Professional Vs. Amatuer A

[Mushi]

I went paintballing a few weeks ago at a local field...Albany Outdoor for any of those that live in Oregon. Home of the Naughty Dogs, apparently. Anyway, after I broke my ankle there, the lady who drove me to the hospital talked to me a bit about their team.

I was told that the Naughty Dogs play Amatuer A because there is more prize money or prizes involved in Amatuer A, when compared to the professional level. A friend of mine supported that argument a while later ... saying they were considered one of the top teams in the nation.

I was curious, what's up with that? is it true that teams would prefer playing in a lower division to make more money? I don't think I'm talking about sandbagging...because (at least I've been told) the Naughty Dogs can compete on the professional level, they just choose not to. Why on earth would there be more money in an amatuer league compared to a professional league? Plus, what's wrong with the players? Seems to me to produce the best competition, the professional level should offer rewards much greater than any amatuer division, even for the lowest performing team. I think every major league player is proud to be playing at the top level, no matter how much or how little money they make. Shouldn't paintball be the same way?

[elTwitcho]

Pros have bigger prizes and make more money. If the naughty Dogs compete in a pro event, they lose their am A status. Few tournaments outside the NPPL, Masters and Mardi Gras have pro classification, so as an AM A player you can potentially make more money by playing more tournaments. Also, while the dogs are an excelent am team, against the likes of the Russian legion, Dynasty, shock, Avalanche, BL and SC Ironmen and Ground Zero, they probably wouldnt win a whole lot of tournaments in the pro division