Want to be an AVP Pro?
Qualifying process for the 2009 AVP Crocs Tour and International events explained
By: Kelly O'Rourke, on 02/27/2009
AVP Qualifiers and the Young Guns Tour provide up and coming players with an opportunity to earn AVP points.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to become a Pro on the AVP Crocs Tour? Do you think you have what it takes to become the next Kerri Walsh, or that you could hold your own against Phil Dalhausser? If you answered yes to any of these questions, or simply just want to play on the AVP Tour, then take note because here comes a crash course on how to qualify for the AVP in 2009.
Players earn their way onto the AVP Crocs Tour by earning points that are awarded in AVP sanctioned qualifying events. There are two types of AVP qualifying events, onsite AVP Qualifiers and the AVP Young Guns Tour. Additionally, there will be two events for players to qualify for international play.
Onsite AVP Qualifiers
AVP Qualifiers are one day, single elimination tournaments that take place the day before the start of the main draw in an AVP Crocs Tour event. All teams participating in the qualifier earn points based on their finish, while winning teams also earn an automatic berth into the AVP main draw the following day. For AVP Crocs Tour events that will have thirty-two teams, the top eight teams in the qualifier will move on to the main draw, while four teams will qualify for main draws of twenty-four teams.
AVP Qualifiers are open to all players and the cost of registration is $100 per team. All qualifier participants must be members of AVP Next. To register for AVP Next, please click here.
All players will receive brackets for the qualifier no later than the Wednesday before the event. The seeding of the brackets will be based off of the combined point total of a team and will reflect the best four out of the last five finishes. Teams with no points will be seeded last in random order. Some onsite qualifiers will have limited capacity. Check AVP.com for capacity details.
There will be six onsite AVP Qualifiers in 2009, with the first taking place at the season-opening event in Panama City Beach on Friday, March 27, 2009. This qualifier will be capped at 40 teams per gender due to space constraints.
For more information on registration and other onsite qualifiers please check back to AVP.com in the coming weeks as more information will soon be released.
AVP Young Guns Tour
The second way to earn AVP points is by participating in the AVP Young Guns Tour. The Young Guns Tour is designed as a way for up and coming players to accumulate main draw points and some prize money. The 2009 Young Guns Tour will consist of six, two-day, double elimination tournaments. These events do not run in conjunction with AVP Crocs Tour events. Main draw players, defined as players ranked 1-48 individually on the AVP tour at the time of the event, are not allowed to play in these events. AVP.com will be updated with the latest rankings.
Young Guns Tour participants will receive AVP main draw points based on their finish, but don’t receive automatic berths into main draw events. Seeding of each tournament will be based on AVP points already accumulated.
Registration for the Young Guns Tour will be handled by the local promoter hosting the event. The complete 2009 Young Guns Tour schedule with promoter and registration information is below.
Ft. Lauderdale , FL : March 21-22
Sheraton Yankee Clipper
1140 Seabreeze Blvd
Fort Lauderdale, FL. 33316
Tournament Director: Gino Ferraro
Host Organization: Florida Beach Volleyball Tour
Registration Deadline: March 18; 6PM EST
Email: promovbl@bellsouth.net
Phone: 954-316-6642
Website: www.flbeachvolleyball.com
Prize Money: $10,000
Long Beach , CA : April 11-12
Belmont Shores-Long Beach City Beach
4200 E. Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA. 90803
Tournament Director: Jack Quinn
Host Organization: Great American Volleyball
Registration Deadline: April 8; 6PM EST
Email: aj@greatamericanvolleyball.com
Phone: (310) 809-2033
Website: www.greatamericanvolleyball.com
Prize Money: $10,000
Manhattan Beach , CA : May 2-3
Manhattan Beach Pier
10 Manhattan Beach Blvd
Manhattan Beach, CA. 90266
Tournament Director: Jack Quinn
Host Organization: Great American Volleyball
Registration Deadline: April 29; 6PM EST
Email: aj@greatamericanvolleyball.com
Phone: (310) 809-2033
Website: www.greatamericanvolleyball.com
Prize Money: $10,000
Pt. Pleasant, NJ: June 6-7
1 Broadway Pt.
Pleasant Beach, NJ. 08742
Tournament Director: Rich Heiles
Host Organization: East End Volleyball
Registration Deadline: June 3; 6PM EST
Email: eevb@i-2000.com
Phone: (631) 728-0397
Website: www.eevb.net/reg
Prize Money: $10,000
Attention - New Location
NOW AT:
St Charles , MO : July 11-12
3244 Rue Royale St.
St Charles, MO. 63301
Tournament Director: Brian Williams
Host Organization: St. Louis Volleyball, Inc.
Registration Deadline: July 8; 10PM CST
Email: brian@stlvolleyball.com
Phone: (314)846-8200
Website: www.stlvolleyball.com
Prize Money: $10,000
Muskegon , MI : August 15-16
1601 Beach St.
Muskegon, MI. 49440
Tournament Director: Chip Will
Host Organization: Michigan Volleyball Directors Association
Registration Deadline: August 12; 5PM EST
Email: mvdabeach@gmail.com
Phone: (616) 502-2672
Website: www.mivda.com
Prize Money: $10,000
The prize money for each AVP Young Guns Tour tournament breaks down the following:
$5000 per gender
- 1st place - $1,100
- 2nd place - $800
- 3rd place - $550
- 5th place - $400
- 7th place - $300
- 9th place - $150
International Development Qualifiers
Another way to jumpstart your professional career is international qualification and play. This year, the AVP will team with USA Volleyball to host two International Development Qualifiers (IDQs) for NORCECA and FIVB tournament events which conflict with AVP tournament weekends. AVP athletes ranked 33d and below (individually) are eligible to compete in the IDQs.
USA Volleyball will host the two IDQs, which are tournaments to identify elite beach athletes for entry into select international events and other USAV High Performance Beach Programs.
Teams that finish in the top four at IDQ events will get the opportunity to represent the United States in select FIVB and NORCECA events.
The IDQs will take place March 14-15 and June 27-28 at Marina Green Park, 700 East Shoreline Drive in Long Beach, Calif. The cost is $30 per person per event and a Mikasa FIVB ball will be used. The event format will be pool play with a double-elimination playoff.
All International Development Qualifier participants must hold a valid U.S. passport, be a member in good standing of USA Volleyball and may not be currently registered as a member of another country’s volleyball federation. To register, visit www.regonline.com/usavbeach.
For more information on AVP qualification as well as the International Development Qualifiers, please check back with avp.com soon as we prepare to launch our Volleyball Nation website.
