Tournament from Hell Experiences-Ever had one

CocoboloCowboy

CocoboloCowboy

Cowboys are my hero's
Silver Member
Have you ever driven many miles, or just around the corner to play in a Pool Tournament just to have the worst experience to the point you said to yourself I will never participate in an event in the Room, Bar, or if _ _ _ is every Tournament Director again. Because the experience was a disaster.

Some of these experience are funny, so are just bad, and some are unforgettable, and worst than a bad memory.

I am sure many of you have stories to share, so I am looking forward t o hearing em.
 
I once took my work truck to a tournament out of state, took off work to go to. When I got there, I found out it was cancelled! I figured I better stretch my legs for a few hours before I drove back, so I got a table. Two hours later, I decided to leave. That's when I found out my truck had been broken into, and about $5k of tools stolen. Of which the insurance company gave me a whole $965 because of "depreciation"! Haven't been to one out of state since.
 
By bad experience do you mean wanting to play in a local tournament but can't because the tables are horrible (the bed cloth comes up and the rail cloth comes loose and they play soooo bad because the rails are "springing" to the point that the balls fly off the table). The tournament director doesn't move players rankings even though certain players win 2 tournaments in 4 days or 6 tournaments in 2 months. The tournament director lets players in the tournament an hour after the tournament starts and after the first round has started. That's my experience week after week.
 
Tournament from Hell

I went to a tournament about 5 or 6 years ago that advertised all the big name players would be there.
I went and half the people there played my speed, the best player was probably Steve Mechanich a couple of guys a ball under him and the rest in between . They charged 20 dollars a session and had bleachers in the 4corners of the room where you couldn't see anything. There was VIP seating for $40.00 a session {a metal fold up chair and a real low table with a cloth on it.} It was the absolute worst tournament I ever went to.
I was there about 30 minutes went to the local pool room and then left.
I had been to this tournament about 5 years earlier and it was great, new venue and must have been new people running it and it was a bad joke.
{Can you tell I hated it?}
 
I once played in a tournament that was part of the grand opening of a new room. We were about three matches deep into the winner's side of the tournament when some guys who knew the owner and tournament director showed up. Amazingly, instead of telling these guys they were too late to play, they put them into the tournament four matches deep on the winner's side, and reformatted the entire bracket to accommodate them. It was easily the most ridiculous tournament experience I've ever had, as far as how the tournament was run is concerned.
 
CocoboloCowboy said:
Have you ever driven many miles, or just around the corner to play in a Pool Tournament just to have the worst experience to the point you said to yourself I will never participate in an event in the Room, Bar, or if _ _ _ is every Tournament Director again. Because the experience was a disaster.

Some of these experience are funny, so are just bad, and some are unforgettable, and worst than a bad memory.

I am sure many of you have stories to share, so I am looking forward t o hearing em.
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The worst thing that ever happened to me cause me to loose my match. I was down in a key shot almost on my final stroke and a big girl playing directly in my line of sight bent over to shoot and her pants split right down the crack, now that wouldn't normally bother me but she did not have any under wear on:eek:. Man I miscued and did not even hit the object ball, and my opponent ran out the rest of the rack and won the set.:smile:
 
How about when you drive an hour and a half to get there, are given a fair handicap, buy yourself in the calcutta. The tournament director/room owner is buying guys in the calcutta also. Then, when you have to play one of "his" guys to get in the money, your handicap is suddenly raised to where you have no chance of winning!
 
Neil said:
How about when you drive an hour and a half to get there, are given a fair handicap, buy yourself in the calcutta. The tournament director/room owner is buying guys in the calcutta also. Then, when you have to play one of "his" guys to get in the money, your handicap is suddenly raised to where you have no chance of winning!
Click to expand...

I have heard several story of Handicap being RAISE when Out of Stater came to Arizona recently to do an event in Arizona. But as the Guy who got raised told me in the Written Rules there was a RULE to cover this.

Still sounds like Doo DOO to me.
 
