Links to National Rules and Other Materials

Official Team Manual (pdf)
The Official APA 8-Ball & 9-Ball Game Rules Booklet (pdf)
Additional Materials on poolplayers.com


  

ERIE COUNTY A.P.A.

BYLAWS 

League Operator: Jonathan Walker

Phone: (716) 949-9538

E-Mail: jwalker@apaleagues.com

Website: buffalo.apaleagues.com

 


We welcome your team to the American Poolplayers Association. In order for us to enhance your enjoyment and the service of the league, we must enforce local bylaws, which are designed to allow a smooth operation of the league.

The Local Bylaws are a secondary source of information, created in accordance with, and in addition to, the Official Team Manual. The Official Team Manual will be your primary source of information and all rules in the Official Team Manual will be followed, with the exception of any revisions as listed below. All revisions and rules may be overridden at the League Operator’s discretion.

 

OFFICE HOURS are 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday. If no one is available, please leave your name, phone number, team name and a brief message and you will be contacted as soon as possible.
 
LEAGUE PLAY START TIME is at 7:00pm on Wednesday night and 6:30pm on Tuesday night. Play will begin on time even if only one player from a team is present. Play must be continuous or forfeits will be awarded to the team that is present. To keep matches running smoothly and quickly, players should refrain from taking any breaks during their individual matches. Smoke breaks and cell phone calls should be taken before or after the matchup is complete.
 
TEAM FEES are $35.00 per week for all scheduled matches, regardless of the number of games played, including forfeits, and division playoffs. Checks should be made payable to “ Erie County APA” or just “APA”. There will be a $25.00 charge for any returned checks, plus loss of the Bonus Point.  Once a bad check has been received from a player, the League Office reserves the right to refuse that individual's check in the future.
 

LATE FEES - any team that falls two weeks behind in paying their dues may be dropped from the League for nonpayment.  Dropped teams will forfeit all benefits, trophies, awards and prize money.

 

APA MEMBERSHIP DUES are due the first night a player plays. If a player has not paid their APA membership dues by the 4th week of play, the player will be removed from the team’s roster. If a team allows someone to play that has not paid their APA Membership Fee, that fee will be deducted from the team’s Weekly Fee and the team will be subject to loss of the bonus point, as well as possible forfeit of the match in which that person played. 
 
NEW MEMBERS wishing to join a team during the first four (4) weeks of a session must have a membership application and membership dues in the envelope the first night they play.  Add the new member's name to the score sheet, and the word "ADD".  They must pay their membership dues the first night of play or the team will lose any points earned by that player.  After the fourth week, the League Office must approve the addition of a new member.  No members may be added to a team during the last four (4) weeks of regular session play.  
 
ADDING/DROPPING of PLAYERS – Teams will be allowed to add or drop players through the 4th week of the session. After the 4th week of the session the team will need League Operator approval of any changes. Please note that the national office prohibits qualified teams to make any changes to their roster after week 4 of the Spring session 
 

Player Age & ID all players participating in the APA must be 18 years of age or older. However, players under 21 years of age must get prior approval from location they are to play out of before joining team. Players must be able to show a valid picture ID to the league operator or any team member at any time. Teams that play a player under a false name or age will receive 0 points for the night and will be at risk of suspension from the league. Their opponents will receive all points won plus 1 point for any match involving an illegal player.

BONUS POINTS - One (1) bonus point will be awarded in 8-Ball if the following criteria are met. 

o        Each team must fully complete the team's score sheets

o         Each team must pay all fees due for the week.  

LOST SCORESHEETS AND/OR PACKETS - Team Captains should print out and keep two blank score sheets for use in the event that the score sheet and/or team packet are lost.  In the event of a lost packet you are still required to turn in a score sheet (even if just hand written on blank paper) with the proper amount of League dues, including weekly dues and membership fees with completed applications.  

