Author Topic: What changes would you make to the Tour? (Read 1378 times)

qstick777 · « **on:** April 11, 2005, 09:54:12 AM »

This is to discuss what changes you would make to the way the tour is run, and/or televised. I'll kick it off:

1) Change the season - October through April??? Come on! They are competing head-to-head with the NFL and Nascar!

Honestly, who thinks this is a good idea? I personally prefer watching PBA over the NFL and Nascar, but I'm sure that I'm in the minority on that (sorry, I'm a college football watcher!)

2) Get rid of those stupid Q&A sessions! The questions are so stupid - "What's your favorite color/food/animal/etc?"

Really, if you want to highlight the bowlers, take some tips from the WPT. Yes, most of those film highlights are cheesy, but at least they portray the people as human with some personality.

3) More techinal stuff - maybe a how-to segment, or more in-depth analysis of why somebody left a split, or missed a spare.

What changes would you guys make to increase the exposure of our sport?

janderson · « **Reply #1 on:** April 11, 2005, 06:08:55 PM »

I'd like to see the PBA keep one format for regular tournaments on the national tour. Switching from the round of 64 match play to a 14-game qualifying block mid-season was (at least potentially) unfair. I'm not saying that I like the match play better than the 14-game qualifying block, it's just that certain people performed better/finished better with the qualifying and others with the match play.

Despite being a private company out to make money, the PBA should be the forerunner for integrity in the sport of bowling. Creating a potentially unfair situation was a bit of a surprise to many in the bowling world.
--------------------
Kill the back row (or maybe this should read "make your spares, dummy")

Phillip Marlowe · « **Reply #2 on:** April 11, 2005, 06:09:38 PM »

1. Create a code of conduct and image committee. These guys are professionals. All too often they look like league bowlers or idiots. Can't they dress themselves?

2. Search for Sponsors who will not portray people watching bowling as fat, "Miller" folks.

3. Increase promotional spending.

4. Sell these guys as amazingly skilled. Some of the better commercials have been parodies of the "these guys are good" golf commercials.

5. Get the ball companies and proprietors more involved in building the tour and sponsoring it.

6. Milk every celebrity tie in.

7. Get the classiest commentator possible.

8. Increase the number of times you put good looking interviewers on with the bowlers.

9. Find a better TV time. Like Saturday afternoon.

10. Get announcers who can tell a story. You need folks who are far too erudite for the job, who've read Shakespeare, who understand poetry, who understand the working class roots of the game, who can talk to folks plainly and then eloquently about the difficulties of the pro game. You can't see how long a 7200 yard golf course is on TV, but the announcers sure let you know how tough it is. One of the things we have lost is the stories of just how tough it can be -- you don't see the folks consistently struggling, here about missed cuts, ... all important stories.

11. Go back to the stepladder. It creates more tension and creates more of a sense of reward for leading, you also have the chance for a "charge" from the back of the pack.

12. Have more skills challenges.

13. Have the lead commentator use the telecasts to relate what the bowlers there are doing to stuff the average guy can use.

14. Make sure that all the seats are filled and tell folks how it is standing room only.

15. Increase the ties to casinos. There's money there and potential sponsorships.

16. Make sure that all the sponsors are treated not just as sponsors, but as folks committed to the game and treat sponsorship as a classy thing to do.

17. Find a charity for the PBA. Then make sure the sponsors and a portion of the revenues go to the charity...and publicize it.

There are more...

`
--------------------
"I don't mind if you don't like my manners. I don't like them myself. They're pretty bad. I grieve over them on long winter evenings."

shelley · « **Reply #3 on:** April 11, 2005, 06:23:55 PM »

quote:
I'd like to see the PBA keep one format for regular tournaments on the national tour. Switching from the round of 64 match play to a 14-game qualifying block mid-season was (at least potentially) unfair. I'm not saying that I like the match play better than the 14-game qualifying block, it's just that certain people performed better/finished better with the qualifying and others with the match play.

I'm glad they went to qualifying blocks. Match play is just as much about luck as skill, and I don't think anyone is seeing the "rivalries" that they expected. Since you may lose by one point but win by 50, calling a win a win and a loss a loss doesn't give any indication of who bowled better. Total pins should be more important (until they get to TV), just as it is in the majors. Having all match-play results in people who were lucky in the short term make the TV show, rather than who bowled really well.

