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May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

http://www.worldsnooker.com/page/NewsAr ... 27,00.html?
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A press conference was staged in Beijing, China today to announce the three new Asian Players Tour Championship events.

The events will be held in Zhang Jiagang in June before the Wuxi Classic, in Yixing in September after the Shanghai Masters, and in Chengdu around the International Championship (click http://www.worldsnooker.com/page/Tourna ... llCalendar for the full 2012/13 calendar). The APTC title sponsor is Guizhou Guotai Liquor Co Ltd and the promoter is Beijing Haokao Sports Culture Co Ltd.

The APTC tournaments will form part of the Players Tour Championship series, along with four events in the UK and six in Europe. The top four on the APTC Order of Merit, as well as the winners of the three events, will qualify for the PTC Grand Finals. The APTCs will have the same ranking point tariff as the PTC events in Europe, and each will have prize money of £50,000. The events will be open to everyone and will give the chance for more Asian players to participate.

Attending the press conference at the People's Conference Hall in Beijing were representatives of the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association, Beijing Haokao Sports Culture Co Ltd, Guizhou Guotai Liquor Co Ltd and Star Xing Pai, as well as World No 41 Xiao Guodong.


Interestingly enough there is no constraint there for players to attend a minimum number of events and the winner of each qualify automatically whatever.
It's open to everyone. So a player who isn't too keen of the PTCs, say Ding for example, could chose to try and win one and find himself in the PTC Grand Final having "bypassed" the PTC constraints. and played in none of them.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby gallantrabbit

Monique,
Surely that's BH listening a 'little' to the top players. And it can't be bad for the lower ranked too as they'd have fewer obstacles in their paths to points and prize money?

These are obviously set up with a mind to the Asian influx though.No UK based players will go out there just for these events. The top boys might be able to tag them on from the Wuxi classic etc but otherwise they'll be relying on the Asian entries, am I right?

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Wildey

this season there is also qualifiers for european PTC in both sheffield and the venue for example EPTC2 POLAND

European Tour 2 (Poland) pre-qualifier
August 17-18
World Snooker Academy, Sheffield


European Tour 2
October 4-7
Gdynia, Poland


so British Amateurs dont need to do the traveling unless they qualify

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

gallantrabbit wrote:Monique,
Surely that's BH listening a 'little' to the top players. And it can't be bad for the lower ranked too as they'd have fewer obstacles in their paths to points and prize money?

These are obviously set up with a mind to the Asian influx though.No UK based players will go out there just for these events. The top boys might be able to tag them on from the Wuxi classic etc but otherwise they'll be relying on the Asian entries, am I right?


Yes, you are right. But I expect some of the best Chinese players, the like of Ding, Tian Pengfei, Liang Wenbo, Xia Guodong to give them a go and maybe skip the PTCs. They don't need a visa to play in them for a start. And then I wonder how many of the other APTC qualifiers will be able to make the trip to the PTC Grand Final …

I don't think BH is "listening" to the top players. This is a clear bias towards Asian players and another sign that the game is increasingly moving over there.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

Wild WC wrote:this season there is also qualifiers for european PTC in both sheffield and the venue for example EPTC2 POLAND

European Tour 2 (Poland) pre-qualifier
August 17-18
World Snooker Academy, Sheffield


European Tour 2
October 4-7
Gdynia, Poland


so British Amateurs dont need to do the traveling unless they qualify


Indeed and the Polish amateurs will have to come to UK to qualify. How many will be able to do that? So don't tell me that this is promoting the game in Europe.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Wildey

Monique wrote:
Wild WC wrote:this season there is also qualifiers for european PTC in both sheffield and the venue for example EPTC2 POLAND

European Tour 2 (Poland) pre-qualifier
August 17-18
World Snooker Academy, Sheffield


European Tour 2
October 4-7
Gdynia, Poland


so British Amateurs dont need to do the traveling unless they qualify


Indeed and the Polish amateurs will have to come to UK to qualify. How many will be able to do that? So don't tell me that this is promoting the game in Europe.

no no no no Polish Amataurs will qualify in Poland if they wish to do so before the Last 128 starts on the 5th of Oct.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

OK. Seems a strange way to do things though. How many spots will there be for "Polish" amateurs, and how many for "UK" amateurs?
I put quotes because it might be closer and cheaper for German amateur (for instance) to go and qualify in Poland rather than in UK. Easier as well, as the opposition will be weaker.
Doesn't look like an equal field to me.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Wildey

Monique wrote:OK. Seems a strange way to do things though. How many spots will there be for "Polish" amateurs, and how many for "UK" amateurs?
I put quotes because it might be closer and cheaper for German amateur (for instance) to go and qualify in Poland rather than in UK. Easier as well, as the opposition will be weaker.
Doesn't look like an equal field to me.

having re read the callender (and its a very messy callender with cut offs all over the blumming shop) i now doubt what i initially said . :shrug:

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

Wild WC wrote:
Monique wrote:OK. Seems a strange way to do things though. How many spots will there be for "Polish" amateurs, and how many for "UK" amateurs?
I put quotes because it might be closer and cheaper for German amateur (for instance) to go and qualify in Poland rather than in UK. Easier as well, as the opposition will be weaker.
Doesn't look like an equal field to me.

having re read the callender (and its a very messy callender with cut offs all over the blumming shop) i now doubt what i initially said . :shrug:


The calendar is a complete mess indeed and that will help nobody. It's the perfect illustration of why I insist that before putting up events, proper thinking, and resources, must be given to organisation, quality of venues, trying to make the traveling a bit easier by "grouping" events, and more.
Rushing things is not the way to go forward properly.

