Well that was a completely uneventful season!
In an otherwise unremarkable year, with nothing much happening in the world to speak of, Pub League carried on with ‘the usual’ – a bunch of people hanging out in a bar, breathing heavily, talking loudly, laughing and spitting in each other’s faces at very close distances.
WHOOPS! Yeah, none of that happened. The ‘deadly international pandemic’ forced Pub League into new territory – hence our first Virtual Pub League (Quarantine Edition)®!
Congrats to our 21 participants! Despite the circumstances, the 2020 season turned out to be quite enjoyable. The actual process of Pub Night can be quite hectic, with Dear Leader yelling at his friends for hours on end to jump through hoops and the like. The Home Edition® allowed Tara and I to relax with small intimate groups, catch up, play the games at a leisurely pace and enjoy each other’s company!
I didn’t hear about this? While fun, it also turns out this format was quite time-consuming. We sincerely apologize if Pub League didn’t reach you before the year ran out. We finally had to cap the participants, but I promise Pub League will return!
Now, to the drama. The Quarantine Edition brought some former stars of Pub League out of retirement and back into action. Three of The Final Four had nearly 10 year breaks in the action: Wayne C was off from 2009-2019, Rick D hadn’t played since 2011 and Gareth T hadn’t been seen around these parts since 2010. Well seasoned pro Dan W, our 2010 Cup Winner, rounded out the mix. But only one Publeaguer would win it all!
2020 PUB LEAGUE CHAMPION GARETH T
Yup, it was all online, using masks, social distancing, a few apps, the interwebs, and a bunch of alcohol.
2016 Champion Jeff L and Diane S got things off to rocking start, back in April. We remain indebted to their happy-easy-going-natures as a few kinks were worked out and the final format was established. And here we go!
Next-up, Nancy L, Marilyn B and 2017 Champion Jeff B tackled the evening head-on.
The tournament of champions! Four-time champion Jana E, with 2009 & 2011 Champion Casey W, and 2010 Champion Dan W.
Only Dan would make it to The Final Four.
The tour brought us to Jessica M, Richard M, Michelle D!
Michelle & Richard both posted a decent score of 22, but Jessica exploded out of the pack, racking up an impressive 35 to tie for the fourth Final Four spot. Jessica – in the tiebreaker review, Tara and I elected to give you your [trivia] answer of Vatican City, tying you with Dan, but he was awarded the playoff spot when we went to sudden death starting at the first question. Just if you were wondering.
We were so close (!) to seeing a member of the M’s on the cup.
An action packed evening with Wayne C and Stacy B! Wayne would post an impressive 36, placing him in the Final Four. Stacy B played admirably, but finished at the other end of the charts with her Teeter-Prize-winning 13.
A bit of a hiccup considering Stacy ended up in The Final Four last year, but we still consider her a formidable contender out in the field and will watch her performance closely in the future!
It should also be noted this night wrecked Dear Leader, as Stacy and Wayne’s Mountain Time Zone meant we didn’t wrap up until 3:30 am EST. Pub League resumed weeks later when we recovered.
We march on! Jen T and Kyle T posted a decent 24 and 26 in our last Pub Night operating out of New Hampshire. Pub League would go on hold for a few months while we navigated to points south…
What? The Quranbeard is gone! Those are new cupboards / shutters in the back! What? Yes! Dear Leader has moved!
Pub League picked up in November enroute to an exciting finish, with Tanya D and Rick D, veterans who came out of retirement to battle. Having not played since 2011, Rick D quickly commanded the situation and lead the field with a record-tying 43 points. He shares the record with Sharron J (2011) and Jeff L (2016).
To quote Tanya, “We were waiting for a Pub League where we didn’t have to move.”
Our penultimate event saw veterans Kristen F and Derek K navigate the Name That Tunes, Name That Face, Figure Out This Ridiculously Hard Canadian Trivial Pursuit, and more. A fun evening left Derek flirting with the Teeter Prize, but his score of 15 was just enough to hang on.
Our 2020 Champion snuck into the final Pub Night event! Gareth T dominated straight away, becoming the only participant all year to guess all ten Name That Tunes. James M also had a decent showing with 25 points and Dear Leader ended up with cracked ribs from laughing so hard over the course of the evening. Seriously, these two should tour.
The Final Four! Rick D, Wayne C, Dan W, Gareth T.
Brief pleasantries were exchanged and then the battle raged unabated. Twenty-six minutes after it started, our winner was decided. Gareth had it with 15 points, over Rick’s 12, Wayne’s 7 and Dan’s 5.
The final awarding of The Cup! Prizes were awarded, drinks flowed. Special thanks to Nancy L for providing a safe home for The MacKinnon Challenge Cup, which was shined up right-pretty for the occasion. One day, Dear Leader and the trophy will be reunited, once Trudeau lets me come home.
And as always, thank you to my beautiful Mrs. Dear Leader, Tara M, who works tirelessly in the background to keep the Pub League machine running smoothly. I love you!
A note on scoring, from the Pub League Rulebook – 2707.1.5 To declare The Champion, the ultimate winner shall receive enough additional points, (if required), to win the night by 1pt… Hence, while in regular play (see above scoreboard), Gareth scored 38 to Rick D’s 43; however, with his Playoff win, Gareth is awarded 6 bonus points, giving him a 44 point night victory.
The Trivia prize went to a tiebreaker – Jeff L vs Gareth T. While Gareth dominated throughout the season, Jeff L managed to catch him off-guard and crush the 3 question tie-breaker, answering 2 questions to Gareth’s zero. Jeff gets $10 for his efforts.
Jessica T joined us in the final Zoom party to personally award the Teeter Prize – the prize that goes to the person that comes in dead last – to this year’s recipient, Stacy B. For her great spirit and dedication, Stacy gets her $10 entry fee back. And that household cleaned up, as Stacy’s husband Wayne won the 50/50 draw of $115. Congrats to Wayne!
A special thank you goes out to all Pub Leaguers this year, past & present. As you know, we make a donation each year to Sleeping Children Around The World, a charity that helps kids in crap situations around the world, who don’t have things as great as we do. They receive bedkits (sleeping bag, school supplies, etc) that help make their world a bit better for a little while. And in 2020, our 13th year, Pub League is proud to announce that because of you guys – all those since 2007 who have paid their entry fee & buy the 50-50 tickets – we’re now able to buy our 100th Bedkit for Sleeping Children. So feel warm & fuzzy and congratulations!
Once we’ve all poured vaccine over our heads, The MacKinnon Challenge Cup shall return with a fresh start for Year 14! Hopefully in person. Stay tuned for details!
– Dear Leader
Still really need to update this picture at some point.
