The International Pool Tour was an event that attracted top players from around the world. This tournament was the first to be broadcast on TV and was intended to promote pool as a mainstream sport. Kevin Trudeau created it. Kevin Trudeau was an avid player of pool and was already a successful businessman at the time he founded IPT.
It was a professional sports tour that featured bright lights, professional production, and some of the world's best pool players. This was an important step in the history of pool. It was a sport that was not well organised at the time. The players would play multiple race-to-8 sets per day, but only two of them advanced to the next round.
Trudeau was determined that the game would be a success. He started the tour with $13 million in funding. It was a short-lived venture that helped to bring the sport in the spotlight. The tour offered more than $6M in prize money over its life span.
In its first year, there were four events. One of the events was the King of the Hill Eightball Shootout with a prize fund of $200K. The North American Open was another, with a $2,000,000 purse. The IPT Players 8-Ball Championship took place from October 22-29. 2007: The tour was cancelled due to problems at the facility.
The first year of the tour featured the most prize money in the history of pool. Reyes won $500K total for his win over Roderick Morse in the World Open Eightball Championship. Reyes also won a $163k First Prize for his victory against Niels Feijen at the Predator World 14.1 Championship.
Efren is considered a star. He is known as Bata and is considered the king among billiards hotshots. His reputation of "running tables" gave him his nickname. He has won 14 tournaments. He was awarded a bronze medal for eight-ball at the 2002 Asian Games.
When he was younger, he used to earn $500 an hour as a pool teacher. His sudden entrance into pool was not expected. He decided to make it a career as a pro tournament player several years ago. He was soon the face IPT. He is the current color commentator on U.S. broadcasts.
Reyes and Francisco Bustamante represented Philippines during the World Cup of Pool. They beat Roderick Morris and Earl Strickland. They also won the Dr. Louis Pannullo Award.
The International Pool Tour featured several other stars, including Mike Sigel. Sigel, before he was a pro, sold imported goods and gambled on the road. He began competing after hearing about the league. During his tenure, he won two world championships and is a two-time World Professional Pool Champion.
Trudeau had been a long-time enthusiast of pool and thought up the tour after seeing a radio advertisement for a Chicago region pool tournament. Initially, the tour planned to have a challenge match in August 2005. It was cancelled by the facility after negotiations failed.