The e-mails went out last night with several links to players and pool folk around the world -- at least those who own computers and are signed up on the IPT website e-mail list -- about what's happening up ahead. I picked out a couple highlights which I thought were very worthy of mention. 
Kevin Trudeau began the 38-minute audio by giving an update on where things are today. The IPT broadcasts will be produced unlike any other pool tournament. It’s not what you see on ESPN. It’s not just two people playing a race to seven in 9-ball. They will be producing ten 1-hour episodes.
As an example, each episode will be one of the matches of the KOTH tourney. It’s more like watching golf. When you watch golf on TV, you are not watching one player the entire time. It jumps around, another hole here, a player putting, another player driving, all over the golf course, giving you a flavor of who is in the lead. You are watching the tourney as a whole. This is how the KOTH will come across.
You are watching, yes, the KOTH tourney, but it’s more than that. There will be story lines about the players in general. Not just one match, but maybe a game on a key match, maybe the key shot, maybe the key matchup, maybe one key game, one turning point. As well, there will be player interviews to learn about the players, get to know the players, get to like certain players, get to hate certain players. It will be similar to World Series of Poker-style programming or watching a PGA tournament.
When the Sigel vs. Jones KOTH was aired on The Best Damn Sports Show, there were MAJOR sponsors who took notice, i.e., Geico, Ford, Volvo, a vodka company, and the ratings were 25 to 30-percent higher than expected. When the KOTH came to Orlando, not only was it front-page news in the Orlando paper, but it was on radio programs all over the world. AND, best of all, ESPN's "Sports Center" listed the IPT KOTH on their list of "biggest sporting events of the year 2005," which is very significant.
Here's a little nugget I liked. The IPT will be broadcasting these as a weekly TV show which will air in prime time. Not in the afternoon or 1:00 in the morning. Prime time, once a week, there will be a "pool night." Watching the weekly episodes, each one will be building up to the crescendo which is incredibly exciting.
And there's more. Currently, there are negotiations in progress, and the IPT is very close to coming to agreement with entities in Europe and Asia to film the NEXT tournament live -- not film it live, but actually BROADACAST it live. The exact information will come forth within the next 2 to 3 weeks .
Of course, most of us pool people are wondering: WHEN, pray tell, will the next IPT tournament occur?
Well, here's the skinny, from what I could ascertain.
When is the next tournament? Why the delay? The IPT had to delay the schedule for ’06 because of the negotiations with television, things like worldwide rights, continents like Europe and Asia who want to go live, and as well deal with the other worldwide sporting events and issues. The IPT has to be careful not to have certain dates because of maybe a World Cup or another type of sporting event. All dates must be considered, not just for U.S., but around the world to not coincide with the dates of the venues.
Because of the success of TV and other interests, there are venues now, hotel chains, casino chains, and cities -- yes, CITIES -- coming to them saying, "Please bring the tour to our city," offering huge amounts of incentives and monies. Within the next few weeks, the tournament date will be nailed down, based on TV availability, space availability at venues that really want the IPT.
The IPT will have their own equipment, their own chalk, the best chalk ever, developed specifically for the IPT. Also being manufactured? Their own balls and cue balls with the highest specs ever, IPT-sanctioned official balls. The IPT will have their own pool cloth, IPT cloth manufactured by a mill that meets the IPT specs. Diamond Pool Tables will be the official table of the IPT, but Diamond is making a table SPECIFICALLY to IPT tourney specs. There's a much lighter, less expensive Sardo Tight Rack designed specifically for IPT, much lighter, less expensive, and brand new. Coming soon will be IPT cue sticks.
Here's the best part for my camp. The players will finally get paid. He explained that a lot of people are earning $150,000 salaries, flying first class, and then putting on a tournament and paying 15,000 for winning. [Where have I heard this before?
]
Everyone in the world of pool is getting rich, making money, living the life of Riley, except the players. When Nick Varner Johnny Archer, Kim Davenport, and Kevin were talking about the state of pool, the guys and gals, the players, have been taken advantage of, and it’s got to stop. The IPT is the players tour. It is the tour for the players. They are raising the bar, bringing pool to a place that it has never been before.
