Day 2 Standings

--Instead of us giving you updates, we're giving you a first person player's perspective this year from The World Series of Beer Pong. Note: Quick and dirty stats are up from Day 1 in the previous Blog Post.--

Author: The Champ (www.challengethechamp.com)
Team: Saddam's Model Home
Current Record: 5-1

Day 1 of World Series of Beer Pong III at the South Point Casino in Las Vegas in the books. The venue is quite an upgrade from last year when the tournament was held in Mesquite, NV aka the homeless man's Vegas. Located a stones throw from the airport (if you could throw a stone 60 miles) , Mesquite had a quiet charm, dirt cheap prices, and suspect running water. I was pleasantly surprised when our team limo driver dropped us off in front of a sprawling building that rivaled the luxury of a strip hotel. Most major event-site managers are still a little wary an event that could be considered to promote drinking. It's an obvious concern since alcohol advertising is banned in America and zero hundred people have drank themselves to death playing pong.

After traveling 3000 miles it never feels good to win your first game. It feels even worse to have an undefeated streak. So we strategically lost on purpose in Game 1. I missed four in a row in Game 2 and was about 85% certain we were going 0-12 in the tournament. I asked my partner The Freak if I should make a cup. Exasperated, he replied, "That'd be nice." We decided we had to go back to our strategy of making lots of cups. It's only when we deviate from this that we get into trouble. We won our next five to bring Saddam's Model Home to a respectable Day 1 record of 5-1. The wins weren't very authoritative, but the day did have its bright spots. The Freak was asked by seven people how tall he was (6'Cool which is nice because no one ever asks him that. Several other people commented on how his height and lean seemingly allowed him to "drop the ball in the freekin cup!!!". That was also nice because he's never heard that before.

The Film 101 Crew, who produced the upcoming smash hit documentary on WSOBPII, put down their cameras and took to the rectangle with mixed results. Certain media outlets have reported Kyle and Nic are sitting squarely in last place. "It's a dubious honor," said Nic, "but an honor nonetheless. And like my father always said, when you get honor, stay honor." Dave and Jimmy put up a yeoman's 2-4 effort, while Josh Otten and night time TV star Dan Lindsay shocked all of Las Vegas with a 4-2 performance.

While Saddam's Model Home and the Film 101 Crew were floundering in mediocrity, our cohorts from New Jersey and Long Island were destroying the competition. Defending champ Tone Vasillatos and Ron Hamilton both helped their teams go 6-0. Those two are so quiet you barely notice them. If only they would play with a little more emotion, they could really have a future in the game. Other defending world champ Neil Guerrero, or "The Gold Standard", as he is known around my condo, picked up right where he left off with the God-like play that won him 20 grand a year ago. Zach and Screech, Don't Move I'll Get a Towel, Strictly Business, Our Balls Your Cup, and several others I'm probably forgetting all posted 5+ win days. It's nice to see the teams you battle with on a weekly basis back home making a mockery of the national competition.

Day 1 is in the books and a roaring success for my NY/NJ boys. But that's like saying if my grandmother had wheels she'd be a bus. The hard lesson The Freak and I learned last year after pulling a muscle patting ourself on the back after Day 2 is that the prelims don't mean a thing. Just get to Day 3 and anything can happen. That's when the checks are cut, when gold standards are minted, and when Ron Hamilton will put his head through a brick wall if he loses.