Gulf Coast BCAPL Local Bylaws - Change Log

Removed all references to an "End of Year", "Vegas" tournament.  There will not be a tournament of this type related to the 2025 sessions.

Removed reference to team registration as there is no cost for registering a team. 

Added text to clarify a player's options if he/she is on the roster for more than one team who face each other in a tournament.

Removed text requiring matches to be scored on paper if a new player is added that night.

Added "without prior special permission from the league" to the below:

May not be used in Playoffs, City Cup, or Regional Tournaments. without prior special permission from the league.   

Removed rule that does not allow the playback back to be used in the last 3 weeks of a session.

The Substitutions section was re-written to address situations that may cause 2 players to play each other more than once and how to handle each situation.

Removed description of how handicaps were calculated prior to the league's use of Fargo

Teams will receive 4 points for a scheduled bye.  This originally said 6 points.  Teams receive 6 points for a forfeit, but 4 points for a scheduled bye.

Tie-Breakers referenced how to break a tied match league nights.  We allow matches to remain tied during a session.  

Added tie-breaker information for tied rounds.

The sportsmanship section now indicates that a game cannot begin until both players are present, or the non-present player's captain agrees to start the game.

Eliminated reference to an MVP award.

Version 1.4 to 1.5

Section 2

Changed due date for annual player dues to 2nd night of play rather than 3rd night.

Section 3

League play format – added “NOTE:  All league play must be on a regulation size 7’ x 3.5’ table unless otherwise specified by the local league operators for a specific division.”

Manual scoring on paper – changed first sentence from:
“Score sheets will be provided in the drop box if teams wish to score the match on paper during league night.”
To
“In the event that there is a problem, score sheets may be made available and placed in the drop box if teams must score the match on paper during league night.”

Tie-Breakers – clarified that the Match tie breaker of 13 games only applies to tournaments and playoffs.

Changed all references regarding bonus points.  Bonus points are no longer awarded, instead up to 3 rounds/week will be forfeited for the same infractions that would previously cause bonus points to be withheld.  Affects Section 2.C, 2.G, 3.C, 3.H, 3.I

Playback Rule - added last 2 sentences: “If the 5th player ultimately shows up late for the match in which the playback-player has already played in a round, the late player MUST be substituted for the playback-player at the beginning of the next round and all subsequent rounds.  The late player must play in the second position.”

Section 2

Player Eligibility changed to clarify that a player must play 25 games with a team to qualify for post season, not 25 games in general:
Changed
“Any player must have played a minimum of 25 games during a session to be eligible for playoffs, City Cup, or other major tournaments.”
To
“Any player must have played a minimum of 25 games on a team during a session to be eligible for that team for playoffs, City Cup, or other major tournaments.“

Section 3

Changed
“Tournaments will not have a 6th round.”
To
“Tournaments and Playoffs will not have a 6th round.”

Corrected team standings determinators from
Total Points with tiebreakers in order of Rounds Won, Games Won
To
Rounds Won with tiebreakers Games Won, Total Points, Head-to-Head Record.

Rescheduling Matches – Removed the requirement to obtain league permission to reschedule and changed the requirement to play makeup matches prior to the last 4 weeks, now 3 weeks.  League approval may be sought for makeup matches played during the last 3 weeks.

Section 4

Team Tournament Eligibility – added “All players MUST be active players in good standing at the time of the Vegas qualifier and, if the trip is elected, the Vegas tournament.  If a player or team qualifies for the Vegas trip or elects to pay their own way to the tournament, the player and/or team must be a paid member in the subsequent year after qualification.”

MVP, 5-0, and BREAK & RUN Awards – Removed MVP award

Time-outs/Coaching/Miscellaneous Rules – Added the following bullet points (Note: the second bullet did exist, but was expanded to include smart watches and indicate how violations would be addressed)

•          No other member of the non-shooting player’s team may influence the decision unless the non-shooting player has not used their time-out and a time out is called to discuss the decision.

•          Cell phones, smart watches, headphones or ear buds, are not allowed by a player during his/her turn at the table. A violation of this rule will result in a warning.  Second or subsequent violations will result in a ball in hand foul. 

•          Players may practice on another table during a match as long as it does not interfere with an active game.  However, a player may NOT practice on another table while they are also playing in a game during the match.   A violation of this rule will result in a warning.  Second or subsequent violations will result in a ball in hand foul. 

Section 2

In reference to the Playback Rule, changed “Cannot be used in the last 6 weeks of a session” to “Cannot be used in the last 3 weeks of a session without advanced permission from the league”.

Added “A team may request special permission in advance to utilize the Playback Rule within the last 3 weeks of a session, including Playoffs, City Cup, or Regional Tournaments.  Permission will only be granted in exceptional circumstances such as medical reasons, etc., and is not guaranteed.  Permission to utilize this exception is within the sole discretion of the league operators.”

Section 4

Changed the description of the World Qualifier cash option from “$5,000” to “approximately $6,000”.

Added “A team may request special permission in advance to utilize the Playback Rule within the last 3 weeks of a session, including Playoffs, City Cup, or Regional Tournaments.  Permission will only be granted in exceptional circumstances such as medical reasons, etc., and is not guaranteed.  Permission to utilize this exception is within the sole discretion of the league operators.”

Section 4

Changed “Tournaments” to “Major Tournaments” and added the option for the winner to select $5,000 cash or a trip to the Las Vegas BCA World Championship.

Changed “Team Eligibility” to “Team Tournament Eligibility” and changed description of “Regional” to “World Qualifier”.

Added paragraph titled “Player Tournament Eligibility”.

Expanded paragraph titled “Tournament Formats” to include information about the Las Vegas World Qualifier tournament.

Added NOTE to Prized Money/Awards = “Each team captain will decide, in their sole discretion, if, and how, any prize money/award will be awarded to their team members from any tournament.”