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Join new look GB9 in 2013 |
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The_Lunn
Home away from home
Joined: 17-May-2011
Posts: 838
From: Leeds
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Posted: 2012-09-27 09:23
I do agree with what Arfan says, a players meeting to discuss everything tour wise would be great. But what I don't get is why everyones asking about player numbers before they put there names down? Its a catch 22... Players arent going to put there names down until we get the numbers, but we wont get the numbers till some of us do put our names down? I'm putting my name down regardless of how many have done so far. The GB9 team run a great tour and work hard so lets just all cut them some slack and play pool! GB9 - Bigger than the eurotours in 2014 
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-Dazza-
Home away from home
Joined: 27-Jun-2007
Posts: 818
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Posted: 2012-09-27 09:57
I think 2013 will be the 5th year.
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deano155
Not too shy to talk
Joined: 01-Nov-2011
Posts: 31
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Posted: 2012-09-27 10:10
To me the issue is purely about value for money..... The lads who run GB9 work bloody hard to make this the best tour event by far. Very few people realise the true work they actually put in. It isn't just a matter of turning up on a Friday and buggering off on a Sunday. I helped out one Thursday evening setting up and one Sunday evening breaking down and I can honestly tell you its harder work than what i do for a living. Prior to everyone turning up to play Lee, Andy and everyone else who helps out need to have all the tables and lighting set up, screens ready, setting out the tables & sponsers flags etc, organising the draw, checking everything is working from the internet for 'Live Score updates' to 'ref to table 3' etc plus much much more. Most of this is taken for granted but none of it should be under estimated and the organisers deserve credit for this. Once the event is over and everyone has buggered off then everything needs to be packed away and stored properly so it can be used again for the next event. This is often referred to as 'the players tour' 'for the players run by the players'...that may be true in a few small aspects but in reality it isn't.....how many of the players actually muck in, most (myself now included) want to pay your fees, turn up, play and go home when your out (normally by about 6pm on a Saturday night in my case lol). Transparency isn't the key either in my opinion, why should there be transparency when it's not really 'the players tour' unless it suits them so whatever the TD etc take from it, they deserve and isn't really anyone's business as long as the players feel they are getting value for money. Which is the bit i struggle with. To me with fees of £600 plus hotel costs of a further £400 (5 events at £80 per weekend if in a shared room) taking the real fees up to a grand or £200 per event then it just isn't value for money. On top of this is travelling, time off work etc if only 128 turn up, to just cover costs, the majority would need to reach the semis of the Challenge (£150) and the last 16 of the Main Event (£100). To encourage new players and existing players to sign back up this must be addressed. How the organisers do this is down to them (more sponsership/cutting costs etc) and I for one would like to wish them every success as without this being addressed no amount of format changing makes up for the reality that to most it's just an expensive way to practice. [ This message was edited by: deano155 on 2012-09-27 10:11 ]
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wildman147
Home away from home
Joined: 13-Mar-2009
Posts: 2764
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Posted: 2012-09-27 10:26
Your right Mark, but with the costs it costs to run a tour such as GB9, It hard to travel to the north if there isnt enough players. I hope there is because i love playing on the tour and the buzz of a big win is amazing. [ This message was edited by: wildman147 on 2012-09-27 11:04 ]
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wildman147
Home away from home
Joined: 13-Mar-2009
Posts: 2764
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Posted: 2012-09-27 11:34
any win in a tour event is gives a nice feeling. I think this would be better if the prize money was more spread out, at the mo its suits the pros as they are the players who win the big chunks but that is 16/20 players the other 80 players are the guys to keep happy because without them there is no tour or prize money. Just my opinion [ This message was edited by: wildman147 on 2012-09-27 11:34 ]
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-Dazza-
Home away from home
Joined: 27-Jun-2007
Posts: 818
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Posted: 2012-09-27 11:47
On 2012-09-27 11:26 , dalevairy Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! buzz of a big win?? 95% of the players on the tour will never have a "big"
its a great tour for people wanting a weekend away to play there hobby. realistlcly people dont play on the tour to make money I was on tour back in the first season and for me it was a great weekend away and a chance to play people better than me and to learn. If a big scalp happened or i got into the money then that was a bonus but i went purely for the experience. Beer, Food and Pool playing some of the best pool players around. I won't be joining next year purely for my own reasons regarding changes that have been made in 2013 but i'm not prepared to list them on here as i know GB9 won't discuss anything on public forums. [ This message was edited by: -Dazza- on 2012-09-27 11:48 ]
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-Dazza-
Home away from home
Joined: 27-Jun-2007
Posts: 818
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Posted: 2012-09-27 11:51
On 2012-09-27 11:34 , wildman147 Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! any win in a tour event is gives a nice feeling. I think this would be better if the prize money was more spread out, at the mo its suits the pros as they are the players who win the big chunks but that is 16/20 players the other 80 players are the guys to keep happy because without them there is no tour or prize money.
