MADDEN TOURNAMENT RULES

OFFICIAL PLAYERS BOWL BCA TOURNAMENT RULES
Updated: 02/07/08

 download and print rules click here
Must have Microsoft Word or Word Perfect to read document

PLATFORM: The Tournament is being played on (2) separate Consoles. PS2,  and XBOX 360. For those that need clarification there will be (2) separate tournaments running at the same time. You can play on more than one console if you choose but if you choose to do so you MUST arrive before 12. All games will be played on Standard PS2, & Xbox 360. Any Standard PS2 or 360 controller can be used. 360 wireless can be used as well. If caught cheating using wireless baller will be disqualified from the tournament as well as that baller cheating for him put on blast on stage in front of the entire tournament.

ARRIVAL TIME: Please Arrive in a timely fashion. Doors will open up at 10am. All Ballers please try to arrive between 10am-12. Those ballers that arrive early once registered  will begin play shortly afterwards as they are put into 3 man brackets. Those that arrive late will risk being put into brackets with some other better ballers who like to stride in there late. You will see that coming early and playing early you give yourself an advantage especially if you win your bracket then you can take a break go eat and chill and watch other games and scout  as you wait for the playoffs to being later on that day. Come late you will find yourself fighting through some very tough brackets to get into the playoffs. Those that have pre-registered online and arrive early  between 10-10-30 will get the first dibs at bracket selection. What does this mean if you pre-register and come early you may find yourself in a easier  bracket then showing up to the tournament right in the thick of everybody registering. Remember those prime time ballers don’t like to get there early cause they been up all night playing so if you want to avoid them get there early.

GAMES: All Ballers are guaranteed at least 2 games for this Major Ballers Club tournament. Each baller must defeat his or her opponent in the qualifying 3 man bracket randomly chosen as you register. Once a winner is determined out of that 3 man bracket that winner will advance to the Single Elimination Play Offs Bracket later on that day scheduled to start between  5pm-6pm. For the Ballers that didn’t qualify for the Playoffs after playing in their 3 man bracket, if you still choose to attempt to qualify for the Playoffs they can by entering another 3 man qualifying bracket as long as there are slots remaining to fill the single elimination Playoff Bracket. See Tournament official Bobby Storm (With EA Jersey) at front desk to re-enter Qualifying Brackets.

TEAMS: Players will be allowed to use any of the 32 NFL teams (Latest UP TO DATE ROSTERS Pre-existing Injuries Off ). You do not have to use the same team throughout the tournament. Players will be allowed to use the same teams within a game. Also for those that are not aware VICK is not on UP to date Rosters there for he is not allowed in Tournament game play!!

TOURNAMENT FORMAT:  For this Tournament as you enter all ballers will be put in groups of 3 randomly. These are called qualifying brackets to get you to the single elimination PLAYOFF bracket later on that day. You will be required to play each baller in your group one time. Once complete we will take the winner of that group and they will be sent to the Single Elimination Playoffs later on that day. If it comes to a tie between ballers then the winner of the group will be determined by tie breaker POINT DIFFERENTIAL. We will take winners from all groups all day till we have from 32 to 48 winners depending on the total amount of ballers for that day and time permits. Once you are are knocked out of a group you can still qualify for the playoffs by entering into a brand new group and you still have a chance to win a group. The number of the Single Elimination brackets are determined by the total amount of ballers. We usually allow at least half into the single elimination bracket. Once we have our 32 to 48 winners of the groups the single elimination bracket will be set.

Qualifying Brackets : To Make the Playoffs you have to win your 3 Man Qualifying Bracket.. Qualifying brackets will begin once doors open at 10am:  Qualifying brackets will  continue till at least 4pm or until all Playoff Seeds are filled which is 32-48 Slots. In the beginning of play 2 out of the 3 ballers of the bracket will play. Who ever is declared the loser of that game will stay on the sticks and then proceed and play the remaining baller. Once that game is over the baller that won the first game then plays the remaining baller he has to play. Who ever has the best record out of the 3 once all 3 have played each other will move on to the  playoff bracket. If there is a 3 way tie (1-1)  then the tie breaker will be pt. differential. If after that there still remains a tie then the tie breaker will come down to total offensive points scored. Remember this is just the qualifying brackets which is the only way you can make the playoffs. If you do not WIN YOUR BRACKET and wish to re-join another qualifying bracket with all new ballers and take another shot at making the playoffs you are allowed to do so as many times as you like as long as playoff spots remain.  After your bracket has been completed and you realize you are not going to win that bracket, See Tournament Director with the EA SPORTS JERSEY  about joining another bracket.

