Need Input On B.c.a. And V.n.e.a. In Vegas.

jimmy-leggs

jimmy-leggs

A GREAT DAY
Silver Member
I have been to the b.c.a. in vegas for last 6 years running.Always have a great time,great competition, I like watching the pros etc.
A few things i'm hearing now,which I never heard before, is the v.n.e.a.s have:
-Less people so the competition is'nt as fierce(which i really don't care about).
-pool parties at the riv(sounds like fun)
-huge wrap-up party in the parking lot with fireworks and such.
Our team focus throughout the year is to win our trip to vegas,which we always do,but when we get down there our focus is to have fun.SO if v.n.e.a. seems more fun then I think we might give them a try next year.:D
p.s. we are dual sanctioned.:p
basically,what i'm asking here is ...Has anyone been to both and your thoughts on both?thx.
 
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First of all, when I go to Vegas for pool. For me, competition is first and foremost in my book.

That being said, this was my first year to BCA Vegas, and I enjoyed it much more than my last 5 trips to VNEA Vegas. I liked the tables better, watching the pro's and felt that the level of competition was more intense overall.

As far as what you are looking for from your post, VNEA might suit you a bit better. They do a little more as far as partying goes, but that is of little interest to me. If that is your focus, VNEA is probably the way to go.

I have never had a BAD time so it's all good to me.

Peace, Joe
 
jimmy-leggs said:
I have been to the b.c.a. in vegas for last 6 years running.Always have a great time,great competition, I like watching the pros etc.
A few things i'm hearing now,which I never heard before, is the v.n.e.a.s have:
-Less people so the competition is'nt as fierce(which i really don't care about).
-pool parties at the riv(sounds like fun)
-huge wrap-up party in the parking lot with fireworks and such.
Our team focus throughout the year is to win our trip to vegas,which we always do,but when we get down there our focus is to have fun.SO if v.n.e.a. seems more fun then I think we might give them a try next year.:D
p.s. we are dual sanctioned.:p
basically,what i'm asking here is ...Has anyone been to both and your thoughts on both?thx.
Click to expand...

The APA Nationals has a pretty cool pool party in August.

Mind you there will only be pros (pro event running concurrently) at the BCA and ACS team nationals.
 
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Joe Koontz said:
First of all, when I go to Vegas for pool. For me, competition is first and foremost in my book.

That being said, this was my first year to BCA Vegas, and I enjoyed it much more than my last 5 trips to VNEA Vegas. I liked the tables better, watching the pro's and felt that the level of competition was more intense overall.

As far as what you are looking for from your post, VNEA might suit you a bit better. They do a little more as far as partying goes, but that is of little interest to me. If that is your focus, VNEA is probably the way to go.

I have never had a BAD time so it's all good to me.

Peace, Joe
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thx,that is exactly what I wanted to hear.I think we might give v.n.e.a. a try.Don't get me wrong,we are competitive BUT we don't lose any sleep over it.thx
 
CrownCityCorey said:
The APA Nationals has a pretty cool pool part in August.

Mind you there will only be pros (pro event running concurrently) at the BCA and ACS team nationals.
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thx corey.that would be the only downfall(no pro event).But,maybe that would set a fire under my ass to go to an event which i have always wanted to go to,like the u.s. open,d.c.c.,world pool championships.:D
 
I went for VNEA last year, BCA this year and years past. I really like the VNEA - they seem to WANT you there. BCA comes across with the attitude of hey, we're doing you a favor by having this big tournament. VNEA comes across with the attitude of hey, thanks for coming, we're glad you're here, let's have a party with free beer and free food and fireworks. (VNEA has an opening ceremony party as well as the closing banquet.)

BCA has the pros playing at the same venue at the same time. If you're not playing, you can watch them if you like to watch pool. VNEA doesn't have any of that, so you don't feel obligated to hang around to watch pool, and you can go out and have fun without thinking that you're not all about the pool (like I know we all are here).
 
probably the biggest drawback for VNEA is that they let internationals put monster teams together...BCA you have to play with the team you qualified with...not so for VNEA...depends on what you want...
 
