VALLEY VENDING DART LEAGUE RULES AND INFORMATION

TEAM FORMAT:

• PLAYERS MUST BE 21 YEARS OF AGE TO PLAY IN THE LEAGUE. If any team plays somebody who is under 21, all games that the player was involved in will be forfeited to the opposing team.

• A dart team can consist of up to 8 members; 4 regular players, and up to 4 subs. These players must be listed on the team card to be eligible to play in a dart match. Substitutes can be added to your roster after week 2, and up until the sub deadline for whichever league you are playing. No players will be added after these dates. Players must play in at least 16 regular season games to be eligible for the playoffs and/or to establish an average.

• Players wishing to switch team can do so before the mid-point of the season, providing they have not played in any match. Once a player has played at least 1 game for any team in that league, he or she cannot switch to another team during that season.

ROSTERS

· ROSTERS can now be submitted online. Go to our website, find which league you are registering for, click on “roster”, fill out the form and hit submit.

· ONLY THE PLAYERS AND SUBS ON YOUR ORIGINAL ROSTER WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE FIRST 2 WEEKS OF PLAY. Once your roster has been submitted, changes are not permitted until week 3.

• When filling out rosters, please include all information requested even if the player has played in previous years. It is necessary to keep our records updated.

• Include emails and phone numbers for EACH player. We communicate with players mostly via email, so the more emails that we have, the better.

• Include all subs on your roster, as it will put you in the correct division and will eliminate problems with CAPs when wanting to add a sub in the future.

• Nicknames can only be 7 spaces.

• Be sure to let us know if a player is new or not. If the player has played in league and you notice that we have given them a “NEW PLAYER START STAT”, please be honest and bring it to our attention.

SUBSTITUTES

· SUBS can now be submitted online. Go to our website, find which league you are adding a player to, click on “add sub here”, fill out the form and hit submit.

• Substitutes cannot be added for the first 2 weeks of play. There will be no make-up matches for the first 2 weeks due to teams not having subs or enough players.

• Teams cannot add subs after the sub deadline, which is the last 2 weeks of regular season play.

• If you would like a player added to your roster, you may email, Heather@valleyvending.com, add on our website, or come into valley vending. If adding a player at valley vending plan on 2 trips, as avg and division cap need to be checked and it may take some time, especially if coordinator is not in the building when you stop in.

• Substitutes cannot be added if they put the team over the division or league cap. Subs must fit into your division/league cap with CURRENT TEAM STATS and with TEAM START STATS. If a player fits in one of these categories, but not in the other, it can be sent to your committee for a vote. Your committee consists of the captains of your division/league. If the player does not fit in either category, they cannot be added to your team.

• Players entered, as subs on the dart machine must add the player to team as stated above. Players entered on machine are subject to Opposing Captains approval.

• All player additions to teams after league start-up meeting are subject to division cap & approval of league coordinator.

· Once a player has been substituted out of a match, he/she cannot return to league play for that night.

· A new “SUB ADD” link will be set up for each league. It will show ALL subs added throughout the season, along with their start stats, the date they came in and which team they are on. This will allow all members of a team to have access to any team’s sub adds at any given time.

ILLEGAL PLAYERS:

• Only players listed on the team roster, on the ‘sub add’ list or in the standing sheets are considered legal players. Players shooting under an assumed name are considered illegal.

• Any player who is under the age of 21 is considered an illegal player.

• Players added at the board without approval from the league coordinator are considered an illegal player.

• Any games that an illegal player was involved in will be forfeited to the opposing team.

HANDICAPPING

• All CRICKET players are handicapped based on their MPR (Marks Per Round) averages. The “spot marks” method will be used. All 501 matches will use the “spot points” method of handicapping. Players must type their averages into the machine before the start of the match. MPR (Marks Per Round) and PPD (Points Per Dart) averages will appear on the “standing sheets” on our website at www.valleyvending.com.

• START STATS are a combined average of your 2 most previous seasons in that league. If you only have 1 average for the league that you are applying, we WILL combine it with your most recent average from another league, if available. If you ONLY have 1 average in any league, we will use that average. We do have stats going back to the ‘90’s, so we can dig deep. Start stats are only used for the first 2 weeks, then you use your established average on week 3 of play, provided you have played 2 full weeks (14 games).

