Rule question: forfeit situation

[Kathy Wyrwas]

Help!! Is this a known forfeit or unknown forfeit?

One of my teams from last year never replied to all my pre-season inquiries about coming back for this fall season. No yes, no no-thanks. However, the grapevine (co-workers of the team members) told me they were returning. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I left them on the roster. Our Week 1 was last week, and this team was a no-show. I got out the rule book and looked up Rule 110c for how to handle forfeits.

I told the opposing team, who was present, "Since we don't know for sure if they are really a team or aren't coming back, I will hold off on entering scores and call the team members again the next day to find out their intent. If they are coming back, we will mark this as a forfeit. If they are not coming back, I will make it into a BYE team." They agreed and bowling proceeded.

I finally heard back several days later that the "absent" team was in fact not returning. So as agreed I made the team into BYE and printed out the standings sheets.

Now, the opponent team is protesting. Saying because I showed them the rule (110c-3) about a team not showing up, it's a forfeit and I should give them all 7 points. And that I can't make a team BYE after the games have been bowled. (AND that if I don't change the ruling, they are quitting the league!!!) (oh for petes sake.)

First, that's what they agreed to before they bowled.
Second, they all bowled under average and didn't even earn the points as required for a known forfeit or bye situation. 110c-3 says a team has to earn the points!
And third, would this be a known forfeit or unknown forfeit situation? That makes the difference between having to earn the points (known forfeit) or getting them automatically (unknown forfeit).

I really don't want to lose a team over this, but do need a proper interpretation of the rules. (I also posted this over on the bowl.com forum.) Thanks in advance...

[Lance Rasmussen]

I think you may have already found some of the answers.

If the team has never confirmed they are bowling, you can not really consider them forfeit and you really have a bye team. It would be different if they confirmed, no show, then confirmed not bowling. In this case, you "counted your chickens before they hatched."

Based on your league bylaws (not rule book), is there a difference in when a team bowls against a forfeit vs bowling against a BYE team?

Forfeits do not have a choice of "getting all the points". (But the fofeiting team does NOT get any points).

Per clarification on the next page of the rule book:


110c/3 If a team does not show up and a postponement was not requested, does the team present get all the points?

In instances where the reason for absence is unknown, the team present must earn the points and should be advised that the absence may be due to an emergency.


They must bowl within their their average less 10 pins (match) and team must bowl the team average, less 10 pins per player. The league has only the option to change the # of pins to a different number (other than Zero). A certified league does not have the option to be "creative" here.

Now if you are going to call this situation a Bye (which I think you should), then you go off of the Bye rules. Most bylaws choose the "Earn the Points" version. Regardless of which of the 3 systems, there is no "Gimme" here either. You must choose one of the 3 interpretations of how you will handle byes.

[Lance Rasmussen]

Ps. In case they are salivating regarding the clarification 110c/2 "unknown forfeit", they can not claim that.

You've immediately stated the no-shows will forfeit or be bye.

The only time you would get all points would be a situation where both teams bowled unknowing of a forfeit situation (inelligble player). In that case, the team would get all points.

This situation was already obvious, stated and clear on how it was to be handled.

[Patrick Lajko]

Since most all leagues have the same rule regarding a bye or forfeit (bowl within 10 pins per person of team average) it is a moot point. Either way, the result is the same.

They need to be aware that they do not automatically get all points in a forfeit. Its in the rule book.

They can't get all points because it was impossible for it to be an "unknown forfeit" situation. For that to happen, the other team would have had to been there and bowled with an ineligible player who was later found to be ineligible for some reason.

Sounds like whiners that want a free ride.

[Kathy Wyrwas]

This issue is RESOLVED, amicably, with a reminder of and examination of USBC rules.

No, they weren't trying to claim an "unknown forfeit". (They didn't even know what that was till we looked at the rules again at a meeting to resolve this.) They had simply thought that in a forfeit situation they automatically got the points. They said, if they had known they had to earn the points, they would have bowled differently. Regardless of the fact that we all looked at Rule 110c together on Week 1, the part about needing to earn the points somehow escaped them. They're not bs'ing, I believe them. No one else but me on my league ever really reads the rules, not even my other officers. Sad.

Scoring stands as I had it (the 'absent' team made into Blind/Bye instead) -- and "the whiners" are not quitting.

Thanks Lance and Patrick for your responses!!

[Marty Hellwig]

When my bowlers claim that they would have "bowled differently" had they been aware of a forfeit situation in advance I simply remind them that they just admitted to possible sandbagging and that the penalty for that could be rerating or even loss of their USBC card. They generally don't bring up that excuse again.