There have been a lot of changes to international beach volleyball with the introduction of the Beach Pro Tour. One of the most important is the new entry ranking system. It took me a while to get my head wrapped around the new systemβs impact, but now its effects are becoming clearer with each tournament. I get asked about how they work every week, so itβs time to take a deep dive into the Beach Pro Tour entry rankings in this Beach Volley Blog explainer.
Why are entry rankings important?
Entry ranking points are important because they determine which tournaments a team can play in. The more entry points a team has the more options they have for tournament entry. Only the top 12 ranked teams in the world are given main draw spots at Elite 16 tournaments and Elite 16s are where the money is.
If you want to earn a living in the sport, you really have to play in the biggest tournaments. The winning team at an Elite 16 gets $30,000 and the average prize for teams finishing 9th or better is $10,833. The Challenge level has a decent payout, too. The winning team takes home $10,000 and the average prize for 9th or better is $4,666. Before you ask your beach volleyball playing friends to lend you some of their prize money, remember all of the prizes are shared between the two players. Success at the Future level doesnβt even cover the travel expenses with the winning team splitting $1000 and the average take for a top 9 finish only $383.
Why does anyone play future tournaments?
While teams almost always lose money by playing in a future tournament, it is the only way to gain points and become eligible for larger events. The Beach Pro Tour has a clever design in the points scheme, so the disparity in entry points at the different levels is much smaller than the prize money disparity. While the winner of an Elite 16 earns 30 times more money than a Future level winner($30,000 vs $1000) , they only get get 3 times the entry points (1200 vs 400). This creates opportunities for teams to climb the ladder and get a shot at the big money events.
Americans Taryn Kloth & Kristen Nuss are the first team to ride the entry rankings escalator to the top floor. They started their international careers this year at a Future tournament in…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at The Beach Volley Blogβ¦