· You need to have played in at least 16 games to establish an average in each league. (On the start of week 3, players will use their established avg as long as they played the full 2 weeks or 14 games)

· All subs added after the start of the season are subject to review by the league committee and (or) Valley Vending. Subs must fit under CAP on the original roster AND with current stats. If a sub only fits in one of these criteria, it IS possible to have this sub add sent to the committee for a vote. If the committee passes the addition to the team, then the captain will be notified of the committee ruling, and the sub will be added.

• NEW MALE PLAYERS receive a handicap of 1.8N for Cricket or 18.0 for 501 (Males - 2.0N/20.0 for A division). NEW FEMALE PLAYERS receive a handicap of 1.6N for Cricket or 16.0 for 501 (Females - 1.8/18.0 for A division).

· TEAM SCORES are made up of the averages of the top 4 shooters on the team. This includes substitutes.

• START STATS, TEAM SCORES AND DIVISIONING will be available for everybody to view before the actual schedule is finalized and the season starts. This will allow the players to let us know if any changes need to be made before anything has officially begun for the season.

STARTING TIMES/LATE TEAMS/FORFEITS:

• Dart matches are scheduled to start at 7:00pm. The home team will have from 6:30-6:45pm. to warm up and the visiting team will have from 6:45-7:00pm.

· Dartboard usage is on a ‘first come, first serve’ basis. Valley Vending does not assigned dartboards to certain teams. There is no “higher division chooses board” rule. Some locations will allow a team to claim a dartboard for the season, and that is the right of each location.

• If only 3 players are present at the start of a match, they can request a 15 min. grace period for the 4^th player to show up. If at the end of the 15 mins. the 4^th player has not showed up the match must begin with only 3 players. The 4^th slot will be left blank. If the 4^th player arrives during the match, he or she can fill the blank spot. In Cricket the missing players slot is left blank. In 501 the missing players slot is tapped down to 251.

• A team is classified as late if only 2 or fewer players are present at 7:00pm. If the team does not show by 7:30 it is a forfeit.

• FORFEITS WILL BE HANDLED IN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING WAYS:

· The score from the previous meeting, if greater than win%.

· Average win %.

· If less than 50%, the score will be 7-6 (or 8-7 in 2-Man).

RESCHEDULED MATCHES:

• There will be no make-up matches or rescheduling the first 2 weeks of play. Only the players (and subs) on the original roster are eligible for weeks 1 & 2. If teams do not have enough players, the match will continue with 3 players, or the match will be forfeited. Scores for the opposing team will be the team’s win percentage decided half-way through the season.

• There is NO STORM POLICY. We live in the North Country and the weather is very unpredictable. We leave it up to the captains to communicate with each other and figure out a solution if the weather is bad. Teams can either play, or reschedule.

• The rescheduled date must be before the following weeks match. You have 6 days to make up any matches. If the match is not played before the following weeks match, the team who could not make the original scheduled match will receive a forfeit (0 wins).

• Notify the league office of rescheduled matches. There is a 24-hour voicemail box where you can leave a message - 518-561-0300 ext. 123- Heather, or by e-mail, Heather@valleyvending.com.

• Make-up matches are to be played at the same location that the original match was scheduled to be played.

• There will be no rescheduling matches due to a team playing in other sporting engagements such as softball, horseshoes, bowling, etc…. (unless the opposing captain/location has agreed).

• PLAYOFF MATCHES CANNOT BE RESCHEDULED. IF YOUR TEAM CANNOT PLAY ON THE SCHEDULED PLAYOFF MATCH DATE/TIME, THE MATCH WILL BE FORFEITED. BE SURE TO HAVE SUBS WITH ENOUGH GAMES PLAYED (16) TO BE SURE THIS PROBLEM DOESN’T ARISE.

• Please do your best to avoid rescheduling matches. Players arrange their work schedules and find babysitters, etc… for a certain night of play. The locations also need to make arrangements for your teams playing on a certain night. Monday night darts is supposed to be Monday night darts, not whenever it is convenient for your team to play. Hence why we add substitutes to your rosters, so you have back-up players in case an emergency arises with a main player. If re-scheduled matches become a habit for certain teams, you may end up forfeiting matches.

SCHEDULING PROBLEMS, ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES & BARRED PLAYERS

• In the event that a home team location is unable to accommodate a regularly scheduled league match, (due to closings or other events) the match can be played at the visiting team’s location (if home team captain agrees). If the visiting team cannot host the match either, then the home team captain can select a neutral site within the sponsorship of the league.

