One is listed now under $70/night -- check the reviews. I've stayed in central London and taken the underground+bus. The Wood Green stop is on the Piccadilly line which also goes to Heathrow.
Click to expand...
Awesome. I think I might go with the gold. Is just 3 rows back in some areas and the difference in money is huge. I also found a nice hotel at Wood green as you mentioned and the only one with available rooms on those dates and near the Alexander Palace (only 15 min walk - 1.5 Km)
 
jasonlaus said:
I love the European fans and would want to sit right in the middle of all of them at an event. The rest of you can sit with the fat Americans falling asleep or on their phones just like we see at every streamed event.
Click to expand...
I do agree with you. I like the excitement from the European fans. They have spirit and love of the game of pool.

Here's an example of what I don't like... When a fan is insulting Johnny Archers wife. Pure uncalled for in my opinion. The bum should have been tossed out.
 
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