by mesquiton » Thu Aug 27, 2009 4:41 pm
[b:b1794e96d2]C2:[/b:b1794e96d2] FWIW, last year was actually 36 semifinals teams, not 24. That turned out to be virtually identical to the ratio of playoff teams in MLB. We started with a few more participants last year, but for the final two events were down to 7 leagues, similar to this year.
In addition to the "elegance" of sending all (only) playoff teams from the semifinals leagues to the finals, the 36-team format obviously keeps more managers interested longer, and gets more folks involved in the fun of the playoff round, which seems to me healthy for the Tour overall (and helps TSN sell a few more tickets). Last year, of the 12 semifinals winners, 4 came from the top 12 in Tour standings, 4 from the second 12, and 4 from the 3rd 12. Whatever the call, I'd agree the sooner the format is "official", the better, so we all know what we're shooting for.
ps: Please allow me to add my hearty thanks and kudos for your outstanding work as Commish! :D