Just my opinion I agree Phil it does favour the pro's massively which is one of the reasons i decided not to sign up for next year. But then again you have a better chance improving by playing the pro's if your lucky enough to draw one. Pro's wouldn't enter though if the tour only consisted of around 50 players as the prize money just wouldn't cover the expenses as you've stated. [ This message was edited by: -Dazza- on 2012-09-27 11:52 ]
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unique
Home away from home
Joined: 06-Sep-2009
Posts: 1917
From: South elmsall
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Posted: 2012-09-27 11:53
Dale you've never played on gb9 so pipe down
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BFrench501
Home away from home
Joined: 28-Mar-2010
Posts: 1598
From: Leicester
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Posted: 2012-09-27 12:05
On 2012-09-27 11:51 , -Dazza- Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! On 2012-09-27 11:34 , wildman147 Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! any win in a tour event is gives a nice feeling. I think this would be better if the prize money was more spread out, at the mo its suits the pros as they are the players who win the big chunks but that is 16/20 players the other 80 players are the guys to keep happy because without them there is no tour or prize money.
Just my opinion
I agree Phil it does favour the pro's massively which is one of the reasons i decided not to sign up for next year.
But then again you have a better chance improving by playing the pro's if your lucky enough to draw one.
Pro's wouldn't enter though if the tour only consisted of around 50 players as the prize money just wouldn't cover the expenses as you've stated. Dazza, I can understand where you think the format may 'help' the pros ie if they lose once they have to go through the losers bracket. But even if you take the people in the Challenge who have done well in a main event, these so called 'amateur players' are actually cueists who are very near that professional level anyway. Waddingham is a brilliant cueist, Chipperfield is a very good snooker player from what I understand, Rhodes is an ex-pro snooker player who has hit 147's also. Their successes are very occasional due to how much quality there is and more often than not a pro will win, but shouldn't that be the case regardless what format you put in place? It sounds like the best bet for you is to do the Total9ball with the handicaps in place. Some good quality players to learn from like Chris Buckmaster, Luke Rollison, Ramesh Gokhul etc without being bit hard in the pocket and also you get the handicap you want to make it a more level playing field (if that is what you are trying to get at) Sorry for the long post...
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-Dazza-
Home away from home
Joined: 27-Jun-2007
Posts: 818
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Posted: 2012-09-27 12:23
On 2012-09-27 12:05 , BFrench501 Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! On 2012-09-27 11:51 , -Dazza- Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! On 2012-09-27 11:34 , wildman147 Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! any win in a tour event is gives a nice feeling. I think this would be better if the prize money was more spread out, at the mo its suits the pros as they are the players who win the big chunks but that is 16/20 players the other 80 players are the guys to keep happy because without them there is no tour or prize money.
Just my opinion
I agree Phil it does favour the pro's massively which is one of the reasons i decided not to sign up for next year.
But then again you have a better chance improving by playing the pro's if your lucky enough to draw one.
Pro's wouldn't enter though if the tour only consisted of around 50 players as the prize money just wouldn't cover the expenses as you've stated.
