I'll be watching this thread for further news, don't get any mail from Kewadin other than the annual calendar. Maybe I don't play enough video poker while there to rate a mailer.
Sorry guys. I thought I had made a post yesterday saying that the $275 entry fee does include room again for 2 nights and the other perks are similar (slightly less, I think) to before. Big thing is that this is now a seeded event meaning no guaranteed purse. Again, I tried to post this info yesterday but my new tablet is different than my old computer. I'm still OLD!!! Billy C
I don't see this working out being seeded. I'll go if they actually have it though. But, I'm frustrated that they didn't just go back to the old setup. The old phrase "dance with the one that bring Ya" applies here. We'll see how it goes.
My two cents - If they use $225 of each entry towards the prize pool, they need 133 entrants to make the old $30K level. If they use $200, the entry number jumps to 150 and I don't think we've ever seen that number reached. It's been a bit less than 100 for quite some time and that will likely drop without the guarantee. Will I go? "Maybe" is all I can say for now. My guess is 50 entrants, will create a total prize pool of $10K to $11K for an out-of-pocket expense well north of $400. Ouch. I truly enjoy seeing BJT friends at the Kewadin events and that is my primary reason for going.... but......... damn.
When I entered a few days ago, I think Deanne said she was hoping for something like sixty entrants and 12k TOTAL purse. Said she would take up to 108 but we know that's not realistic. Hope at least 60 is! Billy C
I'll probably go, but it's not going to last the way they're going to run it. They need to go back to the old format or not bother. This is too costly for a tiny tournament.
Dianna left me a voice message. What no one has said is this is a one day tournment. It starts at 9 am and finishes that day. On Saturday. You get room for Friday and Saturday night. 2 10 dollar food coupons and 1 12 dollar. They are hoping for 60 people.
So, with 60 entrants and $12,000 purse, prizes will be 40% of the old $30K pool 1st. $4,800 2nd. $3,000 3rd. $1,800 4th $900 5th $600 6th. $500 7th. $400. If you are not in the top 3, not much of a win.
Very true, my friend. My reasons for going are that I'd like to see Kewadin revive the tourney program (I'm not optimistic) and of course, I now have time. I'm sure you read my thoughts about carpooling. Us Midwesterners will probably need to do some of that for events in OK, MN, Canada, Tunica, etc., if we want to play in tournaments.
It's looking like the stars are aligning for me to be able to go in August. This event was already a bit of a stretch for me given the previous conditions and will be even more so now. Like Leftnut, the main reason I like to go is to reconnect, in person, with my mid-western friends from this site. So far, it looks like Billy C and Jonny21 have committed. Has anyone else already entered or decided that they are going to?
The only way these events will continue is if the number of entries remains high enough that resulting increase in revenue is worthwhile to the casino. With the non-accomodation entry fee being $200 and $200 from each entry going to the prize pool, one could say that they're not making any money from local players, who won't take a hotel room and who would probably be there playing anyway. Therefore, any increase in revenue generated by this event will be coming from non-local players who will be paying the extra $75 for hotel rooms that would otherwise probably be empty and from their side play. Previously, they had a guaranteed purse, didn't keep the $75 room fees and offered generous cash back for side play so, even with a full tournament (108 players) they were probably not making much, if any, extra revenue by holding this event. Add to that, wildcards that did little to keep folks in the casino once they were eliminated, and things were even worse than they could have been. So their first move was to eliminate the guaranteed prize pool, the accomodations as part of the tournament entry fee and to eliminate the $50 cash-back and some of the coupons. Basically everything that they were losing money on. The reaction from non-local players was so bad that they had to cancel the June event. More evidence that it is not the local players who are keeping this event going. Their adjustment now appears to be to re-instate the $75 room offer and some of the food coupons. Time will tell if this will entice enough non-local participants to return. What is certain is that, if these events are to continue, they need to find the right balance of incentives to keep the non-local players coming vs extra revenue to make things worthwhile to the casino. The more non-locals participate, the more revenue comes in and the higher the prize pool becomes, which leads to more non-locals coming. It's a self feeding cycle, if they can find the sweet spot.
Another regular player at Kewadin's tourneys who is not a poster here (I think) says they should keep it as a two day event and allow more rebuys. Makes sense because it enlarges the purse AND gives more opportunity to those of us driving long distances. Are you reading this Dee Ann and Ron?
Good question! Perhaps they can take a page from Cindy Courtney's book and participate here with the goal of keeping the event going in a way that benefits everyone -- both the casino and the players. If they are unaware of this site, perhaps someone who knows them well can point them in the right direction.
I know both Ron and Deanna know of this site. It has been discussed with them, but they are not the decision makers. Need to get the new guy tuned into this site.
Sorry to be bumping this thread, but I think that my question above may have gotten lost in the posts which followed it. My decision on whether attend in August really does depend on how many other from here will be there. It would be helpful to know whether others are definitely coming/maybe coming/probably not coming/definitely not coming. If you don't want to reply here in public, please feel free to PM me.
