MINIMUM PLAYER SKILL:

RACE GRID League:

Beginner.  Anyone who wants to learn the game of pool can join the league.

PERFORMANCE League:

A 5 handicap or skill level.  Determined based on the average skill of a 5 in various leagues.  A number is not an exact science; thus players may receive an ‘assessment’ by the Director to ensure they are ready for this league.  All new recruits have to be approved by the director before adding to a roster to ensure that they are ready for the league and thus the league skill level balance is preserved.

If a player ends the season with a performance # less than 4.0, they may be asked to take a break from league in order to refine their skills.

MAXIMUM PLAYER SKILL:

RACE GRID League:

A player may not be higher than a 10 skill level – based on comparisons of the other players in the league.

This does not mean that a 12 skill will play as a 10 – it means that higher than a 10 cannot play in the race grid league.

If a 10 skill becomes to dominate for the league, they will need to be reviewed by League Director.

PERFORMANCE League:

Can’t be a current or recent professional (5 years removed); great amateurs are welcome

Everyone has a format they can plan in.  But the PERF league will not turn into RACE GRID, nor will the RACE GRID turn into a PERFORMANCE league.

• Some players are so good that a handicap race would be too long of a race (in order to allow a 50% chance) for our allotted time slots for league – Note:  some locations end league at a certain time.  Or, shortening the race makes the match to short and not ‘value for their time/money.’
• Remembering that the purpose of RACE GRID league is for the lower players, the league rules for this league type have to accommodate them.
• The PERFORMANCE league is intended for the better players and the lower players are not allowed in this league.

UNKNOWN SKILL LEVELS:

Those with ‘unknown’ skill levels will be given a skill assessment by the league manager or director to ensure league competitive balance.

MINIMUM/MAXIMUM TEAM SKILL:

MIN TEAM SKILL:

Grouping of the minimum player skill level may only result in the team losing regularly and thus hurt the overall balance of the league.

• If this is the case, the coordinator and/or league director may ask higher skilled players (from other teams in the league) to join this type of team – goal to balance out the league.
• The coordinator should be recruiting outside the league to help rosters that need balance.

MAX TEAM SKILL:

TEAM MATCH POSTING CAP:

There is a posting cap in place to provide the guideline for a ‘max skilled team.’  The cap is 28 points – which is higher than most other Race Grid Leagues – point is, it is already high which allows for a ‘good team’ to form.

Going over the cap (soft cap with penalties) may need to happen on occasion as players have unexpected scheduling conflicts for the night.  However, if this continues then a team will need to recruit more players to will fix this attendance problem in the short term to get their lineup back in line with league requirements.  So ‘going over the cap’ is allowed, but not intended for ‘regular use.’  It could result in a team trying to stack players and beat the system by whipping other teams (even with penalty points).

• Thus a rule is in place that the usage of ‘going over the cap’ can only be used three (3) times in a season.  If a team uses this option more than three (3) times they may receive a match forfeit for the 5th slot – to be determined by League Director.
• The league coordinator and/or league director may have to step in and adjust their roster to help them meet the posting requirements.   Competitive team skill balance is the key to a healthy league.

No ‘dynasty’ will be allowed.  If one team dominates either league (2 seasons in a row in 1^st place)

• they may be asked to split into two teams,
• or merge with a lower team to equal the league balance out,
• or the roster may be changed in other ways to ensure the end result is a balanced league (example, adding a 1 or 2 skill and playing them most weeks).

One team dominating a league most likely results in the other teams knowing they can’t win and the following tends to happen:

1.  The best players from other teams join together to try to beat them (ie. 2 or 3 stacked teams);  the league becomes top heavy and lack of team competitive balance as lower teams cannot compete with top teams.
2.  Players quit and go join other leagues to explore chances of winning
3. Last place teams tend to fold; leagues shrink.
4. Alot more work required for coordinator to recruit an entire team.  It is much easier to recruit to a last place team that is balanced.

As the Race Grid League is intended for lower to mid players, a team roster should not stack up the higher players.  Accordingly a rule is in place that no more than two (2) players with a skill level of 7 or higher can play in a match lineup.

The Race Grid league will not turn into a Performance league; nor the other way around.  The rules are intended to preserve the ‘point of each league.’

ROSTER BALANCE/TEAM BALANCE is the key to ensure a success league long-term.  Teams should be comparable to other teams in the league.  All rosters (at league formation and beginning of each season) will need to be submitted to the league director to review team strength to ensure league balance.  Director may not approve a team roster submitted if it doesn’t meet the min or max guidelines, or if the roster is too far out of line from the ‘average’.   The director may move players from team to team to move the league towards balanced rosters.