PLAYOFFS:  Playoffs will consist of 32-48 Qualifying Bracket Winners. The only way you can qualify for the Playoffs is to win a Qualifying 3 man Bracket. Playoffs will be Single Elimination all the way through to the Championship Game. For those that do not understand single elimination, once you loose you are out of the tournament and done playing for the day. Once you loose in the PLAYOFFS you CANNOT GET BACK INTO THE TOURNAMENT.


CREWS PLAYING SAME CREW: Gametime will guarantee as much as possible that you will not play your crew or league member or buddy in the 3 man bracket. As we said the earlier you arrive this will enable us to separate the individual players from their crews.  The only way to do so is to arrive early day of the tournament or arrive on time or pre-register. If you arrive late (after 12) you risk a chance of playing your crew or league member in one of those preliminary rounds. You must inform the person or persons at the desk that you all came together so when the brackets are being generated you will not play each other and be separated accordingly. As the rounds proceed and if Crew member meets another crew member in the later rounds they will play it out. If two of the same crew are to play each other and they do not play when the official tells them to play then one of those ballers will be selected by the official and that will be the one to advance. We are not going to play that lets wait and see who wins in the other bracket so we can see who we have to play and then we will play our game. That’s not going to work here and will not be tolerated.  With so many heads coming from the different leagues and them advancing its hard to separate all the ballers from playing each other when it gets down to the later rounds.  So once the playoff bracket is set we will let it play out from there and finish out the tournament. THERE WILL BE NO SWITCHING BRACKETS PERIOD. DON’T EVEN ENTERTAIN THE THOUGHT OF COMING UP TO THE OFFICIAL AND ASKING US TO SWITCH cause its not fair to the other ballers in the tournament who played it out and got that far.

FORFEIT GAMES: Ballers that have a player in their particular bracket round that decide to not play their game for what ever reason, the remaining baller will then be automatically advanced to the next bracket round.

21 PT MERCY  RULE:  There is a (21)  point mercy rule up to Championship Game !! If  either player gains a lead of  21 or more points the game is ended with the player leading declared the winner. This mercy rule may suspend a game up to the Championship game. Once the losing Baller is down 21 the baller that is down will be given one more chance to score on the next position. If the baller does not score the game is then called. This is to speed up the tournament and not sit there and witness 50- 0 Embarrassing Blow outs.

 

HURRY UP OFFFENSE:

USE OF HURRY UP OFFENSE: The implementation of the hurry up offense philosophy is permitted. However, the use of the hurry offense after an incomplete pass is prohibited . First time infraction (for warning) Offense must wait for Defense to set up giving them at least 10 seconds after Offense returns to the line (Offense must Check to see if Defense is ready before snapping the ball)   Once rule is broken the 2nd time and there after…

Penalties for breaking this rule:

Each offence: Timeout or If there are no more Timeout's then delay of game penalty must be taken.


NO TAKE OVER TEAMS: No baller will be allowed to pass their team or spot in the tournament to another baller for what ever reason. If that baller can not finish then their games will be forfeited and the next baller in that bracket gets awarded a win and moves on.


VIEW: Our tournament default view is MADDEN or CLASSIC View. Each player can agree to one particular view before the game but that view must remain the same all the way throughout the game. If players cannot agree to a particular view then players will flip a coin to decide view.

NO REFUNDS: Once registration has been received at the front desk there are no refunds. Also if a baller registers and doesn’t show up by the time his name is called for his or her game for that first round then that spot will be a forfeit and his spot given to the next baller on standby. Remember once tournament Rules are read the games will be announced and tournament will start. If and when your name is called when setting up your game if you are not present at the third call your spot will be given to the next available baller on standby and you will not be given a refund. We advice ballers who pre register to allow themselves extra time to arrive at the tournament in an orderly fashion because we are on a very professional tight schedule and lateness’s will not be tolerated. It is the Tournament Commissioners discretion. to call a forfeit of a spot on a game.

MEMORY CARDS: NO personal Memory cards are allowed during tournament play, except for the Tournament refs that download the updated rosters.


AUDIBLES: Audible privacy will be granted to both players before the game starts. Players are allowed to make audible adjustments at half-time and during your OWN timeout only (Two-minute warning audible changes are forbidden). Audible privacy will be allowed for these changes. We want to keep the games moving to keep the tournament flowing along at a good speed.  Please allow your opponents to enter his or hers audible's with a little privacy. Audible privacy will be given to each baller for the time of 2 minutes.

BANNED PLAYS

(360) OFF SIDES  GLITCH….Out of ATL Playbook in the Shot Gun Trio formation its called Shot Gun Trio TE Cross, QB Choice & HB Out

You can use the above plays   but YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO FLIP & RESET THE PLAY WHICH  once you do so will  then send

 your player in motion which touches  the down linemen which causes the Defense to jump off-sides.

