Barry Hearn interview by Dave Hendon 01.12.11

Full interview link

Interesting statements:

"This is a great example [Higgins accusing Hearn of ruining UK Champs] of why snooker players should play snooker and leave commercial decisions to people qualified to make them”

“For the UK Championship they [the BBC] wanted a result in every session and best of 11 was actually stretching it as far as we could."

“It sounds to me like John Higgins is completely removed from reality. He’s a great player and is entitled to his opinion but we’re a commercial sport. If he and others want bigger prize funds then they have to live in the real world."

“We will leave the World Championship virtually untouched because it’s proved itself”

“What people don’t seem to understand is that we have a proper commercial plan”

“Peter Ebdon got it right two years ago. He told the EGM they were giving me control of the game forever. Correct, and I know the way to go. I know exactly what I’m doing because I’ve done it in darts and elsewhere."

“The European PTCs have been a great springboard to showcase the game in Europe and explore the market there. Those events will grow but we need the players to support them.”

“Eventually everyone will play in the first round [in every tournament]. The sport hasn’t been vibrant enough, there have been too few new faces coming through. It’s been a closed shop largely and there have been too many obstacles."

“It was run like a boys’ club. In five years time the sport will look completely different. There will be a tournament every week, just like golf, just like tennis.”

“It seems to me a lot of top players would rather be at home in bed than go out to work like the rest of us."

“The players job is to keep their mouths shut and play snooker. Mine is to provide them with the opportunities to do that, which I am doing."

“Some of them seem to want everything now. Well, that won’t happen but at the end of five years the sport will have been transformed. The prizes will be there for those who want them and are prepared to work for them. Some players seem to think I should just send them a cheque every month."

“I don’t mind people losing money playing if that’s their chosen path, if that’s what they want to do with their lives, but it’s my responsibility to give them the chances and reward them if they are successful."


VERY INTERESTING INTERVIEW.

"This is a great example [Higgins accusing Hearn of ruining UK Champs] of why snooker players should play snooker and leave commercial decisions to people qualified to make them”

harsh

“For the UK Championship they [the BBC] wanted a result in every session and best of 11 was actually stretching it as far as we could."

That's a good point. The BBC hasn't been to kind to snooker lately, they scraped the Grand Prix/World Open already, I believe him that he was put under pressure by the BBC.

“It sounds to me like John Higgins is completely removed from reality. He’s a great player and is entitled to his opinion but we’re a commercial sport. If he and others want bigger prize funds then they have to live in the real world."

Again harsh, he wants the players to keep their mouths shut in the future.

“We will leave the World Championship virtually untouched because it’s proved itself”

Very good news - touching the Worlds is a deadly sin.

“What people don’t seem to understand is that we have a proper commercial plan”

I think he has.

“Peter Ebdon got it right two years ago. He told the EGM they were giving me control of the game forever. Correct, and I know the way to go. I know exactly what I’m doing because I’ve done it in darts and elsewhere."

a bit cocky

“The European PTCs have been a great springboard to showcase the game in Europe and explore the market there. Those events will grow but we need the players to support them.”

full rankers coming up

“Eventually everyone will play in the first round [in every tournament]. The sport hasn’t been vibrant enough, there have been too few new faces coming through. It’s been a closed shop largely and there have been too many obstacles."

That's the most interesting part for me. I don't really know right now if that's a good or a bad idea.

“It was run like a boys’ club. In five years time the sport will look completely different. There will be a tournament every week, just like golf, just like tennis.”

Good news.

“It seems to me a lot of top players would rather be at home in bed than go out to work like the rest of us."

harsh but probably true.

“The players job is to keep their mouths shut and play snooker. Mine is to provide them with the opportunities to do that, which I am doing."

My way or the highway.

“Some of them seem to want everything now. Well, that won’t happen but at the end of five years the sport will have been transformed. The prizes will be there for those who want them and are prepared to work for them. Some players seem to think I should just send them a cheque every month."

“I don’t mind people losing money playing if that’s their chosen path, if that’s what they want to do with their lives, but it’s my responsibility to give them the chances and reward them if they are successful."

No way back from here. Hearn will execute his plans.

My interpretation of what he said is the following:
If you don't have anything positive to say about our sport then keep it shut.
I'm going to make the top boys a lot of money. Get practising and i'll show you how.
You have to do your bit (players) to make this game global, ie when I tell you to go to Brazil you go.
This game has been run by muppets not pro promoters for far too long. You boys (players) should be more patient and certainly extremely grateful for dragging this game up.

All in all, what Hearn said years ago: Winner takes all losers make their own arrangements. This is professional sport not a bucking commune.
Long may the man stick around.

