6 Texans competing in world pinball tournament this weekend
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Six internationally ranked pinball players from Texas are vying for the top title at a world pinball tournament this weekend.
The INDISC Tournament Series runs Thursday through Sunday at the Riverside Convention Center in Riverside, California. Players from 24 states and 11 countries are competing for more than $90,000 worth of prize money, in addition to a new pinball machine for the winner.
And that winner could have Lone Star State roots. The six Texans participating in the world tournament include:
- Jordan Burgar from Austin
- Robert Byers from Austin
- Colin MacAlpine from Austin
- Rebecca Salam from Austin
- Hadi Seyed-Ali from Frisco
- Jack Revnew from The Woodlands
Seyed-Ali spoke to KXAN after his first day at the competition.
"Frisco is the home of the Texas pinball festival, one of the biggest pinball festivals in the country," Seyed-Ali said. "It's a lot of fun, and you meet a ton of cool people. There's a wide demographic; the top players in the world are 19-20 years old. And then there's people like me and my 40s, guys in their 50s, trying to compete and it's a lot of fun."
He explained that he is currently a C-ranked player. His hope for the tournament is to qualify for the B-rank.
"Anything else above that is cherry on top. Even if I don't, you get great points just coming [to] a tournament...even if you do poorly, you give yourself a shot to move up the rankings," Seyed-Ali said.
Women's, Classic and Youth finals will wrap on Saturday, while The Open world finals is slated for Sunday. Those interested in watching the event in action can find the broadcast online.
Those interested in finding places to play pinball near them can use this online tool.