JAWS pinball tournament strategy: encounters, bounty hunts and the fin
JAWS runs longer than any other game in our top 25, and it rewards the player who finishes what they start. How shark encounters and bounty hunts score, where multiball fits, how the life ring works, and what 724 tracked games say.
·6 min read·Tilt Stats
JAWS arrived in Minnesota tournaments in February 2024 and has 724 tracked games already, which makes it the fifth most-played machine in our data. It is a Keith Elwin design, and like his other games it pays for completing things. A mode you start and abandon is worth little. A mode you finish at the fin pays a share of everything you scored in it and makes the rest of your game worth more.
It is also the longest game in our top 25. The typical one takes 23:46.
The short version
- Plunge into the pop bumper for the first skill shot. Every skill shot adds time to your ball save.
- Hit the captive ball in the center to light a shark encounter, then shoot the flashing shot to start it.
- Follow the blue shots, then hit the fin to finish the encounter.
- Start a bounty hunt at the right ramp and pick Mako.
- Learn the life ring timing before you need it: action button, as the ball reaches the left outlane, while the insert flashes orange.
The skill shot is three shots
The skill shot has three levels, and you get three attempts at it per ball.
| Level | What to do | Award |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plunge into the pop bumper | 5M |
| 2 | Plunge into the mini-lane without touching the bumper | 10M and light gear |
| 3 | Hit the flashing left target bank before any other switch | 15M and light gear |
Each one you collect adds 5 seconds of ball save. On a game with open outlanes, that is worth as much as the points.
Shark encounters
Encounters are the modes, and along with bounty hunts they are the largest part of a good score.
Hit the captive ball in the center of the playfield to light one. The first needs one hit, and each encounter you have played adds a hit to the next. Then shoot the flashing start shot. Which shot you choose picks the encounter:
| Start shot | Encounter | Fin pays |
|---|---|---|
| Left orbit | Night Swim | 35% of the mode total |
| Left ramp | Beach Panic | 50% |
| Center ramp | Scars | 35% |
| Right ramp | Raft Attack | 30% |
| Fishing reel | Pond Attack | 20% |
Extra hits on the captive ball before you start add boosts: more time, 5M and gear, or 2x mode scoring.
During the encounter, blue shots advance it. The last step is the fin, the motorized drop target that sweeps across the middle of the playfield. Hitting it pays the percentage above and adds a permanent 1x to your machete. Miss it and the captive ball offers a smaller payout with no machete. That missed fin is the most expensive mistake in the game, because the machete bonus lasts until the end.
The machete
The machete multiplies your next shot, starting at 2x. To arm it, complete the left target bank while "light machete" is lit, then roll through the lit inlane.
Every encounter you finish at the fin raises it. Two finished encounters early in a game make every machete shot after that worth more, which is the reason to finish encounters on ball one instead of starting three and completing none.
Bounty hunts
Bounty hunts start at the right ramp. They have no timer, and progress carries from ball to ball, so a hunt is never wasted by a drain.
Each hunt is a checklist. Mako asks for 80 spins, 3 ramps, 1 pop bumper hit and 2 chum bucket hits. Finish the list, shoot the fishing reel, and the hunt becomes a multiball. Kineticist's tutorial recommends Mako first, because its perk doubles reel progress toward the hunts that follow.
Jaws Multiball
- Hit the chum bucket captive ball.
- Shoot the red arrows to fill the chum line.
- Shoot a yellow shot to raise the fin.
- Hit the fin to attach a barrel.
- Shoot the harpoon lane, left orbit, center ramp or right ramp.
The first Jaws Multiball is Reel Him In. Three red shots light a jackpot and more shots build it to 3x. Its own scoring is modest, so the better use of it is as cover: start an encounter first and play the mode with extra balls on the table. Chum bucket hits during multiball add a ball.
In any multiball, the action button holds a ball on the raised mini-flipper for up to 20 seconds, once per ball in play.
Quickshots and gear
Quickshots run in a chain: mini-lane, harpoon lane, then fin. Each pays 3M plus 200,000 per beachgoer rescued, with a multiplier that climbs to 7x and resets when you miss. Each one also lights gear.
Gear collected at the right ramp helps during hunts and encounters. With all six pieces collected you can sell them, for 45M with one unused up to 375M with all six unused.
The outlanes
The outlanes are open, and each has a way back.
On the left, the life ring saves the ball only if you press the action button while it flashes orange, as the ball arrives. The timing window shrinks each time you use it. Two quick hits on the life ring target below the pop bumper light it. Pressing early is the common mistake.
On the right, a post and a one-way gate can return the ball to the inlane, and a slight nudge helps it along.
Competition settings allow two tilt warnings and turn extra balls off. An extra ball you would have earned pays 15M times your machete instead. Ask whether the event has changed how the action button behaves before you count on the life ring.
What the tracked games say
| Tracked tournament games | 724 |
| Tournaments it appeared in | 354 |
| Players with a game on it | 322 |
| Typical game | 23:46 |
| Upset rate | 30.7% |
| Difficulty | 35 out of 100 |
Numbers are from late September 2026. The JAWS machine page has the live ones.
The upset rate is how often the lower-rated player in a pairing finishes ahead. At 30.7%, JAWS is one of the most reliable games in our data for the stronger player. Long games with deep rules give skill time to show, and this is both. If you are the favorite in your group, it is a strong pick. If you are the underdog, look at the older games in the upset rates by machine ranking.
The length matters too. At nearly 24 minutes for a typical game, a group that picks JAWS in a timed round may not finish, and it is a tiring game to play late in a long night.
Among players with at least 20 games on it, Luke Nahorniak has the best record, beating 77% of the opponents he has faced across 43 games. Zack Schuster, Michelle Ebert, Luke Mutchler and Steven Skochinski follow. Check your own group in the scouting report before you pick it.
Where to play it
- Northstar Pinball Collective in Savage, 258 tracked games.
- Broken Clock Brewing Cooperative in Minneapolis, 177 tracked games.
- LITT Pinball Bar in Minneapolis, 153 tracked games.
- Blainbrook in Blaine has one on the floor, with 7 tracked games.
- Full Tilt Tavern and Flahertys Arden Bowl both used one in tournaments in the summer of 2026.
The Premium and Limited Edition models add an upper playfield with its own flipper. The Pro has none, and its shark and fish finder targets are fixed. Check which model you are standing at, because the upper playfield changes where some awards come from.
Before your next game
The JAWS playbook collects player tips, tutorial videos and rulesheet links. The scores tab includes Insider Connected scores from local venues, which show what a big game looks like outside tournament pressure. The full rules are in the Pinball Rulesheets wiki.
JAWS shares a designer and a way of thinking with Jurassic Park, Godzilla and Iron Maiden. The rest of the series is in the machine strategy guides.