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The London Open 2009

Posted By: Mike Main
Date: Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 8:35 p.m.

In Response To: The London Open 2009 (Bob Koca)

Hi Bob,

Last Chance:
The Last Chance is a combined event of all three Flights (Championship, Intermediate and Casuals) of players. Why? Because I want to mix up, to some extent, the top payers with those still coming thought the ranks. So having 3 Flights starts them off within their perceived ability / pockets depth but in the Last Chance they are mixed up.

In the Last Chance:
5 point matches throughout.
Casuals get a 2 point start,
Intermediates get a 1 point start.

Therefore:
Casual v Casual start at 0-0 to 5
Casual v Intermediate start at 1-0 to 5
Casual v Champion start at 2-0 to 5
Intermediate v Intermediate start at 0-0 to 5
Intermediate v Champion start at 1-0 to 5
Champion v Champion start at 0-0 to 5

This idea was used at the well respected The Cotswold Fireside Tournament in 2007 though it was 7 point matches played (rather than 5 pointers.) Of the 64 entrants in the Combined Last Chance only 1 was a Beginner, 20 were Intermediates and the remaining 43 were Championship players. In the last 16 only 3 Intermediates remained, the last 8 saw only 1 Intermediate still standing and all Semi-Finalists were Championship players.

My conclusion from these figures and from the feeling at the event was that the handicap system didn’t really harm the chances of Championship players but didn’t overly help the Intermediate players either. I’m not claiming this to have been an exhaustive testing of the system but I think it has at least given some evidence as to how the idea turns into reality.

So for the London Open event, to jazz it all up a bit and because of time constraints, I’ve elected to go with 5 pointers while retaining the same handicap system. I’m not frightened to try out new ideas but before I impose them I do consider them deeply. I’ll let you know how it works out in reality after the event.

Side Action:
At this time no rake is being charged on Side Action event - Jackpots, Blitzes and Stoppots. However careful gleaning of the website will reveal that I have not said there will be no rake in Side Action event. This is not because I intend to spring an enormous rake on players over the weekend – that’s just not my style – but it does give me the flexibility to charge a rake if I deem it fit. I certainly wouldn’t bother taking a rake on a small entry fee Jackpot – I really don’t need to make £4 or so at the risk of annoying my clients. If I do want to charge a rake I will of course make it very clear to players before they enter a Side Action event that a rake will be charged. I like to limit rakes to maximum 5%.

I do have a distinct advantage over T.Ds operating in the USA. Because European players can play for money online I can attract online gaming companies as sponsors. Hence the (small) required income from the event can come from a sponsor rather than having to come from players. Even so, talks with my sponsors (casinorip.com) took up quite a bit of time. However I’m pleased with the deal – bottom line is that the event is good positive equity for players. It should also be noted that getting sponsors is still a real uphill struggle and will, I think, remain so for as long as the USA retains its current online gambling laws; your laws are having a far reaching effect and the online gaming world will not flourish again until such time as your laws are repealed. So please do us all a favor and lobby Obama. Sure, close Guantanamo first but please try to push getting rid of your online gaming laws up his agenda.

Any other questions, just ask,

Mike

P.S. Bob, see you in Monte Carlo.

Messages In This Thread

• The London Open 2009
  Mike Main -- Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 2:36 p.m.
  • The London Open 2009
    Bob Koca -- Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 6:19 p.m.
    • The London Open 2009
      playBunny -- Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 6:22 p.m.
    • The London Open 2009
      Mike Main -- Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 8:35 p.m.
      • The London Open 2009
        Bob Koca -- Monday, 18 May 2009, at 2:55 a.m.
        • The London Open 2009
          Mike Main -- Monday, 18 May 2009, at 4:51 a.m.
          • The London Open 2009
            Bob Koca -- Monday, 18 May 2009, at 11:59 a.m.
            • The London Open 2009
              Mike Main -- Tuesday, 19 May 2009, at 7:38 a.m.
              • The London Open 2009
                Bob Koca -- Tuesday, 19 May 2009, at 2:57 p.m.
                • The London Open 2009
                  Mike Main -- Tuesday, 19 May 2009, at 6:09 p.m.
  • The London Open 2009
    Robert Maier -- Sunday, 17 May 2009, at 8:35 p.m.
    • The London Open 2009
      Mike Main -- Tuesday, 19 May 2009, at 7:39 a.m.