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BGonline.org Forums
Tournament results and prizes--a straight answer
Posted By: Phil Simborg In Response To: Tournament results and prizes (Jack Mack)
Date: Monday, 3 April 2017, at 9:44 p.m.
1. We don't know what the prize money will be until we know the number of participants;
2. We don't know who will win what until we know who gets into side pools;
3. Prize money varies greatly when there are calcuttas, if you include calcutta money;
4. There is often hedging and the posted amounts are not what the players actually take home;
4. Anyone really interested in knowing how much the winner gets can do an easy calculation from the number of entrants and the entry fee and know about how much is won;
5. Different tournaments pay out differently to different places;
6. For the TD's to post the actual money paid out at the end of the tournament takes time and work, and few people really care exactly how much is paid;
7. Big tournaments with money added advertise money added amounts in advance, so you know if there is an additional 40 Euro or whatever added to the prize pool, and the tournament brochure and web site say how much goes to whom;
8. Many tournament do not want to make a big deal about prize money as they do not want to attract a "bad element" or thieves. Also, they may not want to alert the hotel, the state and municipality that might have a problem with gambling aspects;
9. Most who want to promote the game as a family past time, and want to see more people bring their children and get them involved, do not want to stress the money aspects of the game.
10. Most tournaments are not really about the money, but about the joy of participating and winning points, trophies, and honors. Only the really big tournaments and money-added tournaments offer real financial incentives to people who have a serious interest in the money-winning side of the game. As everyone knows, you truly cannot make a living from money won at tournaments after you deduct all of the expenses of travel etc., so tournament backgammon is not about making money. Yes, there are a few people who can possibly show a profit, and a few even a pretty decent profit from tournament play, but they are very rare exceptions and only a very small handful, with of course, the exception of the one or two players who get hot in a major event with money-added. In hindsight, sure, they made money winning Cyprus or a money-added event, but that's not what tournament backgammon is really all about. Most of the money won is simply a redistribution of the entry fees provided by the players, less a rake by the tournament director for his expenses and trouble. It would be misleading to stress the money aspects of the events, again, except for major money-added events.
11. Except for the Championship division and Top Masters events, the money isn't that much anyway.
12. I am sure it is true that some people have concerns about IRS and taxing bodies and don't want to be taxed if they won $5,000 at a tournament because, if you take all the expenses they had for all the tournaments they went to, it would be a net loss. If the winnings were advertised they would have to track all expenses and itemize in order not to be unfairly taxed.
13. There are non-governmental groups, such as religious groups and corporate groups, that have a very negative view of gambling, and advertising the money aspects too much could create a backlash and resistance against the tournament, or against the hotel housing the tournament, and could make it more difficult to even run a tournament in some areas. Not playing up the money aspects of the event reduces the potential for this kind of backlash.
Now, you, and others may not like the fact that the exact payouts are not posted, or may not agree with the above reasons, but that doesn't change the fact that the above are the reasons you don't see the winnings for most tournaments announced.
(I am not sure I agree with all of the above either, but dem are the faks.)
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