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How Your Handicap
 Review Committee Works

The American Poolplayers Association (APA) has asked every League Operator to form a Handicap Review Committee (HRC) for their area. The HRC’s purpose is to periodically review rosters and complaints concerning rulings on the accuracy of handicaps. You’re already aware that The Equalizer™ scoring and handicapping system incorporates safeguards to ensure the accuracy of our players’ skill levels. Unfortunately, no matter how ingenious these safeguards may be, there are always a few players who conspire to cheat the system. Instead of dwelling on this inevitable facet of human nature, we’ve instituted several methods designed to eliminate this problem. A good Handicap Review Committee is the final line of defense and has virtually eliminated the sandbagging violations. The members of the Handicap Review Committee may be known to the membership or their identities may be kept anonymous. Your HRC members are your friends unless you are an offender.

HERE’S HOW YOUR HANDICAP REVIEW COMMITTEE WORKS.

The HRC consists of a few of the best players in your area. Every attempt will be made to ensure there are members from each division in your League. Additionally, HRC members should abstain from rulings concerning a player on that member’s team. The HRC can meet periodically or whenever a problem arises. Here are some examples of pertinent situations:

• Whenever there are specific complaints about a member.

• To periodically review players’ skill levels.

• To review new members and make recommendations concerning the assigning of skill levels to “known” highly skilled players.

• To review the skill levels of all players entering Higher Level Tournaments.

• To rule on protests concerning handicaps and “sandbagging” violations.

Although the HRC will normally meet if there is business to conduct, it is possible for HRC members to individually review specific cases and submit their opinions to the League Operator for action.

HOW DOES THE HANDICAP REVIEW COMMITTEE DECIDE THAT A PLAYER’S SKILL LEVEL IS TOO LOW?

The best method to date is the COMPARISON METHOD. The comparison method works as follows: A number of CONTROL PLAYERS are identified throughout the area. A control player is a player who is weak within his or her skill level. In other words, a number of players throughout the area are identified because the HRC is “surprised” the player has achieved the level they carry. The “weakest” sixes would be the control players for the skill level six, category. There should be at least two control players identified for each skill level. Once the control players have been identified by the HRC (their identity can remain anonymous), the HRC is ready to conduct business. The HRC conducts an investigation in the following manner.

• A player that attracts the attention of the HRC is then compared to the control players one skill level higher than his or her skill level.

• HRC members are asked, “Who would be favored if player A (the player in question) and player B (the control player) were to play a serious match?”

• HRC members are allowed to vote only if they have personal knowledge (not hearsay) of both players’ abilities. That’s why there should be more than one control player for each skill level.

• It is possible for an HRC member to relate that Player A is consistently better than some other player in the League (let’s call him player X) and that player X plays better than the named control player.

• It takes a majority of the HRC members voting to cause a player’s skill level to be raised.

• The League Operator is the final authority, but the APA has asked League Operators to refrain form overruling the HRC’s decision.

• A player can appeal the HRC’s decision. A few players have convinced the HRC that their decision was wrong and were allowed to return to their former skill level.

It’s true that the judgments of the HRC are merely the opinions of its members. This may sound faulty and inaccurate but, in fact, the science of committee and jury systems has been solving the world’s problems for thousands of years. It has been the lucky civilizations and organizations that have been ruled by committees rather than an individual (dictator). The League was designed to give players of all abilities a good competitive chance to win each match in which they play. The Equalizer™ scoring and handicapping system guarantees you that good chance. It must be protected and the HRC is the most effective final line of defense. It is in your best interest to know how your HRC works and to support the HRC at all times.

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