I've been to both. I usually go to the VNEA because it fits my schedule better for one thing. It happens during the last week of school for my kids and it's easier to get away. I'm also in their Hall of Fame.
Like was posted before, the fields are not quite so large for the singles events and they are divided into 3 groups. Open, Intermediate, Masters. They had players this year from 9 foreign countries and all over the U.S.
On Monday, after the first weekend, they have a big opening ceremonies party in the back parking lot. The singles awards are presented and a live band always performs. Free draft beer and snacks on all the tables. About 2 or 3000 pool players attend. Then they have a couple of pool parties during the week. Oh yea, and if your team don't do well in the main event, they have a Sportsmans tourney for teams that go out in 2 or 3 matches. And some Hardluck tourneys too. Then the closing ceremonies banquet always has great entertainment and they present the Team awards. Plus a buffet style dinner.
As for the team event. Yes, sometimes they have a team from a foreign country who plays really strong. I'm not sure how their charters are set up.
The people who run the VNEA tourney, from what I've seen the last 13 years, treat everyone like they're happy you came to support pool. I'm sure they have a bump in the road occasionally, but it's a great tourney
Either tournament, you're gonna have fun, It's in Vegas.
 
I qualified once for VNEA. Since then, we do not have any local places to qualify, but the one time I did go, I had a blast. I took 2nd. They run their tournaments single elimination, best 2 out of 3 sets. I didn't know that. I finally went over to the board to see who I would be playing if I lost, and there WAS no other side of the board! :eek:

What I liked was the international flavor...many more countries competing, and that's why it's called the International Championships.

I went to the BCA, flew home to work for a week, then flew back for VNEA. Since I placed high, it was worth it, but it is a long time if you stay the whole month at the Riv.

Parties were fun. Here are a couple pics that you will appreciate, Jimmy. ;)

Bev and I partying.
 

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Here I am getting my award. I got a cool sweatshirt with 'VNEA All Star' on it.

As you can see, there are many countries there and they have the different flags represented, as well as state flags.
 

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OK, the trophies are the Valley cougar and kind of dorky, but they make a great heavy doorstop. Here, I didn't realize how short I was! I think Bev was taking the pic, so I stuck out my tongue. :p
 

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Here's a picture of me with the WA flag. My friend got to be the flagbearer and I posed for a pic.
 

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Here is the German team out by the pool. Can anyone name any of these guys? ;)
 

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Nice pics Linda. A couple of things have changed. First, the main tournaments are double elimination. They had changed some of the singles format due to the high number of entries. Then rescheduled how the events play out and went back to double elimination. Plus, they no have the redraw in part of the events. The "Charlies", have also changed a little bit. I got mine in 2000 and they have changed again since then. Trophies never really meant a lot to me for most tournaments, but if you stop and think about that Charlie, it is pretty strong to get that. There are 100,000 players in the VNEA from around the world. To make it to the top 4 in any division in Vegas, with players coming from all over the world, is something to be proud of. Everyone looks at their achievements different. When I got mine, there was, I believe close to 1300 players. I played against players from Canada, Australia, Spain, and I think Venezuela. Not to mention all over the U.S.
Like you said, the tournament is a blast. I'm not sure I could stay the whole month for the 3 different tournaments either. Thats just too long. Sam
 
satman said:
Nice pics Linda. A couple of things have changed. First, the main tournaments are double elimination. They had changed some of the singles format due to the high number of entries. Then rescheduled how the events play out and went back to double elimination. Plus, they no have the redraw in part of the events. The "Charlies", have also changed a little bit. I got mine in 2000 and they have changed again since then. Trophies never really meant a lot to me for most tournaments, but if you stop and think about that Charlie, it is pretty strong to get that. There are 100,000 players in the VNEA from around the world. To make it to the top 4 in any division in Vegas, with players coming from all over the world, is something to be proud of. Everyone looks at their achievements different. When I got mine, there was, I believe close to 1300 players. I played against players from Canada, Australia, Spain, and I think Venezuela. Not to mention all over the U.S.
Like you said, the tournament is a blast. I'm not sure I could stay the whole month for the 3 different tournaments either. Thats just too long. Sam
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I never realized they had a name, but believe me, I am proud of winning that trophy. It was a lot of playing against excellent players. I remember in particular playing a couple great players from Spain. It was funny because as I was on the 7 ball to go the last ball on the end rail, I thought to myself, "When I make this, I will be the champion!" Oops, hung the 7 ball. :(
 
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