Shuffleboard is a sport!!!!  Convincing those unfamiliar with the sport of shuffleboard that it is in fact an active, vibrant sport has been a challenge. When searching the web, I am directed primarily to places that talk about the table game as found in bars and clubs, which may be a fine sport as well, but this writer is focused on the hugely popular sport of floor shuffleboard, and more specifically, Tournament Shuffleboard.  I’ve searched the web and found shuffleboard references in articles about real estate developers promoting new housing communities making statements to the effect that their condo’s are not going to become a colony of old folks playing shuffleboard but rather promote other activities to attract the more active lifestyle.  These developers are missing the boat and don’t understand the gold mine they could have by promoting Tournament Shuffleboard. One large real estate company that uses red, white, and blue hot air balloons in their advertising, had TV commercials running last fall which depicts shuffleboard players in a nursing home hardly able to sit, much less walk or play shuffleboard.  With all this negative press it’s no wonder the image of shuffleboard is tainted.  Saying that shuffleboard is only for old inactive folks, is the same as saying baseball is only for little children.   

The Florida Shuffleboard Association (FSA) www.fsa-shuffleboard.org represents over 300 clubs in the State of Florida totaling over 20,000 members.  The active tournament season starts in October every year and runs through March.  The top players in the state compete at season end at all levels of skill, District Amateur, State Amateur, and the Masters Pro event to top it all off.

There are other State organizations heavily involved in organized Tournament Shuffleboard. Among them are the Arizona Shuffleboard Association, California Shuffleboard Association, Michigan Shuffleboard Association, New Jersey Shuffleboard Association, Ohio Shuffleboard Association,  Texas Shuffleboard Association, and others.  There is also the National Shuffleboard Association who represents players Nationally, and the International Shuffleboard Association promoting the sport internationally.  Links to these organizations and others can be found at the FSA web site. Information about our sport is also on this site – rules, officers, state tournament results, schedules, etc.  Another great site for Shuffleboard is www.theshuffler.org.

WHY IS THIS SPORT NOT BETTER RECOGNIZED BY THE PUBLIC?????? As I mentioned at the beginning, we’ve had bad press for so long that folks can’t properly associate our sport in the same league with other sports.  They see a shuffleboard court on the cruise ship, or some old cracked piece of concrete in a park somewhere and think that’s all there is.  NOT EVEN CLOSE!

Shuffleboard is a highly organized sport with tournaments at the local, district, state, national, and international level. The International tournaments are hosted this year in Australia with teams competing from the USA, Canada, Japan, Germany, Brazil, and others.  More information about this is available on the above mentioned sites.

Shuffleboard is financed pretty much by it’s members.  Some of the local clubs are fortunate enough to get a few local sponsors who contribute trophies or cash to help finance a tournament, but these sponsors are few and far between. 

What our sport needs are major sponsors.  What’s in it for the sponsor?  Well, for starters, exposure to a very large group of people whose attention would be directed to that specific sponsor.  No-one is paying attention to this group, so when the first sponsor  steps up to the plate to embrace the sport of shuffleboard, all eyes will be there.  Most of the active sports have sponsors at some level who contribute to the advertising, promotion, etc., of that sport. Many of the other active sports have far less in the number of participants than we have in tournament shuffleboard.  In Florida alone, the FSA clubs represent nearly 20,000 club members.  Add to that number at least five times as many more clubs who are not members of the FSA for reasons of their own, but do follow the FSA rules of play and in time will become members in this organized effort.  In short, there are in my estimate in Florida alone, well over 100,000 active shuffleboard players in organized shuffleboard who deserve proper recognition and for the world to stop talking about shuffleboard in jest and as the lowest form of a sport.

Prior to being introduced to Shuffleboard, I played golf for leisure. I can even remember times when I would comment that “you’ll never catch me playing shuffleboard”.  I didn’t have a clue what was involved and based my comments on the image I had conjured up from these baseless ads and false impressions.  A relative introduced me to the sport the first time we visited them in Florida.  I started to become positively aware of the sport and of some of the strategy required. I later started playing and finally awoke to the reality of the game, its’ strategy, the very strong competitiveness, the required skill and stamina to withstand the rigors of a 2 – sometimes 3 day tournament, every week on Monday & Tuesday and Wednesday for six months, and the 2 day tournaments Thursday & Friday almost every week for six months. Tournament Shuffleboard is truly a grueling sport which requires a whole lot more skill, stamina, staying power, concentration, than for me, golf ever required.  Understand, you aren’t required to play in every tournament and most don’t, but many do play in a high percentage of these district and state tournaments during the October through March season.

Tags: Florida Shuffleboard