Why should our club host a Ratings-based event? A primary goal of Player Ratings is to group people fairly by skill level and eliminate sandbagging. A player's rating determines his/her bracket. The only challenge is to place unrated players in the correct bracket. This format provides opportunities for women and older players to play against others with similar skills in fields larger than they are accustomed. There are fewer brackets than the current divisional system, with never more than four brackets in Pro and four brackets in Am.
Should entry fees or payouts be different for ratings-based events? Not necessarily. Because players enter skill-based brackets, the entry fees for the lower brackets can be closer to the top bracket. About 70-80 percent of net sponsor cash should be added to the top pro Gold bracket as an incentive for lower-rated players to play up, with the remaining 20-30 percent divided on a 'per player' basis among the other two or three pro brackets. New PDGA payout tables have been designed for TDs to handle both the regular and ratings-based divisions.
How do I apply to schedule a ratings-based event? Register your event using the standard PDGA event forms. Ratings-based events for 2000 will be approved as X-tiers with A, B and C levels available. Player Ratings will not be published until March 2000, so ratings-based events shouldn't be scheduled before April 2000.
Where can I get mathematical details on this system?
Contact Roger Smith or Chuck Kennedy
