The American Poolplayers Association (APA), the world's largest pool association, is headquartered in New York. It has nearly 270,000 members in the United States, Canada, and Japan. Franchise Business Review has ranked them among the top small business opportunity.
The sanctioning body for amateur pool competitions in Canada and the United States is APA. They host several major pool tournaments every year, including the APA World Pool Championships. Guinness World Records proclaimed APA World Pool Championships 2010 as the "World's Largest Pool Tournament."
APA also runs eight-ball, nine-ball tournaments. Each player in an APA-affiliated team must have a APA membership. You can also participate if you are a member of another pool association. You can apply to join APA by submitting a membership request to your local APA League Operator. The President then interviews you.
Aside from the APA Poolplayer Championships, APA has three other annual championships. These include the APA Junior Championships, which are open to children and teenagers aged 7 to 18 years.
The APA Poolplayer Championships will be held in Las Vegas Nevada. They typically occur in the latter half of April or early May. The tournament allows qualified poolplayers the chance to compete against poolplayers all over the world.
APA also organizes several other international tournaments, such as the APA World Pool Championships held in Singapore. These tournaments can be organized by APA League Operator franchisees. Qualifying tournaments may be offered to those who aren't eligible to compete at the National level. Some players refer to the "Equalizer" handicapping system at APA as the "Equalizer". APA's handicapping system does not use A-D rankings like other tournaments. It uses a proprietary system to rate the top 3 scores. However, it is possible for an individual to receive more than 3 ratings.
Some APA franchisees have conflicts of interests. One franchisee has been accused, for example, of kick-out players. APA can make this decision. However, the franchisee had posted in many ** groups and recruited players to the location. He tried to claim that APA had evicted a number players from his territory.
Many APA League Operators have received the coveted APA League Operating of the Year Award. Five of these operators received recognition at the APA Annual Convention held in Las Vegas. One of them was recognized as the only APA office in the world to have won the award twice.
Another reason to join APA is the network of franchise locations. APA has an active network of more than 270 League Operators in the United States, Canada, and Japan. Some of these areas offer in-house Divisions. APA is the largest league of pool players in the world. However, a local League Operator can not switch to another league.
APA is home to more than 270,000 active members. There are however more than 270 League Operators who organize pool tourneys. These locations are often affiliated with APA. Additional costs may apply. Depending upon the market, the fees for franchisees may include licensing fees, equipment, marketing expenses, and other costs.