One of my worst experiences was at a Bar Tournament I use to play at intermittently. One Tuesday I drove over to play doing MONSOON. It was pouring like nasty, only 5-6 six showed up, and the TD said NO Event tonight because of the Storm. I could see the reason, and understood, and told the TD, I will be back Next Week, see ya.

Next week it was beautiful, and I made the trip across town again. I walked in to the Bar 45 Minute before the Tournament was to start the place is packed. I see the Bar Owner/TD sitting at the Bar, and said I want to sign up for this week Tournament. He say no tournament, as we "had a chance to bring in a lot of teams for league tonight". I though to myself thanks for no call, as they were good about calling to remind you it was Tuesday Night, and they WERE Having a tournament.

Took a long time to go back, did it a couple of times, and the place had a NEW GIRLIE TD, was not the same, and is now CLOSED.
 
Handicap event they use to have in Bangor, ME. Basically they would up your handicap until you stood zero chance of winning. I was an 8 playing an 8, at 4-4, the TD came over and said, "I'm moving you to a 9, probably 10 before end of match". I asked, why? TD, 'Because he is a really good 8 and you are tied'!

I told him to give me the entry back. I didn't drive 4 hours to play with zero chance to win. They left me at 8. Next guy I played was a 5 (lowest rating). He won the toss and put a 4 pack on me.

I guess rather than up me they lowered my opponent. Notice I started off with, "they use to have".
 
The World Class Championship held in a tent

CocoboloCowboy said:
Have you ever driven many miles, or just around the corner to play in a Pool Tournament just to have the worst experience to the point you said to yourself I will never participate in an event in the Room, Bar, or if _ _ _ is every Tournament Director again. Because the experience was a disaster.

Some of these experience are funny, so are just bad, and some are unforgettable, and worst than a bad memory.

I am sure many of you have stories to share, so I am looking forward t o hearing em.
Click to expand...
The famous tent tournament would be hard to beat as the worst tournament of all time. I didn't play but did get ripped off for $3000.00 as one of the sponsors.

It was in North Miami around 1979 and put on by one of the Jansco brothers of Johnston city fame. What happened was they for some reason, probably due to something they themselves did, could not get the venue they wanted at the last minute. If I remember right it was at the Calder race track. They decided to do the tournament anyway in a field in the back of the track. They had plywood platforms that they set up the tables on and erected tents like you may use for a wedding. That was just the beginning of this fiasco. A Florida tropical storm came up during the tournament and the wind was blowing through the tents so hard it moved the balls on the tables. The rain was flowing through the tents as well under the platforms and you had to take off your shoes to move around the place. Sort of like the wedding scene in the movie "Betsy's Wedding".

Trust me it got worse. One of the ref's an old time player Danny Gartner, was backing up watching a hit on one of the platforms and fell off into the mud in his elegant green suit. Danny DiLiberto was about to shoot a ball when the wind came up through an opening in the tent and moved the object ball so much he almost missed it completely with the cue ball. To top everything off many of the players got stiffed in the end and if you can believe it, some players got paid in counterfeit money. The cops were asking questions everywhere within a few days.

Now take my story with a grain of salt but ask players like Jimmy Rempy, Danny Diliberto, Keith McCready, Billy Johnson or any other top player of that time who were probably there about it. They will have you in stitches retelling the story. It is impossible to exaggerate because the real events of that week were so outlandish. This by the way was advertised as a $30,000.00 tournament at a race track by one of the most renown promoters and drew players from all over. It had the earmarks of being a great tournament. If nothing else it provided a story for those who were there that no one can top.
 
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About 25 years ago some friends and I ventured about 4 hours north to play a tournment. After it was over the bar owner and TD asked if I wanted to match up with one of the locals. Anyway, after about 3 hours and many drinks I busted the guy and it was time to head out. Before we left me and my buddies were starving and asked if they had anything to eat in the place. I should have known better being as the owner/bartender was paying me off out of the till, but he said he had some leftover pulled pork from the tournament and he'd warm it up for us. I remember looking at the sandwiches in the car and thinking it looked like the remnants had been scraped off the side of the pot and was pretty much grease on a bun, but being young, dumb and drunk we ate them anyway. To put it nicely there were lots of "stops" on the way home and lots of "stops" for next 24 hours or so:frown: Definitely a bad tournament memory.
 
a few years ago me amd my buddy drove 8+ hours to a monthly tournament in macon ga. advertised as $35 entry with cant remember how much was added. confirmed this on the phone before we left. when we got there they had tommy kennedy running the tournament. he doubled the entry fees just to put half in his pocket and of course cut some of his crackhead buddies a deal to get in. tommy comes up short in my book. we found out later that he runs it every so often and rapes people out of there money with the double entry every time. have not been back to the hole thang since.
 
