Wiltshire Contract Bridge Association
Rules (revised July 2014)
 
 
  General
All events shall be played in accordance with the Laws of Duplicate Contract Bridge 2007 and the English Bridge Union Handbook of Permitted Understandings 2013 (The “Blue” Book) and any subsequent updates thereto. Conventions up to and including Level 4 of those agreements shall be allowed in all WCBA competitions. 
Where it is necessary to split a tie this will be done in accordance with the EBU “White Book” section 143.7. (This gives priority to matches between contestants with equal scores.)
Usually WCBA events will have a non-playing director, in which case rulings of first instance will be made at the event by the Tournament Director, who may seek advice from other Tournament Directors, either present or external, if required. Whenever there is no non-playing director rulings of first instance may be obtained from any qualified and available tournament director. 
For KO matches, which will normally be played privately, no Tournament Director will be designated. Players may agree their own ruling of first instance or contact any qualified Tournament Director for a ruling. 
Any appeals against rulings made by the Director must be lodged within the correction periods shown below and in accordance with the Appeals Procedure (See below).
  Wiltshire League Team Rules
League Structure
1. There shall be 3 leagues; the Premier League, League 1 & League 2. Following a transition period the Premier League and League 1 shall consist of 10 teams.
2. There shall be promotion and relegation between the leagues.
a. Following the transition period one team will be promoted/relegated between the Premier League and League 1 and between Leagues 1&2.
b. A team earning promotion may decline the invitation to move up.
c. Where the team winning a league does not chose to accept promotion then the team finishing second will be offered the opportunity. However, this may not apply during the transition period.
3. Where teams change between seasons the new team containing the most members carries with it the status of the previous team. Any disputes shall be resolved by the Tournament Sub-Committee.
4. During the transition period there may be additional relegations, to reduce the number of teams in the Premier League. If the team winning a league chooses not accept promotion then the team finishing second may not be offered the opportunity.
5. The Tournament Sub-Committee shall determine which league new teams will enter, but no new team shall go straight into the Premier League.
6. Where necessary the Tournament Sub-Committee may vary the above arrangements to ensure that the numbers in each League lead to a practical number of matches in the season.
Team Line-Up
1. Each team in the WCBA Leagues shall consist of a maximum of 6 players all of whom must be members of clubs affiliated to the WCBA. At least 4 of these players must be primary members of WCBA. For a transitionary period teams which consisted of up to 8 members at the end of the 2013-4 season may retain them all, but may not bring new players into their line-up until their total is reduced to 6.
2. Team line ups may be changed prior to the first match night, subject to 1) above.
3. Players may be added to teams at any stage, subject 1) above, providing the Event Organiser is informed.
4. Players in League 2 will generally be restricted to below the rank of Tournament Master. However, players above that rank may be admitted, with the consent of the Event Organiser, providing this does not materially affect the overall strength of the team.
5. After the first night team line-ups may only be changed, except to bring the team up to the maximum specified in 1) above, with permission of the Event Organiser.
6. Permanent replacement of team members will only be allowed for genuine and unavoidable reasons, e.g. health grounds, or a player becoming unavailable through work commitments, but not because of internal strife within a team. Such replacements will only be accepted if the incoming player is not materially stronger than the player being replaced and must be agreed by the event organiser.
7. Substitutes are allowed on a match by match basis, but only with permission of the Event Organiser and may not be materially stronger than the 4th strongest member of the team. 
8.  If the only way to get a match played is to use a stronger substitute, this will be allowed in extreme circumstances with the permission of the Event Organiser, but any team using a stronger substitute than allowed in 7) above may be penalised. The Tournament Sub-Committee will determine whether a penalty is applicable and the size of that penalty.
9. Players may only be registered for one team playing in the Wiltshire League structure. However, players may, subject to the above, act as substitutes for teams in a different league to the one in which they are registered.
Matches
1. Matches shall be played at a fixed time and date to be announced before the start of the season by the League Secretary.
2. Matches may only be played at an alternative time and place in unavoidable extenuating circumstances with the permission of the Tournament Sub-Committee. The teams concerned will be required to pay the table money for their team for that round.
3. Matches shall consist of 24 boards, played in 2 equal stanzas.
4. The team mentioned first in the fixture shall seat its players first at the start of the match. Players in this team must play at the same table throughout the match, unless substituted. The team mentioned second in the fixture shall send a pair to each opposition table for the first 12 boards of the match. Opponents shall be changed after 12 boards have been played and any changes in team personnel can only be made at this time.
5. A team which puts the integrity of the movement at risk (for example, by sitting in the same direction at both tables) shall be given a mandatory procedural penalty of 1 VP.