Heck, you could get a guy who wins matches with sub-200 scores make it to the TV show while the guy who shoots 220 loses his matches to the guy who shoots 230. That's not right. It's less about bowling well all week and more about bowling better than one or two people. I don't like that.

It may have been unfair to switch to the qualifying blocks for the round of 64 in the middle of the season for the folks who didn't make it past there in the first half, but significantly more fair to the people who actually bowl well.

I'd like to see the round of 32 being a qualifying block as well. Then use match play for the 16 and 8 rounds, then use the total pins (or something similar) to make up a step-ladder finals.

And definitely get rid of the interview section and the recap section. I was sorry to see the interview back for the ToC, even though I really like Steve Jaros. Put on more matches or something, but get rid of those sections. Show highlights of qualifying and match play if it's too much to have an additional match.

SH

dirtbikebowler · « **Reply #4 on:** April 11, 2005, 07:28:35 PM »

The number one thing is dont tell the pro's what there bowling on. They are pros thye can firgure out a shoot by themselves, i think telling them the shot helps them out a lot.
--------------------
Taking over the lanes with Mother Nature!

Storm Baby!

shelley · « **Reply #5 on:** April 11, 2005, 08:17:31 PM »

quote:
The number one thing is dont tell the pro's what there bowling on. They are pros thye can firgure out a shoot by themselves, i think telling them the shot helps them out a lot.

I don't think this would make much difference at all. They have plenty of time to practice before competition, at least the exempt guys do. The folks bowling PTQs don't get any official practice before their rounds, but there is a practice session on Wednesday night (for a normal tournament). That would give them ample time to figure out the shot and see it transition. It might affect what balls they use first, but probably they can get a new one drilled by the travelling pro shop if they don't have one already.

SH

Walking E · « **Reply #6 on:** April 11, 2005, 09:27:02 PM »

- Minimal practicing on the TV pair - two to three shots max on each TV lane before your actual match. Heck, you could even re-oil the TV pair before each match, although it would sure make for some ugly back ends by the time the championship game rolls around.
- No fans alongside the lanes. I mean, who would want to sit there anyway? Then we won't have issues with fans moving slightly and causing a bowler to flip out because somebody alongside the lanes breathed in while the bowler was in his fourth step and it caused him to fluff his shot.
- Either return to the "loud crowd" atmosphere or pipe in some other white noise. It's too quiet as it is now and bowlers don't need that much quiet to concentrate on bowling. I mean, all of us are bowlers, and we know well enough that bowling alleys are not quiet places. So if you create an atmosphere of dead silence like they do on TV, you can expect that the bowler is already feeling out of his element, which exacerbates the problem when someone coughs or sneezes or sucks the last of his soda through the straw really loud and it causes the bowler to break his concentration.
Seriously, there is a lot at stake out there for these guys and the PBA folks are just setting themselves up for a situation where a bowler attacks a fan because he farted or something right when the bowler released the ball. Making the whole place noisy would make it more exciting anyway. Why not play music like in Cosmic Bowling? Or have those terrible bar bands that occasionally show up on the telecasts just keep on playing non-stop. I wish my league would do that (play music, not have terrible bar bands) but there are apparently too many "serious" bowlers who couldn't handle listening to music and bowling at the same time so we don't. But I digress...
- Enough with the arena settings already. Who pays to watch these things in person when you know you're going to be a long way away from the action? Can you really make out anything of interest - like which ball company Norm Duke is patronizing that week, or how far over the foul line Tommy Jones or Wes Malott went - when you're 200 feet away in the top row or in the upper deck? No, you're only there to provide extra atmosphere and noise, which the PBA stifles anyway as soon as the bowler is anywhere near the approach (that is, all noise is stifled with the exception of poorly timed comments by PA announcers).
- Return to the tips segments, like the ones hosted by Mike Durbin. His tips were great and they were aimed at the advanced bowler. Even the old Nelson Burton Jr. tips were pretty good and they were aimed for bowlers of all levels.
- If the PBA is insistent on doing the six-pac questions, make one of the questions about how the bowler got started - junior leagues, collegiate bowling, etc. This might make a positive impact on participation in our junior programs and is far more interesting to hear than what motivates the bowler ("My kids...", "My family...", etc.).
- If you're going to show a graph of the PBA Lane Pattern being used that week, explain what the heck the different colors mean. I don't care IF every bowler is throwing the ball in the dark blue area, I want to know WHY they are playing in that area, and explaining that the darker area means more oil or less oil would be informative. Also explain what "buffing" the oil means and how we can expect this to affect ball reactions. And do it before the first match starts so that you're not trying to quickly explain it between shots.
- And while you're at it, have the commentator - you know, the one who is the PBA pro - pay attention to what's going on between games and in practice so that they can give an informative analysis of the lane transition. You can even have them break out the graph again so that he can telestrate what the shot was that was laid down, and how that shot differs from what is really on the lanes after the initial shot was destroyed by one of the bowlers throwing either their spare ball or their dull-sanded balls for 15 minutes in practice on the TV pair. If this "defense" or "shot-building" is allowed to continue on the TV pair, then it's only fair to factor that into the lane condition segment since it has a drastic effect on the shot being played.