To an extend having Wuxi, the six-red and Australia so close will help some players. When I came back from Sheffield after the WC, I traveled with Martin Gould. He told me that there is no way he would have gone to Australia if it wasn't for the fact that he will go to Wuxi and Thailand before. This "breaks" the trip in shorter (and cheaper) chunks and also makes the time difference they have to deal with slightly more manageable.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Wildey

Alpha wrote:I have to agree here. Three years on and the organisation of PTC's still isn't good enough.

this is the season PTC Should come together they had 2 years to iron things out so in theary and in my mind it should be sorted by now.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby snooky147

The calendar is a complete and utter shambles. Very little thought, if any has gone into producing that. That and the increasingly shortened time that players have to arrange flights etc. It's not as easy as you might first think to do that. I have had first hand experience of it a few years back and it was positively nightmarish then with plenty of time to do arrangements, but now with the shortened timeframe and the fact that they have to deal with local airlines over there, ie China to Thailand etc, well its just not easy.

Go on, tell me to stop moaning......but actually I'm not, I'm just stating a fact.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

snooky147 wrote:The calendar is a complete and utter shambles. Very little thought, if any has gone into producing that. That and the increasingly shortened time that players have to arrange flights etc. It's not as easy as you might first think to do that. I have had first hand experience of it a few years back and it was positively nightmarish then with plenty of time to do arrangements, but now with the shortened timeframe and the fact that they have to deal with local airlines over there, ie China to Thailand etc, well its just not easy.

Go on, tell me to stop moaning......but actually I'm not, I'm just stating a fact.


Absolutely.
And with some nominations not finalised, and Q-school still underway, how are some of the newcomers be able to get visas and other papers ready in time? It was already a problem before when they had more time, so?
Those guys will be put at a disadvantage from the start as they will be unable to show up for the first (few) events of the season.

The players are expected to conduct themselves in a professional way, they should be treated in an equally professional way.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby snooky147

If you do it through a travel agent then your liable to get screwed unless you emphasise in the strongest fashion that you need an open ticket or as close to open as they allow without it costing an arm and a leg. Also even though your in the same compartment as your fellow players, their ticket could have cost considerably more........or less depending on where they got it and the conditions applied to the ticket. And thats only for starters.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Casey

Monique wrote:
gallantrabbit wrote:Monique,
Surely that's BH listening a 'little' to the top players. And it can't be bad for the lower ranked too as they'd have fewer obstacles in their paths to points and prize money?

These are obviously set up with a mind to the Asian influx though.No UK based players will go out there just for these events. The top boys might be able to tag them on from the Wuxi classic etc but otherwise they'll be relying on the Asian entries, am I right?


Yes, you are right. But I expect some of the best Chinese players, the like of Ding, Tian Pengfei, Liang Wenbo, Xia Guodong to give them a go and maybe skip the PTCs. They don't need a visa to play in them for a start. And then I wonder how many of the other APTC qualifiers will be able to make the trip to the PTC Grand Final …

I don't think BH is "listening" to the top players. This is a clear bias towards Asian players and another sign that the game is increasingly moving over there.


Not only the 3 winners but the top 4 on the APTC order of merit will get to make the finals whoch is great!!

It gives a good chance for some of the lower ranked players to make it to Dublin. I am now guessing that even is open to the top 32 players?

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Alpha

snooky147 wrote:The calendar is a complete and utter shambles. Very little thought, if any has gone into producing that. That and the increasingly shortened time that players have to arrange flights etc. It's not as easy as you might first think to do that. I have had first hand experience of it a few years back and it was positively nightmarish then with plenty of time to do arrangements, but now with the shortened timeframe and the fact that they have to deal with local airlines over there, ie China to Thailand etc, well its just not easy.

Go on, tell me to stop moaning......but actually I'm not, I'm just stating a fact.


At the Crucible, Hearn was asked why he didn't group the Asian events together better and he said the broadcasters wouldn't go for it. It is a poor excuse but I guess his hands were tied in that respect.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Witz78

the stupid Premier League is helping to cripple the calendar

no space for a tinpot exhibition event like that taking up 3 months of the season anymore

it was ok in the Sir Rodney Plonker tour of 6 events but not any more

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby Monique

It's not a poor excuse and it's probably very true.
I met the person in charge of the Eurosport snooker "programming" when I was in in Galway and she (yes she) told me that when there is too much of it in a certain period of time the "audimat" goes down big time (*). It's human nature and people just get an overdose of it and switch it off. It works better when events are "spread".

(*) the problem with that is that some of the "bosses" then jump on those bad stats to try and justify to cut the coverage.

Re: May 2012 - WSA announces the APTC series

Postby kenneth79

I see these events as basically being an Asian Q School. No way lowly ranked euro amateurs will travel to these.
So in reality the 4 tour cards from the APTC will be taken by lowly ranked or amateur Asians.
In this respect I applaud them. For too long the Asians have had to uproot to get on tour. Now they can at least wait till
they ARE on tour.