Since I participated in what I believe was the largest Regionals tournament ever — Ohio Valley Regionals 2001, where I T8ed, thankyouverymuch — I feel that I need to comment on Deane Beman's suggestions for improving Regionals.

Firstly, mandatory preregistration, although it sounds appealing, is rather unfair to a great many Magic players — and it's unfair for a reason totally unrelated to the game itself. A lot of people often aren't sure until game day whether they are going to attend or not. Perhaps they happened to get someone to work in their place, found a babysitter, or just found a cool new deck or secret tech they really want to play. Enforcing preregistration seems a bad idea at entry-level events like this. Such a system would not be appropriate in Gateway tourneys, or at meatgrinders, so why make it mandatory for Regionals?

Secondly, being younger usually means you have enough problems competing against older players, so I don't believe there's anything wrong with so-called"juniors" being allowed into these events. After all, few of today's fourteen-year-olds were playing during Legends, so they tend to be comparatively inexperienced. I, for one, find it more impressive when a junior qualifies for Nationals, as was the case for one of the competitors at Ohio Valley: JSS phenom Casey Munn. (For those wondering, I'm twenty0-five.)

As for decreasing the number of rounds based on continuing participation, I have a personal bias against this, having seen it in action at a local tournament. A friend of mine lost out on a chance for prizes, due to the TO canceling the last round because of his perceived lack of competitors. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Plus — and you have to be a TO to be able to reply to this — I believe it would be a logistical nightmare for the judging staff.

Simultaneous tournaments still mean the same amount of players, so many of the same problems in these events would still be present. Which brings me to...

Splitting up regions. At last, a suggestion I like! I'm always in favor of more Regionals, as most of the problems with these events happen at overcrowded tourneys. All of Deane Beman's points here are well founded (although I don't know enough about New England to see the need for two tournaments for its players). (It needs it — The Ferrett)

In conclusion, I feel obligated to point out that the best solution for most Regionals-related problems lies in having a good TO. We in the Ohio Valley are fortunate that the amazing Professional Events Services have just such a TO, in the form of Mike"The Don of Magic" Guptil. They consistently turn out huge, yet well-run and well-liked, tournaments, and we all are the better for it.

Peace,
Adam Minniear
Dayton, Ohio, USA
Team Fighting Tong
AdmHELMET@aol.com