Imaginary scenario:
24 / 7 opened location
Players welcome usually anytime after phone inquiry (only reject if overcrowded)
Mini tournaments, single elimination, no TD with 16, 8 or 4 players (depending on player numbers)
Typically for 8 players 10$ entry with 1 for the house and 9 spread 50%, 30, 20, free play
If demand arises for 8 players 20$ entry 1.50 for the house and 8.50 spread 50%, 30, 20, free play
Like in a casino a higher pot (by higher stake and or more participants) means a bit more for the house On weekends’ prime time tournaments the house edge is donated / used for IFPA ranking fees
Prizes / rake can be altered slightly & maybe a sponsor donates a little reward for a Grand Champion
Goal would be a “pinball casino” where the fire is always burning, where winners can win consistently a bit and where losers ofc lose but not get robbed
I’m aware that if this idea was so great, such a thing would already exist. But does it simply not fly bc weaker players are quickly tired of losing against strong players, could such a system be improved to succeed or could it work if the popularity of pinball further increases?
Well, proposition players on payroll sounds somehow unnatural. But ok, to get the ball rolling many things are possible. You could give away sandwiches & coffee for tournament players at weak times (2, 4 and 6:00 at night) while advertising this a lot. Maybe the Stern Army could show up sometimes with a free entry to a Stern Circuit event.
I believe what you say about poker rooms. We can’t compare to casinos though. Arcade room earnings don’t create much leeway for free stuff.You could be right about dead times. My thought was that then 4 guys could anytime hop in the car and drive towards their nirvana where action awaits them. Even though the mini tournament circus could hardly pay for the night shift cashier and the electricity bill, the open facility might attract some night prowlers who feed some token game machines, so the combined monetary result will satisfy the owner.
With pinball’s rise in popularity a shift of mindset can occur. While 15 yrs ago a weaker player might have thought “Damn, against these Keith Elwins and Bowen Kerins’ (I just threw in some well-known names substituting for very strong players) I’m 25:75 underdog in a single game and I lose substantial equity of my 10 bucks”, he might now realize that such mini tournaments are golden opportunity to play with and by that learn from the big boys for a ridiculously small fee.
Skill games or better said skill sports like pocket billiards, pinball, backgammon and poker, all can rise or fall due to waves of popularity. They can be a kid’s game, serve as recreation and as competition. For the ambitious player it’s important that money rises from the bottom to the top of the pyramid, be it in private head-to-head play or at tournaments. I hope that today and in the future the competitive community part and the industry won’t screw up riding pinball’s 2nd big wave. As it looks now it could develop into a tsunami, making unknown speeds possible.
I don’t think it would work without some kind of TD. Even if it’s just 10 dollars, playing for money will make it hard for players to agree on a ruling on their own.