GMABCA RULES (www.gmabca.com) Per Handbook, some general rules highlighted here. (See Break Rule re. Scratch) Welcome to the Greater Milwaukee Area Billiard Congress of American Pool League. We all know that this will be an exciting and fun year of pool for everyone. We started this league, for you the player. With the players help and input, we will try to improve this league every year. If you have any suggestions, or ideas, please share them with us, since this is your league, your feedback is always welcome. Please read the rules very carefully. The GMABCA (our league) is sanctioned by the WSPA. The WSPA has a website for any additional information you might want. The site is www.wspapool.com. The site lists tournament dates and other information. Check the WSPA website for details on the State Tournament. The GMABCA strives to place teams into appropriate leagues with regards to ability in order to maximize competition and enjoyment. This is not a perfect science. There is no guarantee. *Sanction and Sponsor Fees (There are no sanction fees for summer leagues; Sponsor fees are $30 per team for summer leagues) All teams consist of 4 players, and up to 6 subs. No more than 10 players will be allowed on rosters. All players and subs must be sanctioned with the WSPA. That means all players and subs must pay a $8 sanction fee their first night of play. It is a onetime fee per year. If you play on more than 1 night, you will only pay the sanction fee once. If your player has paid the sanction on a different night or league, please note that on the score sheet. Subs can pay the fee as they sub in. If a player does not pay their sanction fee on the night they played, their points will not be counted and the team will forfeit. I am not going to go back to enter players. Pay the sanction fee on the night you first play. Please fill in complete names of each player each time they play. Captains It is your responsibility to have all paperwork filled out correctly the first week and so on. There is also a $40 sponsor fee to be paid by your bar. This fee will be due 2 weeks after invoice is received. All sponsors will receive a bill in the mail. Only put players on the roster as they play!! Do not fill out your roster with all subs on night #1. All information for each player must be filled in. These must be filled out completely. When new players are added after week #1, put the players info (Legal name, DOB, Address, Phone #, etc.) on the back of your score sheet for the week. CIRCLE NEW PLAYERS ON THE FRONT OF THE SCORE SHEET. No nicknames can be used. Also no initials can be used. THIS IS A TAVERN LEAGUE, PLAYERS MUST BE 21 YEARS OLD TO PLAY. During the league matches, any team member not shooting a league game may utilize any other practice table. The no practice rule pertains to tournament play only. There is1 roster sheets in your folder. TEAMS ARE ONLY ALLOWED 10 PLAYERS ON THEIR ROSTERS. As your subs play, add their info on the back of your score sheet, and turn in with the $8 sanction fee. Subs must pay the sanction fee the first night they play, or their scores will not count. Please fill out your score sheets completely each week. (Date, names (FIRST AND LAST), averages, league name, etc.) If someone has a table run, circle the points won. If sheets do not have league name or the date on them, I can not process them. We have over 100 teams and 12 leagues. It makes my job much easier when this info is on the sheets. Any team caught using a player with a different name than what appears on the score sheet, will be kicked out of the league and forfeit all monies. This affects averages, so play fair. (Summer leagues do not use the handicapped system)
All NEW male players will start with a 3.0 average. Ladies start with a 2.0 average. When you look at the standings, everyone will have 4 games and 12 points added to the first week to achieve the 3.0 average. Players with established averages from last year will start with that average, rounded. If you were a 3.8, you will start with a 4.0, etc. When adding averages, you must round off the total team average. Add all players averages then round up or down. If your total team average is.5 or higher, you round up. If your total team average is.4 or lower, you round down. A team with a 12.5 would round up to a 13. Any team trying to manipulate averages will be banned from the league and forfeit all monies. Scoring Each opponents balls left on the table counts for 1 point and the pocketing on the 8 ball counts for 2. The most a player can win is 9 points, the least is 2. The frame win will be counted by 2 points, high team total for the night count for 2 points for a total of 10 points. If you split a frame, you win 1 point. If there is a tie for totals, there will be a 1 game play off. YOU MUST PLAY THIS GAME OFF. Pick your player, flip a coin to decide who breaks, and play the game. Mark on your score sheet who won