Dazza, I can understand where you think the format may 'help' the pros ie if they lose once they have to go through the losers bracket. But even if you take the people in the Challenge who have done well in a main event, these so called 'amateur players' are actually cueists who are very near that professional level anyway. Waddingham is a brilliant cueist, Chipperfield is a very good snooker player from what I understand, Rhodes is an ex-pro snooker player who has hit 147's also.
Their successes are very occasional due to how much quality there is and more often than not a pro will win, but shouldn't that be the case regardless what format you put in place?
It sounds like the best bet for you is to do the Total9ball with the handicaps in place. Some good quality players to learn from like Chris Buckmaster, Luke Rollison, Ramesh Gokhul etc without being bit hard in the pocket and also you get the handicap you want to make it a more level playing field (if that is what you are trying to get at)
Sorry for the long post... Sorry Baz all i meant was 99% of the time a Pro will win the main event ie. Gray, Peach, Drago, Boyes, Appleton, Majid etc with the exception of Chipperfield who won i think if you look back a pro has won the majority of the prize money available in the main event. I did like the fact that you had to retain a certain ranking position ie in the top 104 for example to guarantee your spot for the following season or alternatively get through the qualifiers for a spot something that you could be proud of achieving. Not the fact that if you can afford to pay out £600 on entry fees, £400 on accomodation and probably another £500 on food, Drink, Petrol etc per year and potentially then never win a single match, finish bottom of the rankings and then just pay your money all over again and your straight back on tour!! For me personally i liked to feel a sense of achievement not just the fact that i can afford to enter!! [ This message was edited by: -Dazza- on 2012-09-27 12:28 ]
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unique
Home away from home
Joined: 06-Sep-2009
Posts: 1917
From: South elmsall
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Posted: 2012-09-27 12:43
It's the way forward for gb9 for sure if its going to get bigger,a pro will win every event no danger about that,too hard to beat a few top players in one comp,not being negative being realistic,also you must have love for the game and some spare cash to play gb9 even at my level as it will take done doin even winning your entry fee back over the year with the new structure but it as to change from pro/challenge to like it is now,euro tour style,added bonus is the side comp for the early exit boys,hopefully many other top players will join n give the tour recognition it needs,it could be huge if it gets the backing from the players,my only worry is if the players who haven't won any prize money yet or not even been close fall out with the game because the tour will not survive with just
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unique
Home away from home
Joined: 06-Sep-2009
Posts: 1917
From: South elmsall
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Posted: 2012-09-27 12:45
Top players or good amateurs,be interesting to see who rejoins next year,hopefully all players will play again or the majority,I have my doubts but can only wait n see what happens over the next few months
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rc
Home away from home
Joined: 22-Jul-2009
Posts: 262
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Posted: 2012-09-27 15:33
also, when the proposed plans were sent out to us it stated that there will be a separate tournament for the players that don't make the money, but the confirmed plans say that the separate tournament is for people who don't make the last 64 and the money is started at the last 32
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njc147
Just popping in
Joined: 26-Sep-2012
Posts: 7
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Posted: 2012-09-27 22:58
On 2012-09-27 13:33 , dalevairy Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! breath unique breathe
spread the prize money out and its a winner, fund the big hitters and its not Definately agree with this. If gb9 could find a way to cut their costs and somehow pay prize money down to last 64 then at least the lesser players would have a realistic chance of covering some of their costs. Only the top 20% of players have a chance to break even or profit from the events. The rest are making the numbers up. If gb9 choose to keep prize money structure the same then i can't see how they will get anywhere near 128 players for next season. If they can't spread out the prize money then at least they should allow us to book hotel rooms at the hotel rate at the time, and not at gb9 "special" rip off price!!
