I thought I heard Mark's email in one of the TAR podcasts but rather than sending him an email I'll just post my idea here and that way others can chime in/flame me/whatever. Also, I'm guessing Mark is a little busy right now and doesn't have time to read my emails anyway.
So I signed up for Reno a while back. I went for all three, 10-ball, 9-ball and 8-ball to increase my chances of being hammered completely into the ground. I'm used to endurance events that fill up fast so its just a habit for me to sign up kind of early. Apparently that is not the trend in pool. And now with the 10-ball tournament in the Philippines that same weekend the USBTC may not have as many pro players as it might have had.
So my idea is, why not cater to the communities a little more?
In some other events and sports, if you come with a large enough group from your area they try to cater to your group a little. At triathlons they give your group its own staging area in some others there is a VIP drink/appetizer event for big enough clubs where you get to meet a couple of pros in that sport and there are other ways of encouraging larger groups from clubs or just the same town.
It may be too close to the tournament to do this but if the USBTC offered some incentive to bringing a few more people from your town or local league they might get people to recruit other players around them more.
Mark, don't underestimate the power of local, peer pressure.
If you want to hear more just come find me in Reno. I'll be the one hanging out with about 20 people from Chico, CA. Yes, that's right. We're trying to get about 20 people to all show up from our small town and enter different events in the tournament. In fact, we're working on a "Team Chico" patch to all wear right now. See you in Reno!
So I signed up for Reno a while back. I went for all three, 10-ball, 9-ball and 8-ball to increase my chances of being hammered completely into the ground. I'm used to endurance events that fill up fast so its just a habit for me to sign up kind of early. Apparently that is not the trend in pool. And now with the 10-ball tournament in the Philippines that same weekend the USBTC may not have as many pro players as it might have had.
So my idea is, why not cater to the communities a little more?
In some other events and sports, if you come with a large enough group from your area they try to cater to your group a little. At triathlons they give your group its own staging area in some others there is a VIP drink/appetizer event for big enough clubs where you get to meet a couple of pros in that sport and there are other ways of encouraging larger groups from clubs or just the same town.
It may be too close to the tournament to do this but if the USBTC offered some incentive to bringing a few more people from your town or local league they might get people to recruit other players around them more.
Mark, don't underestimate the power of local, peer pressure.
If you want to hear more just come find me in Reno. I'll be the one hanging out with about 20 people from Chico, CA. Yes, that's right. We're trying to get about 20 people to all show up from our small town and enter different events in the tournament. In fact, we're working on a "Team Chico" patch to all wear right now. See you in Reno!
