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I was just reviewing the official Tournament Host Guide in preparation for the Missouri State Tournament since it has been a while since I have hosted a larger Redemption Tournament.  One thing I noticed was that just before the chart of suggested number of rounds for participants for swiss-style play, it says "State, regional, and national hosts MUST play the number of rounds listed." 

Does it mean EXACTLY that?  I always thought the number of rounds were MINIMUMS but that the tournament could be LONGER if desired.  Specifically, I am wanting to nail down my schedule of events for the MO State Tournament, rounding UP for number of rounds so I know I will meet the minimum requirements.  This way I can publish definite schedules in advance, especially for the sake the the participants who are coming from out of town.

Can someone confirm for me that this is acceptable?  If so, we probably need to tweak the wording of the Tournament Host Guide.

Hey,

The number of rounds listed in the tournament guide is a minimum.  Most top players greatly appreciate it if once a year tournaments (state, regionals, nationals) are at least one round more than the minimum.

At yesterday's Florida State Tournament, I did extra rounds in a couple of categories to help offset the skew of Bye Points and clarify a definitive overall winner. The number of rounds listed in the guide usually accomplish that anyway. We had 16 players in Type 1 2-Player, and the four rounds produced clear place winners.

A minimum round tournament usually determines a clear first place winner.  If it determines a clear second and third place player you got lucky, the odds are not in your favor of having a clear second or third place winner with the minimum number of rounds.  One extra round usually gets you a clear second place winner.  Two extra rounds usually gets you a clear second and third place winner.

Tschow,

Tim "Sir Nobody" Maly