The news broke here on AzBilliards on Saturday afternoon that the Billiard Congress of America had found a buyer for their league and referee programs. This news has led to much speculation and even more questions as to what the situation was. We spoke to the prospective buyer Mark Griffin on Saturday night and got some details directly from the source.
The first thing that Mr Griffin wanted to make complete clear was that no deal was done yet. The offer he had made still needs to be voted on by the BCA board on Wednesday. While Mr Griffin expects that offer to be approved, he cautioned that nothing was done yet.
The second thing Mr Griffin stressed is that he is not doing this to make money and does not need to make money from the BCA players. Mr Griffin is a partial owner in Diamond Billiard Products and he sees this acquisition as an advertising tool to help promote where he things the sport can go. The comment was made that Mr Griffin expects that he has 10 more years to devote to the game that he loves and this is how he thinks he can make the most impact.
Mr Griffin explained that he was one of the more vocal opponents to the idea of selling the league and referee programs, but it was the board's decision as the majority voted to sell. When the decision was made to sell, Mr Griffin put together his offer.
Assuming that the offer is approved, here are some details that Mr Griffin gave us about his plans...
- Mr Griffin would take over as of June 1. The amateur event in May would be completely unaffected.
- Contracts are already signed for 2005 and Gary Benson would remain in charge of the tournament. Mr. Griffin expressed interest in Mr Benson remaining in this capacity even beyond the 2005 tournaments, but said he understood that it was Mr Benson's decision to make.
- Starting in 2005 when Mr Griffin would be in charge of the tournament: There will be no change in cost to the player, smoking rules or booth rental. As far as the average player is concerned, they will notice no difference.
- Mr. Griffin did say that he expects the event to switch to the Diamond Smart Table in 2006.
- Mr. Griffin said that if the offer is accepted on Wednesday, he will make his email address and cell phone number public and will welcome comments and suggestions from any members of the industry. Mr. Griffin expects to hire qualified people to handle the various jobs that need to be handled by the organization.
- Mr. Griffin expects to have opposition but he hopes that people in the industry will concentrate on their past dealings with Mr. Griffin and at least give him the opportunity to explain his ideas before criticizing them. All he asks is that he is given a fair chance to show the fans what he envisions for the future of our sport.
