1993 NPPL season
The 1993 NPPL season was the inaugural season of the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL), a United States paintball tournament circuit. Six events were planned, but the intended San Diego opener was cancelled following heavy rain. Competition began with the Dallas Open on 26–28 March, and five tournaments were completed.[1][2]
The Ironmen won the professional season championship. Professional tournament victories were shared between the Ironmen, Chicago Aftershock and the All Americans.[2][3][4]
Organisation and competition
[edit]The original NPPL was owned by its member teams and sanctioned tournaments organised by independent promoters. Its sanctioning arrangements established common competition rules and gave the league influence over entry prices and paint policies.[5]
The principal competition used a 10-player, two-flag format. Professional teams took turns supplying referees, with refereeing credited towards the annual rankings.[5]
The programme included professional and amateur competition. Five-player paintball was also offered at the Reno tournament, where competitors played a limited-paint format.[6]
Calendar
[edit]The following table follows the contemporary programme published in Action Pursuit Games. Dates are those advertised in that notice; the San Diego event was cancelled.[1]
| Event | Advertised dates | Location | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Great Western Open | — | San Diego, California | Cancelled following heavy rain |
| Dallas Open | 26–28 March 1993 | Dallas, Texas | Held |
| Boston Cup | 18–20 June 1993 | Boston area | Held |
| Chicago Cup | 23–25 July 1993 | Illinois | Held |
| World Cup | 10–12 September 1993 | New York | Held |
| Great Western Reno tournament | 9–11 October 1993 | Northstar Resort, Lake Tahoe area, California | Held |
The Reno tournament formed part of the Great Western Pro/Am Series and was explicitly identified as NPPL-sanctioned. Despite its Reno title, the competition took place at Northstar Resort in California.[1][6]
Event winners
[edit]ClassicScores records the professional and amateur 10-player winners at Dallas, Chicago and Reno. Aftershock's official history confirms its Boston and World Cup victories. A contemporary advertisement identifies Plague as Boston's amateur winner.[3][4][7]
| Tournament | Professional 10-player winner | Amateur 10-player winner |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Open | Ironmen | Thunderstorm |
| Boston Cup | Chicago Aftershock | Plague |
| Chicago Open | All Americans | Palm Beach Predators |
| World Cup | Chicago Aftershock | — |
| Reno Open | All Americans | Washington Reign |
The dash indicates that an amateur World Cup winner has not been established from the sources cited here.
Eat 'Em Alive won Reno's separate limited-paint five-player tournament.[6]
Professional season championship
[edit]The Ironmen won the inaugural professional season title. A historical chronology records that the team reached the finals at all five completed events, beginning with victory in Dallas.[2]
The Ironmen's season championship was separate from Aftershock's World Cup tournament victory. The All Americans won the Chicago and Reno events.[2][3][4]
References
[edit]- “National Professional Paintball League is Right On Schedule”, Action Pursuit Games, June 1993, pp. 20–21. Contemporary notice documenting the San Diego cancellation and the five remaining scheduled events.
- “History of Paintball”, reproduced on Automags.org, entries “March 26–28, 1993: After a San Diego Washout, the NPPL Hold First Event” and “1993–1995: The Ironmen Dominate the NPPL”.
- ClassicScores – 1993 Dallas Open, Chicago Open and Reno Open: professional and amateur 10-player placings.
- Chicago Aftershock – “Where We Started”, official team history documenting its 1993 Boston Open and World Cup victories.
- WARPIG – “NPPL to be Liquidated”, 2 December 2008. Retrospective account of the original league's ownership, sanctioning arrangements, format and refereeing system.
- “G-SPOT”, “NPPL 5-Man Tournament: Northstar Resort, Lake Tahoe, CA”, Paintball News, 18 December 1993, pp. 8 and 10.
- Bullseye Paintball advertisement, “Bullseye's Turbo II Paint Wins 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place at the $20,000 Boston Cup!”, Paintball News, 23 October 1993, p. 45.