USPPA Reno players, did they get paid?

Fine but he did say go after Tony and that is what should be done - make him an example if you don't - it will happen again - You run a tournament and don't pay up you got to pay the piper.

Tony's only annoucement regarding the event is that his organization lacks the funds to payout the prize money.

The rule of law is pay the piper but the rule of reality is nobody is paying the players. The players have little to no organizational support to combat this failure of business to deliver. The billiards community is barely able to get a grasp on what went wrong and why.

This case seems is ready for the unexplained and unfortunate folder.
 
Tony's only annoucement regarding the event is that his organization lacks the funds to payout the prize money.

The rule of law is pay the piper but the rule of reality is nobody is paying the players. The players have little to no organizational support to combat this failure of business to deliver. The billiards community is barely able to get a grasp on what went wrong and why.

This case seems is ready for the unexplained and unfortunate folder.

That is why you can't let it slide - if you do it sends a message out - hey don't bother to pay the players nothing will happen - you don't pay employees there are recourses - it should be the same for players .
 
That is why you can't let it slide - if you do it sends a message out - hey don't bother to pay the players nothing will happen - you don't pay employees there are recourses - it should be the same for players .

If the victims weren't famous or rich, nobody really cares.

That is why things "slide."

If people help the USPPA victims there is no benefit or chance at a return favor. So why should anyone care?
 
If the people who put on the tournament had any assets, there would be lawyers crawling out of the woodwork to take this on.

Ultimately, when it comes to civil litigation, being broke is it's own defense.

Chris
 
If the people who put on the tournament had any assets, there would be lawyers crawling out of the woodwork to take this on.

Ultimately, when it comes to civil litigation, being broke is it's own defense.

Chris

Good point. Not to mention, the cost of civil litigation, too.

Most "simple" civil litigation cases still would take a lot of money to bring it to the court room. For that matter, civil litigation is not a speedy process, nor does it have to be, by law.

I think the old "rule of thumb" is that if it's more than "small claims", it doesnt pay to pursue it civilly, unless the "win" can be significantly more than your legal costs.

In plain English, the payoff really has to be worth it.


Eric
 
What about the USPPA sponsers - Simonis , WPA, Accu-stats, etc, are they still sponsering this organization?, Have they issued any statements? - is the USPPA going to hold more tournaments as listed on their site?
 
What about the USPPA sponsers - Simonis , WPA, Accu-stats, etc, are they still sponsering this organization?, Have they issued any statements? - is the USPPA going to hold more tournaments as listed on their site?

The industry does not recognize the USPPA players as significant, they are acceptable losses. This problem died out because everyone blamed Tony and nobody wanted to do anything about it.

Tony then blamed the economy and has been MIA since.

The billiards industry supports a culture of look the other way there is no community, it is just pump and dump money in and out of pockets. Who cares how it gets there as long as someone gets to spend it?
 
Do the sponsers listed on the USPPA site pump $$$ into the USPPA ?? Does Tony get paid by the USPPA?
 
I havent talked to tony in over a month he now offring table moves and recovers including simmonis for $250 since he gets his simmonis free of charge for doing tournaments for the junior nationals and the wheelchair event. he is down to his last half bolt then he has to come up with a plan to get more for another tournament come up with cash to fill more orders.

Next couple of months should be real interresting for him unless Jeff bails him out.

Craig
 
I havent talked to tony in over a month he now offring table moves and recovers including simmonis for $250 since he gets his simmonis free of charge for doing tournaments for the junior nationals and the wheelchair event. he is down to his last half bolt then he has to come up with a plan to get more for another tournament come up with cash to fill more orders.

Next couple of months should be real interresting for him unless Jeff bails him out.

Craig

Is Tony actually doing the installs himself or is he having Rich Hein doing the installs and they are splitting the money?
 
Annigoni

Last thing I heard from a local who goes to the Two Cushion Club in FAIRFIELD,CA where Annigoni lives at, is that they are trying to sell the pool hall.
I was also told that Annigoni is living in a trailer behind the pool hall and will be leaving the country soon to play snooker as soon as it sells. If this guy owes you money, you better get your small claims started against him.
 
If anybody checked, the 2011 tournaments listed on the USPPA website have been removed. Not really a shock though. All it means is somebody did something. Wonder who it was? Any guesses?
 
If anybody checked, the 2011 tournaments listed on the USPPA website have been removed. Not really a shock though. All it means is somebody did something. Wonder who it was? Any guesses?

That means the players have a turn to do something next.

Should this event and the IPT event and the delayed payments in other tournaments prompt billiards players to respond?

Sure it is great to trust business people but in these tough times they are disappointing players and not delivering on time and as advertised, specifically prize money.

What are reasonable demands tournament organizers can fulfill to prove their loyalty to players?

I think proof of prize money at the start of the event, possibly even an advance notice on when they have the prize money prepared. It is a reassurance that tournament organizers are committed to delivering an outstanding production just as the players commit to putting on a great event and having strong matches.
 
