Here is the email I got from David Vanderberghe (CueSports International)
I did not alter it at all.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Wisconsin BCA Pool League Member,
Did you know that the officers of your WIBCAPL state association have voted to switch your organization away from the BCA Pool League (BCAPL) to a new non-affiliated organization they call the Wisconsin State Poolplayers Association (WSPA)? Also … that this vote was cast without consulting a majority of players and League Operators, or the BCAPL?
Why, you ask? Well, you will find a sampling of the comments we have read that are intended to persuade you and your League Operator to switch. These quotes are riddled with distortions and misinformation. DO NOT BE DECEIVED.
“Lower sanction dues” – The WSPA plans to charge $8 per member, and you can play in their state tournament. As a BCAPL member, you were eligible to play in ALL regional BCAPL events, the WIBCAPL state event, AND the BCAPL National Championships for only $15. If you allow this to happen, eligibility for these tournaments will now add up to $23. Also, if your BCAPL league is dual sanctioned with VNEA, you will have to pay for BCAPL, VNEA, and WSPA. Is the board really saving you money? No.
“There is no need for a state organization for the BCA” – Wrong. State associations should have value far beyond the production of a state tournament. The BCAPL has a positive working relationship with other state and regional associations, and the members benefit from the synergy created. We coordinate events, League Operator and player lists, sanctioning guidelines, League Operator/member dispute resolution, night of play protection for leagues, and much more.
Fortunately, the BCAPL received good communication from League Operators in Wisconsin (night of play protection, sanctioning support, player ratings, eligibility questions and exceptions, etc.). … But, unfortunately, we received very little communication from the WIBCAPL board that was supposed to represent your League Operators. Rather than communicate with BCAPL about their concerns, they decided to switch to a new association without consulting you.
“The only benefit in sanctioning with the BCAPL is if your league has teams that would like to play in Vegas.” – Wrong again. The BCAPL does much more than simply hold an annual national tournament. We create a national structure to unite local leagues in states, regions, and around the world. We create and send membership cards, patches, pins, rulebooks, posters, flyers, and much more. We have a full time support staff to answer your emails or calls any time. We have developed and maintain software systems for online registration, state/regional/national tournament management, and league management. So when you hear this statement, you will know that you are being intentionally misled.
“Wisconsin’s participation (in nationals) … has been in decline each year” – Inaccurate. More players traveled from Wisconsin to the BCAPL nationals in 2013 than did in 2012 or 2011.
“$60,000 is sent in and the WIBCAPL only receives $6,000 back” – Very misleading … BCAPL sent $6,000 for the WIBCAPL state tournament, but they are ignoring the $3,000 sent to the very same person on the WIBCAPL board for the Great Lakes Regional. Over a third of BCAPL members in Wisconsin play in leagues managed by our proprietary league software, LeagueSys, which is underwritten by BCAPL. We spend thousands in LeagueSys subsidies each year in Wisconsin alone.
The WSPA advocates clearly want to take over the BCAPL state tournament, but the BCAPL has offered many other tournaments that have been available to Wisconsin BCAPL members in recent years. Regional BCAPL events in Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Tunica, Denver, and Winnipeg were all within a day’s drive of Wisconsin, and BCAPL added from $2,000 to $10,000 to each of these events.
The WSPA advocates may prefer that the BCA Pool League just abandon leagues and events in Wisconsin and the region, so that they have no competition. But, you may rest assured that BCAPL will redouble our efforts to produce or promote more regional, state, and local events in and around Wisconsin than ever before.
There are many more quotes that we can debunk for you, but you get the picture. Again … DO NOT BE DECEIVED.
And … don’t let your BCAPL membership benefits slip away. Thank you for your ongoing support.
David Vandenberghe, COO
I did not alter it at all.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Wisconsin BCA Pool League Member,
Did you know that the officers of your WIBCAPL state association have voted to switch your organization away from the BCA Pool League (BCAPL) to a new non-affiliated organization they call the Wisconsin State Poolplayers Association (WSPA)? Also … that this vote was cast without consulting a majority of players and League Operators, or the BCAPL?
Why, you ask? Well, you will find a sampling of the comments we have read that are intended to persuade you and your League Operator to switch. These quotes are riddled with distortions and misinformation. DO NOT BE DECEIVED.
“Lower sanction dues” – The WSPA plans to charge $8 per member, and you can play in their state tournament. As a BCAPL member, you were eligible to play in ALL regional BCAPL events, the WIBCAPL state event, AND the BCAPL National Championships for only $15. If you allow this to happen, eligibility for these tournaments will now add up to $23. Also, if your BCAPL league is dual sanctioned with VNEA, you will have to pay for BCAPL, VNEA, and WSPA. Is the board really saving you money? No.
“There is no need for a state organization for the BCA” – Wrong. State associations should have value far beyond the production of a state tournament. The BCAPL has a positive working relationship with other state and regional associations, and the members benefit from the synergy created. We coordinate events, League Operator and player lists, sanctioning guidelines, League Operator/member dispute resolution, night of play protection for leagues, and much more.
Fortunately, the BCAPL received good communication from League Operators in Wisconsin (night of play protection, sanctioning support, player ratings, eligibility questions and exceptions, etc.). … But, unfortunately, we received very little communication from the WIBCAPL board that was supposed to represent your League Operators. Rather than communicate with BCAPL about their concerns, they decided to switch to a new association without consulting you.
“The only benefit in sanctioning with the BCAPL is if your league has teams that would like to play in Vegas.” – Wrong again. The BCAPL does much more than simply hold an annual national tournament. We create a national structure to unite local leagues in states, regions, and around the world. We create and send membership cards, patches, pins, rulebooks, posters, flyers, and much more. We have a full time support staff to answer your emails or calls any time. We have developed and maintain software systems for online registration, state/regional/national tournament management, and league management. So when you hear this statement, you will know that you are being intentionally misled.
“Wisconsin’s participation (in nationals) … has been in decline each year” – Inaccurate. More players traveled from Wisconsin to the BCAPL nationals in 2013 than did in 2012 or 2011.
“$60,000 is sent in and the WIBCAPL only receives $6,000 back” – Very misleading … BCAPL sent $6,000 for the WIBCAPL state tournament, but they are ignoring the $3,000 sent to the very same person on the WIBCAPL board for the Great Lakes Regional. Over a third of BCAPL members in Wisconsin play in leagues managed by our proprietary league software, LeagueSys, which is underwritten by BCAPL. We spend thousands in LeagueSys subsidies each year in Wisconsin alone.
The WSPA advocates clearly want to take over the BCAPL state tournament, but the BCAPL has offered many other tournaments that have been available to Wisconsin BCAPL members in recent years. Regional BCAPL events in Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Tunica, Denver, and Winnipeg were all within a day’s drive of Wisconsin, and BCAPL added from $2,000 to $10,000 to each of these events.
The WSPA advocates may prefer that the BCA Pool League just abandon leagues and events in Wisconsin and the region, so that they have no competition. But, you may rest assured that BCAPL will redouble our efforts to produce or promote more regional, state, and local events in and around Wisconsin than ever before.
There are many more quotes that we can debunk for you, but you get the picture. Again … DO NOT BE DECEIVED.
And … don’t let your BCAPL membership benefits slip away. Thank you for your ongoing support.
David Vandenberghe, COO