Why have Pro level games?

As Utah expands our festivals & gain access to County & State Fair events we (Utah Heavy Athletics) have been looking at whether or not to take the step up to "Professional Games".

The questions that come up are;

I'm curious what the pros themselves will say or even better, the ADs to the big games.

I agree with most of what McBain says.  If you have a small games, your ROI isn't going to be there to run a pro games.  If you want pros, go get sponsors. Go bug the local pubs, gyms, supplement stores, apparel places, etc. Don't make the festival pay for us.  For the most part, the crowd doesn't know the difference between an Am and a Pro, if they aren't on the field together.  If don't have a pro's class, GET A GOOD ANNOUNCER.  Somebody that is good on the mic will keep the crowd entertained. 

The only thing I would really argue with in Gillingham's response is his argument of a difference in atmosphere and his assumption the pros give the crowd more entertainment. That's not the case in Michigan at least. The Michigan ams are known for putting on a hell of a show.

There is a great deal that can and should be written in regards to this topic. 

The first point I will make is that no matter how high the quality of your product, if you stick it off to the side and don't market it, you will see little ROI.

Let's be candid, the vast majority of festivals are not very good at marketing and promotion.  And, ADs don't have much time to do it specifically for the Heavy Events.  Minimal payout and little support is fairly common.  Saying that you have a pro class on the festival brochure doesn't cut it. 
If the festival is looking to make money off the event, then they have to embrace the old adage, "If you want to make money, you have to spend money."

I'd be really interested to see how many festivals have or hire a marketing/promotion capability.  I believe this is an area where we in the Heavy Events could really help ourselves grow.

Jeremy makes a great point along these lines:  don't rely on the festival for all your $$.  Find a way to get out there and bring in more sponsors and promote the Heavy Events.  Even if you focus just on them, it will benefit the entire festival.

With that said, if you're not going to promote your Pro's, they won't provide much more than the Ams, or re-enactors.  So, if this is the case don't waste your money, or peoples time and energy, on bringing in pros.

jsully wrote: While I would partly agree with this I don't think it's always the case. When I was in NH last year at the beer tent after the games I overheard patrons spouting out stats of the various throwers. I was highly impressed. I was surprised they didn't pull out rookie trading cards.

Joel Sim wrote: Our second Festival does not collect a fee as it's held in a city park. 1/2 of the festival is subsidized through the City Budget. the rest is brought in from entry fees from Pipers, Dancers, Athletes & Vendors.

Ok, I'll dip my toe in the water a bit.  The idea that pros somehow bring more ams to the games is not a reality for the games at which I throw.  Maybe we have things a bit different in Michigan.  There are only a few games that include pros and they throw on different days as the ams. (except Livonia--there the ams throw early and are under a time crunch to get done before the pros need to start--only 5 events)

Pete, Fair enough. I can respect you opinion & appreciate your POV.

How can I, we, help build the Pro division? How can the Pro division help itself & others?

A re-occuring theme seems to be investing in a Professional Announcer first. Bringing the games out of hum drum & into the crowds laps makes sense.

This whole thread reminds me when I was a competition piper. Every piper thought grade one was awesome, including grade one, but in reality, the audience just wanted to hear the pipes being played. No one but the pipers really cared about the grades.
As for any responsibility as as AD to grow the pro division, when I was an AD that never crossed my mind. I just focused on my games. Whatever game wanted pros, that was their choice and what happened to the pros didn't, and still doesn't, concern me. I couldn't care less if there was a pro class or not. And I don't care if a thrower is a pro or not. I just care if they are a good person who is fun to hang out with all day. This is a hobby, a game, for me, something that is fun. (A word of warning, I may go off topic here).
One of the reasons I left this board a while back because certain people started to suck that fun away with their concerns about spinning, pros, ams, lifting weights, taking supplements and not pissing off certain people in the sport. The big one was that this board began to remind me of when i was a piper, with certain pipers and bands looking down on pipers that they felt didn't fit their quality or vision and pipers bullying others. Those concerns that were debated on this board seemed silly over time, so i left (plus other ways of communicating with fellow throwers became available - facebook). I only recently came back and started visiting again.
(Back on topic)
In the end, just remember the only things that matter are your audience being entertained and your athletes having fun. Scores, pros, ams, whatever doesn't matter if those two are not met, and your game will quickly die.

How about just eliminating the am/pro distinction? Put what budget you can into prize money, and whomever registers/shows up (if invited) wins it?  This system seems to work fairly well in Scotland?

Also, by eliminating the distinction or pro/am I think it will discourage the growth of our sport. Nobody is going to want to keep competing if their first time throwing is against a pro. It's hard enough to convince someone that they won't look like a jackass throwing the 56 for the first time. Lol

jsully wrote: Wayne, wasn't criticizing. Just saying that it was awesome hearing people talk about athletes an their numbers.

I think is a very good discussion.  I really agree with alot of what has been said.  Jake has hit alot of the issues that the pros deal with.  If it is a games that already has 10+ classes all throwing at the same time it makes no sense to add a pro class.  It completely confuses anyone watching.  If your throwing in a pasture or field that is completely away from the festival it makes no sense to have pros.  If you have an announcer that isn't willing to know the records or bio's and get the crowd involved then it makes no sense to have pros.