Local Bylaws

Welcome to the American Pool players Association!! In order to enhance your enjoyment and the service and the service of the League, local bylaws must be enforced, which are designed to allow a smooth operation of the League. Read these bylaws carefully and keep them with your team manual. These local bylaws have been read and approved by the American Pool players Association. Revised: 12/20/07

APA of Vermilion County – Local Bylaws

Mark Garfield. League Operator

Office: 217-354-4287 or Cell # 369-6792

E-mail: m.garfield@insightbb.com

Office hours: 9:00 AM –6:00 PM Monday – Friday. If I am not available, please leave a message and your call will be returned as soon as possible.

Team Fees: $30.00 per team for all scheduled matches regardless of the number of games played (including forfeits). Playoffs will be $15.00. There is no charge for byes or for the Local Team Championships. Please make checks payable to APA of Vermilion County. There will be a $30.00 fee for all returned checks. Your team will also be marked past due and you will be responsible to make check and fees good within 1 week.

Annual Membership Dues: Dues must be paid the first (1st) night a player plays. If a team plays a player who is not current with their dues, they risk forfeiting any points that player may have earned. Any team that falls two weeks behind in paying their team fees will be notified. If the team does not become current they can be dropped from the League. Dropped teams forfeit all benefits, trophies, and awards. Team Captain on the dropped team is responsible for his / her portion of the past due amount.

Start time: Play begins @ 7:00 PM (real time, not bar time). Play will begin even if only one player from the opposing team is present. Play is continuous once the matches have started. If no one is present at 7:00p.m. a 15 minute grace period is granted.

Paperwork Due: Saturday 8B Doubles - @ end of match, Sunday league – at end of match. Monday and Tuesday league – by 6:00 PM Wednesday 9B Doubles @ end of match and Thursday league – by 6:00 PM Friday paperwork with full fees enclosed. . Late paperwork will be assessed a $20.00 fee.

Team Hardship: A Hardship occurs when a team drops to (5) five or less players. They may request to add enough players to give them a total of (6) players on their roster. The added player(s) have to be the same or lesser skill level than the player(s) they are replacing.

Forfeits: A team may have up to a total of 5 (five) forfeits and still be eligible for playoffs, on number 6 (six) they are no longer eligible. If a team fails to show up for a match, the opposing team (providing 5 players are present and listed on their score sheet) will receive 5 points in 8-Ball or 75 points in 9-Ball and 5 players are present, if paperwork is completed and received on time with full fees. Forfeits during the last 3 weeks of the session will be awarded 3 points (8-Ball) or 60 points in (9-Ball) with the same paperwork stipulations. Teams that fail to show for two consecutive weeks will be dropped from the League, and a new schedule will be issued. Dropped teams will forfeit all benefits, trophies, and awards. If a team drops or is dropped before the end of a session, matches played will stand and the BYE situation comes into play.

Byes: Byes occur when there are an uneven number of teams in a division. Byes are worth 3 points for 8-ball, 60 points for 9-ball. Score sheets must be signed and returned on time. No weekly team fees are due for byes.

Rescheduled matches: All rescheduled matches must be made up within 2 weeks of the scheduled date, unless approved by League Operator. If not, zero points will be awarded for each team. No matches may be made up the last 3 weeks of the session. The league office must be notified of all rescheduled matches – no exceptions.

Player ID: All players must be able to produce a valid picture ID upon request. Teams that play a player under a false name will receive zero points for that night and will be at risk of suspension from the League. Their opponents will receive all points won plus 1 point for the match involving the illegal player. Request to see ID before the match begins.

Protests: All protests must be received in writing and include a $25.00 protest fee from each team (non-negotiable). The League Operator will inform both teams after the BOARD OF GOVERNORS meet and discuss the situation, of the outcome and return the $25.00 fee to the team that wins the protest. The other $25.00 will be added to the player fund.

Banned players: If a player on your team has been banned form a host location, then your team has to play without them. Neither this League nor the APA has the right to insist the host location admit this player.

Sportsmanship: Any player or team receiving more the two (2) sportsmanship violations can be dropped from the League. Dropped teams and any suspended players will forfeit all benefits, trophies, and awards. Consult rule book for penalties for BAD SPORTSMANSHIP.

Handicap Review Committee and Board of Governors: Membership is composed of the League Operator and players from the League. Any player with a skill level of 4 or above is welcomed once they have played 6 sessions. Any league player may nominate themselves or another player for these committees.

Male SL 2's: Must have played 50 matches to attain this skill level. However, they will be raised to skill level 3 in all higher level tournaments.

Division Playoffs and Local Team Championships: The team in each division with the highest points at the end of regular session play will automatically qualify for the annual Local Team Championship and will receive trophies. The top point finishers are considered the Division Champs. This team doesn’t compete in the post session Division Playoffs except when there are only (4) four teams in a division. Playoffs would be 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th place point finishers plus a wild card. The wild card is determined by drawing cards from the remaining teams in the division as long as they are current with all dues and have not exceeded (5) five forfeits. Teams with (6) six or more individual forfeits during regular session play are ineligible, regardless of their point status. The winner of the Division Playoffs will be considered the Session Champs, and will also be qualified for the Local Team Championships. The Session Champs will also receive trophies.

Qualifying for the LTC: Our local rules for qualifying are outlined above. If the Division Champs and / or the Session Champs are both already qualified for the LTC, the team finishing second in the Session Playoffs will become eligible for the LTC. Once a team has qualified, it must remain ACTIVE (summer qualified teams must play fall and spring; fall teams must play spring & summer session). In addition, all qualified teams must remain in the top 50% of their division to keep their qualification for the LTC. Any teams who are not current with their dues, or have 6 forfeits, or are under any disciplinary action are not eligible to advance to the LTC.

National Rules: The APA national rules will supersede local bylaws in all higher level tournaments.

MVP’s: The most valuable player MUST have played at least once more than half of the regular session to be eligible. The MVP will be figured by performance points earned. In the case of a tie players will be Co-MVP’s.

Relax, enjoy yourself and play within the spirit of the rules as well as the written rule. It is impossible to cover every situation 100% with rules. Common sense must prevail. Teams that try to gain advantage by creating their own interpretation are subject to sportsmanship violations. Win at the table and not from the chair is a generality that promotes harmony, camaraderie, and a good time. That's what league is all about.

Good Luck & Good Shooting!

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