DROP OFF LOCATION / MAIL OPTION – The official Drop Off location for team envelopes is Classic Cue Billiards. The envelopes are required to be there by 12pm the Friday following league play. If the envelope is not dropped off by this time they will be considered late and the team will lose the bonus point for that week. For teams that are interested we can put a self-addressed stamped envelope into the sheets and the team can mail the completed score sheet and weekly dues directly to us. If you choose this option the envelope needs to be mailed the night that the match is played. This is to ensure that the envelope can reach us in time for processing. The team is also responsible for the weekly dues until it reaches the league office and therefore it is our recommendation that a check is written in place of cash. 

ABBREVIATIONS: to better communicate game results, please use the following abbreviations:

o        Scratch on 8                                       SO8

o        8 Ball Wrong Pocket                          8WP

o        Did Not Mark Pocket                          DMP

o        Early 8                                                 E8

FORFEITS - If a team fails to show up for a match, the opposing team (providing 5 players are present and listed on the scoresheet) will receive 4 points plus 1 bonus point in 8-Ball, and 60 points plus 15 bonus points in 9-Ball, provided all paperwork is complete and the full weekly dues are paid. Teams who do not show up for 2 consecutive weeks will be considered dropped from the League and a new schedule will be issued.  Dropped teams and suspended players will forfeit all benefits, trophies, awards and prize money.

DROPPED TEAMS - Teams that drop out after the fourth week of a session will owe the balance of all weekly fees for the remainder of that session. If the balance is not paid in full, then each player who wishes to continue participating in the APA will pay their prorated portion of the uncollected fees. This applies even if the player is on more than one team, and remains active on the other team(s).  Any team finishing a session and still owing uncollected weekly fees will pay the balance the first week of the following session.  If the team does not sign up for the following session, any player from that team wishing to join another team will pay their prorated portion of the uncollected fees.

BYES: When a new team is added to the schedule in the first 4 weeks of a session make-up matches will be scheduled between the new teams and those teams who had byes during the first 4 weeks. The make-up matches will then be scored to allow everyone an equal chance at the total points available in the session.  This will also give all players the best opportunity to meet the number-of-matches-played eligibility requirements in regards to playoffs and Local Team Championship competition. Weekly fees are due on make-up matches. 
Beginning the 5th week, (3) points plus 1 bonus point (as long as team is current on dues) will be awarded for all byes in the 8-Ball League and (50 + 15) points will be awarded for all byes in the 9-Ball League. 

MARKING THE POCKET - A marker will be used when shooting the 8-ball to let your opponent know which pocket you are calling.  In the event that you cannot find a marker, you may use an object foreign to the pool table.  You may not use table chalk or any item deemed inappropriate by the host location.

PLAYER SELECTION has been made for a particular match as soon as the opposing team has been notified of the player, and cannot be changed unless it is determined that the "23 Rule" will be violated. Team Captains should watch for the "23 Rule" violation prior to choosing your players.

PLAYING PLAYERS TWICE IN A MATCH – Teams may play a player twice in a match during the first four (4) weeks of the session while teams are stabilizing their rosters. If a team finds it necessary to play a player twice during this four week period the following rules must be followed. 1) Notify the opposing team captain as soon as it is learned that the team will be short players. 2) The opposing team has the right to approve who that player will be.  3) The player cannot put the team in violation of the “23 Rule”.  Any exceptions after the fourth week must be approved by the League Office. No player will be allowed to play twice the last two weeks of a session or during playoff matches – no exceptions.  

HOLIDAYS – No Matches On The Following National Holidays: Labor Day, Memorial Day, Christmas (& Eve), New Years (& Eve), Thanksgiving, & July 4th

RESCHEDULED MATCHES must be made up within two (2) weeks of the original match, unless pre-approved by the League Office.  If not made up within two weeks, zero points will be awarded to both teams.  Weekly Fees will be due for these matches.  The League Office must be notified by BOTH TEAMS of any rescheduled matches at least 48 hours (2 days) in advance.  There will be no rescheduling during the last 2 weeks of the League session or during the playoffs.  The only way to reschedule the last 2 weeks of the League session is to play them in advance.  
I
f you are the team asking for a reschedule, then you must be willing to go to the opposing teams host location to play, if requested.  Neither team will be issued points if a team walks out in the middle of a match, or for some reason refuses to play.  The game must be rescheduled for any points to be issued. 

