HERMOSA BEACH, CALIFORNIA — Steve Obradovich took all the cash.
He pauses. Laughs. Corrects himself.
“Truly,” he says on SANDCAST: Seashore Volleyball with Tri Bourne and Travis Mewhirter, “Dodd and Hovland and Sinjin and Randy and Steffes and all these guys took all the cash.”
Each participant he talked about made greater than $1 million in prize cash over the course of their careers as skilled seashore volleyball gamers. Randy Stoklos as soon as inked a take care of FILA that introduced in half one million in royalties alone — in a single 12 months. Obradovich knew the cash within the sport had dipped significantly since his final full-time 12 months in 1989, when he performed in 19 tournaments and made $35,775, bumping his profession earnings into the six figures. But it surely wasn’t till final fall that he realized how far it had fallen.
It was a Saturday, and he was at breakfast in Huntington Seashore with Taylor Crabb. He ordered a bloody Mary. So did Crabb. Obradovich raised an eyebrow.
Wasn’t Crabb taking part in in an AVP event that day?
“He says ‘I’ll win the event, don’t fear,’” Obradovich recalled, laughing. “That’s how unhealthy it was.”
Crabb did win that event, the Huntington Seashore Tour Collection, splitting $4,000 with Taylor Sander, about the identical break up Obradovich shared with Ricci Luyties once they completed second in Lengthy Seashore — in 1985.
“Once I noticed Taylor that’s when it clicked on me,” Obradovich mentioned. He’d lengthy needed to assist the present era of seashore volleyball gamers. His breakfast with Taylor Crabb was the ultimate impetus he wanted: He was going to revive fours seashore volleyball in america.
That revival begins this Saturday, in Newport Seashore, with the inaugural Newport Seashore Volleyball Invitational, an exhibition that includes three males’s groups and three ladies’s groups with a star-studded forged of gamers and sponsors.
“I mentioned Taylor would you have an interest? And he goes ‘Yeah!’ I needed to maintain the AVP guys. I needed to make them some cash,” Obradovich mentioned. “The cash’s happening, gamers getting fifths are nice gamers however they’re not making a living.”
They’ll this weekend. Each participant taking part within the invitational will make a $2,000 look charge. The successful group will tack on one other $4,000. The cash is sweet to the purpose that a number of gamers within the area — Crabb, Taylor Sander, Miles Partain, Andy Benesh, Savvy Simo, Zana Muno, Alex Ranghieri, Kelly Cheng, Betsi Flint, Julia Scoles, and Alix Klineman — turned down the chance to compete in a Problem in Goa, India, with Olympic factors on the road to play in a fours exhibition as an alternative.
The numbers made extra sense to remain residence.
“I used to be deciding if I used to be going to play a Problem in India and pay that cash and carry on going or if I keep again and play on this,” Simo mentioned. “I simply stored poking and seeing and Maddison [McKibbin] requested if I may make a group.”
The McKibbin brothers, Maddison and Riley, shall be producing the occasion for his or her YouTube Channel. There shall be no livestream, and so they have the numbers to again up their technique to as an alternative make a cinematic post-production product: Two of their most-viewed YouTube movies are fours replays with greater than 500,000 viewers every, greater than quadruple that of the most-viewed AVP remaining on ESPN this 12 months. If you wish to watch it stay, it’s important to come all the way down to Newport Seashore and see it your self. The entry is free, and there shall be no stands.
“Old-fashioned,” Obradovich mentioned. “Plop down your chairs and be on the seashore.
There shall be a paid VIP part the place alcohol and meals shall be served, tickets for that are $500 and could be purchased at nbvolleyball.com.
If the sticker value appears excessive, take into account the groups:
- Taylor Crabb, Taylor Sander, Nick Lucena and Alex Ranghieri, who’ve seven Olympic appearances between them whereas the previous two are the 2023 Manhattan Seashore Open champions.
- Sean Rosenthal, Jake Gibb, Miles Partain, and Andy Benesh, the previous two who have been as soon as the No. 1 group on this planet, the latter two who’re at the moment the No. 1 duo within the USA
- Chase Frishman, Casey Patterson, Troy Area, and Brenden Sander, a group of the extra entertaining gamers within the sport, to not point out the latent expertise that’s the youthful Sander
- Kelly Cheng, Sarah Sponcil, Toni Rodriguez, and Emily Stockman — the present world champion, among the best defenders within the USA, one of many brighter up-and-coming abilities, and maybe the final time we’ll see Stockman on the seashore as a participant
- Betsi Flint, Julia Scoles, Alix Klineman, Carli Lloyd, and Megan Rice, the previous two comprising the No. 10 group on this planet, an Olympic gold medalist, an indoor phenomenon, and the rookie coming off a remaining at AVP Laguna Seashore
- Carly Skjodt, Zana Muno, Savvy Simo, Kylie Deberg, and Amy Ozee, a who’s-who of the way forward for American seashore volleyball
“The gamers are all jacked up,” Obradovich mentioned. “As quickly as I discussed two grand, everybody acquired all excited. I may have achieved it for $500 however I needed to make it a legit deal the place guys needed to return down and play. I’d wish to play. I’d have performed for $500. I’m making an attempt to assist the gamers is what I wish to do. They don’t make some huge cash through the 12 months, you wrestle, and now you bought $2,000 prize cash, that’s nice. I’ve all the time needed to assist the game any method I can.”
That is, as Obradovich mentioned, simply “our trial. That is our beta testing.”
Who is aware of what the long run can carry? He’s tinkering with the notion of founding a fours league, with franchises, basic managers, a draft, gamers paid through wage. He doesn’t see why it couldn’t achieve success, with sports activities leagues and viewership booming across the nation, from Pickleball to the MLS, PVF to the WNBA.
“These guys are shopping for Pickleball groups, why not purchase a volleyball group?” Obradovich mentioned. “You will have a draft, the group has a GM, you get all of the content material, see how a lot content material you get to boost cash and sponsors. I believe it could be a very whole lot if a few of these traders in volleyball noticed it.”
His present crop of traders and sponsors consists of Kevin Martin of Eagle 4 Companions, and Mario Marovic of Lounge Group, who operates a dozen or so eating places and bars within the Orange County space. Every group has its personal sponsor: Citrus Ford, Chicago Title, Baldwin and Sons, West Coast Aviation, Kincade Development, and Zotovich Wines. Such is the mannequin Obradovich is looking for to determine within the years to return.
“Hopefully this four-man, we are able to flip it into some sort of league. I’ve acquired some concepts on that, with franchises, promoting to New York and Dallas the place the house owners pay the gamers,” he mentioned. “It’s a league. These guys are shopping for pickleball leagues. F—! These guys are method higher athletes than them, it’s a method higher present in four-man.
“You continue to have the AVP. So when you have 9 AVP occasions, and I’ve 9 occasions, now these youngsters are making a living.”
And the person — and group of them — who took all of it is now giving it again.
