Monday Poll: NPPL cuts cros-division games, good idea?

[Chicago]

As paintball gets more "Sporty",people are going to have to get used to events being run in a sporty manner. You want your tournament set up so the best teams are most likely to advance, not so that teams get the pleasure of getting beat by teams two divisions up. That's not what tournametns are for. If you want to get beat by outclassed teams, go scrimage them.

 

[Gyroscope]

Sure, but one way some great teams of the past have stood out is by beating teams from higher divisions. Diesel and Trauma and Naughty Dogs all come to mind. Long term success in paintball is about more than winning, it is about standing out and being a marketable team. Things that get you noticed, like being a pro-killer, helped some teams become the professional paintball institutions they are today.

I realize that consistent on field wins is a more accurate measure of a team's quality, but underdog wins appeal to us. It imbues a team with a character more distinct than just beating other teams in the same division. It is a legitimate way for a team to start building it's reputation, without the WWF style disfunctional personality type.

 

[shamu]

Originally posted by Gyroscope
Sure, but one way some great teams of the past have stood out is by beating teams from higher divisions. Diesel and Trauma and Naughty Dogs all come to mind.

that way of thinking is soooo 2004

I have to agree with Chicago. As the tournament scene tries to approach "real sport" status, certain adaptions are to be expected. I can't think of any other sports that regularly allow intra-divisional competition as part of the normal tournament process. An exception would be the pro-am style events like golf and tennis, but there everyone is competing at a single level and not multiple levels (pro, D1, D2, etc).

Intra-divisional play was always a random factor in the final division placings. If your pro team was Dynasty, you'd be lucky to get a couple of points. But if your pro team was Icemen (going back to 2004 pros), you had a good shot at winning. That one factor could be the difference between making and not making the Sunday cut (9 points for shooting 3 XSV players vs. 94 points for pull and hang against Murder Inc.)

Good point about consistency and the personality aspect. Hopefully teams will learn more about self-promotion so they can play up the success angle and not the "we got lucky one time" angle.

 

[Booya39]

Some teams may prove themselves to be head and shoulders above the rest in the old system, but most will benefit from the divisional play. In theory the better teams will rise to the top.

Good move.

 

[Iron Lions - Ed]

Was there any mention of Millenium cutting cross divisional games at the meeting?