He also stated that he enjoyed getting the chance to shake hands with 150 players at the KOTH in Orlando, the girlfriends, wives and husbands, partners, and he is excited that everyone else is so excited. Interestingly, Kevin Trudeau did mention that the IPT does NOT respond on message boards.
In sum, it was stressed that everyone who is interested in the IPT Tour should get on the IPT website and sign up for e-mails for constant updates. Check the IPT website often. The dates will be nailed down within 2 to 3 weeks for all of ’06 and ’07. After the dates are nailed down, then there will be final negotiations on the EXACT venue.
As a personal note, I don't know if Kevin Trudeau reads this forum, but if he doesn't, he sure is kept abreast by others. He is a hands-on kind of guy, which is refreshing to me. Some of the topics he touched on sure did have a familiar ring to them if you are a "regular" AzBilliards Discussion Forum reader.
In this day and age of technology, there are MANY players who don't have the skills set needed to use a computer. I know this may sound strange to those of us here on this forum (LOL), but it's a fact. If you know of a player who might be interested in the IPT, help them out by spreading the word. FWIW, I know quite a few pool players who fit this bill. When Spanish Mike Lebron heard the IPT buzz at the 2005 U.S. Open this past September, he asked me to help him sign up for the IPT on a computer. He has no skills whatsoever, but he had enough sense to apply and hope he got picked, which he did.
This is one void I see in disseminating the IPT message. If you cannot get on a computer, you're left out of the loop a bit. There are a couple players in my neck of the woods who do not have access to the computer, but are VERY INTERESTED in qualifying for the IPT. So they keep tabs on it by word of mouth. If you know of a player who may like to be a part of the IPT experience, help 'em out.
To learn more about the IPT, go to the website, sign up for the e-mail updates, and check out the events as they unfold: http://www.internationalpooltour.com
Anyway, I like this guy's style and look forward to a new era in pool. Being an IPT "member" provides profit-sharing bonuses and financial benefits in addition to the tournament wins. This is VERY EXCITING STUFF, coming from a player's point of view! As a pool enthusiast, I am elated to see the SPORT being taken seriously, and this is only the begining.
JAM
Kevin Trudeau began the 38-minute audio by giving an update on where things are today. The IPT broadcasts will be produced unlike any other pool tournament. It’s not what you see on ESPN. It’s not just two people playing a race to seven in 9-ball. They will be producing ten 1-hour episodes.
As an example, each episode will be one of the matches of the KOTH tourney. It’s more like watching golf. When you watch golf on TV, you are not watching one player the entire time. It jumps around, another hole here, a player putting, another player driving, all over the golf course, giving you a flavor of who is in the lead. You are watching the tourney as a whole. This is how the KOTH will come across.
You are watching, yes, the KOTH tourney, but it’s more than that. There will be story lines about the players in general. Not just one match, but maybe a game on a key match, maybe the key shot, maybe the key matchup, maybe one key game, one turning point. As well, there will be player interviews to learn about the players, get to know the players, get to like certain players, get to hate certain players. It will be similar to World Series of Poker-style programming or watching a PGA tournament.
When the Sigel vs. Jones KOTH was aired on The Best Damn Sports Show, there were MAJOR sponsors who took notice, i.e., Geico, Ford, Volvo, a vodka company, and the ratings were 25 to 30-percent higher than expected. When the KOTH came to Orlando, not only was it front-page news in the Orlando paper, but it was on radio programs all over the world. AND, best of all, ESPN's "Sports Center" listed the IPT KOTH on their list of "biggest sporting events of the year 2005," which is very significant.
Here's a little nugget I liked. The IPT will be broadcasting these as a weekly TV show which will air in prime time. Not in the afternoon or 1:00 in the morning. Prime time, once a week, there will be a "pool night." Watching the weekly episodes, each one will be building up to the crescendo which is incredibly exciting.
And there's more. Currently, there are negotiations in progress, and the IPT is very close to coming to agreement with entities in Europe and Asia to film the NEXT tournament live -- not film it live, but actually BROADACAST it live. The exact information will come forth within the next 2 to 3 weeks .
