Bradley Williams Suspended

[stratedge]

I saw BW made a statement today that he is sitting out.
I think its a very smart move on his part.
It puts him in a good position with the pdga for his appeal.
It removes the distraction from the event.
And it lets things calm down a bit.
Lets hope he continues to make solid decisions.

I'd like your poems better if they rhymed.

 

[ru4por]

Sanctioned or non sanctioned, there is plenty of room on the Am side for both. I hope there are not too many that follow in HOTT's footsteps and make this call last minute. As a player, interested in points, I would be very upset if Bowling Green Am's decided a month before the tournament that they were going to become unsanctioned. I would likely be given the chance at a refund....... but time off of work, travel plans, point budgeting for the year?

 

[Mocheez]

Lol, what if the TD lets him play? Dodge makes another interwebz proclamation and non transparent penalty? I was really looking to continue delving into the delicious irony of the entire thing.

Steve Dodge is the TD.

 

[threevok]

I'd like your poems better if they rhymed.

I saw BW made a statement today that he is sitting out.
I think it's a very smart move on his part, if he likes to pout.
It puts him in a good position with the pdga for his appeal.
It removes the distraction from the event, the drama would have been real.
And it lets things calm down a bit, assuages the derision.
Lets hope he continues to make solid decisions.

 

[ScottyLove]

Steve Dodge is the TD.

No... Jeff Spring is the TD of the GMC. Steve is running the separate Tour Championship later this weekend.

 

[DavidSauls]

So basically the PDGA is trying to strong arm TD's into sanctioning?

Otherwise AMs won't play their events?

Or making them of greater value.

 

[Mocheez]

No... Jeff Spring is the TD of the GMC. Steve is running the separate Tour Championship later this weekend.

Agreed. What are we talking about again?

 

[scarpfish]

Unsanctioned tournament TDs are, to me, like people who don't pay their taxes citing their issues with the government, but continue using the roads and infrastructure.

Or they're perhaps folks who know the demographics of their player base and know that the majority of them are not PDGA members, and that making them pay an extra $10 might hurt attendance and hence their bottom line.

They also know that there's no need to reinvent the wheel on a ruleset, since the ones in the PDGA releset work just fine for most applications, and that deferring from them too much may cause confusion for players who also play in sanctioned events.

And where do you think the PDGA ruleset came from? It wasn't sent down from Mt. Sinai on stone tablets. It was likely formulated over time garnering ideas that came from outside the PDGA.

 

[Glide]

The PDGA isn't "strong-arming" tournament directors.

There was a lot of chatter this year after Am Worlds registration opened and quickly filled leaving at least a couple hundred people on the waiting list. There were something like 8,000 (I could be WAY off on this number) people qualified for 576 spots. The PDGA decided to increase the points needed to qualify. This will likely decrease the number of people who qualify and increase the likelihood that someone will be able to compete if he or she earned an invitation.

The people spoke. The PDGA listened and acted.

That said, I don't think they should have changed the points requirement in the middle of the year, but that is another issue entirely.

So basically the PDGA is trying to strong arm TD's into sanctioning?

Otherwise AMs won't play their events?

 

[1978]

The PDGA isn't "strong-arming" tournament directors.

There was a lot of chatter this year after Am Worlds registration opened and quickly filled leaving at least a couple hundred people on the waiting list. There were something like 8,000 (I could be WAY off on this number) people qualified for 576 spots. The PDGA decided to increase the points needed to qualify. This will likely decrease the number of people who qualify and increase the likelihood that someone will be able to compete if he or she earned an invitation.

The people spoke. The PDGA listened and acted.

That said, I don't think they should have changed the points requirement in the middle of the year, but that is another issue entirely.

Only works if the PDGA doesnt make anymore unpopular decisions regarding Am World Championships. If they support making it the best event possible, and put their attention there, they can weed out the unimportant pro tours. If they make the championships harder to get into AND then make them smaller and less fun like this year, they will get no benefit and the world championships will stop being important...it will drive people to Am Nats and BG, GBO, etc. IF some of those events stop sanctioning...players wont get enough points to qualify for Worlds.

 

[stratedge]

I saw BW made a statement today that he is sitting out.
I think it's a very smart move on his part, if he likes to pout.
It puts him in a good position with the pdga for his appeal.
It removes the distraction from the event, the drama would have been real.
And it lets things calm down a bit, assuages the derision.
Lets hope he continues to make solid decisions.

j/k

 

[stratedge]

Or they're perhaps folks who know the demographics of their player base and know that the majority of them are not PDGA members, and that making them pay an extra $10 might hurt attendance and hence their bottom line.

Ah yes, those TDs of tournaments in the inner city ghettos where the game is played through alleys and your basket is an old garbage can. Yeah, I can understand why those imaginary TDs wouldn't sanction. Meanwhile, back in the real world, the rest of us can continue to spread awareness of what the PDGA provides and encourage them to join, rather than play down to the lowest common denominator.

Maybe the city where you live has fallen on hard times, but I've never played a tournament where non-PDGA members were the majority, sanctioned or unsanctioned.

They also know that there's no need to reinvent the wheel on a ruleset, since the ones in the PDGA releset work just fine for most applications, and that deferring from them too much may cause confusion for players who also play in sanctioned events.