the play off. This game will not affect the player s average. *Schedules and Tournaments Every team will receive 1 score book. If you need replacement score books, they will be $5 each. If there is a Snow Emergency, check the website. We will also try to contact TMJ4 and put it on the news, but check the website first. We had problems getting it on the news in the past, but we will try again. To qualify for the GMABCA tournament, a team must have 3 players that played 50% of the season, and any sub that played a minimum of 5 weeks. In tournament this year, we will again be playing to races. There will be 3 divisions based on averages or tournament directors placement. All teams are eligible for the tournament. The tournament information is yet to come. The tournament will be played at any bars in the league that have numerous teams. Teams will travel to different bars for the tournament. The GMABCA may create its own Master list for the tournament. To receive High Average for the league, a player may not miss more than 6 weeks of play. To receive team high average, a player must play half the season, plus one week, to qualify. (Ex. If the season is 28 weeks, a player must play minimum of 15 weeks to qualify. 28/2 = 14+1=15) any questions on this, please call Steve. *League Drop Off The league sheets must be turned in each week. The scores affect averages and standings. It will be the responsibility of the captain to turn the sheets and money in. There are envelopes in your folders. Please fill them out with the league name, and team names, and date, put the score sheets and money in the envelope. When you drop if off, make sure you get a receipt to verify the money in the envelope. All Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday leagues must have their envelopes in by Friday at noon. All Thursday leagues have until Saturday at bar time to get their envelopes in. If dropping off envelopes after Friday at noon, they must be dropped at Mortimers, or will be considered late. If envelopes are not in by these times, it will be a $20 fine, starting with week #1. For every additional week they are not turned in, it will be another $20. This rule will be STRICTLY enforced and we will start fining people right away at week #1. Drop off points are Mortimer s Pub, The Network, Flappers and Straight Shots. We will not accept faxed or emailed sheets. All envelopes must be turned in by the designated times, or you will be fined. Fin & Feather is no longer a drop spot. GMABCA requires that at least one player or sponsoring bar has access to the internet to retrieve weekly stats. Weekly stats will only be available online. All weekly stats will be available for the players by each day of play by 10 am. It will be the players responsibility to retrieve the weekly stats. Weekly stats will not be mailed out. Our website is www.gmabca.com. Please read the notes at the bottom of the stats each week; this is the only way we will be communicating with all the teams.
Smoking Please be considerate, do not go outside to smoke when your game is up. Use common sense. Phone calls and Texting Players are not allowed to receive or make phone calls during their game or send or read text messages during their game. Players should be given 1 warning, and after that, it is a foul. *Drink Frame and Team Drinks The second frame of every match will be a drink frame. The loser will buy the winner a drink. Please order what you usually drink. The home bar will buy a team drink at the discretion of the owner, this is not mandatory. Please do not use your team drink for the frame that you lost. Drinks should not exceed $3.50. If they do, the winning player will pay the difference. Teams may not bring in their own drinks. All bars sell soda and juice for non-drinkers. Team Drink Team drinks are still at the courtesy of the bar owner and not mandatory. If a player is drinking doubles, the bar is not obligated to give a double for a team drink. ALSO TEAM DRINK CARDS/CHIPS are not to be used for the drink rounds. *The Match Matches are to start at 7:30. Three players must be present to start the match. The 4th player must be there by the start of their 2 nd game. This player will be able to play their first game also. Most teams are on time and ready to go at 7:30. A forfeit CANNOT be called before 7:45. Forfeits are discouraged by the league office. Maximum latitude should be granted to a team so matches can be played for the benefit of the players and the bars. League office reserves the right to review and reschedule any forfeited match deemed appropriate. However, habitual tardiness will not be tolerated and must be reported to league office. Once again sportsmanship applies. If a team forfeits, it will be a $20 fine. If a team forfeits a 4 th time, they will be removed from the league and will forfeit all monies. If a team forfeits the last week of play it will be a $50 fine. The last week