2003 PSP season
The 2003 PSP season was a five-event United States paintball championship series organised by Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP). It combined five-player and ten-player competition with the introduction of a national divisional X-Ball series. Events took place in California, Nevada, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Florida.[1][2][3][4][5]
The inaugural National Xball League (NXL) season ran alongside PSP competition, beginning at the separately staged Mardi Gras Open and concluding with championship play-offs at World Cup. Philadelphia Americans won the first NXL championship.[5][6][7]
Organisation and formats
[edit]The Los Angeles Open began the five-event PSP championship series. The 2003 Mardi Gras Open, although produced by PSP and hosting the opening NXL matches, was a standalone tournament outside that championship series.[1][7]
PSP offered conventional five-player and ten-player tournaments alongside open divisional X-Ball. At Los Angeles, Division 1 X-Ball began with round-robin competition, while Division 2 used double elimination. Both divisions used double-elimination competition at Las Vegas.[1][2]
The ten-player Professional and Amateur classes were separate at Los Angeles. From Las Vegas, they were combined into a Pro/Am category as teams moved into divisional X-Ball or the NXL.[1][2]
Division 3 X-Ball was added at World Cup. It was an event competition without a separate 2003 season title.[5]
Series points
[edit]During the Philadelphia Open, PSP finalised its divisional X-Ball ranking system. First place earned 100 points, second 80 and third 60. Serving as referees earned 100 points, equivalent to an event victory.[4]
Teams changing from ten-player competition to X-Ball could transfer ranking points, with ten-player points doubled to accommodate the different scales. These arrangements meant that event victories alone did not determine the season championships.[4]
Calendar
[edit]PSP championship series
[edit]| Round | Dates | Event | Venue | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5–9 March 2003 | Los Angeles Open | Los Angeles County Fairplex, Pomona | California |
| 2 | 30 April–4 May 2003 | Las Vegas Open | Ed Fountain Park, Las Vegas | Nevada |
| 3 | 18–22 June 2003 | Chicago Open | Maywood Park harness racing track | Illinois |
| 4 | 13–17 August 2003 | Philadelphia Open | Fairmount Park, Philadelphia | Pennsylvania |
| 5 | 18–26 October 2003 | World Cup | Disney's Wide World of Sports complex, Orlando area | Florida |
Dates and venues follow contemporary WARPIG coverage and the surviving PBLeagues event archive.[1][2][3][4][5][8]
Additional NXL opening event
[edit]| Dates | Event | Venue | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20–23 February 2003 | Mardi Gras Open | Alario Center, New Orleans area, Louisiana | Opening NXL regular-season matches; outside the five-event PSP championship series |
Source: WARPIG's contemporary report and subsequent account of the event's PSP status.[6][7]
Divisional event results
[edit]X-Ball
[edit]| Event | Division 1 winner | Division 2 winner | Division 3 winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | Strange | Strange 2 | Not offered |
| Las Vegas | Naughty Dogs | P&L Hurricanes | Not offered |
| Chicago | Naughty Dogs | Twisted Factory | Not offered |
| Philadelphia | Strange | Total Eclipse | Not offered |
| World Cup | Strange | Total Eclipse | PAG Factory |
Sources: contemporary reports and the Los Angeles divisional scoreboard.[2][3][4][5][9]
Ten-player
[edit]| Event | Professional winner | Amateur / Pro/Am winner | Novice winner | Rookie winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | Naughty Dogs | Evil Factory | Justice | Rock It Kids |
| Las Vegas | Team Addicted — combined Pro/Am | Justice | Sin | |
| Chicago | Brimstone Smoke — combined Pro/Am | Momma's Boys | Rock It Kids | |
| Philadelphia | Cartel — combined Pro/Am | Momma's Boys | Rock It Kids | |
| World Cup | Cartel — combined Pro/Am | Momma's Boys | Rock It Kids | |
WARPIG sometimes labelled the combined Pro/Am category “Amateur” in its reports and scoreboards.[1][2][3][4][5]
Five-player
[edit]| Event | Novice winner | Rookie winner |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | CP Factory Team | ACI Turmoil |
| Las Vegas | Doc's Raiders | Doc's Raiders Black |
| Chicago | AGD Kids | Dedicated Paintball 2 |
| Philadelphia | Doc's Raiders Black | Untouchable Kidz |
| World Cup | Vicious | PAG |
Sources: contemporary WARPIG reports and the Philadelphia five-player scoreboard.[1][2][3][5][10]
World Cup additionally held a five-player Pro/Am competition, won by Naughty Dogs.[5]
Inaugural NXL season
[edit]The NXL comprised eight professional franchises:[11]
- Baltimore Trauma
- Chicago Aftershock
- Detroit Thunder
- Los Angeles Ironmen
- Miami Effect
- New York Xtreme
- Oakland Assassins
- Philadelphia Americans
The league's first match took place at 09:00 on 20 February at the Mardi Gras Open. Miami Effect defeated Baltimore Trauma 11–9. Rain cancelled Friday's scheduled matches, which were to be made up later in the season.[6]
Regular-season matches continued at Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago and Philadelphia. These matches contributed towards standings and World Cup play-off seeding rather than producing separate NXL tournament champions at each stop.[2][4]
Championship play-offs
[edit]World Cup used best-of-three NXL play-off series. Philadelphia Americans defeated Oakland Assassins in two matches to win the inaugural championship, taking the opening final 10–9.[5]
The NXL title was separate from PSP's open Division 1 X-Ball championship.[5]
Season champions
[edit]WARPIG's season-ending report distinguished the overall series champions from the winners of the World Cup tournament.[5]
| Competition | Season champion |
|---|---|
| NXL | Philadelphia Americans |
| Division 1 X-Ball | Strange |
| Division 2 X-Ball | Twisted Factory Team |
| Ten-player Amateur / Pro/Am | Static |
| Ten-player Novice | Justice and Momma's Boys — shared title |
| Ten-player Rookie | Rock It Kids |
| Five-player Novice | Doc's Raiders |
| Five-player Rookie | Method |
No Division 3 X-Ball season championship was contested: the category began at World Cup.[5]
See also
[edit]- Paintball Sports Promotions
- National Xball League
- 2003 NPPL season
- 2004 PSP season
- Paintball in the United States
References
[edit]- WARPIG — “PSP LA Open 2003”, 5–9 March 2003. Contemporary report, venue, formats and five-player and ten-player winners.
- WARPIG — “PSP 2003 Las Vegas Open”, 30 April–4 May 2003. Contemporary report, divisional winners and merger of the Professional and Amateur ten-player classes.
- WARPIG — “PSP Chicago Open”, 18–22 June 2003. Contemporary tournament report and winners.
- WARPIG — “PSP Philly Open 2003”, August 2003. Contemporary report, X-Ball ranking arrangements and NXL competition.
- WARPIG — “2003 PSP World Cup”, October 2003. Tournament winners, season champions, Division 3 introduction and inaugural NXL championship.
- WARPIG — “Mardi Gras Open”, 20–23 February 2003. Contemporary report of the opening NXL matches and weather disruption.
- WARPIG — “PSP Texas Open”, 16–19 February 2006. Historical account confirming that PSP produced the Mardi Gras Open outside its five-event championship series.
- PBLeagues — PSP Events archive. Surviving 2003 listings include Chicago, Philadelphia and World Cup.
- WARPIG — “PSP LA Open 2003: Division 1 and Division 2 X-Ball Scoreboard”, March 2003.
- WARPIG — “PSP Philly Open 2003: Five-player Scoreboard”, August 2003.
- WARPIG — “NXL Rosters from the Mardi Gras Open”, February 2003.