Sanctioned Tournament Division Registration and Seeding Policies

Squash Alberta Sanctioned and Fixture Tournament Policies, and Guidelines

1. Start Times:

2. Start times and draws must be made live no later than 4:00 pm MST on the Monday prior to the event start date.

3. Entry deadline:

   1. Should be no later than the end of Friday of the week prior to the event.

   2. At the sole discretion of the Tournament Director (‘TD’) entries can be taken after the deadline, however, the draw must be entirely reseeded and drawn according to the seeding policy with no exceptions.

4. Entry fee:

   1. The Tournament Committee (‘TC’) is encouraged to consider a base level Entry Fee which would include entry and prizes.

   2. If the TC wishes to offer additional items such as souvenirs and/or social packages, participants should be given the option to pay the base level and then upgrade as they choose.

5. Tournament Format for Adult Singles tournaments:

   1. Divisions offered must be Men’s, Women’s as the event dictates. The TD will create divisions based on players SA Ranking and/or Club Locker ratings as follows:  Div 1,2,3…

   2. Players have the opportunity at time of registration to provide the TD with additional information as to their level of play should they feel their SA Ranking/Club Locker rating is not indicative of their current level of play. The TD is encouraged to consult with the participant and make divisional changes as deemed appropriate to ensure a competitive playing field exists for each division.

   3. Squash Alberta supports this process as deemed necessary by the TD with the goal to ensure all players are entered at a level commensurate with their ability.

6. Tournament Format for Junior Silver and Gold Events:

   1. Divisions offered must be All/Co-Ed (Silver), Boys and Girls (Gold). The TD will create divisions based on players Club Locker ratings/ SA Rankings: Div 1,2,3…

   2. The Alberta Junior Closed will be set up based on Boys and Girls age group divisions (players must play in their designated age group based on their age as of the last day of the event.)

7. Seeding Policy (Senior Singles Events):

   1. The Squash Alberta Rankings must be used to seed players/draws for all Squash Alberta Adult sanctioned singles squash events.

   2. Seeding will be done using the current Squash Alberta rankings at the time the draws are created. (This is done automatically by the Club Locker software)

   3. There will be no randomization or drawing of seeds.

   4. Each player will be seeded in their draw based solely on their ranking within their division.

   5. Unranked players must be placed in draws after all ranked players are seeded. The only exception to this is if an unranked player is known to be separated from the field and this can be supported by a national ranking and/or known and recent head to head results with a seeded player(s) in the draw.

   6. The top 4 seeds in a draw must be protected from unseeded players in the first round of a draw where participant entries permit. An unranked player must be seeded no higher than 5^th in draw (entry numbers permitting) unless very clear/undeniable evidence is present to support a top four (4) seeding.   The decision will be made solely by SA and the TD.  (Example:  the current Canadian Senior Open Champion may be given #1 seeding if entered in an event.)

8. Seeding Policy (Junior Events)

   1. Seeding will be done using the current Club Locker Ratings at the time the draws are created.

   2. The Top 2 players in each division will be seeded 1 and 2 accordingly and the 3^rd and 4^th seeds will be determined by a coin flip between the 3^rd and 4^th rated players. Seeds 5-8 will be randomly drawn from the top 5 thru 8 rated players in the draw. Seeds 9-16 will be determined by a random draw of the 9-16 rated players.  This process will continue for Seeds 17-25, 26-34 etc. until all players are placed in the draw.

   3. Alberta Junior Closed - Will be seeded entirely based on Club Locker Ratings (with no randomization of seeds) at the time the draws are created. (This is done automatically by the Club Locker software)

9. Tournament timelines:

   1. If an event has less than 50 participants, the event can be condensed to two (2) days at the sole discretion of the TD.

   2. If the tournament is to be condensed, players must be notified by 4:00 pm MST on the Monday of the tournament week to allow for accommodation and travel plan changes.

   3. Matches must be scheduled a minimum of three (3) hours between the start of a player’s match and the scheduled start time of their next match. (In divisions where the level of play is lower and matches are shorter, a (1-2) hour timeline maybe used.

10. Clothing Policy:

    1. The Squash Alberta Clothing Policy will be in effect for all Squash Alberta sanctioned events and is to be enforced by the TD, TR and Officials at the event.

11. Ball Policy:

    1. The Squash Alberta Ball Policy will be in effect for all Squash Alberta sanctioned events.

11. Prizes:

    1. If prizes are offered by a tournament, they must be the same or of equal value for all divisions.

12. Tournament Software:

    1. Club Locker’s tournament software must be used for all sanctioned events. All results must be correctly updated by the TD into the Club Locker software by 4:00 pm MST on the Monday following the events completion.

ALBERTA FIXTURE HOSTING GUIDELINES

1. Fixture Events will be given a weekend free from any other sanctioned competitions within the same region.  Alberta has four (4) fixture events that rotate between affiliated clubs and cities.

2. Where no F&B package is offered, Squash Alberta will provide a stipend for full and part time officials during the event.

3. Items 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 from above policies and guidelines apply to Fixture Events.

ALBERTA CLOSED CHAMPIONSHIPS

1. To compete in the closed events, you must be a Squash Alberta member in good standing and have your primary residence in Alberta.

2. Perpetual trophies are supplied by Squash Alberta.

3. If offered, prizes must be equal for all divisions.

4. The tournament poster must reference ‘Provincial Championship’.

• Alberta Junior Closed - Provincial Championships.

1. The Alberta Junior Closed will be organized and hosted by Squash Alberta with a nominal entry fee and available to all Squash Alberta Junior Members.

2. Players must play in the appropriate division based on their age as of the last day of the tournament.

3. The event must offer U11, U13, U15, U17, U19 divisions.

4. Novice events may be offered at the sole discretion of the TD.

5. An optional Open Boys and Girls single elimination draw may be held for the top 8 rated Boys/Girls in the province as of the entry closing date. The age group draws will take precedence.

• Alberta Senior Closed - Provincial Championships.

1. A base entry fee must be offered which includes entry and prizes.

2. The TD has right to offer upgraded entry levels for souvenir/F&B as they see fit beyond the base level maximum.

ALBERTA DOUBLES FIXTURE EVENTS

• Alberta Men’s & Women’s Doubles Open -Provincial Championships.

1. A base entry fee must be offered which includes entry and prizes.

2. The TD has right to offer upgraded entry levels for souvenir/F&B as they see fit beyond the base level maximum.

• Alberta Mixed Doubles Open - Provincial Championships

1. A base entry fee must be offered which includes entry and prizes.

2. The TD has right to offer upgraded entry levels for souvenir/F&B as they see fit beyond the base level maximum.