Last thing I heard from a local who goes to the Two Cushion Club in FAIRFIELD,CA where Annigoni lives at, is that they are trying to sell the pool hall.
I was also told that Annigoni is living in a trailer behind the pool hall and will be leaving the country soon to play snooker as soon as it sells. If this guy owes you money, you better get your small claims started against him.

The trailer piece is correct. I hadn't heard about selling the pool hall but it wouldn't surprise me.
 
Last thing I heard from a local who goes to the Two Cushion Club in FAIRFIELD,CA where Annigoni lives at, is that they are trying to sell the pool hall.
I was also told that Annigoni is living in a trailer behind the pool hall and will be leaving the country soon to play snooker as soon as it sells. If this guy owes you money, you better get your small claims started against him.

The thing to do if you wanted to screw with someone who would not pay and they plan to leave the country, is, have them charged with a felony. The amounts that have been stolen are over $500 and I believe that is the minimum for a felony count. Along with a few other charges. Is the DA in Reno interested in keeping someone in the country?
 
The thing to do if you wanted to screw with someone who would not pay and they plan to leave the country, is, have them charged with a felony. The amounts that have been stolen are over $500 and I believe that is the minimum for a felony count. Along with a few other charges. Is the DA in Reno interested in keeping someone in the country?

I guess is that no one has the resources or time to follow up. If he leaves, his bad reputation should follow him!

Snooker World beware!

--Jeff
 
The thing to do if you wanted to screw with someone who would not pay and they plan to leave the country, is, have them charged with a felony. The amounts that have been stolen are over $500 and I believe that is the minimum for a felony count. Along with a few other charges. Is the DA in Reno interested in keeping someone in the country?

The $500 you reference is the different between petty and grand theft. It was $400.00 before January1st of this year, now it is $950, but this is in California. I am not sure what the dollar threshold is in Nevada, which is where the crime, if there is one, occurred.

What would need to be done here is kinda what I do for a living, so here is what someone would need to start doing right now to actually take this case criminal.

-File a report with the Reno Police Department. It would be an initial report with an officer, or possibly an online report. This will generate a case number for you. Something like this, where you have multiple victims in multiple geographic areas, if WAY too complex for a patrol officer, but the detectives can't conduct an investigation without an existing case where a case number is generated.

-Whatever you initially file has to be short but impactful. Whatever detective this goes to has got a desk full or reports that probably are easier, less complex, and more likely to get a conviction that this deal would be. You need to show him that there is a victim/s, that the dollar amount of fraud/loss is substantial, that the suspects are identified and locatable, and that it is worth him putting in his time and effort. Believe it or not, there guys pick and choose what they want to work, and whatever is not chosen gets cast aside and never pursued.

-Once the report is filed, you need to find out the person who will be handling this and arrange a meeting. Take them to lunch, detectives love free food. When you meet with them, give them an overall summary of what has happened, what you want to happen, and how you can assist the detective. You should have detailed financial numbers, documentation of the tournament occurring, prize funds, etc. Written and signed statements from ALL of the victims who want restitution (the prize amount they are owed). Any sort of receipts from the hotel, purchases, etc. Contact info for all victims who must testify. All nice and neat, organized, and ready to go for the detective. If you don't do all the work, it will not get done and this won't go anywhere.

-But here is the big one: What law has been broken? I don't know Nevada law, but here in California, for someone to be convicted of grand theft, burglary, commercial burglary, embezzlement, you have to show intent to commit the crime. If tony sticks to his story about the other parts of the show/ tournaments that didn't bring in revenue, there is not intent to defraud and this whole thing is a freaking waste! So figure it out and be specific, like find the penal code numbers and sections you think would apply. Be willing to testify, having other victims/ witnesses ready to testify, etc.

If this was here in California, and I believe actioncentral lives in the San Joaquin County area, I would say don't waste your time. The D.A. out there is worthless and would never take something like this. The only county in NorCal/ Central Valley that is any good is Santa Clara, but I think this has to be in Reno.

I think small claims is the way to go, but all of this is IMO and based on my current and very recent experience in such matters. There are way more knowledgeable people out there than me, but from the sounds of things, if you are going to make a move, you should get your ass in gear.
 
Once Tony knew that he didn't have enough money to pat the prize fund fully, anything after that is knowledge of the fraud. To allow a tournament to run for five days with only 99 players continues the evidence. Anyone can make charges with the police. If enough people make similar charges and his adress is known, an investigation can be started. If Tony is prevented from leaving the country, how soon will he come up with the money? If he is going to England, there are very particular about people coming into the country who are under investigation.
 
Once Tony knew that he didn't have enough money to pat the prize fund fully, anything after that is knowledge of the fraud. To allow a tournament to run for five days with only 99 players continues the evidence. Anyone can make charges with the police. If enough people make similar charges and his adress is known, an investigation can be started. If Tony is prevented from leaving the country, how soon will he come up with the money? If he is going to England, there are very particular about people coming into the country who are under investigation.

Um, that's nice, apparently you didn't read anything I wrote, but whatever.

To actioncentral, or anyone who is ACTUALLY OWED MONEY from the USPPA Reno tournament and would like to discuss, shoot me a PM. If anyone is really going to go down this road and you think there is an easy way to get this done, don't bother with the PM.
 
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