What’s the score with women’s tournaments?

[Pavlovpinball]

Hi all,

I've been wondering about whether major events should have ladies only tournaments - or whether there is a good reason why they shouldn't. Do men have any advantage that makes it unfair for women to have to compete in the same competition? Or is it a level playfield, as it were. I've done some digging, and talked to some top female players as well as PAPA founder Roger Sharpe. Here's what I found out:

http://pavlovpinball.com/whats-the-score-with-womens-tournaments/

Cheers,

Paul

 

[SuperPinball]

Theoretically it should be a level playing field unless some guys use their penises to help them play . However, there are a few men that prefer to keep women out and keep it sexist, vulgar and misogynistic. The real problem with women and pinball is that it is overwhelmingly dominated by men and many women feel intimidated showing up to a sausage fest of 25-30 guys in the basement of a private home. Therefore a female only league or a league that aggressively recruits females and keeps the ratio fairly even is ideal. My own wife would have considered joining the league but the first question she asks is "how many girls are going to be there?" Unfortunately an answer of "probably none" results in me going alone.

Mike

 

[Chris Bardon]

There is a toronto women's league out there (Toronto Pinball Vixens on Facebook), and it's really more of a casual group of players than a competitive one. My wife plays with them mainly because it's on a different night from TOPL, and we can't both go to play pinball without someone to watch the kids. Sounds like it's a very different type of group than the usual TOPL turnout.