Top Hat Jokers
'Top Hat Jokers was an Australian tournament paintball team from New South Wales. The team competed in the professional division during the 1990s, winning the 1995 Australian Five-Man Open and the 1995 South Pacific Paintball Championships.[1][2] It placed fourth in Australian Paintballers national professional team rankings for the 1995 season.[3]
History
[edit]Early competition
[edit]Top Hat Jokers won the inaugural tournament in the Skirmish Bushmasters series in 1994.[2] The team subsequently entered two squads, Top Hat Jokers Red and Top Hat Jokers Black, in the first round of the 1995–96 Bushmasters series. Both squads reached the professional finals, with the Red squad finishing second and the Black squad third.[2]
1995 Australian Five-Man Open
[edit]Top Hat Jokers won the Australian Five-Man Open held on 25–26 February 1995. The team placed third after the preliminary rounds, behind Rhythm Method and Black Reign, before winning two of its three finals games. Top Hat Jokers finished the finals with 212 points, ahead of Black Reign on 198, Rhythm Method on 132 and FIGJAM on 24.[1]
1995 South Pacific championship
[edit]Later in 1995, Top Hat Jokers won the ten-player South Pacific Paintball Championships at Adventure Quest Games near Windsor, New South Wales. Seven teams contested the tournament, including Sydney SWAT, Black Reign, Hardline and the New Zealand team Saints.[4]
Top Hat Jokers reached the four-team finals alongside SWAT, Black Reign and Black Reign/No Fear. The Jokers finished first, followed by Black Reign, SWAT and Black Reign/No Fear.[4] The team's major sponsor at the tournament was Zap Paintballs.[4]
In the national rankings compiled by Australian Paintballer for the 1995 season, Top Hat Jokers placed fourth among the professional teams. The team accumulated 330.30 ranking points from eight tournaments.[3]
Organisation and refereeing
[edit]Top Hat Jokers helped Brayton Paintball organise a five-player charity tournament for the Starlight Foundation on 14 January 1996. The team also refereed the event, which raised $2,466.67.[5]
Shane Proctor represented Top Hat Jokers on the committee of the Australasian Paintball Players League during 1996.[6] Other members identified in contemporary reports included Glenn Fisher, Ivan Leis and Tim Tham.[4][6]
Team members also participated in paintball demonstrations at the Channel 7 Sydney Sports Show during the Australia Day weekend in 1996.[7]
Later competition
[edit]Top Hat Jokers remained active in national competition in 1998. The team finished fourth in the professional division of the Victorian Five-Man Masters at Paintball Action Games near Ballan, behind Magnum, The Firm and Rat Pack Red.[8]
Tournament record
[edit]| Year | Event | Format | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Skirmish Bushmasters inaugural tournament | Five-player | First |
| 1995 | Australian Five-Man Open | Five-player | First |
| 1995 | Skirmish Bushmasters, first round | Five-player | Second — Top Hat Jokers Red |
| 1995 | Skirmish Bushmasters, first round | Five-player | Third — Top Hat Jokers Black |
| 1995 | South Pacific Paintball Championships | Ten-player | First |
| 1995 | Australian Paintballer national professional rankings | Season ranking | Fourth |
| 1998 | Victorian Five-Man Masters | Five-player professional | Fourth |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- Australian Paintballer, June–July 1995, "Australian 5-Man Open".
- Australian Paintballer, December 1995–February 1996, "The Bushmasters Series".
- Australian Paintballer, April–June 1996, "1995 Australian Team Rankings".
- Australian Paintballer, December 1995–February 1996, "South Pacific Extravaganza".
- Australian Paintballer, April–June 1996, report on the Brayton Paintball Starlight Foundation tournament.
- Australian Paintballer, April–June 1996, "APPL – Australasian Paintball Players League".
- Australian Paintballer, April–June 1996, "The Sydney Sports Show – Taking It to the People".
- Paint, "1998 Victorian Masters 5 Man".