Welcome to Virginia Pinball

Tournaments Upcoming in the Northern Virginia/Maryland Region

Located at 11104 Lee Highway in the Kamp Washington area of Fairfax, Virginia.    Google Maps Link

Warm up for Pinburgh 2012!

All New! for 2012 - Fairfax Pinball Open 2012 Flyer - Please print and leave where pinball is enjoyed.

Tournament Overview

Qualifying for the Fairfax Pinball Open begins at 3PM at John's Place on Friday, February 24, 2012. Qualifying consists of entries on which players choose four machine in their division's respective bank. Players will get points based on the scores on that entry compared to all the other scores on each machine, and the points will be tallied. The player with the most points on a single entry will be the highest seed. Scores from different entries may not be combined. A player may at any time during their entry choose to abandon the entry and have it voided.

There will be a registration fee of $5 which will be used to operate a generator on site during the tournament, to prevent any power supply disruptions during the event. Each A Division entry will be $10, and each B Division entry will be $5. Players may buy additional qualifying entries to try to improve their qualifying position. The last entry will be sold at 12:00 AM on Sunday, February 26, 2012.

The top qualifier in each Division will receive 10% of their division's entry fees. The split between 1st through 4th place will be 50%-25%-10%-5%.

Starting Sunday February 26, 2012 at 1:00PM all players who completed an entry will participate in the match play elimination round. The top half of the players in each division will advance to double elimination play. The bottom half will participate in single elimination play. All matches are one on one, best two out of three games. The higher seeded player will have the choice of either game pick, or order of play for the first game. On subsequent games the choice will be made by the loser of the previous game. Players will be limited to selecting any one game to only once per match, and a total of twice for the entirety of the elimination round. A player * may* choose a game that his opponent previously had chosen in the same match. Only one pairing may be waiting to play a game at a time. If there is already a pairing waiting to play a game, one must select a different game. The highest seeds will have first choice of game selection or order of play in the beginning of the elimination round. Unlike previous tournaments, only the games from the two tournament banks may be chosen during the elimination round.

Friday night will feature a small "team competition", to begin at 8PM. Qualifying for the main tournament may be suspended during this event.

Players will create teams of four players each, and will play in a series of single elimination head to head matches with other teams. The match will consist of four games each. The first two will feature four player games, with two players playing for each team. For each of these games, the individual winner will earn four points for his team, second place will earn two points, and one point for third place. The third game will feature split flipper action, where each team will have all four team members playing in pairs. Scoring will remain the same from previous rounds. In the last game, a two player game is started, with the machine set for four ball play. Each player plays one ball each. The winning team receives four points.

Entry into the team tournament will be $10 per player. The winning team will take the entirety of the entry fees in prize money.

Players are encouraged to make their own teams. Individuals are also welcome to join the tournament and be placed on a team. We will guarantee that anyone who wishes to play will be placed on a team.

In addition to the main tournament and the team tournament, mini tournaments will also be available.

Feel free to respond with any questions and we look forward to seeing you all there!

Tournament Schedule (subject to change)

Pinball Tournament Rules

For purposes of Player Conduct, Machine Malfunction, Stuck Balls, Errors, and Rulings, we will follow the rules of PAPA 12, from www.papa.org., unless otherwise announced and/or posted on the web page at www.virginiapinball.org.

Main Tournament

The Main Tournament will feature a 2-day qualifying session and a seeded bracket, for which ALL players will qualify. The top half of qualifiers will be in the double elimination half of the bracket, and the bottom half will be in the single elimination bracket. It will be split into A (Expert) and B (Novice) divisions. Players will choose which division they belong in, but tournament officials have the right to move players up if they feel that they belong in a higher division.

The top qualifier in each Division will receive 10% of their division's entry fees. The split between 1st through 4th place will be 50%-25%-10%-5%.

Playing of a Qualifying Entry:

On each entry, players will pick 4 machines designated for their division's qualifying bank and play them. They will get points based on the scores on that entry compared to all the other scores on each machine, and the points will be tallied. The player with the most points on a single entry will be the highest seed. Scores from different entries may not be combined.

Qualifying for the Main Tournament will be limited, at the discretion of tournament officials, during the Team Tournament on Saturday. Players may not be able to qualify on certain games during specific parts of the Team Tournament.

Anti-Sandbagging Provision, applicable to the Main Tournament:

Players may not play in the B Division of the Main Tournament if they:

• Have reached the A Division playoffs or finished in the top 5 of any league in the last 2 years
• Have qualified in the A Division of any other annual tournament in the past 2 years
• Have qualified in the top half of the A Division of a past Fairfax Pinball Open
• Are in the top #200 of the January 2012 WPPR standings [Check]
• Are in the top #100 of the PARS Active rankings [Check]

Playoff Rules:

March Madness:

The main bracket tournament for A and B division will be a hybrid single/double elimination, with advantages given to the higher seeds in the form of a bye and/or double elimination. Lower seeds will be placed directly into the lower bracket for single elimination play.

In 2-player matches, higher seed will have first pick of Game or Player Order. After that, loser gets pick.

Tournament Lineup

Final game list, as well as the games to be included in each qualifying bank, will be posted as the date grows closer.

Tournament Lineup will be posted soon!!!!

[Hotel Information for out of town participants]

Contacts

Colin Horner (FPO Director, FSPA Town Hall SLO) e-mail Colin

David Horner (FPO Director, FSPA Town Hall SLO) e-mail David

Paul McGlone (FPO Director Emeritus, FSPA John's Place Commissioner) e-mail Paul

Media Coverage

FOX5 TV coverage from the FPO 3 - March 17-19, 2006:

AmericanObserver (American University) coverage of FPO 6 - March 28-29, 2009:

Future Events

Thank You, to every one who participated in 2011. We had a great time.

Contacts

• Join one of the FSPA Pinball leagues in Fairfax, VA, College Park, MD, Elkridge, MD.

Past Events

• The 1st Fairfax Fall Classic - December 2011 [results]
• The 8th Fairfax Pinball Open - April 2011 [results]
• The 7th Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2010 [results]
• The 6th Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2009 [results]
• The 5th Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2008 [results]
• The Fairfax Monthly Pinball Tournament-3rd Friday of every month [historical results]
• The 4th Fairfax Pinball Open - April 2007 [results]
• The 3rd Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2006 [results] [pictures]
• January 21, 2006 - Winter Tournament [results] [pictures]
• December 10, 2005 - Kamp Washington Challenge [results]
• 2nd Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2005 [results] [pictures]
• 1st Fairfax Pinball Open - March 2004 [results] [pictures]