(360) Shot Gun Two Back (FK WR Screen Wheel)

(360) WR Double Pass

(360) HB Pass Out of any Formation

 

(PS2)

Full house formation - Broken Qb sneak – Has been Banned

Any Broken PA QB Sneaks  – Has been Banned

Any created Plays created from Broken PA (Play action) Plays) – Have been Banned

Flea Flicker – Has been Banned (no Flea Flicker of any kind allowed in this tournament)

No Creating QB draws by broken running plays – Has been Banned

Freezing the Kicker on Fg's – We will not allow players to pause the game right before a gm winning kick. Theres a glitch that freezes the kicker and he wont move, allowing the D to sack him and miss the Fg. If the Defense does this then that Baller will be forfeited from the tournament.

(NO SPECIAL TEAM PLAYS IN YOUR AUDIBLES) That’s Right No audibling down from FG block and all that other illegal non-sense. Play Ball !!! 

QB DRAW RULE: The Use of QB Draw, QB Sneak, or QB Sweep in between the tackles is only allowed in a situation where it is 2 yards or less for a first down or while you are in the REDZONE. (REDZONE IS 20 YDLINE or inside for those that are not aware) 

NOTE: You can Run your QB outside the tackles at ANYTIME but not in between the tackles.

 

 

If  Any of these above infractions  for PS2 or 360 has been committed  immediately put the game on pause and call over a Tournament official. If its Proven and Discovered that a infraction has been committed then baller gets a verbal warning and  REVERSAL OF ANY YARDS GAINED OR PTS SCORED.   THE FOLLOWING TIME IT HAPPENS THEN  the baller that committed the act will get an - Automatic Forfeit of Game (no excuses!!!!)


CHEATING OR INFRACTION: If during the tournament you feel your opponent is cheating or a Serious Infraction has been committed against you then put the game on pause and stand up and call over a tournament official. The tournament official will assist you in addressing the issue.

REPORTING INFRACTIONS (VERY IMPORTANT) -   Remember, once the violation happens you must pause the game immediately and call for a Ballersclub Official to come and review the play. DO NOT take the liberty of reviewing the play before contacting the official. Please DO NOT wait longer than before the snap of the next play to report any possible infractions. WE WILL NOT make a ruling on any infractions that we did not see or anything after the snap of the ball for the next play. This applies to ALL INFRACTIONS!!!! 

EQUIPMENT: Please bring your own, PS2, 360 controller for your use during the tournament. If you do not have one to use Controllers will be rented out at $10.00 per controller and some type of ID such as drivers license will be held in exchange until controller is returned the same working state it was received.

PLAYBOOKS: CUSTOM PLAYBOOK AND CREATED PLAYS - ARE NOT ALLOWED.

DOWN LINEMAN: Down Lineman must be viewable on the screen before the snap of the ball.


SCREEN TOGGLING: No excessive screen toggling will be allowed during snap of ball or before a FG or punt. Abuse of this rule will result in use of time out or in case of FG situation re-kick. If you feel this rule is being abused put the game on pause and call over a tournament official. If you allow the snap of the ball you live with the outcome. No player is permitted to pause the game if there is a field goal or punt in progress. Anyone who does so must use a time-out to allow the kick to proceed properly. Kicking and punt blocking has been a constant issue with Madden players in past years and will continued to be looked upon under a magnified glass.

KICKING: The GAMETIME TOURNAMENT officials have modified the kicking rules as follows:

Players CAN NOT PUNT BLOCK OR BLOCK ANY FG’S (PERIOD). Any illegal Defensive movement on the defensive side of the ball before and during a FG or punt or extra pt is prohibited. Illegal movement will result in re-kick of FG or re-kick of punt. To prevent any questionable accusations it is recommended to just put the stick down. How ever if you choose to pull a man back with the returner as a blocker you are allowed to do so otherwise there is to be no shifting and movement on the line. The only person you can control is the punt returner or that other blocker and they are not allowed to rush the kicker. In the situation right before the half, if your opponent is attempting a FG you cannot jump off sides in an attempt to the make the clock run out and end the half. In the situation of a pressure kick and pressure situation is on you CANNOT use the glitch to undo the PRESSURE KICK.

NO Fake Punts or Fake FG
• If you are not sure of a particular rule ….Pause the game before snap and call over a tournament official for questioning.
• No ONSIDE KICKS till the 4th Quarter and you must be down.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Only position-for-position substitutions are allowed, offensively and defensively. Special Teams substitutions are up to the baller's discretion. Even though this years version seems to know allow out of position subs we are clarifying it anyway. Audibles and substitutions can only be changed before the game, Halftime, 2 minute warning or if you use a timeout.

