TCG Tour Super Trainer Showdown Qualifier Tournament
5.1.00
Dear Pojo,
I attended the mall tour in Aurora, Colorado today.
My son and I both won first place in our age group in our qualifier
tournaments for the final showdown in Los Angelos. So we should be
invited to attend although it isn’t clear how that will work and how
they will determine who will win the free trip. The tournaments were
very poorly organized, most of the workers didn’t know how to score the
games (it was single elimination and scored by # of prize cards left) and
the rules they used for determining the winners and who got invitations to
the showdown were completely different from the rule sheets they handed
out (included below). The rule sheet is even incomplete and ends
with a comma. They never could find the gold invitations to the
final showdown that the top 4 from each tournament were supposed to
receive. They didn’t even want to agree the top 4 would receive an
invitation to the showdown until we had them read (and reread) their own
litature several times.
The mall tour was poorly advertised in our area and
poorly attended in my opinion, I didn’t get there until 10am when it
started and there were only 50 people in line. Although the
tournaments could hold 36 people mine only had 12 to start and my son’s
only had 10. I heard they were filling up later in the afternoon,
partly because they were letting the people that lost go back and sign up
and try again later although it clearly stated only 1 entry per person.
Although they wouldn’t let the 1st or 2nd place
winners go back and play a second time. Given how unorganized and clueless
they were in the morning I can’t imagine the mess they must have had
later in the day.
The mall they used to hold the tournament is in a
rather undesirable part of town and filthy. I’m sure their
attendance would have been much higher if they would have picked a better
location, and in Denver I don’t think they could have done worse.
I’m rather annoyed at the poor organization and
score keeping because I think both my son and I had a good shot at the
free trip (neither of us let our opponents take more than 2 prizes for all
our games combined) but without real score keeping, and without needing to
go the full 5 rounds to determine a winner due to the lack of
participation in the morning I doubt we will win. And the organizers
kept telling us it was a random drawing for the free trip but according to
the rules they handed out they were going by points only. And given
the chaos it’s not even clear they collected the score sheets and
labeled them correctly so they could determine the winners.
I will be going back tomorrow to find out more
information and see if they’ve figured out the rules. I’ve
written to wizards already to complain also.
This is the rule sheet handed out when you signed
up for the tournament:
Pokemon Tm Trading Card
Game Super Trainer Showdown Qualifier Tournament OFFICIAL RULES No
Purchase Necessary. Void where prohibited by law. Only open to legal U.S.
residents. Tournament begins 4/29/00 and ends 7/2/00. To participate in
Tournament, go to a designated Pokemon Trading Card Game tour event
(“Event”) location (listed below, on the date(s) stated), complete an
entry form, sign-in, and compete in the play of the Pokemon Trading Card
Game. Pok6mon Event
locations: Aurora Mall, Aurora, Colorado (4129, 4/30);
At entrant sign-in at the Event locations on the dates stated above, entry forms (288 per day) will be distributed beginning at 10:00 a.m. For each day of an Event, up to 288 entrants (divided into 9 sessions of up to 32 entrants per session) that have completed an entry form (“entry”), signed-in, and followed all prescribed rules, will have the opportunity to compete in 1 of 9 sessions categorized by age (9 and under, 10 - 14, and 15 and over) for the opportunity to win a prize. For each session, that consists of 5, 20-minute rounds of Pokemon Trading Card Game play, I age group will compete and the last person to be undefeated in that particular session will be declared a finalist (“Finalist”) (18 total Finalists per Event, 9 per day, 3 each per age group per day). After completion of each round, participants must have their game results tallied (remaining prize cards of winners’ opponents cards added up) and verified by an attendant who will mark the participant’s tally card with an official stamp or marking.
Three grand prize winners (1 from each age
group) for that particular Event will be the Finalists who have the
highest number of points on their tally card (the total number of prize
cards that all of the finalist’s opponents had left after each round)
within his or her age group. In the event of a tie, the Finalist who has
the highest opponent’s skill on his/her entrant’s tally card (the
total number of prize cards that all of the finalist’s opponents had
left after each round prior to the finalist playing that opponent) will be
declared the grand prize winner within his/her age group. In the event of a further tie, the top 2 finalists within
his/her age group with the highest number of points and highest
opponents’ skill for a particular Event will both be declared grand
prize winners within his/her age group. Entries will be collected at
Tournament upon completion of each session. Tournament record forms must
be submitted to the Trainers to be tallied and verified to be eligible for
a prize. LIMIT I ENTRY PER PERSON.
Employees of Tournament Entities (defined below) and
their immediate families and members of their same households are
ineligible. Once submitted, entries become the sole property of Sponsor
and will not be returned. Finalists and runner up prize winners will be
notified upon completion of session for each Event Location. Grand prize
winners will be notified by phone and/or mail. If a potential grand prize
winner cannot be reached after 5 days from first notification attempt, or
if prize is returned as undeliverable, prize will be forfeited and an
alternate winner may be selected from among remaining finalists for that
particular Event Location. Employees of Wizards of the Coast, Inc., DSL
Client Services LLC, Skycastle Entertainment, Inc., SCC, participating
retailers, their advertising and promotion agencies, and any agents
involved in the development, production (including prize suppliers),
implementation and distribution of this Tournament, and their respective
parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, service providers, officers,
and any other person/entity associated with Tournament (“Tournament
Entities”) are not eligible to enter Tournament. Tournament Entities are
not responsible/liable for entries that are late, illegible, mutilated,
tampered with, forged, destroyed, incomplete, lost, or otherwise not in
compliance with Official Rules (and such entries will be disqualified). 30
Grand Prizes (“GP”) (3 per Event, 1 from each age group): Trip for GP
winner and 1 guest to Los Angeles, CA to compete in the Pok6mon Trading
Card Game Super Trainer Showdown tournament (“Competition”). Trip
consists of round trip coach air transportation from a major commercial
airport near GP winner’s residence, 3 days/2 nights standard hotel
accommodations (single room/double occupancy), entry into Competition
(Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) $2,500 each). Trip must be taken to
compete at the Competition on 7/22/00 (departing 7/21/00 and returning
7/23/00) or trip
Lisa Leutenegger