Tour sponsor AVP is out, but next weekend's Manhattan Beach Open is still on.
The volleyball tournament will proceed as scheduled for its 50th anniversary, albeit in pared-down fashion, Manhattan Beach recreation services manager Idris Al-Oboudi told Patch.
"It's going to be old school," he said.
AVP suspended operations due to financial difficulties on Friday, Aug. 13, less than a week before qualifying matches were to begin. Al-Oboudi said that the city was still figuring out the logistics without the event's sponsor.
The city might tap Charles Saikley's son to run the Open, he said. Saikley founded the Six-Man Volleyball tournament, which is named after him.
AVP also spiked the Hermosa Beach Invitational next month, as well as tournaments in Chicago, San Francisco and Cincinnati.
AVP, founded in 1983 as a players' association, said it had been seeking investors but came up short.
"Unfortunately, the time constraints were such that pulling the trigger on the amount of money necessary to salvage this season were too great," Mike Dodd, AVP commissioner, said in a statement. "Ironically this sad news comes as we approach the 50th anniversary of the Manhattan Open, our sport's crown jewel and the one event that showed us all we could dream big.
"The Open has seen its ups and downs over the years and always persevered," he said. "I'm sure our sport will do the same."