may not matter to your team, but it does for the other teams. We all want to play, that is why we signed up for leagues. Some players in this league work second shift jobs. If the match is running late, please allow this player to shoot off. If a team has a player that needs to shoot off, please talk to the opposing team captain. When you are done shooting, please leave the bar immediately. As always, sportsmanship prevails, if someone needs to shoot off, please try to work it out. Players Shooting Off When a team requests to have a player shoot off, request must be made previous to start of match so opponents have option to change line up. Emergencies notwithstanding. If a team is only going to have 3 players, write your bye in the 4 th spot. You must put a 3.0 average in that spot, and lose 3 points per frame for that spot. It is not necessary to write a name in, it will not affect a player s average. Good sportsmanship should prevail at all times. If a team or player does not observe this rule, they will be banned from the league. Throwing of cues, starting fights, and obnoxious behavior will not be tolerated. Please contact the league president if necessary. If a player has a question about a rule, ask the opposing team captain. The opposing team captain MUST answer the question honestly. If the opposing team captain is not sure, use the rulebook or call the president or secretary of the league. Captains should try to settle any disputes. If this cannot be done, please contact league president that night. Any team that walks out in the middle of a match will forfeit the match. If a player walks out of a match after shooting at least 1 game, they will forfeit 9 points for the other games. *BCA Rules BCA rules can be found at www.bca_pool.com/. Click on the play pool button on top, click on rules and specifications. *Table Runs A table run will be off the break, or when the incoming player approaches the table for the first time and the table is still OPEN and runs out. The table MUST be open. If a player breaks, makes several balls, misses and opponent clears the table, this is NOT a table run, the table was not open.
It is the opponents responsibility to ask where the shooter is playing a shot if the opponent is unsure. If this is not done, the shot will be good. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR GAMES!!!! *League Payout League payouts will be available 2 weeks after your last night of play. They will be delivered to your home bar. If any team drops for any reason, they forfeit all monies. If there is a tie for frames won, we will go by points won first, then points lost. *Additional Information Good sportsmanship will prevail at all times. Leagues are supposed to be fun and competitive. The GMABCA reserves the right to refuse any teams. If you have any further questions or comments, please contact the president of the league Steve Silber. He is playing on most nights, so if you have any questions during your match, please contact him. If your bar is having tournaments, please notify us, and we can post them on the weekly stats. Steve Silber President Mortimers Pub 414-475-6664 Cell Phone 414-940-0811
Call Shot In call shot, obvious balls and pockets do not have to be called. It is the opponent s right and responsibility to ask which ball and pocket if he is unsure of the shot. Bank shots and combination shots are not considered obvious, and care should be taken in calling both the object ball and the pocket. It is not necessary to call kisses, caroms, etc. Any balls pocketed on a foul remain pocketed, regardless of whether they belong to the shooter or opponent. The opening break is not a called shot. Any player performing a break shot in 8 ball may continue to shoot so long as any object ball is legally pocketed on the break. Open Table The table is open when the choice of balls has not yet been determined. When the table is open, it is legal to hit a solid first to make a stripe or visa-versa. The table is always open immediately after the break. When the table is open, it is legal to hit any solid or stripe first in the process of pocketing the called stripe or solid. When the table is open and the 8 ball is the first ball contacted, it is a foul. No stripe or solid may be counted for the shooter. The shooter loses his turn, and the incoming player is awarded cue ball in hand, any balls remain pocketed, and the incoming player addresses the balls with the table still open. On an open table, all illegally pocketed balls remain pocketed. Choice of Group The choice of solids or stripes is not determined on the break, even if balls are made from only one or both groups of balls, because the table is always open after the break. The choice of balls is determined only when a player legally pockets a called object ball after the break shot. Legal Shot On all shots (except on the break and when the table is open) the shooter must hit one of