Quoted from frolic:That is very noble, but I think there is no getting around that the event attendance is very limited and selling out if 45 minutes in going to wipe out the novices. You might as well embrace being the marquee pinball event of the year and work with it.
Good luck with everything.
Usually you have a logical approach and are spot-on.
Unfortunately, logical reasoning does not work here and parallels should not be drawn with other businesses.
PAPA exists solely due to philanthropy and a dedicated team of volunteers who strive to keep pinball alive and well.
A 400 person pinball tournament is the furthest thing from "very limited" - in fact it is the biggest and baddest pinball event on the planet.
Quoted from frolic:Classic business says it is underpriced if it sells that quick. The solution is to raise prices. It goes into the purse anyways, which only helps with the prestige of the event. six-figure prizes would be pretty impressive.
Again, no parallels should be drawn between PAPA and classic business; in fact, they do not even belong in the same sentence. One must simply visit the facility and meet the people involved to see how flawed your reasoning is. $175 to enter a tournament is not cheap, especially when you factor in the cost of travel. $60k in prizes is already pretty impressive.
PAPA is not a capitalist machine and never will be. It's all part of the magic and mystique that make the spring pilgrimage to Scott Township the highlight of my year - I've pledged with a pinball brother-from-another-mother to never miss a Pinburgh until I die.
