OddPitch Hosts Montana Pinball Championships

Next weekend, OddPitch Brewing will once again turn into the center of competitive pinball in Montana as the IFPA State Championships come to Missoula for a full weekend of high-level competition.

The championships will take place January 17 and 18, bringing together some of the top ranked players in the state for two days of intense tournament play. Saturday will feature the Montana State Open Championship, followed by the Montana Women’s State Championship on Sunday.

These tournaments aren’t open sign-ups. They’re invitation-only events earned through a year of competitive play.

Throughout the year, players compete in IFPA sanctioned tournaments across Montana, earning ranking points through the International Flipper Pinball Association’s World Pinball Player Rankings system. At the end of the season, the top players in each state ranking qualify for the State Championship, making the event a true finals for the year’s competitive pinball scene.

Winning the state title carries serious bragging rights, but it also comes with a bigger opportunity. Each state champion earns an invitation to compete at the IFPA North American Pinball Championship, where the best players from across the continent face off.

Saturday’s Montana State Open Championship will bring together the top ranked players in the state for a head-to-head battle across a tournament bank of machines. These are the players who have spent the year traveling to events, competing in leagues and tournaments, and building their rankings game by game.

On Sunday, the spotlight shifts to the Montana Women’s State Championship, which features the top sixteen women players in the state. The event is typically run as a head-to-head bracket tournament, with best-of-seven matches determining who advances through the bracket toward the state title.

The Women’s Championship has become one of the most exciting and fastest-growing competitive divisions in pinball. Players from across Montana make the trip to compete, bringing together a diverse group of competitors representing the state’s growing pinball community.

For OddPitch, hosting the championships is something we’re incredibly proud of. Over the past few years, the taproom has become a hub for competitive pinball in Missoula, with regular tournaments, leagues, and a constantly evolving lineup of machines.

Next weekend, those machines will be set to tournament mode and the stakes will be higher than usual. Expect intense matches, dramatic last-ball moments, and a room full of players pushing their skills to the limit.

Whether you’re a seasoned pinball player or just curious to see what competitive pinball looks like, it’s one of the most exciting weekends of the year to be in the taproom.

The flippers will be flying. The stakes will be high. And by the end of the weekend, Montana will have crowned its next pinball state champions.