Rodney- what happened?

Barry Behrman has been known to talk down to and belittle players. When he didn't pay for many years after 9-11 (and in fact I don't know if all the money has been paid yet) Mika Immonen had the audacity to ask for payment and Barry threw him out of the convention center.

Well, this is just a bullshit move. And if this is the most pretigious tournament in the United States then it just lost it's luster in my eyes.
 
Originally Posted by Bigkahuna
As a TD you may find it necassary to create a rule in the middle of a tournament. You can't have distraction. How else are you going to handle it?

With tact, class, dignity and respect. None of which were show by Barry Behrman to a former winner of this event and his family.
 
billiardshot said:
A simply thought. What would Wille Hoppe or Mosconi Think???
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Willie Hoppe would have accepted it and had his children taken care outside the arena.

Wille Mosconi would not have allowed his children to attend in the first place and would have punched Barry Behrman in the nose if he came at Willie as Behrman did to Rodney.
 
Not letting kids in to watch US open matches, let alone their dad play is a complete joke. When did pool become so popular that it could turn away fans of the game.

Whats next - sneeze during a match - ejected
cough - see ya
tear open a candy bar - later!!

I could see if your child was yelling and scream during the match, but hell, anyone yelling and screaming during a match is going to be asked to leave.
 
I see six pages of posts but is there anybody here who was actually watching the match to see what happened?
 
John, I've been to tournaments and I've seen how some of the adults act. It's atrocious and yes, I think those people should be escorted out too. Not once did I say kids shouldn't be there but drunk idiots should. And, I think drinking alcohol should not be allowed. Food shouldn't be allowed in the arena either, especially crunchy food that makes noise.
MULLY
 
billiardshot said:
A simply thought. What would Wille Hoppe or Mosconi Think???
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I would imagine either would think "good". Mosconi held strong opinions on the purity of the sport. If he were playing a world championship match back in the day and had to deal with some kid screaming at his mom that he wants an icecream while he was trying to run a 150 to defend his world title I cannot imagine he would not want that distraction to exit the building.

I honestly don't see the issue with this. A kid under 6 years old is going to get very little out of sitting in a building with a pool tournament going on. Well raised they might remain quiet but they would rather be playing in a playground then sitting trying to stay quiet during a pool tournament. And while some kids might remain quiet (and if they sat and remained quiet they obviously would not have been told to leave) others will not and you must set a age limit and stick by it to assure that the players who are paying a large sum of money to come and play in the event are given the respect to play in a situation that does not include trying to concentrate when kids in the crowd are making an excessive amount of noise.

I know if I had paid the thousands of dollars to fly to the event, enter it, and pay for the hotel and then had to deal with disturbances in the audience caused by kids under 6 years old I would be unimpressed to say the least. You must be fair to ALL the players in the event, not just one who wants his very young children to be allowed to be in the crowd being a dsitraction to ALL the players.
 
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That's fine Celtic but make it a rule PRIOR to the event and post it on your website and have a sign made that explains this and all the other "spectator rules".

I would bet a million dollars that if the Mayor showed up with his under 6 kids then they would be escorted to a VIP seat without any problem at all.

But Rodney is "just" a player, he can be dismissed.
 
Some of the arguments I've read are downright silly on this theme. I'll tell you right now that I could NOT bring my kids to an event like this because I know they won't behave. Obviously Rodney's kids have been around the game and understand the basics of behavior as spectators. I sat behind Shayna and his kids at VF this year and I can tell you that the kids know how to behave and she knows how to control them. Like many have stated it isn't just children EVERYONE needs to know how to behave and carry themselves be they competitors or spectators.
 
I wonder if Rodney went to the Champions dinner last night that Barry put on for all former champs?
 
LoGiC said:
This isn't really a big surprise. The way many old time players hold on to their way of playing the game and thinking its superior to all others. Children were rarely found in pool halls. There was no need for a rule. Especially an illiterate one, a great reflection for the popular opinion on our game.

If this becomes a precedent, its just another nail in the coffin for billiards.
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With attitudes like this YOU may become a self fulfilling prophecy.
 
bfdlad said:
I wonder if Rodney went to the Champions dinner last night that Barry put on for all former champs?
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Yes, he was there and Barry publicly apologized to him for making an error in judgement. He offered no further explanation other than that. All is well in Opensville and Rodney played his match last night and remains undefeated.
 
The rule

Most kids under 6 do not belong at matches, they are just being pacified by an adult anyway.

BUT, I do think the rule should have just stated that anyone, children included, creating a disturbance to the players would have to be removed from the playing area.

(and for a lot of posters that do not seem to care about spelling, you sure lambasted them for putting 'Babys' instead of Babies, and maybe the reason the sign was not done on a computer is because it would be too small to read easily, I can print on 11 x 17 paper, but perhaps their printer only handles 8 x 11).
 
Celtic said:
...I know if I had paid the thousands of dollars to fly to the event, enter it, and pay for the hotel and then had to deal with disturbances in the audience caused by kids under 6 years old I would be unimpressed to say the least. You must be fair to ALL the players in the event, not just one who wants his very young children to be allowed to be in the crowd being a dsitraction to ALL the players.
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WHAT?!

How would you feel if:
I/ You/ He had paid the thousands of dollars to fly to the event with my/ your/ his family, enter it, and pay for the hotel and then had a rule made up that prevented my/ your his family from attending the event ? I would be unimpressed to say the least. You must be fair to ALL the players in the event, not just one who doesn't wants my/ your/ his familyvery young children to be allowed to be in the crowd without being a dsitraction to ALL the players.

If The Rocket knew children were not allowed, he would not have brought them. Plain and simple.

The Man is proud and wants to share his lifeblood with his family. Mahaloloha.
 
jay helfert said:
Yes, he was there and Barry publicly apologized to him for making an error in judgement. He offered no further explanation other than that. All is well in Opensville and Rodney played his match last night and remains undefeated.
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That is great to hear. I hope he wins.
 
alstl said:
I saw that but it didn't seem like he saw the Rodney/Earl match to describe what actually happened that caused the TD to throw the kids out of the tourney.
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UrackmIcrackm said:
Rodney's wife arrived for the 7 pm matches and was not let through the door. Barry had instructed the door man not to let them in.

So yes, the promoter did get a wild "hair up his ass" and decide to single out the Morris family. Had the children misbehaved earlier, it would've made a little more sense. As it is, they simply were stopped at the door for no other reason than the "wild hair" theory.
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Nothing happened to cause it. They were in the arena watching matches the night prior, showed up Wed night and weren't let in.

jay helfert said:
Yes, he was there and Barry publicly apologized to him for making an error in judgement. He offered no further explanation other than that. All is well in Opensville and Rodney played his match last night and remains undefeated.
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I was told from someone close to Barry that we have InsidePOOL & the forum members here to thank for the apology Barry gave Rodney. InsidePOOL for putting the story out there and the forum members for their candid, colorful thoughts on the situation. :cool:
 
gopi-1 said:
no-babies.jpg



Children under the age of 6 are unpredictable and irritable at times, I don't blame Barry for enforcing this...
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I like Barry but I don't understand this rule since he brings his dog everywhere, and they are often as unpredictable as a baby. Buddy has even barked in the middle of someone making a shot. Also, I remember when Johnny and Melanie Archer's baby was allowed at the Open. Most parents who play pool, including Shayna and Rodney, have raised their kids to know how to act at a pool tournament. Some of these kids act better than adults, anyway.
 
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