League Operations will attempt to have registration open at least 3 weeks before league starts. Scheduling and other issues coordinating with the rink may interfere with this goal on occasion.

Rules and schedules specific to each league (including the number of byes, which playoff games each team will get to play based on regular-season rankings, etc.) will be posted on the registration form. Please be sure to read through all the details before submitting your registration.

The League Manager will do their best to accommodate as many players as possible for each league, but we can only accommodate a workable number of teams for each league’s draw schedule. If we receive an unworkable number of registrations, then registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis in a manner that creates a workable number of teams. Therefore, after you submit your registration form, please await email confirmation from the League Manager on whether your registration has been accepted.

You will receive a payment link to pay the rink directly once your registration has been accepted. You must pay within 5 days of receiving the payment link, or you will forfeit your spot in the league.

Everyone must register individually for league play. Team member requests can be made through the registration form. The League Manager will take all team member requests into account but cannot guarantee they will be honored given the first-come, first-served policy. In general, our goal is to honor all team member requests so long as all team members timely register and the requests are mutual.

Each team is permitted to declare a 5th player after all registrations have been accepted & paid for and the team lineups have been announced by the League Manager. The 5th player does not pay a separate registration fee to the rink. To declare a 5th player for your team, you must email the name of the 5th player to the League Manager BEFORE the start of the league. The 5th player must be a member of the club.

All refunds will be processed by the rink according to their policies.

All curlers playing on Thursdays and all curlers playing in the early draw on Saturdays must arrive in time to help set up. This means arriving sufficiently early to allow yourself time to change clothes & shoes and then help with setup tasks.

All curlers playing on Thursdays and all curlers playing in the late draw on Saturdays must stay after the game to help with cleanup tasks.

Here is the generally applicable schedule for league nights at Westminster Ice:

Thursdays:

• 7:50-8:00 p.m. - Stage equipment off-ice
• 8:00-8:15 p.m. - On-ice setup
• 8:15-10:15 p.m. - Game
• 10:15-10:30 p.m. - On-ice and off-ice cleanup

Saturdays:

• 6:55-7:05 p.m. - Stage equipment off-ice
• 7:05-7:20 p.m. - On-ice setup
• 7:20-9:20 p.m. - Early-draw game
• 9:20-11:20 p.m. - Late-draw game
• 11:20-11:35 p.m. - On-ice and off-ice cleanup

To ensure that we stay on schedule and that all teams have the opportunity to play 8 ends each league night, please follow these time-saving measures:

• Find your opponent during the off-ice equipment staging period to complete your coin toss.
• After the conclusion of each shot, sweepers should move to the edge of the sheet so their opponent can set up their next shot.
• Skips should be ready to call their shot after their opponent’s stone comes to a rest.
• If you are a skip, please be considerate of the time you are taking to call your shot. We are on a time limit!
• After an early-draw game, please reset the stones to their pre-game positions while the vice skips record the score and reset the scoreboard for the next game.

Each draw is allotted 2 hours for game play, which is sufficient time to complete an 8-end game if everyone plays at a good pace. If the first draw is late due to outside conditions, each draw will be adjusted by the appropriate time. The game clock will reflect this.

The game clock for each draw will be set on the rink’s scoreboard game clock. The clock will start at the predetermined time specified for each draw (see the Setup and Cleanup Schedule above).

The clock/timer will be set to 90 minutes. When the buzzer sounds, finish the end you are in AND start one more; but if the first stone of the end has not been thrown when the buzzer sounds, play that end only! If you’re curling on time, the buzzer should sound after the 7th end is underway. If ice setup completion was delayed due to lack of league curler participation, the timer will be adjusted down so we do not go over our allotted on-ice time from the rink.

If the game is tied after the last end is complete, skips will each throw one stone, and the closest to the button wins. If, after each skip has thrown, no stone touched the house, stones will be thrown again.

Teams are responsible for and required to secure their own subs either by reaching out directly to subs or by using the Sub Request tool located within the Members Only portion of the club’s website (login required). Sub fees are waived for members in good standing, but non-members must pay a $25 sub fee either in cash or online before the game.