Of course, most of us pool people are wondering: WHEN, pray tell, will the next IPT tournament occur?
Well, here's the skinny, from what I could ascertain.When is the next tournament? Why the delay? The IPT had to delay the schedule for ’06 because of the negotiations with television, things like worldwide rights, continents like Europe and Asia who want to go live, and as well deal with the other worldwide sporting events and issues. The IPT has to be careful not to have certain dates because of maybe a World Cup or another type of sporting event. All dates must be considered, not just for U.S., but around the world to not coincide with the dates of the venues.
Because of the success of TV and other interests, there are venues now, hotel chains, casino chains, and cities -- yes, CITIES -- coming to them saying, "Please bring the tour to our city," offering huge amounts of incentives and monies. Within the next few weeks, the tournament date will be nailed down, based on TV availability, space availability at venues that really want the IPT.
The IPT will have their own equipment, their own chalk, the best chalk ever, developed specifically for the IPT. Also being manufactured? Their own balls and cue balls with the highest specs ever, IPT-sanctioned official balls. The IPT will have their own pool cloth, IPT cloth manufactured by a mill that meets the IPT specs. Diamond Pool Tables will be the official table of the IPT, but Diamond is making a table SPECIFICALLY to IPT tourney specs. There's a much lighter, less expensive Sardo Tight Rack designed specifically for IPT, much lighter, less expensive, and brand new. Coming soon will be IPT cue sticks.
Here's the best part for my camp. The players will finally get paid. He explained that a lot of people are earning $150,000 salaries, flying first class, and then putting on a tournament and paying 15,000 for winning. [Where have I heard this before?
]Everyone in the world of pool is getting rich, making money, living the life of Riley, except the players. When Nick Varner Johnny Archer, Kim Davenport, and Kevin were talking about the state of pool, the guys and gals, the players, have been taken advantage of, and it’s got to stop. The IPT is the players tour. It is the tour for the players. They are raising the bar, bringing pool to a place that it has never been before.
He also stated that he enjoyed getting the chance to shake hands with 150 players at the KOTH in Orlando, the girlfriends, wives and husbands, partners, and he is excited that everyone else is so excited. Interestingly, Kevin Trudeau did mention that the IPT does NOT respond on message boards.
In sum, it was stressed that everyone who is interested in the IPT Tour should get on the IPT website and sign up for e-mails for constant updates. Check the IPT website often. The dates will be nailed down within 2 to 3 weeks for all of ’06 and ’07. After the dates are nailed down, then there will be final negotiations on the EXACT venue.
As a personal note, I don't know if Kevin Trudeau reads this forum, but if he doesn't, he sure is kept abreast by others. He is a hands-on kind of guy, which is refreshing to me. Some of the topics he touched on sure did have a familiar ring to them if you are a "regular" AzBilliards Discussion Forum reader.
In this day and age of technology, there are MANY players who don't have the skills set needed to use a computer. I know this may sound strange to those of us here on this forum (LOL), but it's a fact. If you know of a player who might be interested in the IPT, help them out by spreading the word. FWIW, I know quite a few pool players who fit this bill. When Spanish Mike Lebron heard the IPT buzz at the 2005 U.S. Open this past September, he asked me to help him sign up for the IPT on a computer. He has no skills whatsoever, but he had enough sense to apply and hope he got picked, which he did.
This is one void I see in disseminating the IPT message. If you cannot get on a computer, you're left out of the loop a bit. There are a couple players in my neck of the woods who do not have access to the computer, but are VERY INTERESTED in qualifying for the IPT. So they keep tabs on it by word of mouth. If you know of a player who may like to be a part of the IPT experience, help 'em out.
To learn more about the IPT, go to the website, sign up for the e-mail updates, and check out the events as they unfold: http://www.internationalpooltour.com
Anyway, I like this guy's style and look forward to a new era in pool. Being an IPT "member" provides profit-sharing bonuses and financial benefits in addition to the tournament wins. This is VERY EXCITING STUFF, coming from a player's point of view! As a pool enthusiast, I am elated to see the SPORT being taken seriously, and this is only the begining.
JAM
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