Team Pays Tournament Gate Fees Upfront?

[GunnerShotgun]

I was getting ready to sign up for a tournament, the details were standard. It's a 4 game guarantee (2 pool and then double elimination bracket play) for $375.

Then I saw this, "Inclusive gate fee due of 150.00 at check in. This will cover anyone wishing to be a spectator at this event grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles along with cousins."

So now we are talking $525 for a standard NSA 4 game guarantee tournament? I have been doing this for over 20 years but that his outrageous (and lazy on their part).

Am I missing something?

 

[Amy in AZ.]

I haven't seen this either. Are you then, issued wrist bands or something? Because they would still need to accept walk ups, I would think. Perhaps it is too keep someone else from handling so much money?

How much is the gate charge, normally? I would guess you are paying for about 30 people to go in. That would be ok, if you are local, if not, yes, they are making money.

Then, you would have to collect money from each family, wouldn't you?

 

[redhotcoach]

Baseball tourneys we play now all include gate fee in with tourney fee. This year about a third of the softball did too. $150-$200 is pretty standard. It has always been just sent in with registration. Never have had to bring a check.

Fans do like it better, and it supposedly is better for concessions since people should have more cash in their pocket.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

It just seems to me they are making the teams pay the gate fee so they don't have to deal with collecting money on game day from fans that come out to the games.

I can't see asking parents for additional money to pay for gate fees so it's coming out of my budget.

This is my first time seeing this in Indiana.

I think $525 is too much to pay for a standard 4 game tournament.

 

[starsnuffer]

Many venues charge gate fees, and this money goes to the venue, not the tournament organization or director. Many even charge the players. It sounds like this particular tournament director may have cut a deal with the venue to provide a flat fee instead of charging gate fees at the door. $150 sounds like a lot, but when you figure 2 parents plus a player for 2 days of gate fees, it's not that bad.

That said, if gate fees are not the norm for this venue, then yeah, you're getting hosed.

-W

 

[redhotcoach]

$200/12 families is $16.66 per family. Say 3 family members would have to pay and it is a 3 day tourney. That comes to $1.85 per person per day.

 

[Sparky Guy]

I think one of the biggest reason for gate fees is the facilities are raising their rental rates for the fields. It's becoming a seller's market with the field usage time. Then all they want to give you is one kid, or two if you're lucky to do the fields at the start of the day and nothing for the remainder of the day.

So, instead of raising the price of the tournaments to pay for the rentals they put gate fess in place.

I've had people complaining about how hard it is getting park district field time because the rec teams/leagues have them booked. I have to explain to them the Park District does not care what level of ball is being played on the fields. They care about the residents whose taxes that pay for park are being taken care of first. Everyone else comes in a very distant 2nd.

In my area there is one program who has their own 3 field complex. The cost of running it is HUGE. But they are also some of the nicest fields in the area. I've never minded paying a gate fee and a no cooler policy at their facility. My biggest pet peeve is a complex that has crap fields, no fences and won't allow the tourney host to groom the fields between games because they can only be done by park district employees. There are plenty of those around here.

 

[InsidePitch]

Pony Nats in Newtown did this in July. I figured it was because they had no way of monitoring who came and went unlike the facilites in Cary.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

$200/12 families is $16.66 per family. Say 3 family members would have to pay and it is a 3 day tourney. That comes to $1.85 per person per day.

You tortured the numbers a little bit, but your point is well taken.

I don't really care about the gate fee or how much they charge, my complaint is that they are making me the middle man to collect their fees.

Why state the tournament is $375 and then in the fine print state that you have pay an additional $150 for a "team gate fee".

Just say the tournament is $525 and the gate fee is included.

Now get off my lawn....

 

[starsnuffer]

It may be that the venue has a minimum gate fee per day, and if the tournament director can't guarantee attendance, a flat fee may be the only way to go. I'm just playing devils advocate here.

-W