START TIME
The Tournament begins at 9:00 am. All teams should be on-site and checked in 30 minutes prior to their “expected time”. If the team’s 1st game is scheduled at a later time, a 10 minute grace period will be given from the scheduled start time. The tournament directors reserve the right to make the final decision/result of any related occurrence.
Teams are expected to be on time for all games and are encouraged to follow along with Scorholio and the bracket for updates. Any team who is not present during their scheduled game time, will forfeit. A 10 minute grace period will be given.
TEAMS
A team on the court has a maximum of 4 players. Each player must throw a ball.
Teams shall have a minimum of 3 players or the game will be forfeited. A team with 3 players will only be permitted 3 balls. If a fourth player arrives, a fourth ball is activated and the new player may join at the start of the next inning. The entire game can be played with 3 players, but only 3 balls will be permitted.
Player substitutions are NOT permitted at any time during play. The same players that start the game shall finish the game. All players must be on the team roster. Exceptions must be approved by the tournament director.
Each team will select a “Team Captain”. Captains will be in charge of making sure all players follow the rules, reporting scores to the bracket board, and determining game decisions.
SPORTSMANSHIP
This is a competitive charity event and any action that goes against the spirit of the event should be reported to the tournament directors so that a ruling or disqualification can be determined.
PRACTICE AND START OF PLAY
The players on each team may have 2 practice innings while in the Winners’ bracket (Down and Back), and 1 practice inning while in the Losers’ bracket (Down and Start).
After the practice inning(s), the captains will determine the possession of the pallino and preferred ball color through the flip of a coin or a call of odd/even on a cellular device.
PALLINO THROW
The pallino must be thrown from behind the pointing foul (white) line. A pallino throw must meet the following criteria:
Must land even with or past the center line. If any part of pallino is touching the center line, the ball is considered legal.
Shall be 12 inches off each side wall but may be bounced off the sideboards.
Must not pass the back (green) line. If any part of pallino is touching the back line, the ball is considered legal.
If a thrower fails to meet the above criteria, the throw goes to the other team.
If any team knocks the pallino out of the court, the round will be re-started. The pallino will be sent back to the same side it was thrown from in that frame.
FOUL LINES
Foul lines are as follows: Pointing Line = White Line, Hitting Line = Red Line, Back Line = Green Line
Players' back foot may step on but not over the proper foul line before releasing the pallino or bocce ball. Front foot is permitted past the line. If a player’s back foot does step over the line, the ball will be removed.
Players with a ball in hand may only walk up to the half court line.
Teammates may step onto the court to show a spot or location for the next play, but MUST exit the court before the ball is thrown.
BOCCE BALL THROWS
The pallino thrower must throw the first bocce ball.
Balls may be bounced off or played against sideboards and backboards.
If a player throws the wrong color ball, the ball will be replaced with the correct color ball by the team captains after the ball comes to rest.
If a ball is thrown out of turn, and does not make contact with any ball in play, the opposing team decides if the ball shall remain in play or be returned to the competing team to throw again. If the ball makes contact with any ball in play, the opposing team decides if the inning shall continue as-is or may opt to restart the inning with possession of the pallino.
If a player moves a ball prior to the end of a frame, the opposing team has the option to remove the ball or relocate the ball to its original position.
Any ball(s) that lands out of bounds or strikes an object outside of the court, will not count in the round. If a ball strikes/rolls on top of the side/back wall/boards, only touching wood, but bounces back into the court, it will remain in play.
MEASUREMENTS
Measurements can be made at ANY TIME during the game.
Team captains decide which team member will measure any and all balls at any given time.
All balls will be measured from inside the pallino to inside the questioned ball. The call made by the measurer is the final call.
In the event of a tie, the team that rolled the ball last did not beat the other team’s point and will continue to roll. If no balls remain and each team’s closest balls are tied, no points will be awarded, and the play will resume at the other end of the court. The pallino returns to the team which delivered it in the inning that was tied.
SCORING
Teams in THE WINNERS BRACKET of qualifying rounds will play to 15 points.
Teams in THE LOSERS BRACKET of qualifying rounds will play to 12 points.
Teams in THE CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND will play to 15 points
All game scores, except the championship match, will be kept by the team captains.
The captains must notify the bracket director of the official score immediately after the match has ended.