Positions: QB for for QB, HB/FB for FB/HB, WR for WR, KICKER FOR KICKER AND PUNTER FOR PUNTER,TE for TE (no FBs at TE), LB for LB, secondary for secondary, offensive lineman for offensive lineman, defensive lineman for defensive lineman.. No OG or OT at Tight End. If your package allows you to put LB at DE then of course you are allowed to do so. No subbing defensive personnel on offense, and vice-versa. Only in a case were your D-chart allows and all those designated positions are gone will this be allowed. What ever you can within your package sub is allowed but you cannot deliberately sub a person out of position. Again The above ruling is only for substitution settings and DOES NOT APPLY TO THE PACKAGE OR BIG OPTION

SETTINGS:

FAIR PLAY : FAIR PLAY IS OFF

 INFRACTION OR CHEATING: If you feel your opponent has committed an infraction you should immediately put the game on pause and raise the red flag and call over a tournament official. But keep in mind the infraction has to be a solid infraction supported by facts broken with in the rules. A baller can then stand up and raise his hand and a tournament official will come over and review the infraction.

COACHING: No one will be allowed to assist any player with decisions during a game. Anyone who does so will be pointed toward the front door. Headphones for music will be allowed, but all cell-phones and cellphone earpieces will not be allowed during gameplay. No game stoppage for cell-phone calls.

JOURNALS: Notebooks, magazines, cheat sheets, study guides, or Madden books will be permitted at the tourney, but can not be viewed at all during your game, however they can be viewed during  (timeouts only). Video cameras, digital cameras and 35mm cameras are allowed, but NO games will be taped.

LIABILITY: We are not responsible for property lost or stolen or broken during the tournament. Make everything such as controllers has your name on it so it wont get mixed up with another baller.

HOME & AWAY: A flip of a coin will decide which player gets to play at home. Once a baller advances to the later rounds both players will flip for home field advantage. 

OVERTIME: All games that end in a tie will go to sudden death.

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTY: All games will be placed on situation mode if there is any type of problems with the PS2 OR 360 or Madden disk.

RULES UPDATE: Ballersclub officials have the ability to update rules if new situation /Major Glitch comes up and gets abused and is cause for a ruling to be made.

STOLEN, BROKEN, OR LOST PROPERTY: We are not responsible for property stolen, broken or lost during the tournament. Please make sure that everything you bring to the tournament has your name on it - especially controllers

PRIZES : Total Prize Pot is paid up to $2000 for PS2 and up to $2000 for 360. Total Max Payout for each console is based on total amount of participants. Trophies will be awarded to 1st and 2nd Place for both consoles as well as particular cash payout.

BASHING: Smack talk seems to come with the Madden because of the intensity of the game. Some players like to scream, stomp, or shout their way to victory. Loud Cursing will not be permitted at the tournament and can CAUSE DISQUALIFICATON. Understanding this emotional outburst, we ask players not to physically touch another player, attack anyone's character, or be an IDIOT in anyway and especially invade your opponents ZONE. One OUTBURST WILL CAUSE THAT PLAYERS to be disqualified if the official decides that you have ignored the Ballersclub staff and request. REPEAT YOU ARE TO NOT TOUCH THE PLAYER NEXT TO YOU IN ANY WAY SHAPE OR FORM for this will cause you to be kicked out the tournament. In this case the other player automatically advanced to the next round.  No loud cursing in a ballers face will not be tolerated and will cause that baller to be kicked out the tournament. Again if the official hear or catches you Loud Cursing in your opponents face or disrespected him or his Circle in any way you will be disqualified and kicked out the tournament and we don’t care who you are and what crew you belong too. There will be No getting in a Ballers face and that also can cause you and YOUR TEAM to be kicked out the tournament. Keep in mind there are kids, woman and young people at our event as well and we need to act accordingly and set an example. The key is to have a good time and enjoy the atmosphere not let your emotions get out of hand.  We want BALLERS CLUB EVENTS to remain a safe and competitive venue that is enjoyable to participate in. If physical contact is attempted the such as (push,swing) of any kind that baller will be immediately kicked out of the tournament no questions ask. That goes for everybody. The Security officials headed by Kinslow will escort that particular baller out of the tournament and a report will be filed with PA CONVENTION CENTER OFFICIALS & PA STATE TROOPERS who are on site. Any fights or criminal act will result in immediate DISMISAL

LATENESS: Registration will begin from 10AM to 12:00. Bracket selection and play will begin shortly After 10am for those that arrive early. Rules will be read at that time. Arrive between 10am-12 to begin play. As you come in and you register you will be put into a 3 man bracket and told which TV you will be playing at. Ballersclub encourages ballers to pre-register and arrive at the tournament in a timely fashion. Tournament start time is right after rules are read and we ask everyone to be on time. Lateness will not be tolerated because it is not fair to others who have arrived on time. Once rules are read and the tournament starts, if you are a paid registered baller and your name is up and its time for you to play from the time the game is announced you have 5 minutes to arrive or your game will be forfeited.

 download and print rules click here
Must have Microsoft Word or Word Perfect to read document

GTP HOME