''Pinball Pete'', as his friends call him, will fly out today to represent Australia at the Seattle tournament and try to bring home his share of $20,000 in cash and prizes.

He is one of two Australians competing over three days against 64 pinball players from 12 countries. The 47-year-old has been playing pinball machines since he was 10, starting out at his local greengrocer in Yarralumla.

He said pinball's popularity peaked in the 1990s, with dedicated arcades full of the flashing machines.

Mr Menzel bought a machine 2½ years ago to hone his skills and later became Australia's top player.

''Once you get one at home, you're playing it every night,'' he said.

Six month later, he quit his job with the Commonwealth Department of Health and Aging to follow his passion for pinball machines. He played at pubs, clubs and bowling alleys but mostly practised at home and on friends' machines.

''If I was in the public service, there's no way I'd be able to go and do this sort of thing,'' he said.

His hobby soon became his profession when he began working for Capital Pinball, a Canberra firm in Mitchell which supplies and repairs pinball and arcade machines.

He said the business supported his entry into the global tournament and helped raise money for his travel expenses.

Mr Menzel prepared by studying the mechanics of different machines that he could be competing on. His friends own some of the models but the competitor admitted that the rest will depend more on luck.

''It just depends on how the ball rolls on the day,'' he said.