• A make-up match must be played at the location that the original match was scheduled to be played.

• Location management has the right to govern the rules of conduct in their establishment. It is expected that every player and all spectators in the league will adhere to and respect those rules of conduct.

• BARRED PLAYERS must either get a substitute to replace them, get permission from location management to come and play there, or forfeit the match. NOTE: A match will NOT be moved to a neutral location because a player is barred from a location.

• If any match is played in a location other than where the original match was supposed to take place without the consent of the home location AND Valley Vending, both teams who played will receive forfeits (13 losses).

· Sponsoring locations with more teams playing at home than boards available, the sponsoring location has authority on what order matches will be played. (Contact the location) This includes playoffs.

· Although we would like to see all our locations be handicapped accessible, unfortunately that is not the case. We do encourage the team captains to work together to come to a solution where all players can be included. However, teams will NOT BE REQUIRED to change their regular home match if their home venue is not fully handicapped accessible. Most locations will work with our players and do their best to accommodate, but in some situations, it is nearly impossible to achieve. If you, or a team member are handicapped, and unable to access certain locations, please be prepared to use a sub in these few cases. The league will work with individuals requesting certain accommodations on a case-by-case basis to explore reasonable solutions, including alternate match arrangements or neutral venues (when feasible).

STANDINGS:

• Standings will be available on the dartboards, or on our website at www.valleyvending.com

• Standings will be updated by the end of the day on Thursday. In some cases, the dartboards do not communicate, and the coordinator must retrieve such stats from the dartboards manually. The locations hours of operations or dartboard mechanical issues may slow down this process. We also like to wait until after all 3 league nights are completed before we assess the situation of any missing matches.

TIES IN THE STANDINGS:

• The team with the most wins combined against the opposing team will win the tiebreaker. If they are even in this category, then the seeding for the playoffs will be determined by the previous week’s standings. A mini-playoff match will determine ties for Division Championships if season scores are equal as well.

PLAYOFFS

• PLAYOFF MATCHES CANNOT BE RESCHEDULED. IF YOUR TEAM CANNOT PLAY ON THE SCHEDULED PLAYOFF MATCH DATE/TIME, THE MATCH WILL BE FORFEITED. BE SURE TO HAVE SUBS WITH ENOUGH GAMES PLAYED (16) TO BE SURE THIS PROBLEM DOESN’T ARISE.

• Playoffs are to be called in the night of the match to 518-561-0300 ext. 123. Leave a message stating which team you are, who you played and the final score. The boards do not communicate playoffs scores, as it is not part of the regular schedule.

• Playoff matches are a race to 7. (Race to 8 for Wed 2-Man)

• Matches are single elimination. When you lose, you are eliminated from play, unless you are in the top 4, you will continue to play for 3^rd place.

• The higher seeded team gets home board advantage.

• Players need 16 games to be eligible for playoffs.

• Round 1 of Playoff brackets work in the following ways:

Approximately 75% of teams in each division will make playoffs.

12 teams - 8 teams in playoffs

11 teams - 8 teams in playoffs

10 teams – 8 teams in playoffs

9 teams – 7 teams in playoffs

8 teams – 6 teams in playoffs

7 teams – 5 teams in playoffs

6 teams – 4 teams in playoffs

5 teams – 4 teams in playoffs

4 teams – 4 teams in Playoffs

AWARDS :

**Every team receives money back (per win) at the end of the season**

**2-person leagues and Summer 10 week League will receive half of the below monetary amounts**

• Trophies –
• 1^st Place Season (4 per team)
• 1^st Place Playoffs (4 per team)
• Medals –
• 2^nd Place Season (4 per team)
• 3^rd Place Season (4 per team)

• Plaques –
• Location Plaque for 1^st Place Playoffs Only
• Monetary Payouts – 4-Person Full Season League
• 1^st Place Playoffs - $100 per team ($50 for 2- player Leagues and Summer 10 week league)
• 2^nd Place Playoffs - $75 per team ($37.50 for 2- player Leagues and Summer 10 week league)
• 3^rd Place Playoffs - $50 per team ($25 for 2- player Leagues and Summer 10 week league)

LEAGUE DUES:

• League dues are $20.00 per week ($10/wk for 2-Man and Mixed). ($5 per player)
• Dues will be entered into the dartboard each week. Your match will not start until dues are paid in full for THAT WEEK ONLY.
• Dues are still required to be paid for forfeited matches, as there are still payouts for those wins.
• This is now the ONLY method used to pay dues. We will no longer take payments in the store.
• ALL FUNDS FROM LEAGUE DUES ARE PAID BACK TO THE PLAYERS via cash prizes, trophies/awards, playoff money and banquet funds.