SEVERE WEATHER conditions or travelers advisory warnings are a good enough reason for rescheduling team matches. Please notify the League Office for assistance with re-scheduling the match. When there are bad weather conditions and teams cannot field a full 5 players they will be allowed to “double up” a player (but must follow the 23-rule). It is also acceptable to play as much of the match as possible and finish the remaining match on a secondary night. Just notify the League Operator to the situation and we will work it out. 

DIVISION PLAYOFFS AND LTC - The team highest in points for its Division prior to the Division Playoffs will automatically qualify for the Local Team Championship (LTC). 

The first week of playoffs the 2nd place team will play a Wild Card team and the 3rd place team will play the 4th place team. The second week of playoffs the winners of those matches will play each other to determine the Division Champion. Two teams will qualify for entry into the Local Team Championship: The Division Champion and the High Point Winner.

*Summer session only: 1st and 2nd place in Playoffs will qualify for the LTC.

Weekly Fees must be current for any teams and/or players to enter the Session Playoffs, Singles, and/or the Local Team Championship.

COMMON PLAYERS – Players are encouraged to play in multiple divisions and on more than one team. You are not allowed to play on more than one team in the same division. When two or more teams have qualified for the Local Team Championship, and there are common players to the teams, the players that are common to those teams will sit out only the match in which he/she is common and let only those who are not common conduct the match. If there are teams that have more than 3 common players they will be placed on the tournament board so they will have to face each other before the final match. See the Official Team Manual for more details.

TRAVEL PACKAGE - Each team advancing to the National Team Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada will receive a Travel Assistance Package.   These funds are to assist with travel expenses. It is not prize money. If an eligible team, or any member of that team, should decide not to go to the National Team Championship, that team or member will forfeit these funds.

Banned Players/ Sportsmanship if a player on your team has been banned from a tavern or location, then the team must play without him/ her. The APA league has no right to insist a host location admit this player. Any player or team receiving more than two sportsmanship violations will be suspended from the league. Dropped teams or any suspended player will forfeit all benefits, trophies, awards and prize money.

FALSIFICATION OF SCORESHEET - any team caught sandbagging or sending in falsified score sheets will be subject to any penalties determined by the League Operator, including but not limited to suspension.

RULE BOOK EXCEPTIONS:

Masse and jump shots are legal if the house rules do not "disallow" them. Check with the owner or club manager. HOWEVER, jump cues are not allowed and players must use the cue they are using to shoot the match with. Players also need to execute a legal jump and cannot “scoop” the ball. See the Official Team Rules for further information.

Remember to treat your opponent as you would like to be treated, pay attention to the match, be ready to shoot when it’s your turn, limit coaching to one minute, use common sense when it comes to the rules, and above all, have fun!

BREAKING DOWN CUE STICK before a match has ended could result in loss of match.  If a player is shooting and his opponent cracks his stick (starts to take it apart) within view of the shooting player, this action could be considered a concession of the game by the opponent. The shooting player should stop and ask the opponent if s/he has just conceded the game, and if so, will be awarded the game. If the shooting player does not stop and ask, but continues to play and misses, the opponent will be permitted to take his turn. The intent is to eliminate an opponent’s attempt to intimidate or distract the shooting player. 

BALL IN HAND FOULS - The "Ball in Hand Fouls" are listed in the Official Team Manual.  These are the ONLY fouls resulting in ball in hand.  Any other type of violation of the rules is a sportsmanship violation.  The League Office should be notified in writing as soon as possible (you can write the issue on the back of the scoresheet and we will follow up).  Warnings and penalties will be assessed as necessary at the discretion of the League Office.

TIME OUTS – A time out has been called as soon as the player's coach or any other team member asks the player if they want a time out, or suggest to the player to take a time out.  See the Official Team Manual for more information regarding coaching.