Rules and Guidelines

Good luck to all of the athletes who compete in
     highland games competitions throughout Florida.

    Train hard, be safe, and thanks for your support!

Any game in Florida counts toward the final results. The game must be an organized festival, and not a "back yard game" (Mike Bearden has the exclusive power to determine if a game counts or not).

Only the scores from Florida games count toward the overall winners.

The final game will to earn points will be determined by Mike Bearden and Kevin Dupuis. When possible, priority is given to the Tallahassee Celtic Festival.

(NOTE - 2005 and 2006 seasons were ended abruptly due to game cancellations).

The winning athletes need not be Florida residents.

The points earned in any valid game are added to the athlete’s points total for the year. A running tally will be kept, and made available.

The points will be determined by the athlete's overall placing for the day. You earn more points for higher placing.

The points awarded for the championship series are awarded the same, regardless of the scoring system used at the game. (i.e. "highest score wins" vs. "lowest score wins" vs. "decathlon method".

Scores will be tracked for 3 separate divisions. There will be a champion for Masters, Women, and Men’s Open Division.

To be eligible for Men’s Open Division champion, the athlete must finish the year in the A division.

Points are awarded up to 10 places in the A division. First place earns 10 points, second place earns 9 points, and so on until tenth place which earns 1 point. Eleventh place and lower earn no points. These rules hold true regardless of the number of athletes in that division on that day. All placings in all games are given equal weight.

Points are awarded up to 5 places in the B division. First place earns 5 points, second place earns 4 points, and so on until fifth place which earns 1 point. Sixth place and lower earn no points. These rules hold true regardless of the number of athletes in that division on that day. All placings in all games are given equal weight.

Note: This provision is to promote the advancement of the upper tier B division athletes. Also, it is so an athlete who makes the B to A transition mid-year is given some credit for his accomplishments in the B division.

If an athlete wins a B competition, and while doing so passes the SSAAA requirements to move up to the A divisions, any points earned in subsequent B games will not be counted.

Note: An athlete may choose to stay in the lower division for personal awards or because of skill level. This is the athlete’s choice, and no one plans on pressuring the athlete to move up if he feels he is not ready. However, for purposes of the championship series, the athlete’s scores gained subsequent B contests will not be counted.

C, Beginners, or Novice division points do not count toward the Men’s Open award.

Master’s division points are only earned in a master’s competition.

Combined masters competitions (where all masters are in one group) will earn 10 points for first place, and award points all the way to 10th place. Split masters competitions (where the group is split into age brackets) will earn 5 points for first place, and award points all the way to 5th place.

Women’s division points are only earned in a women’s competition. Women competing in a men’s competition will not have those points counted. Women earn points based on the 10 point for first rule.

Any athlete who competes in multiple divisions (Masters vs. Open) will have their points tracked separately for each of those divisions. For example, an athlete would not combine points from an A competition and a Masters competition. Those points would be tracked separately.

Special provisions may be necessary to handle a Super-A division at a game.

Note: There may not be any scheduled Super-A competitions in Florida for 2007.

When possible, individual prizes will be awarded at the Tallahassee game. You must be present to accept the award.

The points system, the way it is proposed, rewards an athlete for performing well in a game, especially a game with a large number of throwers. It also rewards athletes for competing in more games throughout the state. Hopefully this will have a positive impact on throwers going to more games.

Scoring notes:

10 POINTS FOR FIRST EXAMPLE
1st = 10 points

2nd = 9 points
3rd = 8 points
4th = 7 points

5th = 6 points
6th = 5 points
7th = 4 points
8th = 3 points
9th = 2 points
10th = 1 point

5 POINTS FOR FIRST EXAMPLE
1st = 5 points

2nd = 4points
3rd = 3 points
4th = 2 points

5th = 1 point

The original plan was to not include B division scores toward the overall. However, it was felt to be more of a motivating factor if there was some credit given to good performances in early season B competitions. This also gets more people involved in the competition.