And where do you think the PDGA ruleset came from? It wasn't sent down from Mt. Sinai on stone tablets. It was likely formulated over time garnering ideas that came from outside the PDGA.

So... let me get this straight. You're now taking the position that the PDGA rule set wasn't created by the PDGA? Really? This is what it's come to?

Man, when you decide on a narrative, you really commit to it.

 

[Glide]

Did you play in this year's Am Worlds?

I ran it. It was the 5th biggest ever and widely regarded as a very well ran event. Perfect, no. What is?

Only works if the PDGA doesnt make anymore unpopular decisions regarding Am World Championships. If they support making it the best event possible, and put their attention there, they can weed out the unimportant pro tours. If they make the championships harder to get into AND then make them smaller and less fun like this year, they will get no benefit and the world championships will stop being important...it will drive people to Am Nats and BG, GBO, etc. IF some of those events stop sanctioning...players wont get enough points to qualify for Worlds.

 

[Anthony_G]

Sanctioned or non sanctioned, there is plenty of room on the Am side for both. I hope there are not too many that follow in HOTT's footsteps and make this call last minute. As a player, interested in points, I would be very upset if Bowling Green Am's decided a month before the tournament that they were going to become unsanctioned. I would likely be given the chance at a refund....... but time off of work, travel plans, point budgeting for the year?

This is where I am stuck. HOTT Oktoberfest is 2 weeks away and it was un-sanctioned yesterday. I am struggling to find motivation to stay signed up. My round rating has been my main motivating factor this year and after a pretty disappointing season it sucks to lose one of my last opportunities to improve via 3 rounds. Further, I want to know how AMS will benefit from this move in the grand scheme of the HOTT series of the future. I was looking forward to them and not so sure now. Is cash for am pay a thing at all in non-sanctioned tournaments? # Placement with some plastic isn't that motivating honestly. Also, how will pro's and am's be placed? Will it be player discretion to sign up in the right field?

I definitely believe there is a place for non-sanctioned tournaments, please don't get me wrong. For central TX it sounds like there won't be many sanctioned tournaments any more which is very concerning.

 

[zj1002]

This is where I am stuck. HOTT Oktoberfest is 2 weeks away and it was un-sanctioned yesterday. I am struggling to find motivation to stay signed up. My round rating has been my main motivating factor this year and after a pretty disappointing season it sucks to lose one of my last opportunities to improve via 3 rounds. Further, I want to know how AMS will benefit from this move in the grand scheme of the HOTT series of the future. I was looking forward to them and not so sure now. Is cash for am pay a thing at all in non-sanctioned tournaments? # Placement with some plastic isn't that motivating honestly. Also, how will pro's and am's be placed? Will it be player discretion to sign up in the right field?

I definitely believe there is a place for non-sanctioned tournaments, please don't get me wrong. For central TX it sounds like there won't be many sanctioned tournaments any more which is very concerning.

Central Texas really hasn't ever had anything but HOTT, Kevin Eldridge, and a couple events that are run annually be their respected regional clubs(Waterloo Classic, Outlaws, etc). Pretty large player base that never touches PDGA events too. Lots of one off C-Tiers too.

I guess I never considered the AM complications since I play Pro here, so I see your concern. I imagine they will run as they always do, they just won't pay the PDGA anymore. It sounds like they don't plan to change much aside from that. They definitely should release a little more info soon though.

Curious to see who steps up into the state coordinator role and if someone else tries to start up a PDGA series here.

 

[ru4por]

This is where I am stuck. HOTT Oktoberfest is 2 weeks away and it was un-sanctioned yesterday. I am struggling to find motivation to stay signed up. My round rating has been my main motivating factor this year and after a pretty disappointing season it sucks to lose one of my last opportunities to improve via 3 rounds. Further, I want to know how AMS will benefit from this move in the grand scheme of the HOTT series of the future. I was looking forward to them and not so sure now. Is cash for am pay a thing at all in non-sanctioned tournaments? # Placement with some plastic isn't that motivating honestly. Also, how will pro's and am's be placed? Will it be player discretion to sign up in the right field?

I definitely believe there is a place for non-sanctioned tournaments, please don't get me wrong. For central TX it sounds like there won't be many sanctioned tournaments any more which is very concerning.

If points for PDGA majors and/or rating are important to you, this is very disappointing. The only benefit to the AM side, will be to those looking to drink, smoke, act out or save the annual PDGA membership fee ($10.00 per event). IMO. I would hope that someone in your area will begin to organize a sanctioned series to compete with the long standing, now unsanctioned series. Providing for both would seem the healthiest thing for the game in your area.

 

[DavidSauls]

Maybe the city where you live has fallen on hard times, but I've never played a tournament where non-PDGA members were the majority, sanctioned or unsanctioned.
.

There are states where PDGA membership is very low.

And elsewhere, sometimes events are run that cater to new players.

 

[stratedge]

There are states where PDGA membership is very low.

And elsewhere, sometimes events are run that cater to new players.

I'm in Canada. What are these states and how low is the membership?

 

[teemkey]

Of course there is a compromise where the Am & Pro tournaments are separated with the Am tourney PDGA sanctioned and the Pro side HOTT (DGPT, etc) sanctioned.

 

[krupicka]

Which is funny because for years events would sanction the Pro side and not the Am side.