Monday, January 17, 2011

The Monday Poll

While we await the opening of registration for both the PSP's Galveston season opener and the NPPL's Huntington Beach event the obvious question is which will be the bigger event? Galveston isn't Phoenix but Phoenix was in decline in real numbers and there seems to be mostly positive buzz about the new Texas venue. Of course HB is a legendary venue--and isn't it just a little sad that a significant percent of current tourney players only know what they've seen the last couple of years--or that I can call HB legendary and everyone acknowledges my meaning even though the first HB was less than a decade ago. Anyway, before real registration numbers start to skew our results swish those tea leaves around or grab that Magic 8-ball as you vote this week on which event will have the largest turnout. PSP or NPPL?

More teams will play--
Galveston
Huntington Beach

Monday Poll in Review
Last week VFTD wanted to know, in a roundabout sorta way, what if any impact the presence of a pro division has on the average or likely divisional player. The question was: Imagine there are no more pro divisions in the major leagues (PSP, NPPL & MS) would you be ... More inclined to participate in a major league event; less inclined or it wouldn't make any difference. More inclined finished a distant third with 7% of the vote. Less inclined received 30% of the vote and wouldn't make any difference was the overwhelming choice with 62%.
I had expected going into the week of the poll that the less inclined & wouldn't make any difference votes to have been the reverse of what they turned out. Nor am I sure I believe the voters. As I pointed out in the comments it wasn't too many years ago that the main draw for divisional teams was a chance to play a pro in the prelims. And for the more competitive teams playing the series in one of the am divisions isn't the goal to succeed and have a chance to move up? Move up to what? And what about a team like Vicious? Sure they've been cleverly marketed but isn't a chunk of their popularity the result of living the dream, working their way up, and reaching the pinnacle of their sport? Hard to do without the pinnacle.
On the other hand, if these numbers are to be believed, maybe the PSP would be better off without a pro division and those CPL losses might be a blessing in disguise.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I, at least, didn't take it to mean that there were no more pro players anywhere. I took it as everything thing about the event is the same, but there's no pro division at the specific event. If we have to pay to get in the pro bleachers and it's otherwise completely blocked off and separated from the rest of the event, what difference does it make anyway.

DanC. said...

I also took it as no pro division at the event, rather than no pro division at all. Short of having a seasoned player as a coach there is no effect on me at the event. (that's not to say that the fallout of no pro division wouldn't.)
The whole pro division is being marketed and used poorly any way.

1) if there's no "pro" division, doesn't D1 become the pinnacle?
2)If divisional teams played pro teams I'm sure the results would be different. I go to event to play the best competition available. not to watch others. The pro division is completely independent of all others, so the fact that they aren't there means nothing to me.
However if given the chance to play pro Id take it, not because of the name, but because I get to test myself against the best. Currently not an option off the practice fields. And that doesn't count to me.

Missy Q said...

I took it that there was not a 'pro' division, but open divisions with evenly distributed Pro's like back in the day. I would much rather play a mix of teams in preliminary play, including a pro team or 2. You say it yourself; playing the Pro's was a great draw for events. With shrinking Pro divisions isn't it unavoidable that we have to make a move back to 'open' divisions?
Personally I think this is what the PSP would have had to do to rescue their 'situation'. Those smaller moves won't have the desired effect, at least quick enough to be of any benefit. A move back to open play would probably have prompted some PBN suicides, but it would also have been a real shake-up, and I would bet/guess that the events would be better-attended almost immediately.

Baca Loco said...

Interesting comments.

Missy
Format however is a big hindrance for the PSP if they were to seriously look into that change.

Missy Q said...

I see your point, but I guess the format would change throughout the event. preliminary rounds could be race to 3/4. Qtr finals race to 5. Race to 7 for Semi's and Finals, or something like that.