Jim Stevens
Top 25 Foosball Events of 1995
The remarkable 1995 Tornado Table Soccer Season was an unforgettable
thrillride, a season jam-packed with exciting moments and truly
amazing performances. It was a foosball season that included 12
tournaments with prize money in excess of $10,000, while also
containing an impressive 20 competitive events over $5,000. 1995
saw the sport of table soccer once again reach new heights in
terms of appeal and popularity, while also including a great number
of wonderful foosball happenings which I have tried to document
in some sort of order.
So, from the home offices in Los Angeles, California I give you
the TOP 25..
25. A NEW HOME FOR THE WORLD'S
- After a stay of five years the
sport's biggest event, the $100,000 Tornado World Championships
of Foosball, picked up stakes and moved down the highway
to a bigger and more spacious DFW Hyatt Regency.
24. HUGE U. S . OPEN TURNOUT IN CLEVELAND
-We thought it might
be big. This $30,000 event held in April featured wall to wall
foosers, totally smashing all previous United States Open records.
23. MACIAS AND PRUITT TOP TODD AND TERRY TWICE
-In the open doubles
event at the Masters in Atlanta GA, Rick Macias of North Carolina
and Florida's Casey Pruitt teamed to not only knock the world's
top team, Moore and Loffredo, into the loser's bracket but came
back later to defeat them again, sweeping them out of the event.
22. MARES TURNS THE TABLE ON CARTWRIGHT
-At this year's Louisiana
State Championships, Louis Cartwright having won the winner's
bracket and leading handily two games to none in the open singles
final, saw fellow snakeshooter Rob Mares come back and win the
next six games to pull the rug right out from under his feet,
handing Cartwright an unexpected doubledip defeat.
21. DANTE BICHETTE GETS ROBBED!
-After competing on the 1994 Tornado
Table Soccer Tour, Colorado Rockie's outfielder Dante Bichette
had by far the best year of his eightyear major league year career.
But, despite leading the National League in homeruns and RBI's
and finishing 3rd in batting average, while also leading his team
to the playoffs this two-sport athlete (Baseball and Foosball)
finished a disappointing second in the National League Most Valuable
Player balloting.
20.ZAMORA AND VARADINEK HOLD OFF MOORE AND DEAN
-After winning
the winner's bracket, Adrian and Caryn lost the first set of the
mixed doubles final to Big Terry and Stephanie in three straight
games. During the second set this bi
-coastal tandem regained their
winning ways of earlier, fighting off the world's top rated mixed
team to win the 1995 World Championship in four impressive games.
19. THE INAUGURAL HALL OF FAME CLASSIC
-Striving to honor the distinguished
names and historic events in the world of foosball, Tornado announced
plans to proceed with a new Hall of Fame. Each year in conjunction
with this newly renamed major tour event, potential honorees will
be inducted in colorful ceremonies, beginning at the 1996 Hall
of Fame Classic in Long Beach, California.
18. ESCOBAR AND CASTILLO, GIANT KILLERS
- In July Semipro players
Ron Escobar and James Castillo from California experienced a marvelous
run at the 1995 National Championships in San Francisco. Not only
did they defeat topseeded Terry Moore and Bob Diaz but they also
eliminated the formidable Beine and Horton in an exciting five
game match which included an Escobar stuff of a Horton goalie
shot at 44 in the fifth.
17. STEVE BEINE'S U.S. OPEN MAGIC
-Trailing 43 in the fifth game
of the first set of the doubles final to winner's bracket champ
Steve Murray and Tommy Adkisson, Beine blocked two potential championship
winning points and then scored them both from the goal tow rod
to win the first set. Steve and his partner then went on to win
the second set in four games to win the U.S. Open doubles championship.
16. HEAD AND VARADINEK PLACE THIRD
-In the pro/promaster draw-your-partner
at this past year's Worlds, Cindy and Caryn bested one male proteam
after another, crushing ego after ego on their way to an exceptional
finish in this star-studded event.
15. LIZ HILL WINS 5 MAJOR TITLES IN 31/2 MONTHS
-Liz, the
world's #1 woman player was victorious in singles at the first
3 major tournaments of the year. Ms. Hill's other 2 titles
were in doubles with 95 Female Goalie of the Year Christina Fuchs
at the U.S. Open and Masters. By virtue of her success throughout
the '95 season Liz was voted Tornado Female Forward of the Year
by her peers and deservingly so.
14. CARTWRIGHT BLOCKS 14 THEN SCORES TO WIN COLORADO STATE
-At
the milehigh tournament in August, Louis of Las Vegas, Nevada
blocked 10 match point threerod efforts from #2 rated Todd Loffredo
and then four more against toprated Terry Moore. He then proceeded
to triumphantly score the final point winning the title with partner
Rob Mares.
13. MARES AND HILL AND THEIR THIRD PLACE THRILL
- For the first
time in recent foosball history a female player placed in the
top three at a Tornado major event, 1994 open and semipro mixed
doubles world champ Tracy Hill teamed with young lion Robert Mares
to accomplish this highly unusual feat in February at the Hall
of Fame Classic in Houston.
