2010 Circuit of Champions Question Thread

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Since Quakerman didn't want us clogging up his information thread(for good reason), I thought I would start a questions thread.

Hear are few I have.

• Will the champion be decided by total points only? Theoretically you could win the circuit by not winning a tournament, just play as many of the circuit events as you can. I would propose some sort of system where you total a maxiumum of 4 or 5 of your best finishes. A team could play as many as they want but they only count their four best finishes. They has to be some sort of factor for quality over quantity.
• Is there a minimum you must play to be eligable?
• What is the expected payout purse? Have you ran any scenarios yet?
• Are you required to play the last Zanesville tournament to be eligible to win the circuit?
• I know I hate to bring this up, but does the payouts in anyway jeapardize ASA or OHSAA amatuer status?

It appears you are off to a good start with the circuit filling up.

 

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Points only. Could win the circuit by not winning an event. No, we are not playing the best four or five finishes.
Why would there be a minimum to play. A team is playing for points and have MANY opportunities to set out a weekend and play in the "double points" events.

Not required to play in the last leg of the event in Zanesville if a team doesn't want to. Their choice. IF they are that far ahead in points...that they don't want to play in the last event (which is a double points event to give teams a little behind the frontrunners a chance to catch up).. that is their choice, of course.

Don't think OHSAA controls 9, 10, 11 and 12 year old yet. But, give them time and they will try.

End of subject... have a good day.

 

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Purses are based on teams entered and their attendence at the events where TD's pay $15.00 per "circuit team" to the fund.

And right now.. nobody knows anything about how many teams will participate. It's up to the teams. Do they wish to participate in events that others want to go to as well and not 3-6 team 10u events ? Only time will tell and a lot of marketing by the TD's in the "Circuit".

Forgot to answer that question for you.

 

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Forgot to add: OHSAA says you can't give away cash prizes based on order of finish in a TOURNAMENT... nothing said about order of a finish in a CIRCUIT.. even if it was the case.

And all those TD's out there giving out "PAID BERTHS"... you are indeed jepordizing the girls eligiblity. YOU ARE INDEED. Make no mistake about that. I have went round and round with OHSAA... actually to the point I enjoyed it (lmao)... when it came down to the UNIFORM BLOWOUT event I hold every year. I STILL hold the event. I PAID for the $600.00 worth of uniforms in person. This year's winner (Cincy Doom - Rob Wear) wanted warm ups instead. Have receipt where I PAID $610.20 dollars for warm ups. No money changed hands.

 

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Thanks for your concern, Ringer.

 

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• Will the champion be decided by total points only? Theoretically you could win the circuit by not winning a tournament, just play as many of the circuit events as you can. I would propose some sort of system where you total a maxiumum of 4 or 5 of your best finishes. A team could play as many as they want but they only count their four best finishes. They has to be some sort of factor for quality over quantity.
  .

• 
  
  My 2 cents as a 10U coach is that this is a very good idea (Ringer's suggestion above). Theoretically this could be won by a mediocre team who simply follows the circuit. Setting a watermark for tournaments played gives the championship a lot more meaning IMO.
  
  Without it, the advantage I see is going to tournaments with more teams participating at 10U but I don't have a lot of incentive to try and build points because we're already earmarked for some non-circuit tournaments so the most we'll be able to attend in the circuit is 4-5 anyway.
  
  I do think you're on to something here, but I think this is a flaw that should be worked out another way.

 

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Thanks for your concern, Ringer.

I wasn't trying to be a jerk here Tim. I'm in the same boat at Mad Hornet. We already have non-circuit tournaments scheduled for next year. I don't want to put up the money for a pre-existing disadvantage of only being able to play 4 tournaments. It's your circuit, so its your call. I just want to make an informed decision one way or the other.

 

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I have to agree, with out Ringers suggestion it's a who played the most of our tournaments circuit. If you take the top four finishes of a team you would be crowning the better team. And there would still be an incentive for teams to play more as many tournaments as they can. Good idea Tim just work out the kinks and put your marketing hat on. Don't get testy to suggestions.

 

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Is it required to be a "circuit" member to play in a tournament or can one be freelance?

 

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Is it required to be a "circuit" member to play in a tournament or can one be freelance?

Come free lance it. That's is what we want. If you don't wish to be part of the circuit... there's no problem. Just come join ANY event in the Circuit and have fun at the tournament WITH the circuit teams. The more the merrier and that is the bottom line. More 10u, 11u teams in an event instead of having to stay home because no TD can get enough of them to play in one location. Bottom line - for the girls.

I heard time after time the disappointment in coach's voices when I told them I didn't have enough to play. It hurt me and I would play with three teams if they wanted to play. But there is always that one coach who doesn't want to. I gave away hoodies with two teams before when the third did a no show and the other age group the third team had a car full of girls coming from Akron broke down in the same event. I gave out the hoodies in two (2) two team tournaments. I lost money..which is fine as sometimes you take the good with the bad... but the odds was pretty good for the girls....lol and they loved their hoodies. Smiles all around.

The circuit is about giving some of these 10u and 11u coaches and teams a break. If they KNOW a tournament is going to go on... and here is where it is happening this weekend (Name of Tournaments here) they can for once PLAN in advance where they are going... knowing other teams are going there too. It is my hope that one day..hopefuly next year in 2011... the events are so full of 10u, 11u and 12u teams . At least the 10u and 11u teams that never get that huge tournament experience.

It's December 14th and I haven't seen a pitch thrown yet for the Spring 2010 season starting April 10th-11th. Adapt.

