Ssb - allison fisher's story

[MySockPuppet]

Allison Fisher is the greatest player in the history of women's snooker.

She is now a leading light of the US pool circuit and tells her story in today's Observer.

Read it here.


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[Monique]

Great article about Allison who is probably the best woman who ever played the game.

Two remarks:

1. What Allison mentions about clubs/leagues no allowing her to play (because she's a female) is still true today. I had conversations with Reanne Evans and Hannah Jones this very season and things haven't changed much. This situation is not helping the young girls - who feel unwelcome - to take on the game and is one factor that contributes to keep them at a lower level than the males. Reanne, just like Allison also said many men "don't want to play her". Competing against stronger opposition is key to progress and for Reanne who is strongly dominating the Ladies Tour this is a real problem.

2. Many good female snooker players left for the US around 2003/04. This was the time WPBSA "dropped" the Ladie's tour, without a penny and at very short notice (hence the difficulties she mentions around the last tournament). The "reason" for it was that the tobacco ban had left them in poverty. Well first they knew for sometime and could/should have dealt with it better, next they still found some money to give an golden handshake to the amateur tour (which they dropped aswell but not pennyless). Also they never really promoted the Ladies anyway. In the late 90th - early 00th the Final of the Ladies was played in Sheffield. All the BBC equipment to record the matches was there. Still it wasn't broadcasted or even recorded. At least snippets of it could have been shown during those "diversions" BBC always programs during the men's WC, but no, they always favoured some piece about one of the men, be it following them on the golf course or going fishing.

and the tremedous reaction this article gets on this board is just proving my points.

[poolqjunkie]

I agree with you Monique.
I cannot understand how they can have so little money for the ladies in a world championship when some local tour in the US would pay more for their winner in some 9 ball tournament. I dont think a lack of TV coverage is the main thing; a lack of sponsor is.
I believe sponsor needs to be found, I am not sure what is being done to try find them...
I am not talking about millions in first prize, just may be $10,000 USD or so would be decent for world title for the ladies I think. But it is not happening. They pay more than that for 9 ball for the ladies.
Allison seems to have the best result of all the ladies who have gone from the Uk to the USA. Karen Corr just some how has not been winning as many tournaments. Kim Shaw, Julie Kelly do not even come close to Allison Fisher.
There is something very special about Allison Fisher.
Kelly Fisher now has overtaken Allison Fisher and is the next Fisher to beat.

[jonnylovessn8ker]

what happened in 2004?
this is what i gathered. men's snooker somehow was not as big as it was starting that year.
and monique mentioned that 2004 the closure of the ladies tour....

[Templeton Peck]

2003/04 was the first season without tobacco sponsorship.

[jonnylovessn8ker]

does snooker have alcohol sponsorship? you know, footy has carlsburg and heinekin (cant spell that)

the bottom line for snooker is that it needs to go back to expanding business 101........
this would be the microcosm of WPBSA
http://www.xepisodes.com/southpark/e...tom-Bitch.html

[Templeton Peck]

Breweries haven't been interested in snooker for a long time. For me it always seemed a more logical choice than sponsoring an expensive game like football, especially considering how snooker has always been perceived as a pub game, but no-one seems to be able see past football these days. It's not just the WSA's fault, all sports have problems finding sponsorship in Britain. Anyway, alcohol sponsorship will go the way of tobacco sponsorship in a few years, so courting the breweries would be just seeking a stay of execution.

Globally the game is doing pretty well and is only really in decline in Britain, it's just not very good at generating revenue. I personally think pay-per-view is the way to go. A reasonable £10 per season subscription for each snooker TV-viewer would bring in enough revenue to run a ten event ranking circuit if just 500,000 people signed up. All TVs will have built in internet access in a few years so the game will be able to bypass a commercial broadcaster soon.

[Monique]

I agree with you Monique.
I cannot understand how they can have so little money for the ladies in a world championship when some local tour in the US would pay more for their winner in some 9 ball tournament. I dont think a lack of TV coverage is the main thing; a lack of sponsor is.
I believe sponsor needs to be found, I am not sure what is being done to try find them...
I am not talking about millions in first prize, just may be $10,000 USD or so would be decent for world title for the ladies I think. But it is not happening. They pay more than that for 9 ball for the ladies.
Allison seems to have the best result of all the ladies who have gone from the Uk to the USA. Karen Corr just some how has not been winning as many tournaments. Kim Shaw, Julie Kelly do not even come close to Allison Fisher.
There is something very special about Allison Fisher.
Kelly Fisher now has overtaken Allison Fisher and is the next Fisher to beat.

You are right: sponsorship is the key. But then sponsors are highly interested in "exposure". So the two things go hand in hand. Everyone is moaning about how the game lost tobacco (and alcohol) sponsoring. Well think about it ... who does most of the shopping in most families? If big "monolithic" sponsoring (one event - one sponsor) is to be replaced by a more fragmented/packaged approach it maybe be good to get the ladies in the picture. And that idea isn't mine BTW, it was expressed to me by Simon Markham, the tournament director at the Ladies Masters and UK this season.

[lee brett]

great lady

Allison Fisher is the greatest player in the history of women's snooker.

She is now a leading light of the US pool circuit and tells her story in today's Observer.

Read it here.


More...

i was at the induction of alison at the us open 9 ball, and spoke to her for a while she is a wonderful lady and a credit to the sport.

lee

[poolqjunkie]

I dont have an answer for sponsorship. What I was trying to say was that I have seen many smaller 9 ball ladies tournaments paying much more than the world snooker championshop for the ladies, and it is just not right.
Also, I have seen many smaller local tours in the US with no TV exposure which pay out to their non professional players more than $1000 as first prize many times a year, and these tours have sponsors.
The WPBA has only a few events a year, I think they have just cut it down and they used to have 7, all televised. The first place for an event is usually around $15,000 USD.
I have observed a lot of the sponsors for tournaments in the US are companies in the pool industry and some of them are donating products rather than cash. The prize is not as high as men's snooker. It is quite a bit less--but quite a bit more than women's snooker.
Can they at least try to perhaps find some cue makers to sponsor a ladies tournament by donating some cues, which the tournament director can sell to the club hosting the event to generate some more cash as prize funds? I know it is not going to be much, but it is better than what it is now and is a start, isn;t it?