his object balls first and either (1) pocket a ball or (2) cause the cue ball or numbered ball to contact a rail. Please note: It is permissible for the shooter to bank the cue ball off the rail contacting the object ball. However after contact with the object ball, an object ball must be pocketed, or the cue ball or any numbered object ball must contact the rail. Failure to meet these requirements is a foul. Safety Shot For tactical reasons, a player may choose to pocket an obvious ball and also discontinue a turn at the table. By declaring a safety shot in advance. A safety shot is defined as a legal shot. If the shooting player intends to play safe by pocketing an obvious ball, then prior to the shot, the shooter must declare a safety. It is the shooter s responsibility to make sure the opponent is aware of the intended safety shot. If this is not done and one of the shooter s balls is pocketed, the shooter will be required to shoot again. Any pocketed ball on a safety remains pocketed. Racking the Balls The balls are racked in a triangle at the foot of the table with the 8 ball in the center, the first ball of the rack on the foot spot, a stripe in one corner and a solid in the other corner. (GMA-BCA Carini Rule) Legal Break Shot To execute a legal break, the breaker must either, (1) pocket a ball, or (2) drive at least 4 numbered balls to a rail. When the breaker fails to make a legal break, it is a foul, and the incoming player has the option of (1) accepting the table in position and shooting, or (2) having the balls re-racked and having the option of shooting the opening break or allowing the offending player to re-break. If the breaker miscues on the break and fails to have a legal break, these same options are offered. Scratch on a Legal Break The GMABCA will now follow the National BCAs rule. If a player scratches on a legal break, (1) all balls remain pocketed, (exception the 8 ball), (2) it is a foul, (3) the table is open. Please note: The incoming player has cue ball in hand anywhere on the table. Object Balls Jumped Off the Table on the Break If a player jumps an object ball off the table on the break, it is a foul and the incoming player has the option: (1) accepting the table in position and shooting or (2) taking cue ball in hand anywhere and shooting.
8 Ball Pocketed on Break or an Open Table If the 8 ball is pocketed on the break, the breaker may ask for a re-rack or have the 8 ball spotted and continue shooting. If the breaker scratches while pocketing the 8 ball on the break, the incoming player has the option of a re-rack or having the 8 ball spotted and begin shooting with cue ball in hand anywhere. If a player pockets the 8 ball on an open table after the break, they will lose the maximum points possible. In other words, if 1 stripe was made on the break, the maximum a player could lose was 9. Foul Penalty Opposing player gets cue ball in hand. This means that the player can place the cue ball any where on the table. With the cue ball in hand, the player may use a hand or any part of the cue, including the tip, to position the cue ball. When placing the cue ball in position, any forward stroke motion contacting the cue ball will be considered a foul, if not a legal shot. While placing the cue ball in position, if the player moves another object ball with the cue ball, it will be considered a foul. Illegally Pocketed Balls Any object ball is considered illegally pocketed when (1) that object ball is pocketed on the same shot a foul is committed, (2) the called ball did not go in the designated pocket, or (3) a safety is called prior to the shot. Illegally pocketed balls remain pocketed. Object Ball Jumped Off the Table If any object ball is jumped off the table, it is a foul, and loss of turn, unless it is the 8 ball, which is loss of the game. Any jumped balls are not respotted. Playing the 8 Ball When the 8 ball is the legal object ball, a scratch or a foul is not a loss of the game if the 8 ball is not pocketed, or jumped off the table. Incoming player has ball in hand. Note: A combination shot can never be used to legally pocket the 8 ball, except when the 8 ball is the first ball contacted in the shot sequence. Loss of Game A player loses the game by committing any of the following infractions: 1. Fouls when pocketing the 8 ball. (Exception on the break) 2. Pockets the 8 ball on the same stroke as the last of his group of balls 3. Jumps the 8 ball off the table at any time 4. Pockets the 8 ball in a pocket other than the one designated 5. Pockets the 8 ball when it is not the legal object ball Stalemate Game If, after 3 consecutive turns at the table by each player (6 total), the referee judges that attempting to pocket or move an object ball will result in a loss of game, the games will be reracked with the original breaker of the stalemate game breaking again. This league does not play the 3 no hits by the same player BCA rule.