Rules
Matches
A match will consist of AT LEAST ONE Singles' Tiddlywinks
game as per the
rules
lined out by the English Tiddlywinks
Association, ETwA.
- A match may consist of more than one game provided
both players agree to the number of game BEFORE the match
- It is not necessary for a match to take place entirely in
one session, however there will be no deadline extensions
on the basis of match length
- If you are unable to complete your match before the
deadline then whoever is in the lead at this time will be
considered the winner
- Intentionally making it difficult to complete a match
because you are winning will be considered unsporting
behaviour and you may be penalised for it - don't agree
to a longer match if you are not going to have the time
to play it
Joining the tournament
To join the ladder tournament you can EITHER:
- challenge someone who is already on the ladder
IN THE BOTTOM 3 PLACES:
- If you win the match you will join the ladder
one place above them
- If you lose or draw the match you will join
the ladder at the bottom
OR
- you may play a match against someone not already
on the ladder who also wishes to join the ladder
- In this case you with both join the ladder
at the bottom, with the winner being positioned
above the loser (should the match end a draw,
for the purposes of ladder positioning the winner
will be decided by flipping a coin)
Issuing challenges
Once you are on the ladder you may move up it by
challenging anyone UP TO 3 PLACES ABOVE YOU in the ladder:
- If you successfully beat them in a match you will
leapfrog them to be one place above them in the ladder
- If you fail to beat them in the match then your positions
shall remain unchanged
Accepting challenges
If someone below you in the ladder challenges you to a match
then you will have ONE WEEK from when the challenge was issued
to play the match. The tournament organiser must be alerted on
the same day a challenge is issued for the time constratint to
come into effect. If the match fails to occur within ONE WEEK
then the challenged will be given the win and will take their
opponent's place in the table UNLESS:
- Their opponent can give the tournament organiser a very
good reason why they are unable to play a match before the
match deadline
- Note that not realising they had been challenged will
not be considered an acceptable reason unless it is
deemed that the challenger chose a particularly obscure
method with which to challenge them - e.g. challenges
via email or Facebook will be deemed valid in most cases
whereas challenges via smoke signal will not
- Being 'too busy' is also unlikely to be considered a
valid excuse - while we are happy for people to get
involved who don't wish to play many matches, we
would like our ranking system to favour those who do
play more matches, so repeatedly conceding matches will
NOT be penalised or frowned upon but it will result in
you placing lower in the ladder
- Also note that the sooner the opponent alerts the
tournament organiser to their inability to play the
match, the more sympathetic they will be - e.g. alerting
the tournament organiser that you will be unable to play
several days before the week has elapsed will look better
than waiting until after a week has elapsed
- The challenger is deemed to have made it unduly difficult
for the match to be organised, as determined by the
tournament organiser. This includes (but is not limited to)
behaviour such as:
- Ceasing or minimising contact with their opponent
after the challenge has been issued
- Offering very few times when they would be free to
play a match before the match deadline
- The challenger withdraws their challenge before the
match deadline has passed
Note that the tournament organiser will NOT be chasing people
up asking for excuses and if a match has failed to occur
without anyone contacting the tournament organiser they will
automatically give the win to the challenger. The opponent
may concede the match before the match deadline if they wish.
Reporting match results
- It is expected that the winner of the match will inform
the tournament organiser of the match result within 24 hours
of the match occurring
- Sitting on match results to avoid the ladder being updated
will be considered unsporting behaviour and you may be
penalised
Challenge limits
No one will be expected to play more than ONE MATCH A WEEK
as part of this tournament if they don't want to (though if
you do wish to play more you may). Therefore:
- If you receive a challenge but already have a pending
challenge or have played a match within the last week
then please alert the challenger and the tournament
organiser so that the challenger may choose to withdraw
the challenge or have the match deadline altered
- You may only issue a new challenge if you have a maximum
of one pending challenge (either one you issued or received)
- You may not challenge someone if they are EITHER:
- the last person you challenged
- the last person you played a match against
Umpiring
It is expected that players will umpire their own matches
and the presence of an impartial umpire will not be required
- For any contentious decisions it is expected that players
will engage in a civil discussion between themselves to
come to a conclusion
- If both players genuinely cannot agree on a decision then
it shall be made by flipping a coin
- If you feel that a player is lying about their opinion on
a contentious decision to gain an unfair advantage then
please alert the tournament organiser after the match -
if multiple complaints are made against the same player then
they may be penalised for unsporting behaviour
- If players would like an umpire to be present for their
match then this is completely fine but it is something they
must arrange themselves and will not be take into consideration
when allowing match deadline extensions
- Please remember that the first and foremost goal of this
tournament is to have fun and it's not worth getting into
heated arguments over
Equipment
(Note here that 'a full winks set' will consist of a full-sized
mat, a pot and the necessary winks required to play a match)
- If either one of the players in a match is in possession of
a full winks set then it is expected this will be used for
their match
- If neither player is in possession of a full winks set then
contact a CUTwC Committee member and we will organise the most
convenient way for you to get access to a full winks set -
there are numerous CUTwC members in possession of full winks
sets throughout Cambridge so it shouldn't be too difficult to
arrange something
- To prevent the spread of coronavirus, both the pot and winks
will be wiped down immediately after a match and a mat will be
used no sooner than 72 hours after the last match it was used
for
- It is expected that players will use their own squidgers and
the sharing of squidgers during a match will NOT be permitted
under any circumstances
- If you do not own any squidgers then please contact the
tournament organiser and they will arrange for you to be loaned
a squidger which you will then keep in your possession for the
duration of the tournament
- If any borrowed equipment in your possession is lost or
damaged then you may be charged for it so please treat it with
respect
Social distancing
To prevent the spread of coronavirus:
- All players must remain 2m apart from their opponents at
all times (note that the mat is approximately 0.9m by 1.9m
and use this to ensure distance is maintained)
- All players must refrain from touching the mat as much
as is possible
- Only one player may touch the pot throughout the match -
this must be decided at the beginning and then this player
will be responsible for positioning the pot and collecting
the winks at the end of the match (after wiping them with
anti-septic wipes)
- Players may only touch winks of their own colour
- To decide who is which colours, a coin will be flipped
at the start of the match (agree before the match which
one of you will bring a coin)
- From then on players will be expected to move their
own winks to the corner, retrieve them from the squidge-off,
pick them up off the floor, etc.
- For situations where it is easier for winks of multiple
colours to be handled by one player (e.g. pile reconstruction)
then the nominated player must apply hand gel before and
after
- It is still encouraged that players endeavour to touch
their winks with their squidger rather than their hands
where possible
- If any chairs are used then they must only be used by one
player for the duration of the match and must be wiped down
afterward
- At the end of the match, the table and relevant playing area
must be wiped down
- Mask wearing is encouraged but not compulsory - if you are
either unable to wear a mask while playing or uncomfortable
playing against someone noe wearing a mask then please
bring this up when initially issuing or accepting the challenge
to ensure your opponent is okay with this
Being removed from the tournament
You may be removed from the tournament for any of the following
reasons:
- You may ask to be removed from the tournament and this will
of course be done as soon as possible
- If a challenger is deemed to repeatedly engage in behaviour
which makes it unduly difficult for their opponents to organise
matches they may be kicked out at the discretion of the
tournament organiser
- Anyone engaging in any behaviour during the course of the
tournament which is deemed inappropriate, offensive, unsporting,
or which breaches the current government coronavirus restrictions
will be removed at the discretion of the tournament organiser
These rules are subject to change by the tournament organiser
at any time during the tournament and all tournament participants
will be alerted to any changes as soon as possible.