The Term Pinfall

[TwosackJon 1]

I don't understand why this term is so offensive to some. I mean, you have the Technical Fall, so we obviously need to differentiate between toiling about long enough to rack up a bunch of points vs. sticking your opponent in the most dominating form of victory in this sport. 

 

There is another important aspect of this to explore. Is there a third form of fall out there somewhere waiting to be discovered? What will it be called? How is it achieved? Could we name it after someone? 

 

Lastly, I want to know the consensus on technically writing the term pinfall. 

 

1. pinfall or

2. pin fall or

3. pin-fall ?

 

I thank you for your time and attention.

[TwosackJon 1]

My mind started working here ... coffee kicked in

 

Fail fall - when you do something really stupid, like missing a big throw with a big lead and winding up on your back. Especially in a big match. Referee would have discretion in making the fail fall call, ending the match immediately. You don't get to fight off your back or be saved by the buzzer.

 

Gas fall - You are way ahead and looked like an elite wrestler through two periods only to see your lead quickly disappear once the third period whistle blows. A fan vote would initiate this fall by smart phone app. Knowing your guy is probably going to get decked anyway, you can end the misery, concede the fall, and move on to better things.

Edited August 16, 2014 by TwosackJon

[buck 65]

You can hear a pin fall during most collegiate dual meets. 

[gimpeltf 2,075]

Cue JB

[ideamark 22]

To my way of thinking, pinfall is duplicative. Pin and fall basically mean the same thing. Words like "technical fall" and "nearfall" have their own specific meaning, with "pin" or "fall" also having their own meaning separate of those.

 

I can imagine the fact that a famous pro rasslin' announcer used the word "pinfall" may also rankle some in real wrestling circles.

 

All that said, as someone who reads old-time newspapers and yearbooks, I've seen "pinfall" used in the past, when language was more colorful, and wrestlers were called "grunt and groaners" and "bonecrushers."

 

Mark

[scribe 1,838]

I thought pinfall was a professional wrastling term.

[ban_basketball 16]

I thought pinfall was a professional wrastling term.

I think you're right.  When I'm doing my DDP Yoga (Diamond Dallas Page), he always refers to the relaxation point as being in pinfall.

[GranbyTroll 452]

I don't know the source, but another poster quoted old collegiate rules differentiate between "pin falls" and "touch falls"

[Medicine_Man 877]

self fall

[MA_Wrestler 169]

Pinfall bugs me, just a personal pet peeve of mine. As someone already said, pin and fall are two words that meant they same thing, so it's basically like a relative thing. It's like saying pin pin or fall fall, just sounds ridiculous to me. It doesn't bother me as much as some of the grammatical errors such as "duel meet" or having a first round "buy" or seed beating replaced with seat "I went to the seating meeting" or he was "seated first". But hey, that's just me!

[fullnelson 130]

• 
  
  
  
  Highest pinfall in tenpin bowling in 24 hours by a pair
  

  
  

  www.guinnessworldrecords.com/.../highest-pinf...
  

  
  

  
  

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  Guinness World Records

  
  

  
  

  
  

   

  
  The highest pinfall in tenpin bowling in 24 hours by a pair is 30,537, achieved by Robert Hendricks and Hector Navedo at Fiesta Lanes, El Paso, Texas, USA, on ...

  
  
  
  
  

[gimpeltf 2,075]

I was disappointed to see that old rule books did have this phrase in it. I don't remember seeing touch fall in it unless it might have been in 1948 when they ran NCAAs as freestyle if I understand correctly.

[DF 181]

Cue JB

 

Edited August 16, 2014 by DF

[Rakkasan91 75]

I was disappointed to see that old rule books did have this phrase in it. I don't remember seeing touch fall in it unless it might have been in 1948 when they ran NCAAs as freestyle if I understand correctly.

"Pin-Fall" was official rules languge up to 1953 or 1954.  In 1955 the rules books were changed to just "Fall".  I scanned some early years books and didn't see the term "touch fall."  They did specify that rolling or flying falls shall not be considered.

[HurricaneWrestling 1,123]

Pinfall bugs me, just a personal pet peeve of mine. As someone already said, pin and fall are two words that meant they same thing, so it's basically like a relative thing. It's like saying pin pin or fall fall, just sounds ridiculous to me. It doesn't bother me as much as some of the grammatical errors such as "duel meet" or having a first round "buy" or seed beating replaced with seat "I went to the seating meeting" or he was "seated first". But hey, that's just me!

 

When looked at from a historical perspective, the term "pin-fall" may make a little more sense.  For example, in several early forms of wrestling (such as Cumberland wrestling), a "fall" occurred when any part of a wrestler's body touched the ground aside from his feet. In short, the objective wasn't to "pin" the opponent's shoulders, (or scapula) to the ground.  Rather, it was simply to cause the opponent to "fall" to the ground.  

 

Perhaps the term "pin-fall" originated to differentiate between winning by holding the shoulders to the ground, as opposed to winning by merely taking an opponent to the ground (as in other types of folkstyle wrestling).

 

I have also read that, until the 1960 Olympics, international wrestling was scored in secret by three judges.  Dr. Albert de Ferrari, a San Francison dentist who rose to the rank of VP of the international federation, led the fight for a visible scoring system.  He also campaigned successfully for the "controlled fall" rule, which recognized a pin only when the offensive wrestler had done something to cause it. (http://web.archive.org/web/20070703010121/http://www.wrestlinghalloffame.org/history/oldestsport.php)