SVB withdraws from future WPA events

garczar said:
I agree to a point. What about contractual duties? If a player signs a contact saying this or that aren't they bound by it? I have no clue what's in a WNT player's agreement. I don't think they care where their stable of players play as long as they show up for the WNT events deemed part of the agreement.
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I think if a tour pays a guaranteed salary to its players, then they can reasonably require its members to show up for X high percentage of their events, etc.

The way it is now, with the only carrot being the prize fund, I don't think any tour should have exclusive control over any player.

At least the way MR is doing it is far better than WPA. They are basically saying "show up for our big events, and do whatever you like the other days, including playing for the competition".

WPA is saying: "You can ONLY play in our events, no matter what".

If this stuff ever gets to court, I think it will go the way of "non-compete" clauses in the dayjob workplace. I believe most of them have been stricken down on the grounds of "my employment choices can't be limited in my area of expertise". There is probably no area of expertise in any day-job as explicit as a professional athlete in their specific sport.
 
maha said:
no player should ever get banned if they choose to play in a tournament of their choice that they are eligible to enter.

banning gives too much power to an organization.

what if your favorite restaurant banned you for eating someplace else.
or you worked at starbucks and got fired for drinking another brand coffee. etc, etc.
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It depends on the situation. For example: If you're organizing an event with major sponsors who are contributing a lot of money and who expect the players to show up, you can't allow them to run off to another tournament that was organized after yours on the same dates. Also, sometimes there are sponsorship conflicts that you have to honor as well. This is not about stopping players from making a living. It's about maintaining the integrity of your event, so it will be there for them to play in the next year and years after, which also helps, not hurts the players.
 
Bans should be a last resort, but there are always circumstances when they might be necessary. Usually with just individual players, though.

One thing I haven't seen is whether Matchroom and the WPA and related regional orgs discuss tourney dates ahead of each season to try not to overlap.

My suspicion is they do not talk, but try to some extent not to step on each other's toes. That said, lots of MR events are fairly new and there's more of them, so there's bound to be some conflict. I'd guess sometimes each org preps a tourney to try to muscle the other one out.

More communication would go a long way, but I am skeptical it will happen.
 
Steve748 said:
I wonder how this is going to affect selection for the Mosconi cup?
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AFAIK the MC is owned outright by Matchroom. They have their own selection process and don't have to answer to the stuffed shirts in Qatar. Pretty safe bet that all players will be WNT regulars.
 
Badpenguin said:
Withdrawing from 3 1/2 months of events? I mean, really, how sincere is that?
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That's a good point. I wonder if any of the players will change their mind and play any events before the end of the year. Also wonder what will happen in 2025, if they will stay on the boycott.
 
With the Hanoi Open success MR needs to just open a Asian HQ in Hanoi and tell WPA to go pound sand. Sign up all the top Asian guys.
 
iusedtoberich said:
That's a good point. I wonder if any of the players will change their mind and play any events before the end of the year. Also wonder what will happen in 2025, if they will stay on the boycott.
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Well, with MR's payouts being very top heavy, I kind of doubt most pros can make a living at only playing in MR events. It will need to be predator or some of the other actual co-sponsors of these events that need to throw some weight around.
 
Badpenguin said:
Well, with MR's payouts being very top heavy, I kind of doubt most pros can make a living at only playing in MR events. It will need to be predator or some of the other actual co-sponsors of these events that need to throw some weight around.
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There are a lot of completely unsanctioned events in the US, like Derby City, and the events in New Orleans, Birmingham, Oscar's place, Turning Stone, etc. For the US players and visitors that provides some opportunities between the MR events. But I think it's really tough for anyone out of the top 16.
 
I’m saw Styler was dropped by predator 2 days after his announcement (or he quit and it was a coincidence).

Predator can’t be happy with this situation. Are any WNT players still sponsored by Predator? Filler?
 
kling&allen said:
I’m saw Styler was dropped by predator 2 days after his announcement (or he quit and it was a coincidence).

Predator can’t be happy with this situation. Are any WNT players still sponsored by Predator? Filler?
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The Fillers and a bunch of others. Here's the list:

Predator Pro Team | What Pool Cue Sticks Do Professionals Use? | Official USA Site

Many of the top-ranked Professional Pool and Carom Players use and trust their game to Predator pool cues - The performance reference for 30 years.
www.predatorcues.com www.predatorcues.com
 
I don't know why in the hell Predator does not join forces with MR. Change their stupid format to regular 9 ball, regular races, and be major WNT stops.
 
iusedtoberich said:
I don't know why in the hell Predator does not join forces with MR. Change their stupid format to regular 9 ball, regular races, and be major WNT stops.
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i would think they're not too happy with the WPA and specifically the belligerent ACBS. i suspect JOY may lose a few participants too, but not nearly as many predator. both are valuable industry actors in the cue sport world.

i hope predator keeps organizing world 8-ball and 10-ball, and that WPA will change their ways. predator does a lot for women's pool too.
 
kling&allen said:
I’m saw Styler was dropped by predator 2 days after his announcement (or he quit and it was a coincidence).

Predator can’t be happy with this situation. Are any WNT players still sponsored by Predator? Filler?
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If he was dropped by Predator because of his statements in support of MR, then he threw himself right under a bus. Looks like he made a total of $2,938 in winnings from MR events this year. If he is having to pay his own way to events from here on out, he probably won't break even. It is a shame these guys are ending up as pawns by these people.

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Badpenguin said:
If he was dropped by Predator because of his statements in support of MR, then he threw himself right under a bus. Looks like he made a total of $2,938 in winnings from MR events this year. If he is having to pay his own way to events from here on out, he probably won't break even. It is a shame these guys are ending up as pawns by these people.

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Lines have been drawn. Styer chose to stay with MR/WNT which in the long-run will be far more profitable. No one is holding a gun to these guy's heads. I don't see why anyone would choose to align with Predator/WPA. All i hear about Predator events is cancellation and 're-structuring'.
 
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