The problem with allowing a team to pick and choose their best finishes is this:

a) They can plan on only "DOUBLE POINT EVENTS" which is not good for anyone AND the whole point about double point events is too allow a team to take off a week here or there and maybe jump back in the race with a good showing in a "double point" event.

b) Maybe they took 2nd in a 20 team tournament (Which is 19 points - points based on the amount of teams in event) If it was a double point event it's 38 points. That same weekend at the other "Circuit" event there was 11 teams or say even it was rained out.
I am not here to pit one tournament director against another in the circuit. I'm not and I won't. There is equal amount of chances locally to play in a double point event.. North, South, Central. I am doing my best to make that happen for the parents and their pocketbooks.

I put it out there for ALL tournament directors and they all had and still have the opportunity to join in the fun (as long as the area isn't already covered OR there is already two that weekend on the list). Every TD had that opportunity (except by invitation only events).

Bottom line: It's December 14th and I haven't seen a pitch thrown yet in any 2010 tournament.

 

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I have to agree, with out Ringers suggestion it's a who played the most of our tournaments circuit. If you take the top four finishes of a team you would be crowning the better team. And there would still be an incentive for teams to play more as many tournaments as they can. Good idea Tim just work out the kinks and put your marketing hat on. Don't get testy to suggestions.

No one got testy with Ringer. I thanked him for his concern.

Respectfully yours,
Quakerflake

 

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Here's a solution....

It's called the "Pick 4" Division and it will be separated from the regular "Circuit".

Teams upon registration can have the "option" to play in the "Pick 4" Division OR play in the "Circuit" division. Teams MUST make that choice at the time of registration and before the first tournament is played anywhere on the circuit.

The funds will be kept separately (as it wouldn't be fair to give the Pick 4 winner, runner-ups, etc... ANY of the funds the other circuit people collect in their fund) and we only give five places out in the "Pick 4" Division.

So there will be : "Pick 4 Division" and the "Circuit Division".

That way the organization can pick their own "medicine" so to say.

So now we have a circuit within a circuit so to speak. What if a team only wants to play in three of the tournaments, can there be a Pick 3?

 

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I see this is going to get out of hand, good luck Tim!;&:lmao::yahoo:

 

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Following me around the OFC again Ben...lmao

 

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Thanks Roger. Hope all is well out in Arizona.

I'll come up with a solution for the girls.

 

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Maybe you can hook up with the guys from the BCS ranking system and really confuse everyone.......

 

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Maybe you can hook up with the guys from the BCS ranking system and really confuse everyone.......

What happens when a school goes undefeated from a non BCS conference? It causes mass confusion. I am still not comfortable saying I fully understand the concept of the C of C.

 

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What happens when a school goes undefeated from a non BCS conference? It causes mass confusion. I am still not comfortable saying I fully understand the concept of the C of C.

Being I am the owner of this Circuit of Champions the last thing I want to do is cause confusion with two divisions. So I am NOT doing two divisions in 2010.

Being that tournaments are being posted earlier and earlier every year it seems.. It is my fault for not acting on my idea earlier so teams wishing to get in the 2010 Circuit of Champions could plan for our listed events in August or September of 2009. I wish to apologize to those teams that are interested in our Circuit concept.. but have gotten into other events already.

In 2011, the tournaments will be listed in our own section of the Ohio Tournament section and will be out early for ALL teams to make their decision early in the season versus mid-December when some of the teams in the age groups have already made plans for other events.

The purpose of the Circuit of Champions is to assure the newer 10u girls, parents, coaches and teams entering their first year of travel ball is not falling into the same trap as the 11u teams did when they were 10u. That being tournaments being pulled out from underneath them and not playing at all. This has been my reasoning for forming this "Circuit of Champions" and forever will be my reasoning year after year.

I am changing the point system to make it competitive to ALL teams.

The point system is as follows:

1st Place = 5 points
2nd Place = 4 points
3rd Place = 3 points
All other teams will receive 2 points for playing.

11u team will get one extra point for playing up in the 12u event. They(11u teams) will only get that extra point if NO 11u event is being played at the tournament they are attending.

For rain-outs = ALL teams entered into the event will get 3 points.

There will equal amount of "DOUBLE POINT" events in each section of Ohio that has been divided into North, Central and South to give all areas of Ohio an equal opportunity to play with ease.. a DOUBLE POINTS event.

I think this system is very simple for everyone to figure out. There will times when in a single elimination event where third and fourth place finisher will not get the chance to play to have a determined 3rd Place finisher. In that case, we have 3 + 2 = 5 divided by 2 = 2.5 points.

Again, I apologize for not acting out on my thoughts of this "Circuit of Champions" earlier for the teams that have already made plans to attend other events. I've had this thought in my head for two years now.. and after seeing last year and how many players, coaches and parents were disappointed about events being cancelled for lack of teams entered into any one event... I'd had enough and decided to go ahead with my thoughts at this late date in time.

Good luck to all the teams this season and our "Circuit" and our tournament directors are still listed and adding more each day. I am hoping to make this an exciting adventure for the girls and my tournament directors listed and myself will do everything in our power to give the girls a great time in the sport we all love and care about.. that being girls fastpitch softball.

Respectfully yours,

Tim Cleaver
President and Owner
Circuit of Champions

 

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If you have any questions.. please feel free to contact me.

 

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A private donor has given $200.00 dollars per age group to kick things off. The family are friends of mine and their daughter plays the game. Thank you again.