The reason so many rooms are closing is because the locals are not supporting them. Players want everything for free. The main thing keeping pool rooms open is the bar and leagues.
I think the point here is ... How much are they supposed to be paying for things they don't want?
The original statement was
"I personally would have happily paid to see this if it were close enough." What do you guys think.
I would happily pay to see this as well .... If I cared to see it at all, that is.
I agreed with Dave, so I guess according to some idiots, I'm a nit too. So be it, I take it in context from those who don't have the brains to understand the reasoning.
If I were interested in watching a professional match, I'd gladly pay, probably more than 10 dollars. But there would be requirements for me.
First, I'd need to be paying for a seat that I could comfortably see the match from.
Secondly, If I got up to take a piss, I'd want that seat to be there when I returned.
I'm in my 60s, and it will be a cold day in hell when I stand 2 or 3 rows back for hours to watch a pool match.
Now, clarifying the scenario the OP is referring to, he said the 10 dollars, would be collected "at the door". To me this implies, there would be no reserved seating, you may have to stand shoulder to shoulder trying to catch a glimpse of the match, and you'd be lucky to have a wall to lean against.
And all this is assuming you cared to watch the damned thing.
I owned a pool room with a full bar and 18 Gold Crowns. If I were going to charge a cover for an event, you can bet there would be proper accommodations for those who paid and it would be in an area separated from the rest of the tables. No one coming in to merely play some pool would ridiculously be required to pay an extra 10 dollars for something they didn't come to see.
I wouldn't be whoring 10 dollars or any amount from everyone who walked in the door whether they wanted to see the match or not. If I needed that 10 dollars, that bad, for that match, on that night, and it wasn't an organized seating arrangement, and I couldn't provide an area to comfortably sit and view the match, maybe they shouldn't be open for business that night to begin with. Maybe they should post a sign advertising the match and open the room only to those who gave a rat's ass to see it.
Now, on the other hand, the suggestion of making EVERY night a 10 dollar cover that would be applied to anything in the pool room is a fine concept. That would help keep out the bums and trouble makers. We did it better, I think, we collected driver licenses or state I.D.s at the counter. No I.D.? Pound sand.
But not a cheap shot at blindsiding everyone who walks in the door only on this night and only because you don't have the means to set up a suitable separate viewing area for those interested in watching.
And the horse shit about helping to keep your local room open. This self righteous crap is nothing more than that. You want to help keep these rooms open, you better start donating a few thousand a month, not a couple of hundred bucks from a few extra people who are causing the air conditioning to run longer. Give me a break.