As many of you know, rumors have been swirling around that the BCA Leagues will be banning phenolic tips. We received a message from a BCA referee explaining the following about the new rule:
“The cue tip on break cues must be made of leather with no non-leather materials added to the contacting surface.”
Apparently this rule does not apply to jump cues, as it looks like the BCA Leagues are only banning the use of phenolic tips on breaking cues, so if you own a Predator Air or any other jump cue with a phenolic tip, you can continue to use those in league play. Break cues like the crazy popular 27oz Heavy Breaker though, are now officially against the rules.
Yesterday, the BCA announced that they were forecasting a loss of $800,000 for the year and as a result would be making some pretty significant cuts to bring the trade organization back on track. Included in the cuts will be the 9 Ball Championships and the Hall of Fame ceremony. When you’re losing money, you’ve got to cut expenses and unfortunately these two events, while being high profile, are pretty large expenses/losses on the BCA balance sheet.
As a sponsor of the 9 Ball tournament for the past four years, we at PoolDawg will be very sad to see this major event get canceled. New BCA Board President Sean Cummings did offer a glimmer of hope though when it comes to the tournament. “The question is at what level of quality they would be staged. If somebody wants to do it right, we would certainly entertain it.”
Hopefully someone will be able to pick up the reigns on this event and produce a 2009 9 Ball Championship event that meets or exceeds the excellent 2008 event.
I’m sure you’ve all seen the results of the GenerationPool.com 9 Ball Championships, but I wanted to give the old rundown anyway. First off, the event was an absolute blast. The BCA folks did a really nice job putting on a good show. Plus, the whole free food/free booze thing didn’t hurt either. Honestly when I heard there was going to be food provided, I was expecting the standard rubber chicken fare that is usually served when the phrase “free food” is used. Color me surprised when I got to the buffet line to rock some garlic mashed potatoes, veggies and sirloin beef tips!
Now I did have fun at the event and I got to hang out and meet a ton of pool players thanks to my new friend Tequila Schjodt, but I do have a gripe goes by the name of ESPN. Unfortunately, our tables were set directly behind some cameraman from ESPN, so I got to spend the evening staring at the back of some guy’s head instead of watching Jeremy Jones and Ronnie Wiseman rattle and scratch. The picture here doesn’t even do it justice, as this was one where the cameraman was taking a break and kneeling. Most of the time he was staring into the lens, so watching the match was a little, shall we say, obstructed.
Anyway, even with the view of the cameraman’s posterior, it was still a good time with some excellent pool to be had. Kudos to Ga Young Kim, Xingtao Pan, Jasmin Ouschan and Anna Kostanian on not only playing some excellent pool, but seriously outplaying and out-entertaining the men. I’ve heard that the semis and the finals are slated to air on ESPN July 19th, so be sure to tune in and check it out.
I’m heading out to Charlotte next week to catch some pool and to see what new gear we should add to our site, but let’s face it… you can’t go to a new city without checking out at least one or two tourist attractions. I’m prepared though, as I’ve built my list of the Top 5 things I want to check out in Charlotte (other than fancy new pool cues, of course):
1. The James K. Polk Memorial – The real question is why you wouldn’t want to learn more about the 11th President. He got so much done in his first term, that he didn’t need to get re-elected!
2. The Museum of the Alphabet – That’s right folks… everything (and I do mean EVERYTHING) you’ve ever wanted to know about the alphabet.
3. Hendrick Motorsports Museum – Can’t wait until 2010 for the NASCAR Hall of Left Turns to open? Check out 15,000 square feet of motorsports madness conveniently located near the Lowe’s Racetrack.
4. Reedy Creek Nature Center – Feeling the need to get a little crunchy? Lots of trees are available for hugging here, along with lots of hiking trails.
5. Golf Club at Ballantyne – Bringing your sticks to Charlotte? Hit the links at Ballantyne. Nice championship course for under $100. There is a dress code though, so leave your coveralls at home.
Honorable Mention: The James H. Lynn Planetarium – They would’ve made the list if they had a Laser Floyd, a Laser Doors or even a Laser Loggins show.
The Charlotte Knights would have made the list as well if they had a home game during the show. I would have loved to catch a AAA game.
For those who haven’t seen it yet, the BCA has a new consumer website, Generation Pool. The goal of the site is to generate more public interest for the sport of pool, which it does quite nicely. They’ve got a pool room finder, an ask a pro feature, a nifty little social networking area and of course all the rules and regs that go along with 8 ball, 9 ball and all the rest of the games we play. Definitely take a few minutes to check out what they’ve got over there. The thing is really chock full of resources.
As we roll into Spring and Summer, Frank will be traveling to some of his favorite hot spots, most notably Las Vegas for the BCA and APA shows. He’s particularly fond of the Splash Bar at the Riviera. Since the BCA will be holding the 9 Ball Championships at the Expo this year, Frank will also be heading over to Charlotte.
As you can see in the picture above, Frank is very busy booking his air and hotel reservations with his travel gnomes, Seamus and Malachi. They recently got fired from Travelocity, but have since started their own travel agency. We’re confident that Seamus and Malachi will be able to get Frank and the PoolDawg crew booked at only the finest establishments. Who knows… maybe Frank and his boys will grab their pool cues and head over to a pool hall while they’re traveling.
