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Jul 6, 2021
5
1
Just some quick questions on differences we have seen so far after being in a couple of tournaments in DFW area...

1. No chalk in between games?? Can they AT LEAST chalk in between games? Not asking for a full drag or water (although the water would be nice as the balls just die). The batter is out of the box!! What box? That ball is foul!! No foul line... :(

We've only been to 2 tournaments so far, so maybe this is a thing specific to certain tournaments?

2. I have to pay to watch my kid play? Where does the tournament money go? They don't chalk and I also have to pay $5 to $10 to watch my kid play.

3. Pay umpires at the plate? Again, where does the tournament money go? Entry fee $299 x 35 teams is $10,465! Is that how much it costs to rent the fields? Oh and I still have to pay $10 for the weekend to watch my kid play.

4. I thought there was a rule about where pre-game warm-ups were done. I thought warm-ups were supposed to be in foul territory. Why are teams warming up on the field and ruining the chalk for the 1st game? So now, there is no chalk for any games. SMH.

Not really complaining... well maybe a little... just wondering if this is one of those "it is what it is" things. The organizations that set up the tournaments make tons of money while the playing and spectator conditions kinda suck. My daughter loves playing and I love watching her, so if this is how it is in Texas, it's fine I guess.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
Just some quick questions on differences we have seen so far after being in a couple of tournaments in DFW area...

1. No chalk in between games?? Can they AT LEAST chalk in between games? Not asking for a full drag or water (although the water would be nice as the balls just die). The batter is out of the box!! What box? That ball is foul!! No foul line... :(

We've only been to 2 tournaments so far, so maybe this is a thing specific to certain tournaments?

2. I have to pay to watch my kid play? Where does the tournament money go? They don't chalk and I also have to pay $5 to $10 to watch my kid play.

3. Pay umpires at the plate? Again, where does the tournament money go? Entry fee $299 x 35 teams is $10,465! Is that how much it costs to rent the fields? Oh and I still have to pay $10 for the weekend to watch my kid play.

4. I thought there was a rule about where pre-game warm-ups were done. I thought warm-ups were supposed to be in foul territory. Why are teams warming up on the field and ruining the chalk for the 1st game? So now, there is no chalk for any games. SMH.

Not really complaining... well maybe a little... just wondering if this is one of those "it is what it is" things. The organizations that set up the tournaments make tons of money while the playing and spectator conditions kinda suck. My daughter loves playing and I love watching her, so if this is how it is in Texas, it's fine I guess.
First off, the TDs are not doing it Pro Bono so keep that in mind when you are asking "where the money goes"...

Second I have never been a tournament anywhere in the country (outside of Sparkler) where I haven't had to pay to watch (played in OK,KS,MO,TX,CO,AR,IA).

Third, pay to play does seem like a TX thing..I think we have only done that for TX tournaments. That said it typically doesn't work out to be much more than a regular tournament (eg 299 for a tournament in your example is pretty cheap).

Lastly, the chalk thing would be tournament specific.
 
May 31, 2018
227
43
Allen TX
Welcome to DFW. The area has lots of tournaments to offer and a lot of parks, but they are all mostly organized and run by a select few. There is no competition truly, so standards have certainly dropped over the last few years. PAP is very common in Texas and as @pattar said, it doesn't make it more expensive overall. The gate fees are huge here. They were rare 3 years ago, and now are done at every park. We find the tournaments in Houston or College Station are better.
 

LEsoftballdad

DFP Vendor
Jun 29, 2021
2,838
113
NY
Pay at the plate has made a comeback in our area of NY. The TD's theory is that teams who go deep should pay more and keep the overall fees down. For our bigger events, the winner might play 7-8 games in total, while the first teams eliminated only play four games. $60 × 4 = an additional $240 in umpire fees rather than spreading it out amongst all the teams. Does it make sense? Good question. I know a lot of showcases have gone that route too.

As for gate fees, I'm fine with them as long as the provide good facilities. My wife always says she'll pay $10 a day to get clean bathrooms instead of porta-potties. The problem is some places are charging a gate fee and providing services like you mentioned. At the Sparkler this year, we played four days on three different complexes, and only one charged a $10 fee. Oddly enough, it was the worst complex we played at the entire week. And, because it was elimination day, we lost and only got one game there.
 
May 27, 2022
412
63
First off, the TDs are not doing it Pro Bono so keep that in mind when you are asking "where the money goes"...

Second I have never been a tournament anywhere in the country (outside of Sparkler) where I haven't had to pay to watch (played in OK,KS,MO,TX,CO,AR,IA).

Third, pay to play does seem like a TX thing..I think we have only done that for TX tournaments. That said it typically doesn't work out to be much more than a regular tournament (eg 299 for a tournament in your example is pretty cheap).

Lastly, the chalk thing would be tournament specific.

Interesting. In Iowa, most USSSA tournaments now carry an admission fee for the team to pay and then access is free for the fans.
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
Interesting. In Iowa, most USSSA tournaments now carry an admission fee for the team to pay and then access is free for the fans.
I think we went there (Des Moines for Nationals) pre-Covid. My guess is many places may have switched to what you mentioned during Covid and then never switched back. Of course I could be wrong and we went right at the beginning of Covid and the pre-tournament fee occurred?? I honestly cannot remember.. @jdint was there..maybe he has a better memory.
 
Last edited:
Jul 14, 2018
982
93
I have never been a tournament anywhere in the country (outside of Sparkler) where I haven't had to pay to watch (played in OK,KS,MO,TX,CO,AR,IA).

DD has only played on the East Coast, and I can’t remember ever paying a gate fee in NY, NJ, PA, DE, VA, SC, FL. Pay at the plate for umpires has become the standard everywhere we play. I have seen Gate Fee charges when registering for tournaments.

The chalk is a pet peeve of mine also. Honestly, the best-maintained fields we’ve seen are in tournaments where an org is hosting as a fundraiser. They can mobilize an army of parent volunteers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Jun 8, 2016
16,118
113
DD has only played on the East Coast, and I can’t remember ever paying a gate fee in NY, NJ, PA, DE, VA, SC, FL. Pay at the plate for umpires has become the standard everywhere we play. I have seen Gate Fee charges when registering for tournaments.

The chalk is a pet peeve of mine also. Honestly, the best-maintained fields we’ve seen are in tournaments where an org is hosting as a fundraiser. They can mobilize an army of parent volunteers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Well it looks like the OP must arbe from the East Coast then 😂

Basketball around here is worse. They charge my 7 YO 10 bucks ..
 
Dec 2, 2013
3,410
113
Texas
Gate Fees: ASA Southern Nationals in Fort Worth. College Classic Showcase-mix of college teams and TB. Every Scrapyard event. $5--Awesome facilities. Had to pay to get in at the Tomball fields-prison restrooms and the worst sand trap fields in the area.

Chalk lines IMO should be redrawn every 2 games.
 
Apr 20, 2018
4,581
113
SoCal
Huntington Beach Sports Complex, Fountain Valley Sports Complex, The Great Park (Irvine)and many others are free in SoCal. All the BLD facilities charge $8 and have no outside food rules. Water and fruit OK. Pro tip. Pretty easy to smuggle sandwiches and snacks in the bottom of your bucket on balls. We generally have drag, water and chalk between games. But our tourneys and showcases are expensive. I think we are paying $1195 for a 7 game showcase this weekend. A non sanctioned 4 GG/ SE on shifty fields will cost $395 at least.
 

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