Memphis pinball scene picks up momentum

What do two techies, a middle school science teacher and a public health researcher all have in common? They “live and breathe pinball.” Together, Richard Rickman, David Yopp, Eric Stenberg, and Ace Madjlesi make up the core team that runs Memphis Pinball.
 
Memphis Pinball operates and maintains pinball machines at many Memphis establishments.
 
“There are big pinball markets in Portland, Seattle, Austin, and St. Louis,” said Madjlesi. “But Memphis is definitely on the upswing.”
 
Recently, Stenberg founded Bluff City LLC so that the group could operate the pinball machines he owns out of restaurants and bars. Pinball Memphis set its sights on the Memphis Made taproom, which now displays five pinball machines with titles including Fun House, Fish Tales, Demolition Man, Hook and NBA Fast Break. Play is 50 cents.
 
“I'm really proud of Bluff City Pinball and Memphis Made for taking this step,” said Memphis Pinball director Madjlesi, who is the highest-ranking female pinball player in Tennessee.
 
“My end goal is to have a vibrant local pinball scene. I want to be able to take study breaks and play a variety of machines all over town. I want to have qualifying rounds at our tournaments because so many good players show up,” she added.
 
Memphis Pinball has hosted several International Flipper Pinball Association tournaments since the kickoff competition in Feb. 2014. Players in Memphis are internationally ranked.
 
The third annual Tilted Hearts Pinball Tournament is planned for Feb. 18 at Memphis Made. There will be cash prizes for the top four players.
 
Stenberg says his goal with Bluff City Pinball is to foster a pinball scene in Memphis and maybe make enough to cover the maintenance of the machines.
 
“I think people may not realize how much engineering, sweat and cash goes into maintaining pinball machines,” Madjlesi added.
 
There are also pinball machines at Garibaldi's University Yates locations and two machines at the Rec Room. Yopp is putting in a retro arcade in Millington that will feature 15 to 20 pinball machines, which he hopes to have running by March 2017. 
 
“I like to say that pinball is about half skill and half luck. Anyone can have a good ball and anyone can have a bad one,” Madjlesi added.