I read the interview and I'm behind him in everything bar reducing the UK format. That was a bad move and one hopefully will be rectified by a switch to another broadcaster in years to come who have dedicated HD channels to the event which reverts back to 2 session matches throughout.

ive always been in favour of a flatter set up similar to the PTC, infact ive been championing exactly what he suggests today.

The tour increase for next season to 128 players now makes sense, that adds up and also the proposed move to a Money based Order of Merit wouldnt have really worked under the current teired system, so its clearly geared up long term towards this.

So basically in future all players will be in qualifiers and if you win 2 games you get to round 3 (the last 32 ) and are into the venue stages.

Rankings will no longer become important in some senses, because everyone has to play the same number of games regardless of whether they are number 1 or 128. Its a truly level playing field and id imagine prize money will be paid to half the tour in each event (those who win their 1st round game)

Obviously the higher up the rankings you are, the longer you should go before you play the top players. So if your ranked in the top 32 then you should have 2 winnable games to make it to the venue.

Some may moan that "oh we might have an event with some of the big names missing"

Tough luck i say, they are big names on reputation the bulk of them, time for them to justify their rankings and do the talking on the baize instead of getting a passport to the venues and being protected just cos there the elite and established players.

If you use tennis as a model, in the Slams theres also 128 players and 7 rounds, with the top guys also thrown in at the 1st round. The really top guys still progress to the latter stages and dominate that sport, so if the Ronnies, Selbys, Higgins etc of this world, really embrace the new set up and focus, they can still remain at the top of the sport.

I suspect the tour Heanr envisages with countless events all over the place from week to week will see snooker truly become a young mans sport as these will be the guys who wont complain, they simply want to play snooker and will see it as the norm to play week in week out.

One slight flaw i see though, is the adverse effect to what Hearn ideally wants. Theres a chance that big names might actually just stop playing or entering a lot of events and just focusing on the big money events and established tournaments. With rankings no longer massively important due to the elite having little bearing anymore bar entry to the Masters, id suspect that theres little motivation for the top guys to play all the time. The money based order of merit combined with the no elite, means that could happen.

Though some might say thats the way it should be, the big guys picking and choosing their events whilst the younger up and coming players play left right and centre in the smaller events.

For the ranking system to be dictated by prize money they would need to implement a "minimum tournament entry system" Kind of how they had it for last years PTC.

Most of that, in my opinion, is fairly bang on the money. Again, it will come as no surprise to anyone that the one thing here that sticks out is what he says about the UK Championship. I think it says one thing quite clearly: if we're going to have a proper major outside of the World Championship, then perhaps another broadcaster needs to be brought to the table. How high is snooker on Sky's list of priorities? ITV could bring something, but are they willing to broadcast a tournament of the UK's length? This is where it all gets a little complicated.

Tubberlad wrote:Most of that, in my opinion, is fairly bang on the money. Again, it will come as no surprise to anyone that the one thing here that sticks out is what he says about the UK Championship. I think it says one thing quite clearly: if we're going to have a proper major outside of the World Championship, then perhaps another broadcaster needs to be brought to the table. How high is snooker on Sky's list of priorities? ITV could bring something, but are they willing to broadcast a tournament of the UK's length? This is where it all gets a little complicated.

I just dont see ITV or SKY banging down the door to get ranking snooker, so its kinda Barry using the existing tv deals and tailoring the snooker to fit with what the tv guys want. It seems everything is up for change except the worlds, but worrying thing is how long before the worlds are tampered. The UK was a bad move and will de-value it greatly, sad truth.

He speaks very clearly though, there is no room for misunderstanding. I like that.

Tubberlad wrote:Most of that, in my opinion, is fairly bang on the money. Again, it will come as no surprise to anyone that the one thing here that sticks out is what he says about the UK Championship. I think it says one thing quite clearly: if we're going to have a proper major outside of the World Championship, then perhaps another broadcaster needs to be brought to the table. How high is snooker on Sky's list of priorities? ITV could bring something, but are they willing to broadcast a tournament of the UK's length? This is where it all gets a little complicated.

Unfortunately I don't think ITV want proper snooker. They wouldn't even take the World Open and its short and exciting.

SnookerFan wrote:We will leave the World Championship virtually untouched because it’s proved itself,”

I don't think he's considering shorting the WC. That would go way beyond leaving it "virtually untouched". He might move the 3. and 4. session of the final from Monday to Sunday or something like that ...

I hope you're right there but I can see the final being reduced to 31 or 33 frames with the semis being reduced to 29 or 31. (I dont think [or hope not] that we'll be seeing the WC for 2012 seeing matches reduced by a session)

WC tickets pretty much all sell out so no less days = less revenue

Hearn himself witnessed the magic of a best 35 match first hand. Here's nothing greater in snooker and Barry Hearn knows that.

Hearn is a disgrace.