It’s now the early morning of April 2. I have waited until now as I wanted to be sure this was interpreted as a genuine “no duff” announcement and not a poorly timed joke.
The existing rule regarding gambling will be changed in the next rulebook revision. Specifically, any future tournaments held in private locations (including private clubs not available to the general public) will not be subject to the same gambling prohibition as public locations unless requested by the owner.
This is to allow us to host tournaments in private locations more easily, as well as acknowledge that the rule has outlived most of its usefulness as it was originally written.
I get that many players may consider this to just be unnecessary duplication of the existing efforts by other local players. It is not. I support a thriving local pinball scene in the Houston area and the efforts of others will be a part of that in some form for the foreseeable future. Despite some past differences (most of which have been resolved) I don’t harbor any ill will against them and I look forward to working together to grow the competitive pinball scene in the Houston area and beyond.
That said there are some things I have planned for the future that make more sense under the auspices of a separate organization.
One of the main goals, if not the outright primary goal, is to expand the choices available to people who wish to play social and competitive pinball in the greater Houston area as well as bring more people in who still may not know there is such a thing as competitive pinball tournaments and leagues within the Houston area.
Thank you for your support.
Shawn K. Quinn
Commissioner, Bayou City Pinball League
[Note: If this looks familiar it probably is. This is an exact copy of the Facebook post with only slight formatting differences for the website/WordPress.]
[Edits on 2022-06-21: Unfortunately the current reality requires the struck-out portions be placed on hold for the foreseeable future.]