--------------------
Official Member of the BrunsTrackColumStormHammEboRotoBuzzAMF Nation!

qstick777 · « **Reply #7 on:** April 11, 2005, 10:06:19 PM »

quote:
- If you're going to show a graph of the PBA Lane Pattern being used that week, explain what the heck the different colors mean. I don't care IF every bowler is throwing the ball in the dark blue area, I want to know WHY they are playing in that area, and explaining that the darker area means more oil or less oil would be informative. Also explain what "buffing" the oil means and how we can expect this to affect ball reactions. And do it before the first match starts so that you're not trying to quickly explain it between shots.
- And while you're at it, have the commentator - you know, the one who is the PBA pro - pay attention to what's going on between games and in practice so that they can give an informative analysis of the lane transition. You can even have them break out the graph again so that he can telestrate what the shot was that was laid down, and how that shot differs from what is really on the lanes after the initial shot was destroyed by one of the bowlers throwing either their spare ball or their dull-sanded balls for 15 minutes in practice on the TV pair. If this "defense" or "shot-building" is allowed to continue on the TV pair, then it's only fair to factor that into the lane condition segment since it has a drastic effect on the shot being played.

Agreed. Even though I thought they ran it into the ground, I appreciated the fact they sort of explained what was happening when Pratt was bowling with the plastic ball. They could have gotten a little more technical - my wife was surprised to find out that plastic balls move the oil and reactive balls actually absorb it.

I hate the oil pattern graph because it means nothing to me unless they explain it. I usually have to come here to find out what it means when the oil is buffed, etc.

dpunky · « **Reply #8 on:** April 12, 2005, 11:48:01 AM »

1. Reinstate the Doubles Event: We would have touring player doubles, Mixed Pair Doubles, and PBA/Senior PBA doubles.

2. Make the Tournament of Champions the "Super Bowl" event of bowling, with this event giving the most years of Exemption, instead of the World Championship.

3. Remove the Q/A spots with Pros on PBA telecasts with educational tips on drilling and pin placement (stuff that you only find out if you go to pro shops).

4. Put back the PBA season to a winter/spring season and a summer/fall season. Make the breaks between the seasons only 3 months (which mimics other pro sports).

5. All majors will have a stepladder format.

6. More PBA events during the season.

7. Have the PBA sponsor 1 or more centers to rehab them to the newest standards (I have many centers around my area that need new equipment).

8. No commissioner exemptions.

ozsweet · « **Reply #9 on:** April 12, 2005, 01:58:08 PM »

1) Increase exemption for a multiple winner to 2 years. Heck, there's only 20 events;
2) All "majors" should have the same # years exemptions (I'd say 3);
3) Increase the number in the exempt field;
4) Have Match Play tournaments and regular tournaments;
5) Eliminate 3 out of 5 match play - the worst format possible;
6) Make the television finals best total pins over 3 games, other than the title match. If not enough TV time, bowl the 1st 2 games off air and show highlights. Then you can see some drama if someone is behind 50-60 pins;
7) Find a way to increase the prize $$ for the winner - more people will watch if they're playing for big $$;

--------------------
I (was) my only ignored user (until 4/3/05)

janderson · « **Reply #10 on:** April 12, 2005, 02:36:56 PM »

quote:
1. Reinstate the Doubles Event: We would have touring player doubles, Mixed Pair Doubles, and PBA/Senior PBA doubles.