I went to what I thought was going to be a tournament once and it turned out to be an exhibition by some guy named Marconi or something. He just kept running balls and never missed. I fell asleep at 300, woke up an hour later and he was still going. I think Marconi ran something like 526.

What a rip off.
 
bad cloth

CocoboloCowboy said:
Have you ever driven many miles, or just around the corner to play in a Pool Tournament just to have the worst experience to the point you said to yourself I will never participate in an event in the Room, Bar, or if _ _ _ is every Tournament Director again. Because the experience was a disaster.

Some of these experience are funny, so are just bad, and some are unforgettable, and worst than a bad memory.

I am sure many of you have stories to share, so I am looking forward t o hearing em.
Click to expand...

I've been to a tournament where the cloth was bad at the bottom floor,and cheap table up stares and the service is lousey.Then there was a line up at the bar and i wanted a drink.Aparentley the place was mainley fore bowling and they didnt serve drinks to the pool players at the tournament,It was bowlers only.The place is called Gate Way Lanes,by the way.We lost the tournament any way since it was a league tournament.I wouldnt advise anyone to go there,The cloth is old and i dont think that they ever changed it and the floor upstaires has cheap tables and a ustable floor and they think more fore bowlers then anything else,aspecially there pool hall.
 
home town tourney

I almost do not want to post this story as it is the one time i was embarassed for the actions of a TD in my home town.

Back in the late 90s there was a weekly tournement in a small bar in my home town of Winnie texas. Nothing big a $10 entry double elimination 8 ball on a bar box. Most all the players were local bangers with the exception of mabey 4 guys who were decent players .

Every week you could bet one of thses 4 guys were in the money the tourn paid 2 places 75% and 25 % it wa ran right. up untill the night i am talking about

I get a call from the TD asking me to come down and play as he had heard there was some outside talent coming to the tourney as it had grown to about 30 players a week

So I go down and about 5 Sure enough money players out of Beaumont had come down Guys I knew and played with.

between my self and the guys out of Beaumont we quickly separated the players from the bangers and it came down to me and 3 of the non locals in the semis .

The TD pulls me over and says ok if you win this the cut is gonna be 75% 25% but if you get knocked out I am only gonna pay 35% and 20% and pocket the rest for next weeks tourney when the outsiders are not here

I told him Absolutely not these guys are here to play just like everyone else and you shouldnt change the cut just because they are not local

He replied "but they are better palyers than everyone else except you " I said I know I also noticed that you have been running this lil tourney about 8 months and did not call me to play until the players started showing up . I said thats what happens when a tourney gets a lil cash in it you start drawing better players, your local talent needs to step up and improve thier game or become cannon fodder.

So I casually unscrewwed my cue , forfieted my match and smiled to the TD and said good luck . Leaving my 3 friends to finish out , needless to say I did stick around and make sure the TD paid those guys the correct cut 75% to the winner 25 % to second

I was emabarassed at the attitude of my home town folks on this one and I never played there again
 
I live less than two minutes away from my poolroom In every tourney there is 21 percent of all the entrys takin out and all the brackets r done in pencil if u no wat I mean .. so driving 3 and 4 hours is my only option
 
Neil said:
How about when you drive an hour and a half to get there, are given a fair handicap, buy yourself in the calcutta. The tournament director/room owner is buying guys in the calcutta also. Then, when you have to play one of "his" guys to get in the money, your handicap is suddenly raised to where you have no chance of winning!
Click to expand...

That is when the bell rings and round one begins!
 
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