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Chris Ward presents “The Pinball Wilderness: Why We Play Competitive Pinball” and gives four possible reasons why we do this strange thing that we do.
He is also searching for Mitch McConnell. Find out how that’s related, if at all.
It’s the Pinburgh 2026 World Matchplay Championship Grand Final, presented by Fox Cities Pinball Streaming.
Featuring the Players of all time:
‣ El Presidente, Josh Sharpe
‣ The Administrator, Brian Shepard
‣ The Italian Stallion, Daniele Celestino Acciari
‣ The Champion, Jason Zahler
Also Featuring the games of all time:
‣ Aerosmith with the Borg outlanes of all time.
‣ Swing Time with the Plunge Test of all time.
‣ Space Shuttle with the spinner/sweepable target bank shot of all time.
‣ Future Spa, the Spa from the Future with the drains of all time.
This happens to me OFTEN. Each time I do it correctly it feels like a magic trick like, “OH! I did it right!”. Then I have to remember that I need to make a shot soon afterward. That is, if I can’t catch it on the other flipper so I can have a chance to THINK.
Either that or the flipper doesn’t move AT ALL, and the ball just drains. Or, I have to desperately flip the ball away in a late attempt to save myself.
Pictured in thumbnail: Me staring at the 2-point font showing how many hits to multiball, then me staring at the 2-point font about the instruments, knowing I’m going to ignore that entirely because everyone else does. Then me giving subtle disdain to “Tom Sawyer” showing on screen as I think about the orbit shots that the mode starts with … and how the “shot watcher” hates me when stacking Tom Sawyer mode with multiball. Then me realizing this is NOT the Tom Sawyer mode, it’s just the song choice. Then, me wishing I really could start “Tom Sawyer” by selecting the song on the plunge, …
Here’s another one I had the privilege(?) to observe live.
Raymond Davidson is charging his way toward taking over first place in this game of Iron Man.
He is ramping out, taking down Bogey awards along the way. As he reaches the boundary, the pinball has other plans.
We had “The Rumble in the Jungle” and “The Thrilla in Manila.” Now we have “The Match at District 82.”
In the future, many will misremember this match as the Grand Final. It was only the Quarter Final round!
Before this match concluded, Multiple Time World Pinball Champion Daniele Celestino Acciari had already fought his way through the other side of the bracket to clinch his seat in the Grand Final.
There, he waited for his eventual opponent at the top of the mountain.
UPDATE:
Registration (Round Zero) begins on July 11 at 11am. There will be 100 open spots to grab. Good Luck.
———
It was thought that the 24-Hour Final Battle was over when the announcement hit that there would be no event this year at The Sanctum.
“Not so fast, my friend!” —Lee Corso
The Players who have competed in all 10 years of The 24-Hours at The Sanctum, the New England Pinball League, and Funspot Arcade have announced a continuation of the spirit of the Final Battle, now called THE FINAL STAND! The setting will now be at the legendary Funspot Arcade in Laconia New Hampshire.
IFPA Pin-Masters – a tradition unlike any other. This year, the tradition was held at ORD Pinball near Chicago, Illinois. A site where many pinball Players, including State Pinball Champions, dared to navigate the most sensitive slingshots known to mankind and the toughest PinGolf target scores.
As Roger was making quick work of the electromechanical game Wild Card, it malfunctioned. That gave us the opportunity to have a conversation with him about Pin-Masters and competitive pinball in general while the game was being repaired.
Activate Cat Mode on a character by placing this card on top of it. A cat jumps down on top of them to block their vision, mobility, and concentration. The character’s Dexterity, Intelligence and Charisma are all reduced by 25%.
The propensity for unfortunate pinball things to happen to The Player immediately or soon after a commentator refers to how well The Player is performing
![5-7-3 Take Highest Score! [Police Force]](https://funwithbonus.com/wp-content/uploads/PoliceForce-TakeTheHighestScore.png)
Here is a time when I could definitely say I was “LOCKED IN” or “IN THE ZONE” while playing pinball. At District 82 Arcade, it’s me vs. Police Force with the “TAKE HIGHEST SCORE” challenge set to 8 ramps in a row. Also, JACKPOT is lit. 8 consecutive ramps needed to win the game.
![I LOVE this game! Why am I so stressed? [IFPA Pin-Masters]](https://funwithbonus.com/wp-content/uploads/meme-pinball-as-sport.jpg)
I miss the time back in the day when I didn’t care if a fire engine drove through a wall while was playing. I’ve heard that you tend to get nervous about things you care about. Maybe I care about this too much.