All teams are encouraged to use the Sub Request tool to find a sub when a team is missing one or more players. Beginners and other non-members frequently add themselves to our Sub Request list. Using this list will encourage those who have shown interest in playing to try out the game, and in turn, they may be more willing to join the club at a future date.

Vice skips should make sure all subs are listed on the scoresheet.

Subs must throw either in the 1st or 2nd position only. They can hold the broom as skip or vice skip; the only restriction is throwing order (unless agreed to otherwise by the opposing team).

Vice skips of BOTH teams are responsible for filling out the official scoresheet IN ITS ENTIRETY, meaning all of the following:

1. List the correct team next to the correct rock color;
2. Identify which team had hammer in the first end;
3. Record each end number under the corresponding number of points;
4. Calculate the final score totals and input them at the end of the line scores;
5. Identify all subs by their full name;
6. Specify the total number of ends actually played (please do not include unplayed ends—see below for league rule on credit that will automatically be given for unplayed ends) AND if 8 ends were not played, specify the reason for the shortened game (i.e., time, conceded, other); and
7. Sign the scoresheet.

The top 4 teams of each league will play for the championship. The remaining teams will play for no higher than 5th place. In some leagues, the bottom teams will play for “The Plunger” prize. Check each league’s rules on the registration form for details about how the playoffs will be structured for each league.

Playoff games are NOT guaranteed 8 ends. Standard clock/buzzer rules apply.

Teams are primarily ordered based on their win/loss record.

Two-way ties based in win/loss records will be decided with the following tie-breaker rules (the first rule that doesn’t result in a tie will be used):

1. Head-to-head matchup results.
2. Ranking based on ends and blanks won.
3. Skips’ stones

If 3 or more teams are tied based on their win/loss record, the tie will be broken with the following tie-breaker rules:

1. Positions will be decided by head-to-head matchups if all teams have played each other. If all teams have not played each other or if all teams have an equal head-to-head matchup record, then all teams move to the next rule.
2. Positions will be decided based on ends and blanks won. If two or more teams remain tied based on this criterion, only the tied teams move to the last rule.
3. Teams still tied after the rule b. will throw skips’ stones before the draw when they are next scheduled to play. If the result of skips’ stones means that one team plays during early draw and one team plays late draw, the skips’ stones will be thrown BEFORE early draw.

Ranking points are calculated as follows:

• 9 points for a win.
• 1 point for each end won.
• One-half (0.5) point for each end blanked.

All points are cumulative.

If a team cannot present the minimum number of registered players at a game, they must declare a forfeit.

The minimum number of registered players for a 4-person team (including a team with a declared 5th player) is 2 to avoid a forfeit. The 5th player is considered a registered player in this instance.

If a team only has 3 registered members, they only need 1 registered player present to avoid a forfeit.

The forfeiting team must inform BOTH the League Manager and their opponent as soon as possible. In addition, the forfeiting team is responsible for arranging a game for the other team–this is NOT the responsibility of the League Manager or the opposing team.

The forfeiting team will receive zero ranking points, while their opponent will receive 9 points for the win plus 5 points as the equivalent for winning 5 ends (total 14 points).

In case of a double forfeit (i.e., both teams of a given match-up must forfeit because neither can present the minimum number of registered players at a game), one team will receive a forfeit win. The winning team will be decided through skips’ stones at a mutually agreeable time during regular-season league play on OCCC home ice.

If a team concedes during a game before the full allotted time has expired, the winning team may be eligible to receive credit for unplayed ends. Based on the club’s experience at Westminster, 7 ends can be played within the allotted time, but 8 ends are not guaranteed. Therefore, after an early concession, the winning team will receive credit for all remaining unplayed ends assuming a 7-end game.

Thus, for example, if a team concedes after the 5th end, where the losing team had scored 1 end and the winning team had scored 4 ends, the winning team would receive credit for 2 extra ends for a total of 6 ends. The losing team would receive credit for the 1 end they won.

Credit for unplayed ends in a conceded game will be ASSIGNED BY THE LEAGUE MANAGER when inputting the scores onto the website. When filling out a scoresheet in a conceded game, vice skips must only mark down the ends actually played–DO NOT ADD IN THE CONCEDED ENDS. Mark the reason for the game ending early as “Conceded,” and the League Manager will add the credit for unplayed ends.