Archive for March 15, 2010

Buxton and Back again

March 15, 2010 / The_Teach / No comments

Great weekend!

What an awesome job the GB 9-ball Tour have done in putting together this years tour. The hotel was very nice, the tables are fantastic and everything went very well indeed.

Speaking with Jonathan Mathers the tour Chairperson he indicated there were a few teething problems, but I think with any new projects that is always going to be the case, we didn’t actually see any.

I did not hear one single complaint from any of the players at this event, usually there are massive rumblings about the quality of this or that. On this occasion I think everyone involved in the tour can be very proud of what they have achieved.

From my point of view it was also an historic weekend. Buxton was the first time that Cuesport TV have been able to broadcast live from the GB 9-ball Tour, and on first reflextion it seems that the viewers liked it as well.

We had one problem during the final when the stream dropped out, this was partly due to only being able to use a wireless connection and also because the processor in the computer got seriously hot.

In this regard we need to find a solution to the PC issues we have had recently, it is no longer powerful enough to do what we ask of it without problems.

I was also disappointed that we were unable to provide live commentary, this was for very practical reasons though. Our cameras and technical desk were very close to the action, couple this with a very quiet room and commentary would have put the players right off. We will be looking into this for the next event in Blackpool.

Videos from the event will be available later this week, as well as our ‘Diary-Cam’ video that we shot throughout the weekend. So please look out for them.

Category: 9-ball Pool, General / Tags: , , ,

Another Road Trip

March 12, 2010 / The_Teach / No comments

It is the time of year where we once again embark on a road trip. It’s GB9 time. This year is probably the most anticipated British tour ever with the move to hotel venues and the increase in player numbers.

Top that off with 16 fantastic new tables supplied by SAM leisure, 5 of the world’s best players and you have the ingredients for something spectacular.

For the first time Cuesport TV will be able to provide a live stream of a GB9 Ball Tour event this Saturday (13th March) from 12pm UK time. It will be completely free to view and will appear on the front page when it is live.

But I didn’t really want to talk about that to be honest, one of the nicest things about the GB9 events is the craic, the players, organisers and what-not are all good to be around. It is (as ever!) a huge journey for us to undertake and due to Ange’s commitments means we cannot travel until late Friday. This is also another reason for not featuring the complete weekend, something we aim to do at future events.

This event is being held in Buxton, home of the spring water, a lovely town in the heart of the Peak District. I cannot think of a better venue for a tour stop.

You can cath up with the road trip that Ange and I make early next week, we will be producing one of our popular ‘diray-cam’ videos for your entertainment.

Anyway got to think about getting the car packed so catch up with you next week. Don’t forget the live stream at Cuesport TV from 12pm tomorrow (13th March).

Category: 9-ball Pool, Live Event News / Tags: , , ,

GB 9 Moves into Year Three With Live Streaming

March 9, 2010 / The_Teach / No comments

The GB 9 Ball Tour moves into it’s third year this coming weekend and for the first time the events will be shown live online at Cuesport TV.

The tour that is now backed by SAM Leisure, and will be held exclusively in Barceló Hotels, features the 5 players that won the recent WPA World Team Championships in Germany (Darren Appleton, Karl Boyes, Mark Gray, Imran Majid and Daryl Peach).

Peter Williams, Managing Director of Cuesport TV said, “This is probably the most exciting national pool tour in Europe and the standard of the players is phenomenal. We have been involved with the tour since day one and live coverage was something we always wanted to provide. With the move into Barceló Hotels this is something that can now be done and will be massive boost both for the tour and Cuesport TV.”

Jonathan Mathers, Chairperson of the GB 9 Ball Tour added; “We’re delighted that Cuesport TV are able to broadcast live from one of our events for the first time.  We hope that fans around the world can sample some of the great pool being played by the world class players that are a part of GB9.”

The live coverage is available on Saturday 13th March and starts at around 12pm local time. The coverage will include the latter stages of the Pro Cup and also some of the early matches from the main event, which features all 144 players on the GB 9 Ball Tour.

It is hoped that at subsequent tour events the live streaming will be extended to include both days.

The live stream at this first event will be free to view and can be accessed via the Watch Live Now link, found in the On Demand Content section.

