Local competitors are flipping out for a chance to face off in this weekend's International Flipper Pinball Association (IFPA) State Championships. Washington's top players are vying for the opportunity to qualify for the North American Championship, which will feature the best of the best from 47 states and the District of Columbia. Washington State Tournament Representative Germain Mariolle has been competing in pinball for nine years. The 41-year-old Redmond resident isn’t just helping to facilitate the tournament, The North American Champion Series has Mariolle listed as the number one ranked pinball player in Washington with five wins in 20 tournaments. “It’s very competitive in Seattle so that’s just my seeding going into this tournament and it’s the first in several years due to the pandemic so this is like a double tournament with bigger prizes,” said Mariolle. This weekend has competitors playing for fun and for their share of the $170,000 prize pool. The tournament will be held at Ice Box Arcade in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. Owner Alex Singleterry says he prefers Pinball to his previous occupation, plumbing. “I had my own plumbing company for 16 years and then I bought this place and it got so busy I didn’t have time to do both. Besides I’m more passionate about this than plumbing!” laughed Singletary. The International Flipper Pinball Association is celebrating 16 years of encouraging, supporting and endorsing competitive pinball throughout the world. READ THE FULL STORY: https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/washington-state-pinball-championships/281-bb1860c4-e5fb-48d2-83d3-7161e16ab3d6