UK festival poker....non added-value festival poker...the future...

[tikay]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

[AndrewT]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Which won't happen for a televised tournament with added money.

There are two issues here.

One is 'how do we get more sponsors/attention/coverage/money into tournament poker in this country?' The second is 'how do we stop a £1000 tournament getting seven people showing up for it?'

The answer to the second is 'don't run it on the same weekend as a televised tournament at the other end of the country which will attract most of the players who will play in a £1000 event.' Aspers thought the market was there for it and gave it a shot - they were wrong. They'll learn and move on.

For the first question, as Tikay says, the GUKPT is a massive step in the right direction. The USP of televised UK tournament poker would be that there is a very reasonable chance for the guy sat at home watching the TV one week to be playing on the TV the next week. We've seen an element of this with Poker Night Live and Sky Poker on the internet - converting that to a live experience would be a winner.

In fact, here's an idea I'm giving away for free. Sky Poker start up a UK tournament tour across the country. £1000 buy-in tournament every week (or every other week). Play down to the final table at the casino at the weekend. Play the actual final table in the Sky studio during the week. Proper structure (Will Hill Grand Prix style - roll the blinds right back and take all day about it). Show that on Sky Sports the day after the highlights programme from the weekend at the casino.

Run the satellites with proper structures (not the turbo crap on the TV now) throughout the week on Sky Poker. Emphasise to the viewer at home how it could be them sat in the studio playing on Sky Sports next week.

The casinos get people through the doors. Sky Poker get people playing on their poker room. Potential sponsors and advertisers get widespread TV coverage. Players get added money and value to their tournaments. Everyone's a winner.

I may have just given away my chance to be the next John Duthie but I'd be far too lazy to make it work anyway.

[Dewi_cool]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Which won't happen for a televised tournament with added money.

There are two issues here.

One is 'how do we get more sponsors/attention/coverage/money into tournament poker in this country?' The second is 'how do we stop a £1000 tournament getting seven people showing up for it?'

The answer to the second is 'don't run it on the same weekend as a televised tournament at the other end of the country which will attract most of the players who will play in a £1000 event.' Aspers thought the market was there for it and gave it a shot - they were wrong. They'll learn and move on.

For the first question, as Tikay says, the GUKPT is a massive step in the right direction. The USP of televised UK tournament poker would be that there is a very reasonable chance for the guy sat at home watching the TV one week to be playing on the TV the next week. We've seen an element of this with Poker Night Live and Sky Poker on the internet - converting that to a live experience would be a winner.

In fact, here's an idea I'm giving away for free. Sky Poker start up a UK tournament tour across the country. £1000 buy-in tournament every week (or every other week). Play down to the final table at the casino at the weekend. Play the actual final table in the Sky studio during the week. Proper structure (Will Hill Grand Prix style - roll the blinds right back and take all day about it). Show that on Sky Sports the day after the highlights programme from the weekend at the casino.

Run the satellites with proper structures (not the turbo crap on the TV now) throughout the week on Sky Poker. Emphasise to the viewer at home how it could be them sat in the studio playing on Sky Sports next week.

The casinos get people through the doors. Sky Poker get people playing on their poker room. Potential sponsors and advertisers get widespread TV coverage. Players get added money and value to their tournaments. Everyone's a winner.

I may have just given away my chance to be the next John Duthie but I'd be far too lazy to make it work anyway.

Andrew, you have obviously given some thought to this, one question, will they have guinness in the sky studio?

[b4matt]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Is this what you want? I don't think i do (though i'm not 100% sure). I want some freedom in comps, I want to pay my fees for a profesionally run and structured comp. Ok every now and then- tv, added money etc great but at what price?

I love playing poker and i want a fair crack at winning- but not to play in crap-shoot finals.. Though i'd quite like to get to one lol.

[tikay]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Is this what you want? I don't think i do (though i'm not 100% sure). I want some freedom in comps, I want to pay my fees for a profesionally run and structured comp. Ok every now and then- tv, added money etc great but at what price?

I love playing poker and i want a fair crack at winning- but not to play in crap-shoot finals.. Though i'd quite like to get to one lol.

The Sponsors - in my little dream world - would have no influence AT ALL on the Tourney structure. It can de done & it has been done. Now we just need to organise things better.

[b4matt]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Is this what you want? I don't think i do (though i'm not 100% sure). I want some freedom in comps, I want to pay my fees for a profesionally run and structured comp. Ok every now and then- tv, added money etc great but at what price?

I love playing poker and i want a fair crack at winning- but not to play in crap-shoot finals.. Though i'd quite like to get to one lol.

The Sponsors - in my little dream world - would have no influence AT ALL on the Tourney structure. It can de done & it has been done. Now we just need to organise things better.

Until the BMA approve human cloning and we have 2 Tikays......

[tikay]

The breakthrough will be when non-poker/casino companies want to get involved in sponsoring it.

I think that is close.

They are there, ready & waiting, but they won't commit while there is a chance that 7 runners show up!

Is this what you want? I don't think i do (though i'm not 100% sure). I want some freedom in comps, I want to pay my fees for a profesionally run and structured comp. Ok every now and then- tv, added money etc great but at what price?

I love playing poker and i want a fair crack at winning- but not to play in crap-shoot finals.. Though i'd quite like to get to one lol.

The Sponsors - in my little dream world - would have no influence AT ALL on the Tourney structure. It can de done & it has been done. Now we just need to organise things better.

Until the BMA approve human cloning and we have 2 Tikays......

It HAS been done, & we can do it again.

[Wardonkey]

Bigger is neccesarily better, I'd probably play more a few more events if the fields were smaller....

[Royal Flush]

Just a note about "added money"

303 runners in brighton i believe.

303 x £50 = £15,150

'added money' = £10k + £3k seat.

Not exactly great value is it! I do not play the GPT because of the 'added money'

[ripple11]

 I see the South of England Championship in Southampton this Bank Holiday weekend has been cancelled.
 Is this down to lack of runners? It certainly doesn't help that Blue Square refused to run any sats for it .....like they did last year.
We all know how big and sucessful the GUKPT is but please lets find a way of keeping other mini festivals running.

[TightEnd]

Until the advent of the GUKPT Blue Sq gave a sum of money to each Grosvenor festival. Luton, for example, used this sum to add seats to live satellites on the Sunday prior to the festival and these events were extremely popular.

At the start of 2007 Blue Sq decided to dedicate this extra money to the GUKPT which is perfectly understandable...they presumably only have a certain pot of money and they have shiny new toy to play with and promote

the consequence is though that the live satellites for the regular festivals are putting less runners into the events

And, as you say, the online satellite schedule is on some cases curtailed/absent too........


Perhaps at the end of GUKPT Season 1 when the suits are debriefing they might consider the knock on effects onto their longer term non- GUKPT festival planning.

[AndrewT]

Andrew, you have obviously given some thought to this, one question, will they have guinness in the sky studio?

Only the final table will be at the Sky studio, so it won't affect you. There'll be plenty of Guinness at the casino for you to get stuck into a hour after the tournament starts.

[Karabiner]

I believe that Aspers scheduled their festival before the Brighton dates had been announced.

Chris, the cardroom supervisor said that he was "devastated" when their week got counterfeited.

I must add that after a few days up there I was really impressed by Aspers and I'm sure that they'll have many successful festivals in the future. It has friendly locals, a huge comfortable cardroom in pleasant surroundings and excellent staff.

I will definitely visit again.

[Tractor]

What about DTD, surely this will be the UK benchmark?

[TightEnd]

What about DTD, surely this will be the UK benchmark?

It may become so, but my question referred to established festivals and exisiting comps