Game on: Rock, Paper, Scissors is more than just a childhood pastime for local grownups

by Rebecca Schoonmaker, Staff Writer
from Salem News Online

 

When Deana Peabody went to Michael's Harborside in Newburyport earlier this month, she was just planning on dining out with friends. She wasn't expecting to compete in a round of Rock, Paper, Scissors.

"We just came for dinner," said Peabody's friend Jake Salley of Newbury.

But shortly after Peabody, Salley and their friends sat down, they were asked to play the game, in which players use their hands to form a rock, piece of paper or pair of scissors. The symbol that beats the others based on the game's rules determines who wins.

Peabody, who lives in Rowley, proved to be the master of her group by beating everyone at the table.

"I prevailed. I was guessing what they would do," Peabody said. "They were pretty heavy on the rock."

Once a way to settle disputes on the playground, Rock, Paper, Scissors - or RPS, as the regular players call it - is now featured entertainment at Michael's upstairs dining room and bar and at places across the country. One Thursday a month, Michael's hosts a tournament, and if you're there, you're asked to play.

"Rock, Paper, Scissors is something that's taking the nation by storm right now," says Matti Leshem, founder of the United States of America Rock Paper Scissors League. "I think that the league did a lot for the sport. It's really started to pick up steam. On one level, Rock, Paper, Scissors can be called a children's game, but on another level, heads of state use it."

Courtney George, a waitress at Michael's for eight years, was recruited as the Rock, Paper, Scissors referee when the restaurant starting hosting the games in January. Sporting a baseball cap and whistle around her neck, she goes from table to table, asking "Do you wanna play Rock, Paper, Scissors?"

The initial reaction from patrons is often a confused look, or a "What?" But it doesn't take long for people to join in.

"It's just a fun night for me," says George, who had to review a Rock, Paper, Scissors rule book to become a ref. "I just go from table to table and play off people."

"It's the only game that's really safe to play in a bar," Leshem points out.

George is usually successful at getting almost everyone in the house to play, mainly because the winner gets a chance to take their skills to Las Vegas for

the national Rock, Paper, Scissors championship.

"You might win 50 grand. You can go to Vegas," George says. "It takes two minutes. What do you have to lose? You don't even have to move."

The trip is the final push many patrons, like Adrian Vinciguerra and Lenny Mirra, both of West Newbury, need to get into the game. They were hesitant to play at first, but when George said "Vegas," they agreed.

After a little coaxing, pals Andie Scott of Newbury, Debbie Stashis of Danvers, and Terri Murphy of Stratham, N.H., who had stopped in for dinner, were sold.

George has friends or families split into random pairs amongst themselves to play. If people need a refresher on the rules, which several do, George goes over them. Players get a chance to do a couple of practice throws. Then, on her whistle, the players go, and play for the best two of three.

Scott, a fan of the rock, trumped Murphy and Stashis. At first the most reluctant player at the table, Scott is now moving on to Round 2.

A few people actually stop into Michael's to play the game but for most participants, it's a throwback to childhood that's completely spontaneous.

"It's a childhood game. It's all about having fun," says Murphy.

George keeps track of the winners from each group in the bar on a bracket. Winners from the first round play each other in the second, and so on until it's down to the final two. David Bayuk of Ipswich was crowned the winner for March last week.

Peabody, who was charged up from her win in the first round but was knocked out in the second, has not lost faith in Rock, Paper, Scissors; now that she knows she's got some game, she says she plans on using it more often as a deciding factor in the future.

Michael's is one of 325 outlets across the country that hosts RPS tournaments. And it's not just fun and games; there are some serious stakes. The winner of the regional round at Michael's on Thursday, April 5, wins a chance to go to Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino to play in the world championship in May for a shot at $50,000 against players from all over the country. The championship game will be aired on ESPN. Seriously.

"It's a major validation for the sport," says Leshem.

Leshem also has a feeling about RPS players from the region.

"I think Massachusetts can produce a champion," Leshem says. "Their nature, they're kind of scrappy, they're smart, and they brace themselves for those cold winters."

Rock, Paper, Scissors around the world

While many people haven't turned to Rock, Paper, Scissors since childhood, others take the game a bit more seriously.

"I've seen injuries - dislocated wrists, broken fingers," says Matti Leshem, founder of the United States of America Rock Paper Scissors League.

The league formed in 2006. Members are the ones hosting the national championship tournament in May, which will be broadcast for the first time on ESPN.

"I recognized that there wasn't an organizing body for the sport," says Leshem, who grew up playing the game in his native Israel. "We came in couple years ago to give the sport some shape and bring it to the masses."

The Los Angeles-based League's RPS tournaments have been a staple in restaurants and bars across the country, giving the sport what Leshem calls a "rock and roll attitude."

There's also the World RPS Society, based in Toronto, which has more than 10,000 members who research and promote the game and, of course, host tournaments. The group, founded in London in 1842 as the Paper, Scissors, Stone Club, saw the game as a reasonable way to solve disputes. The World RPS Society, the name they took on in 1918 when they went global, hosts a

world championship each fall in Toronto.

 

Rules of the game

Here's a Rock, Paper, Scissors recap, if you haven't played in awhile:

* Signals must be given simultaneously by both players.

* Players count to three and "shoot" their hand signal for rock, paper or scissors on the fourth count.

* In case you forgot, the outcome is determined by the following: rock crushes scissors, scissors cuts paper, and paper covers rock.

* The best two out of three wins.

* Throwing a signal other than rock, paper, or scissors can cost you a point or be cause for disqualification.

Source: The World Rock, Paper, Scissors Society

 

A sampling of Rock, Paper, Scissors lingo:

* Bout: the best of three engagements

* Match: the best of three bouts

* Shoot/throw: the action in which a player delivers rock, paper or scissors

* Pump: action consisting of closing a fist, holding it out in front of you, and thrusting it up and down three times before shooting

* Faux pump: an illegal move where you intentionally throw on the second pump instead of the third to shake up your opponent

* Engagement: one throw

* Stalemate: a tie

* Subpoena: the term for "paper" delivered palm up

Source: The USARPS League

 

Rock, paper, or scissors?

The World Rock Paper Scissors Society says "rock" is the most common throw. Here's what local players picked:

* "I'm a hairdresser, so I'm using a lot of scissors." - Debbie Stashis, Danvers

* "Rock or paper. No one does the scissors." - Adrian Vinciguerra, West Newbury

* Paper or scissors because "I think people think that rock is going to win." - Deana Peabody/Rowley

See the finals

* Regional qualifying round: Thursday, April 5, from 8 to 10 p.m. at Michael's Harborside, 1 Tournament Wharf, Newburyport.

* USARPS League World Championship: Saturday, May 12, and Sunday, May 13, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The tournament will be broadcast on ESPN.

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