Is this normal?

[Stupid Jim]

My dd has a tournament coming up and I see that we have to book our rooms thru their booking agent, or we will be fined? Is this normal for pgf tournaments?

 

[dawgpound19]

Fined by whom?

 

[initfor51]

I saw this on one of the tourneys that I was looking at. Not sure if you can pick the hotels you want and just use their agent or if they have the hotels already. Below is a a statement that is on aPGF tourney:

"**IT IS MANDATORY THAT ALL TEAMS RESERVE THEIR HOTEL ROOMS THROUGH TOTAL EVENT SERVICES. CINDY HIGHBERG, HOTEL COORDINATOR, CAN BE REACHED BY PHONE AT 888-383-6810 OR BY EMAIL AT HOUSING@TOTALEVENTSERVICES.NET.

FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN A $50/PLAYER PENALTY (NOT TO EXCEED $500)."

 

[Stupid Jim]

that's the one

 

[Hilliarddad3]

That's BS plain and simple.... Many tournaments do that ask if they have cancellation penalties then book and cancel and. Book your own.....

Don't play in tournaments that hold you hostage! You are the customer, not them god it pisses me off and used to have the same crap when the girls played and I got employee rates at hotels back then. Compuware had that and we never stayed in their hotels....

It's different when a tourney says here are hotels you can use, not you have to use!

 

[longball00]

Can you say Kickbacks??????????????????

 

[total180]

Huge RED FLAG!!!!! Find another tournament!
Is this a 3 or 4 start hotel?
If not tell them they need to sign a MANDATORY reimbursement for bed bug remediation if needed..

 

[coachjwb]

Happens more than you think and I agree it's BS ... tell whoever you need to that you have relatives in the area you're staying at or that you're camping and stay wherever you want to ... no one can make you stay somewhere you don't want to ...

 

[Comp]

Welcome to the world of Hanning, he has been doing it for years. Back in the days of the Batbuster showcases he did the same thing. If you didnt stay in his approved hotels your team got put on his black list and you never got entrance to another of his tournaments. Now with PGF he has you hostage. If you want to play you have to stay in his hotels or pay the fine.

 

[mogsoftball]

Sounds like a scam.

 

[pointdad]

Triple Crown had a "stay to play" policy at the east coast summer nationals in Myrtle Beach this summer. Penalty was an additional $300 added to team entry fee.

 

[Hilliarddad3]

So if customers don't go to play in these, he's stuck.... Consumers hold the cards folks......

 

[SoCal_Dad]

Happens more than you think and I agree it's BS ... tell whoever you need to that you have relatives in the area you're staying at or that you're camping and stay wherever you want to ... no one can make you stay somewhere you don't want to ...

They can't make you stay anywhere, but the terms of the requirement can be enforced like any other. The reservation terms can make it difficult to cancel without them finding out in time to demand the buyout fee before allowing you to play.

"Stay to play" requirements have become common at popular events (e.g. major showcases, PGF Nats, Triple Crown, etc). Their origin was good business in competitive areas where hotels were willing to pay to get extra business without charging more for their rooms. Unfortunately, it has become big business for both the events and the 'hotel coordinator' companies that are running the programs while often increasing costs for participants.

My recommendation is to first make sure you understand all the terms of the requirement (e.g. #room nights, buyout fee). Then deterrmine if and how much they are marking up the room rates by comparing the tourney rates with the rates for the prior and following weeks (same days of week, e.g. Fri-Sun). Check the rates for non-participating hotels and see if the coordinator can add them to the program. Finally, evaluate your options between staying at a tourney hotel, paying the buyout fee or skipping the event.

 

[coachjwb]

Just to clarify, my comment was about an individual family vs. a team ...

 

[GeneralsDad]

This has become status quo for all the top tier showcases. It's the cost of doing business.

 

[gobug]

This has become status quo for all the top tier showcases. It's the cost of doing business.

Exactly. Legacy, Team NJ, Diamond 9 etc. all have a list of "approved hotels". Most of the top tier showcases are put on by either individuals or companies that do this for a living. They're going to make their money anyway they can. As long as the product and the return of value is worth it, you can't fault them for trying to make a buck.

 

[wow]

Triple Crown in Reno NV was the same way,, Pay NOT to stay! It as a racket. plus you had to book and pay up front prior to a set date..

 

[Strohbro]

More and more of Showcases are doing that. Even the TCS events are mandatory stay at the hotels they set up.

 

[CARDS]

This is not new,
Over the years we have played in many college showcases where this was a requirement.
What I would do is price check the hotels if they were competitive priced I would use them because most were better drives to the parks and were where the umpires, and college coaches stayed.
However; If they were over priced I would not use them...
At check in they asked what hotel I was in I would say one on the list.
(I was never charged a fee even though several tournaments said they would).

Unless the tournament is offering hotel discounts "like the Keith Carver Memorial" (shameless plug) they are just trying to stick it to the families.

 

[spartansd]

I have had to do this quite a few times but honestly I am not sure what is all the fuss. The rate and hotel were better than I could get on the open market. Either because the tournament had everything locked up or the tournament had already cut a better deal. Either way I was not being penalized financially.