Coverage starts at 12pm local time (7am US Eastern Time)

Coverage of the Pro Cup final is scheduled to start a 4 p.m. local time (11am US Eastern time)

> GB 9-Ball Tour

> Cuesport TV

Category: Uncategorized /

Calling all English Blackball Players

March 8, 2010 / The_Teach / No comments

Over the last few months I have been mentioning the Four-nations Blackball event that we are going to put on in Bournemouth, Dorset.

The only problem is that at the moment we only have three nations confirmed, Wales, France and Scotland.

If you are a) English and b) think you can play Blackball at the highest level then please contact me on enquiries@cuesport.tv for further information on this great event.

The dates of the event are 8th-9th May 2010 in Bournemouth Dorset.

Category: English/UK Pool / Tags: , ,

A Broadcast and then Some

March 5, 2010 / The_Teach / No comments

So we have it marked down, 8th-9th May, the first ever Four-nations Blackball Cup featuring teams from England, Scotland, Wales and France.

I have been talking about it for a while and have now confirmed all teams except for England (come on boys!)

The event is due to take place in Bournemouth, Dorset over the said weekend and it will become quite historic in its make-up. Not only will it be the first time the tournament has been held but the broadcast itself will also be a first for Cuesport TV and possibly even the world.

Originally every match was going to be shown back-to-back on one table, but due to the extra team this means we have to use two tables. But do not fear we have a plan!

Part of the reason for moving the event to Bournemouth is the fact that this is the first town in the UK to receive 100meg fibre optic broadband. What we plan to do will be amazing:

  • Viewers will be able to choose a match from the two tables
  • Each table will have two seperate live streams
  • A viewer will be able to choose between SD & HD versions dependant on their own broadband speed

Not only that but I can also release the format that is going to be used below is an example:

  • Wales (A) v France (A) – Best of 17 frame singles
  • Wales (B) v France (B) – Best of 17 frame singles

If both teams win one of the singles matches then we go to a decider:

  • Team Wales v Team France – Best of 9, alternate shot doubles

So that is the match format but the teams will also be playing a double eliminator across the weekend until the champion is crowned on the Sunday. Do not forget, this is a Blackball rules event.

Any thoughts and comments are appreciated.

Category: English/UK Pool / Tags: , , ,

Thoughts on a Weekend in Yarmouth

March 4, 2010 / The_Teach / One comment

Well for the second year running we have covered the UPC-BUCS 8-ball pool championships. An event that this time around had just under 500 attendees. The best that the universities in the UK have to offer.

The standard of pool seems to have improved on last year especially in the singles. I must say a big well done to Warwick’s Jay Murphy here for his win over reigning champion Lee Morris in the final.

From my point of view, with the amount of events I have attended over the last two years, I would say that the tournaments promoted by the UPC are well organised, although I think the players in the singles would probably prefer longer matches. (Just an observation, time constraints are massive on an event of this size).

It was a good decision to move the UPC’s main event to Great Yarmouth at the Vauxhall Holiday Park, the park is well equipped for pool events, it already hosts EPA Inter-county, Interleague and other tournaments throughout the year. From what I understand the accommodation is also good value, although perhaps a little cold!

The only thing that seemed to be lacking in my opinion was provisions for food, unless you want fast food there is not a lot else available. It was a shame to see that the restaurant was closed all weekend as I feel it may have done some good trade. You then have to look at not only what the outlets are serving but also the price.

I understand business is about profit, but this has to be coupled with value. I don’t think any of the outlets particularly offered value. My eagle eye also spotted that with 500 people in the room the bar was rarely, if-at-all, busy. The main reason for this being the high beer prices, an average of about £3.40 per pint. Surely a good idea for the park to cut prices when they know students are around as town offers more choice and is far cheaper.

I don’t want to detract too much from the pool, the park does an excellent job of maintaining the tables which were lightning quick throughout the event. I did not hear one complaint about the quality of the tables, a rarity in pool tournament terms. In fact the majority of players I spoke to were singing the praises of the tables throughout.

Great Yarmouth as a town seems to have an excellent night life, and the town itself is far bigger than I actually thought, I imagine it is even better in the summer when it is somewhat warmer! Yarmouth must benefit greatly from pool tournaments as it brings an influx of people in off-season to spend money in bars. clubs and restaurants.

Roll on next year!

Category: English/UK Pool / Tags: , , , ,
 
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