The 2019 Graduate Cup

***Entries close Saturday 6 October 2018***

There are some significant changes to this year’s Graduate Cup including dates, eligibility, pricing and groupings for the draw.

The Graduate Cup is the CURTC’s premier handicap competition, first played in 1875. Below are the key dates, eligibility criteria and rules of the tournament.

Eligibility

Over 18
Open to players with non-provisional handicaps
Results recorded against 4 different opponents since 1 June 2017

Deadline for signing up is Saturday, October 6th.
Key Dates:

• Group Stage Matches: Saturday, 13 October 2018 – Saturday, 1 December 2018
• Last 16, Quarter Finals and Semi Finals: Friday 11 – Saturday 12 January 2019
• Grand Final: Saturday 16 March 2019 (Finals Day)

All Group matches must be played on or before Noon on Saturday 1 December.

To enter:

Please sign up HERE: Maximum 64 spaces

Format

The draw is for 64 players. There will be 16 groups of 4 players.
Players will be ranked in handicap order and divided into four divisions. A draw will take place and a player from each division will be drawn into each of the 16 groups, providing a representative for each of the four divisions in each group.

Senior members will be charged a one off fee of £32 to cover their court fees in the group stages. Court fees for the later stages of the tournament will be payable by those who progress through. Marking fees for the finals are sponsored by Hannay Robertson Financial Services. Student players do not pay court fees but are expected to make every effort to play their group matches in a flexible and efficient way.

The Pros will, on request, block book courts for entire groups to play in one session.

In the event of a draw, group winners will be determined using the following criteria (in order): most matches won, most games won, fewest games lost, coin-toss!

The Group winners progress to the knockout stage of the tournament which will be drawn. There will be no cap on the maximum difference in handicaps.

All group stage matches are to be played between Saturday 13 October 2018 to Saturday 1 December 2018. Players are responsible for arranging their own matches.

Each match is “first to 8 games”, to be played off handicap and 40-all, not deuce and advantage. Results where the handicap difference is greater than 10 will not be input thus protecting the stronger players who progress to the knockout phase.

Before entering please ensure that you will be available to play ALL 3 of your group matches before the group stage ends on 1 December 2018. If you fail to play matches you disadvantage your fellow group members!
We strongly encourage members to book all their matches by the end of October.

The 16 group winners from the group stage will contest 3 rounds of the knockout competition on Friday 11 and Saturday 12 January 2019, which will produce our two finalists. These matches will be arranged by the tournament organisers.

The Handicap Committee will review the handicaps of the Group winners prior to the start of the knockout phase of the tournament.

The Grand Final will be played on Saturday 16 March, Finals Day sponsored by Hannay Robertson Financial Services. The tournament winner will also be eligible to enter the National Handicap Tournament in the autumn.

A group winner unable to play in the knockout stage will not necessarily be replaced with the runner-up from the same group. Rather, the “next best” runner-up from all of the groups will be selected using the following criteria (in order): most matches won, most games won, fewest games lost, coin-toss!

In the event that an issue(s) arises that is (are) not covered by the rules above, the matter will be decided by the Handicap Committee whose decision will be final.