· INDIVIDUAL LEAGUE DUES BREAKDOWN

MONDAY CITY, SOUTH AND NORTH LEAGUES:

$34 per team per night, which breaks down to $8.50 per player. The $8.50 breakdown is $5 dues and $3.50 for your 7 games.

TUESDAY MIXED DOUBLES:

$25 per team per night, which breaks down to $12.50 per player. The $12.50 breakdown is $5 dues and $7.50 for your games.

WEDNESDAY 2-PLAYER:

$24 per team per night, which breaks down to $12 per player. The $12 breakdown is $5 dues and $7 for your games.

DROPPING OUT

· If a team drops out of league during the season, they surrender any and all winnings to the league. In addition, the team Captain will no longer be permitted to be a captain for any other team in our leagues.

• If any team decides to drop out of league during the season, they are still responsible for dues until the end of THAT round of play. A round of play consists of each team playing each other once. This is because the opposing teams who receive “forfeits” due to your team not competing still receive wins, thus still receiving monies.

• We encourage teams to not drop out and to try to look for other players to fill any voids on your rosters. A lot of time and work goes into creating the leagues. Situations such as these change the scheduling, therefore is unfair to the locations who paid a sponsorship fee to host your team in their location, and to the other players in your division. Players take certain nights off from work, and some find babysitters because they WANT to play darts, not so they can receive a forfeit or have a BYE.

DART COMMITTEE

• Dart committees are formed to help with situations or changes to the league that arise during the season, including sub adds. An email is sent out to the committee including the situation at hand, they email me back with their ‘vote’.
• DART COMMITTEE MEMBERS ARE NOW THE CAPTAINS OF EACH DIVISION OF EACH LEAGUE. (for example, the committee for A Division Monday League is the Captains of JUST the A Division Monday League) We are hoping this will keep the voting a little more fair across the board. The only people voting ABOUT each situation are the teams who are directly AFFECTED BY each situation.

SMOKE BREAKS

• We will never tell anybody that they cannot have a “smoke break”. However, please do not take advantage of this situation. Go smoke when you are not scheduled to play. A 5-minute break is a lot different than a 15-minute break. Please be respectful to the opposing team, as 3-4 smoke breaks a night is a little excessive and can add up to an additional 45 minutes to an hour of ‘breaks’ on any given dart night. If you need to go have a smoke, please do so respectfully and hurry back, especially if players are waiting specifically for you to continue play.

PRACTICE

• Each team is allotted 15 minutes of practice time before the match begins. Please use this time to practice. It is not permitted to practice during your match or in-between games, with the exception of, a new sub entering the game.

PROTESTS:

• Protesting a match should be a last resort. We urge teams to try and work out their differences rather than file a protest. Unless they obviously go against a set league rule, the league committee will not overrule any agreement made by the two captains during a match, but an agreement made between the 2 captains at 7:00pm will still be the agreement at 10:00pm.

PROTEST FORMAT

§ League office must be notified of the intent to protest within 24 hours of the match.

§ All protests must be submitted in writing to the league office within 48 hours of the match in question.

§ All protests must be accompanied by a $10.00 protest fee, which will be refunded if the protest is upheld.

§ The opposing team will be notified of the protest and will have one week to respond in writing before a ruling is made.

§ All protests will be forwarded to the dart committee for a ruling.

UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT:

· Disciplinary Action Steps are as follows ;

o Step 1 – Verbal Warning

o Step 2 – 5 Week Suspension (will roll over to following year if at the end of a season)

o Step 3 – Done For Remainder of Season (if less than 6 weeks remain, done for following season)

o Step 4 – No Longer permitted to play in any Valley Vending Leagues in the Future

• The league reserves the right to have an individual or individuals removed from league play for unsportsmanlike conduct. This could include abuse of equipment, providing an unfriendly atmosphere for visiting teams, and fighting during or immediately following a league match. Any reported and confirmed abuse of Dart Machines will not be tolerated. Teams will forfeit any remaining games of a match if a machine is knocked out of order by abuse.

The league reserves the right to make any necessary rule changes to help facilitate a harmonious atmosphere within the league. Valley Vending Service, Inc. is the sanctioning body of this league.