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Benjamin
Home away from home
Joined: 29-Mar-2006
Posts: 364
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Posted: 2012-09-27 23:27
On 2012-09-27 22:58 , njc147 Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! On 2012-09-27 13:33 , dalevairy Wrote:!!! QUOTE !!! breath unique breathe
spread the prize money out and its a winner, fund the big hitters and its not
Definately agree with this. If gb9 could find a way to cut their costs and somehow pay prize money down to last 64 then at least the lesser players would have a realistic chance of covering some of their costs. Only the top 20% of players have a chance to break even or profit from the events. The rest are making the numbers up. If gb9 choose to keep prize money structure the same then i can't see how they will get anywhere near 128 players for next season. If they can't spread out the prize money then at least they should allow us to book hotel rooms at the hotel rate at the time, and not at gb9 "special" rip off price!! Surely 100% of the players have 'the chance' to break even or or profit? And on the same note, why should 'lesser' players be rewarded for 'lesser' pool skills? It ain't a dole queue, it's sport!
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njc147
Just popping in
Joined: 26-Sep-2012
Posts: 7
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Posted: 2012-09-27 23:40
because without the 'lesser' players there wouldn't be a tour....or at least there wouldn't be one that the top players would consider being worth playing in due to lack of entries
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Benjamin
Home away from home
Joined: 29-Mar-2006
Posts: 364
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Posted: 2012-09-27 23:51
I know what you're saying njc and it's an age old argument and probably always will be, I'm not being flippant I assure you. But if you consider yourself to be a 'lesser' player then surely you're not entering events as a money-earner anyway, you'll have you're own individual reasons which I'm sure there are many, money not being one of them. If you don't consider yourself a 'lesser' player then the prizes on offer have never been better in GB.
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njc147
Just popping in
Joined: 26-Sep-2012
Posts: 7
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Posted: 2012-09-28 00:11
well personally i consider myself to be a middle of the road player. I've made the prize money stages a couple of times and have beaten some good players along the way. However i don't consider myself good enough to win a tournament so when looking at prize monies the amount of money for the winner is irrelevant to me. You're right in what you say, even as an average player i don't personally play gb9 and expect it to be a money spinner. I play because i enjoy the game, having played snooker at a very high standard i the past, 9 ball is a new challenge. Because i am good enough to pick up a bit of money here and there then that motivates me to continue to play. The vast majority of the players that have pulled out this season from what i can see are those that never make the prize money stages. The standard on gb9 is exceptional. Changing the prize structure to make it more realistic for the 'lesser' player to at least pick up a small amount of prize money instead of nothing at all would maybe give better value for money and encourage more entries
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BFrench501
Home away from home
Joined: 28-Mar-2010
Posts: 1598
From: Leicester
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Posted: 2012-09-28 07:39
How would you structure the payments then to make it better for everybody?
The 1st prize probably has to be how it is for the pros to attend. How many pros support the flyers ran around the country? Simple answer - none! Why? 'Not enough money'.
A tour without the top players simply cannot be called a professional tour.
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deano155
Not too shy to talk
Joined: 01-Nov-2011
Posts: 31
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Posted: 2012-09-28 08:41
!!! QUOTE !!! Surely 100% of the players have 'the chance' to break even or or profit? And on the same note, why should 'lesser' players be rewarded for 'lesser' pool skills? It ain't a dole queue, it's sport! It's not about rewarding 'lesser' players....as i posted previously to most i believe it's about value for money. To have to reach the semis of the 'challenge' and last 16 of the 'main' just to cover costs isn't value for money and therefore those who are finding things tough in the current econimic climate will inevitably drop out. This in itself will reduce numbers and prize money meaning the 'better than lesser players!' will ulitimately end up playing for less any way!! It's not rocket science. Every one does have a choice though and no one is forced to play. This is my first season playing and I've thoroughly enjoyed it, although i've been close, i'm yet to make the money but I'm sure if i stuck it out that would come and my game would improve, unfortunately though i'm not sticking it out next year as to me 'its just not good value' (paying for a hotel room when i can walk home in 10 minutes doesn't help that!)........ This has to beg the question, if i feel like that and I'm fortunate enough that I can afford it how many other new comers will drop out or not join as they probably consider their mortgsge payment more important than an expensive practice.
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