(Topic ID: 18783)

Is PAPA worth it?

By Winball_Pizard

11 years ago


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  • 94 posts
  • 34 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 11 years ago by phishrace
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    #37 11 years ago
    Quoted from Blakesell:

    Typically, you can enter 15 times and cherry pick what your best scores were and throw out the rest, you can enter in all ranks unless you've already been established. A ranking being I think $20 an entry makes this rather expensive, but I promise you the heavy hitters do this to make certain they move forward as far as they possibly can.

    If you are referring to PAPA's format, this is incorrect. Each entry is actually a "run" across 5 games. It rewards consistant play.

    The format you are describing is "Herb Style" which a high percentage of tournaments run, like Expo, Ohio, Louisville, Gameworks, etc.

    Quoted from Blakesell:

    You could enter in a, b, c and classics this same way, but A rank is where the serious points are. I'm not financially well off to enter 15 times for every rank, but I'm for sure going to take a crack at them all and hope for the best. After it's all said and done competition wise, you still have hundreds of games to play.

    PAPA requires you to pick a division -- so if you play C, you can't play A unless you tell them and they void everything you've done in C. Everyone is eligible to play in the classics touranments.

    Quoted from Blakesell:

    I've never been to Pinburgh, but I'm going to try and make it my goal to do that next year, MPE got in the way of it this year.

    For the novice tournament player, I highly -- HIGHLY -- suggest going to Pinburgh given the opportunity. It's a very social experience and you get to play with so many awesome people from all different skill levels.

    #39 11 years ago
    Quoted from TheLaw:

    Are there any tourneys that let you enter multiple divisions? That's stupid.

    Some tournaments allow the novice division scores to count against the main/pro division, this way can be compared against the better players but still have something to play for. It's a good compromise to hook them into playing without being scared away from the better players. I really wish more tournaments did this.

    This is one of the problems with competitive pinball right now, because many folks are scared of the really good guys and end up talking themselves right out of playing.

    #46 11 years ago
    Quoted from phishrace:

    While there's some truth to that (players get intimidated), the number of new tournaments popping up every year for the last few years suggests that it really isn't a problem. Tournament participation is at an all time high. That's saying something when you consider pinball has been around for damb near 100 years now.
    If you go to the PAPA website and look at previous year's results, you can see how participation has grown by a significant amount every year. It's a good time to be a player (unless you like to play on location).

    Oh believe me, I know! I am still recovering from my 10 day tournament tour of Seattle a few weeks ago

    Tournament participation is way up over the last 5 years, but I still would like to see tournaments do work to lure the novice players and hook them. For example, for a tournament like the one at Expo, I think we hover around 15% (or less) participation compared to the number of attendees at the show.

    #47 11 years ago
    Quoted from exflexer:

    I dont agree with this statement. Pinburgh is a completely different beast plus the tournament has only been held twice. The only thing you have to know about the facility is where the bathrooms are. Not really sure what you have to get to know about the facility. Make sure to show up early as the place gets packed after 4PM during weekdays and all day on weekend.

    If a player is semi-competitive or is new to tournaments, but can only attend ONE of the PAPA events, I will always suggest Pinburgh over PAPA WC.

    IMHO, Pinburgh is a much more exciting tournament. It is very social and it's a flat fee for a ton of pinball playing. It's still competitive, but has a very league feeling to it.

    PAPA can be a very solitary and frustrating experience, especially in A division or classics. It's a crappy feeling when you bomb your first two games on a $20 entry run. Ugh.

    Of course, I always suggest that people attend both if possible. The facility is better than 80% of the pinball shows!

    #55 11 years ago
    Quoted from alveolus:

    Please clarify for me.
    So, if you qualify in either B or C division you can't earn any WPPR points?
    Can you earn points in division A without qualifying?
    I'm a novice, but my goal is earning at least a half point or so to make the rankings, rather than prizes. Any advice is appreciated.

    You will not earning any WPPR points by playing B or C divisions simply because these are not open divisions. No matter your skill, everyone can choose to play A division and/or classics, which isn't the same for B and C.

    Personally, I wouldn't worry about earning WPPRs at PAPA, instead, focus on qualifying -- which is a huge achievement. Then once you qualify, win and get your trophy!! Worry about WPPRs at smaller tournaments.

    #56 11 years ago
    Quoted from Crash:

    How many technicians do they have for daily maintenance on those things? Must be dozens.

    During the tournaments, there are 3 or 4 people. They do awesome work.

    I really wish PAPA would give them name badges. I've talked to them every year and I always forget their names!

    #70 11 years ago
    Quoted from Winball_Pizard:

    Anyone know if they announce the games in the division banks ahead of time?

    Nope. You'll find out thursday of that week, once the doors open to the facility.

    #78 11 years ago
    Quoted from exflexer:

    The tailgating is awesome. Meet people from all over the world drinking, eating, and having a good time. Game lists are not usually released for the PAPA event. During finals the A bank is completely new but the B and C banks stay the same.

    Actually B and C banks are changed for finals too.

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