6. If players arrive late matches shall still be played if the player(s) arrive before 8.45pm. A minimum of 14 boards must be played and if appropriate an adjusted VP scale (in accordance with EBU guidelines) will be applied. The reason for the late arrival will later be reviewed by the Tournament Sub-Committee and, if appropriate, a fine/award for boards lost may be applied to the offending/non-offending team. 
7. Any boards not started within 1½ hours of the start time of either stanza, may be withdrawn by the Tournament Director. If the Tournament Director determines that a pair is responsible for the delay then that team will be fined 3imps per board for the boards not played. (Note this could be both pairs.)
8. All players must exchange properly completed convention cards with their opponents at the start of each stanza.
9. Spectators are allowed. A spectator who is a registered player in the League may not watch at tables where his team is playing.
The result
1. Match results are determined by converting IMPs to VPs according to the EBU recommended scale, as updated in 2013.
2. Master Points are awarded on the match result at the table.
3. Where a balancing adjustment or fine is made to a score this is included in the IMP difference used to calculate the VP score, used for the league table.
4. Where a team is fined that team’s IMP score is reduced when calculating their VP score, but the non-offending side’s score is unchanged, i.e. the match result no longer balances to 20.
Notes
1. The main objective is to ensure that all matches are played on the designated match night.
2. The Event Organiser should consult with the Tournament Sub-Committee where practical.
3. For the time being the Tournament Sub-Committee will determine whether one player is Materially Stronger than another. However, this may be defined more objectively once the National Grading Scheme has matured.
  Wiltshire Knock Out
Team Line-Up
1. Each team shall consist of a maximum of 6 players, at least 2 of whom must be primary members of WCBA. Non-primary team members must be active members of a Wiltshire affiliated club. At least 2 WCBA primary members must play in every match. 
2. Team line ups may be changed prior to the first match being played by the team, subject to 1) above.
3. After a team has played a match its line up may only be changed with permission of the Event Organiser.
4. Additional players may be added to the team, up to the maximum of 6, subject to the above criteria.
5. Permanent replacement of team members will only be allowed for genuine and unavoidable reasons, e.g. health grounds, or a player becoming unavailable through work commitments, but not because of internal strife within a team. Such replacements will only be accepted if the incoming player is not materially stronger than the player being replaced and must be agreed by the event organiser.
6. Substitutes are not allowed, but last minute changes to the team line will be permitted in an emergency, to allow a match to be played and subject to agreement with the Event Organiser.
7.  Matches should consist of 24 boards except the KO final which should be 32 boards. All matches, (including the finals), should be played at a mutually agreed venue. 
a. 24 board matches should be played in two 12-board stanzas. Teams should toss for seating rights for the first stanza and must change opponents for the second stanza.
b. 32 board matches will be divided into four 8-board stanzas. Teams should toss for seating rights using the EBU standard method, or any other format agreed between the teams.  
8.  Matches may be played at any venue agreed between the two teams. Where there is no such agreement the following rules should be applied.
a. The team drawn first in the first round shall be the home team.
b. For subsequent rounds the team with the fewest home matches in the event to date shall be the home team.
c. Where a team has had a bye this counts as a home match for the purposes of determining the venue.
d. Where a match is drawn between 2 teams with the same number of previous home matches the team drawn first shall be the home team.
The result
1. Match results are determined by net IMPs.
2. In the event of a tie 4 extra boards shall be played. This process will continue until the result is determined
Notes
1. The Event Organiser should consult with the Tournament Sub-Committee where practical.
2. For the time being it will be left to a club to determine whether or not a player is an active member. 
3. For the time being the Event Organiser will determine whether one player is Materially Stronger than another. However, this may be defined more objectively once the National Grading Scheme is in place.
4. Teams losing their first match in the KO will be eligible to play in the KO Plate but they are not under an obligation to do so, but should advise the Event Organiser as soon as possible after losing their KO match.
KO Plate
1.  Except where varied below the rules for the Plate are the same as for the KO.
2.  Teams eliminated from the KO may add or replace players in their line-up prior to the start of the competition.
3.  Teams may enter the Plate, without playing in the KO. However, the Event Organiser may limit such entries to enable the competition to run efficiently.
4.  Teams may also be formed from more than one team eliminated from the KO. The only restriction is that no player may play in the plate if he has played in a winning team in the KO.
  Appeals Procedure
Where events are played without a designated Director, including matches played privately, rulings of first instance may be obtained from any suitable and available Tournament Director. This may include contacting a Director who is not present. If a ruling is disputed the Tournament Sub-Committee will form the Appeals Committee, with appropriate substitutions if one of the members has an interest. If they wish to seek further guidance from a panel Tournament Director then they can do so, but the decision should be made by the Appeals Committee. Players will then have the right of appeal to the EBU, but not to the WCBA, after the event.
 
Any appeals against rulings of first instance must be lodged within 20 minutes of the end of the stanza or of the ruling being given, whichever is the later.
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