Ernie Cooke Handicap Squash Tournament

Dear [[firstname]],

You are in the draw; good luck! Please find attached the tournament draw and when your first match is. We strongly recommend messaging your opponent to ensure they are aware of the time and do not accidentally miss it. You must keep us informed of any changes or withdrawals.

Rearranged matches must always be played before the next round, and both players must agree to the change. Otherwise, the player who cannot make the prescribed time must forfeit.

Please ensure you are early for your match start time by at least 10 minutes. Due to the sheer number of players, we have only been able to assign 30-minute slots.

The matches will be to 15 points . Matches are sudden death at 15.

It is the best of three games (NOT five); the finals and semi-finals will be the best of five.

Please enter your game scores on the sheet in the courts and write where you will be in the next round, if not not elimiiated.

If a match finishes early, please be prepared to go straight on. This will allow any matches that go on longer not to overrun and delay the evening for all players.

We may adjust your handicap after the first round if your ability significantly differs from what I have handicapped you at, this is to ensure a fun and fair playing field.

What is a Handicap, and how does it work?

For those new to the sport or playing at Falmouth, handicap tournaments provide a level playing field where any participant has an equal chance of winning. Each player is ranked with the more skilled players required to win more points to win the game.

This works by assessing the players and providing a handicap number. The difference between the two handicaps determines how many more points the more experienced player has to achieve in order to win. See the table below for examples.

The tournament is played over two weeks, with the first round starting on Monday, 31st March. The next round is on Wednesday, 2nd April, the third round is on Monday, 7th April and the Fourth Round (semi-finals) on Wednesday, 9th April. Finals will be on Friday 11th April at 7 pm. Each match will have a scheduled time to play for each round. It is a knockout tournament with a plate draw; if you lose your first match, you will go into the plate draw, so you are guaranteed a minimum of two matches.

Scenario 1 (Both Negative Handicaps)	Player A	Player B
Handicap	-12	-5
Starting points	-7	0
Starting points both increase until the first player reaches zero
Scenario 2 (Negative and Zero Handicaps)	Player A	Player B
Handicap	-20	0
Starting points	-20	0
Starting points do not change if one player is on zero
Scenario 3 (Positive and Negative Handicaps)	Player A	Player B
Handicap	-15	+3
Starting points	-15	+3
Starting points do not change if only one player has a positive handicap
Scenario 4 (Both Positive Handicaps)	Player A	Player B
Handicap	+3	+5
Starting points	0	+2
Playing starting points reduce towards zero until the first player reaches zero