NEWSLINE STORY

published May-June 2015

Tracking and Awarding World Tournament Participation

File provides historical data; patches for milestone years of participation

by Mel Yockstick, NHPA Statistician

NHPA Officers approved a World Tournament Participation Patch, much like the Membership Patch, to be awarded to those who have pitched in 10+, 20+, 30+, 40+, 50+, or 60+ World Tournament events. A new World Tournament Participation file has been created for the NHPA website showing each player�s years of tournament participation and results.

Thanks go out to Lombard �Bart� Sargent from Massachusetts who has kept our past pitching history available and up to date by compiling the National Horseshoe Pitchers World Tournament Record Book from 1909-2003. He recorded every player that pitched in world tournaments, their state, class, position, wins, losses, ringers, shoes pitched and percentages, plus other important data.

Steve Summerlin, NHPA Webmaster, took Bart�s 697-page book and scanned it into a Microsoft Excel file. From this Excel file, Jerry Smith, NHPA 3^rd Vice President, and I have entered records from 2004 through 2014, as well as modified the file by adding World Tournament location, class division and world/class champions titles.

This file gives you a chance to review your own world records as well as follow other pitchers who have played in World Tournaments. It will also give the Hall of Fame committee an opportunity to verify World Tournament results for all future nominees.

The file is at home under the World Tournament tab on the NHPA website.� Retrieve the file by going to the bottom of the �WT Participation� page and hit �Download File.� The Excel file is copied to your computer, allowing you to save or open it, depending on what works for you. When reviewing the file, make sure you begin at the top of the page, and note the multiple worksheets of information. Editing the file will not change the master file, but only your computer file.

Your local state�s/province�s Secretary/Treasurer will have these patches available soon.

Please report any errors to me, Mel Yockstick, NHPA Statistician, via email or mail at 7659 Routt Court, Arvada, CO 80005 or via phone at 303-421-6433.