CRITERIA FOR RATING TOURNAMENTS

Generally, a tournament will be rated if it meets the criteria of a standard tournament. Non-standard tournaments may still be rated if they are approved for rating by CASPA on the recommendation of advisers appointed.

CASPA has the right to veto the rating of any tournament, either before or after the event, which fails to meet the criteria. Internet and handicapped tournaments will not be rated.

STANDARD TOURNAMENT

A standard tournament is defined by the following

1.    RULES. ASPA Rules of Tournament Play (with State variations) and the “basic” rules are to apply unless specified in advertising.

2.    NUMBER OF GAMES. A tournament will have a minimum of 4 games.

3.    NUMBER OF PLAYERS PER GAME. All games are to be played with two competitors.

4.    TOTAL NUMBER OF PLAYERS. A tournament will have a minimum of six players. If the number of players falls below 6, subsequent games are not rateable.

5.    TIME. Each game is to allow a minimum of 18 minutes playing time per player. The maximum time allowed is 25 minutes per player per game.

6.    ELIGIBILITY. A tournament will be open to all players. Minimum or maximum ratings may be required.

7.    FORMAT OF DRAW. Player pairings will be by objective and systematic means. (eg round robin, king of the hill, AuPair etc)

8.    ADVERTISING.

8.1 Tournament advertising must take place at least two weeks prior to the event at both national and state levels, and must include date, venue and contact information.

8.2 National advertising must include listing on the national website tournament calendar.

8.3 State advertising should include details of the number and length of games, and tournament format.

The following advertising mechanisms are available: Across The Board (National), Scrabble Australia website, CASPA email list, Notices sent to clubs or members in the State, Announcements and notices at prior tournaments, State Website

NON-STANDARD TOURNAMENT

A tournament is non-standard if it varies in any aspect from the criteria listed above under “Standard Tournament”.

The Ratings Advisory Committee has disbanded, and CASPA will provide a further mechanism. It was before: "Requests specifying proposed variations to standard tournament criteria are to be submitted in writing by the State Committee to the Ratings Advisory Committee Convenor at least 3 weeks prior to the event.The RAC will then make a recommendation to CASPA regarding the rateability of the event.

The State Committee will forward the request to the Ratings Advisory Committee for a recommendation to CASPA."

Approved variations to a standard tournament will be specified in all advertising.

Last reviewed: June 2009

Enquiries regarding the National Rating System may be sent to the National Ratings Officer, Martin Waterworth, at nro@scrabble.org.au.