I feel like it is worth mentioning, that you are on equal ground to compete with anyone in the world with the "mid grade". You can have a ton of fun with entry level, but you become objectively more competitive when upgrading to "mid level" (and some used older high-end markers too). If money isn't an issue you might skip the "mid level" and focus on feature value and realize that tournament grade maybe isn't going to be noticeable but if money is an issue and being competitive is a significant priority the right style/brand of "mid grade" is all you need.
I feel like it is worth mentioning, that you are on equal ground to compete with anyone in the world with the "mid grade".
You can have a ton of fun with entry level, but you become objectively more competitive when upgrading to "mid level" (and some used older high-end markers too). If money isn't an issue you might skip the "mid level" and focus on feature value and realize that tournament grade maybe isn't going to be noticeable but if money is an issue and being competitive is a significant priority the right style/brand of "mid grade" is all you need.
This is a really solid take on the different levels and styles of paintball markers available.