12. INTRODUCTION OF TORNADO PROFOOS CARDS
- In January, Tornado
Table Soccer and U.S. Baseball Cards unveiled the first ever edition
of foosball trading cards. 2 top players and 7 specialty cards
were featured in each of the one thousand, nineteen hundred and
ninety-four sets as the sport of Table Soccer continues its drive
for legitimacy and respectability in the world of American sports.
11. SAME GAME NEW NAME
-In 1995 with the introduction of the Tornado
'Aire' Table Hockey Table, Tornado Table Soccer officially became
Tornado Table Sports. The construction of a larger manufacturing
plant also highlighted this year for Tornado as they continue
to look towards the 21st century.
10. TOM SPEAR AND TRACY HILL WIN HALLOWEEN OPEN
- This pair made
history by being the first mixed team to win open doubles in a
Tornado tournament over $10,000. Link Pendley and Starbucks in
Moore, Oklahoma were the hosts for this fall event that saw history
in the making.
9. FOOSBALL LEAGUES ARE BACK
-The 1995 foosball season also witnessed
the premier of the Tornado National Foosball League. Teams from
across the nation competed for $10,000 in cash and prizes, all
of which culminated in the National League Finals July 4th weekend
in San Francisco. The winners? The Seattle Grunge Foosers: Chad
Kinner, Craig Switzer, Stephanie Chashi and coach Rocky Willson.
8. LOFFREDO WINS MASTERS SINGLES
-The man whom most foosball fans
would call the greatest ever has acquired nearly every title available
to him during his long and illustrious career, but one. In 1995
the great Loffredo finally grabbed the prestigious Masters title
and added a green' jacket to his wardrobe.
7. EURO FOOSIN'
-This past year's world championship showed a
markedly increased number of foreign player participation. Foosers
from four continents (particularly Europe) converged on Dallas
to compete on the world's best table. Much of the continuous growth
in this area can be directly attributed to the hard work of Dave
Courington and Larry Davis who seem to be spending more and more
time on the other side of the Atlantic participating in foreign
relations.
6. DAVE GUMMESON WINS THE WORLDS
-This veteran from Minneapolis
had the 'Eye of the Tiger' at this year's 'big one', dominating
the competition and defeating Robert Mares in the finals in a
flawless performance.
5. CAMI BEATS TIFF, THEY BEAT HEAD
-The '95 World Championship
saw defending 8 time women's single champ Cindy Head lost to Billirakis
in the winners bracket then to Carter in the loser's bring to
an end Ms. Head's incredible world championship streak. Cami then
narrowly defeated Tiff for the title after trailing 31 in the
final game.
4. 10 YEARS OLD AND A CHAMP
- Young Billy Pappas of Boston miraculously
won the U.S. Open rookie singles title after losing his very first
match. Billy defeated opponents two, three and even four times
his age as he brilliantly stormed his way through the loser's
bracket to win the first of what I am sure will be many titles
for this 10 year old foosball phenom.
3. LOFFREDO AND WYDMAN GO UNDEFEATED
- In a stunning performance,
Todd Loffredo and Scotty Wydman did not lose a single game on
their way to the '95 national doubles championship in San Francisco.
This dominating Denver duo's unprecedented July 4th effort was
yet another great performance in what was a truly remarkable year
for both these players. In September Loffredo was again once rewarded
with the Player of the Year trophy while Scotty Wydman was voted
1995's best goalie due in most part to his 3 open doubles titles
during the course of the '95 season. Todd and Scotty's amazing
undefeated weekend is a feat of excellence that may never be duplicated.
2. SWAN DOUBLE DIPS LOFFREDO IN A CLASSIC
-In one of the great
one-on-one matchups in recent foosball history, the redoubtable
Don Swan defeated Todd Loffredo in two fivegame rollercoaster
matches to win the national singles title. Swan hustled himself
to victory in the first set scoring from every rod from seemingly
every angle. On 44, in the fifth game of the second set, Don finally
scored on his fifth threerow attempt to amazingly doubledip Loffredo.
1. TODD AND SCOTTY DO IT AGAIN
-This was a tough call for me,
it could have been any of the top 3 listed here. Capping off their
yearlong success story, Loffredo and Wydman became the first doubles
team to win the World Championship in two consecutive years. Todd
and Scotty overpowered '95 Forward of the Year Terry Moore and
partner Bob Diaz in a tough fourgame match to grab their second
straight title and earn a spot in the record books
With the help of my highly able and talented staff (the lovely
Christina Fuchs), I poured over records, statistics and, of course,
video tapes to try and determine nineteen hundred and ninety
-five's
most exceptional occurrences. Here's hoping that exactly one year
from today I will be able to sit down and write another TOP 25
list that is at least as impressive as this one. We'll see you
in Long Beach in February 1996!