A national Pro-Amateur doubles event that offers prize money but doesn't count towards exempt points would be a great way to allow the "normal joe" to identify with the program. The number of amateur entries only adds to the prize fund. I know they are doing this at the regional level, why not at the national level? Maybe even a Pro teamed up with a 10-year-old bowling for scholarship money. Great PR stuff there.

--------------------
Kill the back row (or maybe this should read "make your spares, dummy")

yoder978 · « **Reply #11 on:** April 12, 2005, 05:09:36 PM »

1. i actually talked to ryan schaffer on this one. change the format of the tournaments from week to week using about 4 different formats. this way it does not favor one person over another just due to format. plus it gives the fans a little bit of a change. (isn't the ryder cup in golf interesting to watch just because it is different. there are other reasons though). use a longer more grueling format for the "major" tournaments and use 3 other formats for the other tournaments.

2. allow more people to enter the field. this would increase the prize fund. at $500 dollars an entry fee another 20 people in the tournament would add $10,000. but still limit the amount of people so that way they will be able to finish before midnight every night. and just like golf most any guy can win any given week but the best will rise to the top. for example tiger woods, phil mickelson, vijay singh, and ernie els dominate the tour. therefore wrw jr. norm duke brian voss and all the other great bowlers will rise to the top.

3. lower the cost for kids to see the tournament. this will bring in more kids to watch the pros and cause them to be more intrigued. what 10 year old kid has $25 bucks to see them for one day. lower the cost of the pro-ams for the kids. the future of the sport is gone with the current generation so why not start marketing to the next generation.

4. bring back the show on a saturday afternoon. a show is only an hour and a half, why not put it in between 2 college games whether it be football or basketball.

5. start a technology segment on the telecast. show the people watching the show how much technology is in the sport now and how it has evolved just like golf. the concept is the same but how you achieve that goal has changed. show us everything from lane oil to computer scoring to bowling balls and all the way to how the abc test all these to insure there legitimacy.

shelley · « **Reply #12 on:** April 13, 2005, 08:44:50 AM »

quote:
1. i actually talked to ryan schaffer on this one. change the format of the tournaments from week to week using about 4 different formats. this way it does not favor one person over another just due to format. plus it gives the fans a little bit of a change. (isn't the ryder cup in golf interesting to watch just because it is different. there are other reasons though). use a longer more grueling format for the "major" tournaments and use 3 other formats for the other tournaments.

I like this idea. Have a few doubles titles, a few all-match-play events, a few of today's "normal" tournaments", a sweeper tournament.

quote:
3. lower the cost for kids to see the tournament. this will bring in more kids to watch the pros and cause them to be more intrigued. what 10 year old kid has $25 bucks to see them for one day. lower the cost of the pro-ams for the kids. the future of the sport is gone with the current generation so why not start marketing to the next generation.

Again, a really good idea. I remember bowling in a pro-am when I was about 10 over at Don Carter's place in New Orleans. It was invitational and I thought it was sooo cool that I was invited to go. Do they still have kids-only pro-ams?

SH

NaturalBornCheater · « **Reply #13 on:** April 13, 2005, 09:33:22 AM »

go back to the late 80's, early 90's, the way the tournaments were structured, and the way the PBA was structured, and it'd be perfect.

where "OPENS" were open...
varying field sizes and formats up until finals
stepladder
Bowlers didn't know the conditions until they bowled on them.
Bo Burton.
"Tip of the week"

...
the PBA should have never left ABC

--------------------
Carry the 8. be a good lefty.

Edited on 4/13/2005 9:28 AM

DON DRAPER · « **Reply #14 on:** April 13, 2005, 04:46:14 PM »

i wish the pba would go back to the "traditional" format they used to use to run a tournament: everybody( no exempt field )bowled 18 games of qualifying. the top 24 advanced to matchplay. the top five made the stepladder tv finals. abc television did a great job in showing these tournaments.

Author Topic: What changes would you make to the Tour? (Read 1378 times)

qstick777

What changes would you make to the Tour?

janderson

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

Phillip Marlowe

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

shelley

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

dirtbikebowler

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

shelley

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

Walking E

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

qstick777

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

dpunky

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

ozsweet

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

janderson

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

yoder978

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

shelley

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

NaturalBornCheater

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?

DON DRAPER

Re: What changes would you make to the Tour?