Of course it should be open to women as otherwise it is not an open. It is a s shame not to see players like Alison Fisher and Jasmin Ouschan face the best on the men’s side.
Still, the bigger problem is the WPBAs lack of true opens as they indirectly limit the number of female players, which is already small to begin with. This strategy limits the potential field of female players in this country. Pool talent takes years to acquire and many players benefit from opens by getting better and better each year. The WBPA has a short sighted strategy that severely limits the new players. To have to pre-qualify for an open is not by definition an open. An open should be open to all comers.
Still, in a perfect world they should not be separate billiards associations for men and women. We should all just play whoever is left standing; oh well.
The women players would benefit from playing a bigger field of players rather than the same players over and over. Men would benefit from the attention women players garner naturally. More attention equals more money in the long run. It is no secret that the average person would rather see women play over men, so this should be capitalized on in order to bring the prize money up for everyone. Tennis is a strong example of this, because of its high ratings and it attracts more money to the sport. More coverage means more publicity and more visibility equals more money for everyone involved. Keep in mind most of this money comes from outside of tennis by people that don't even play tennis. This is what pool needs. Keep in mind this why in England snooker is paid so well, most of the money comes from non-snooker related sources.
Last point as a serious player, I want to play the best players whether it's Jasmin Ouchan or Mika Immonen.
Hugs,
Mary Avina
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=161259&page=8
Still, the bigger problem is the WPBAs lack of true opens as they indirectly limit the number of female players, which is already small to begin with. This strategy limits the potential field of female players in this country. Pool talent takes years to acquire and many players benefit from opens by getting better and better each year. The WBPA has a short sighted strategy that severely limits the new players. To have to pre-qualify for an open is not by definition an open. An open should be open to all comers.
Still, in a perfect world they should not be separate billiards associations for men and women. We should all just play whoever is left standing; oh well.
The women players would benefit from playing a bigger field of players rather than the same players over and over. Men would benefit from the attention women players garner naturally. More attention equals more money in the long run. It is no secret that the average person would rather see women play over men, so this should be capitalized on in order to bring the prize money up for everyone. Tennis is a strong example of this, because of its high ratings and it attracts more money to the sport. More coverage means more publicity and more visibility equals more money for everyone involved. Keep in mind most of this money comes from outside of tennis by people that don't even play tennis. This is what pool needs. Keep in mind this why in England snooker is paid so well, most of the money comes from non-snooker related sources.
Last point as a serious player, I want to play the best players whether it's Jasmin Ouchan or Mika Immonen.
Hugs,
Mary Avina
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=161259&page=8
