1. In all programs qualifying for National, or World Tournament play will be required to compete in the State Tournament before advancing. Teams participating in World Tournament play will be required to compete in their respective National Tournament before advancing.

2. In order for a team to be eligible to compete in the Oklahoma USSSA State Championship Tournament, it must be registered in the state of Oklahoma, and meet the requirements for its respective program and classification as follows:

          a. All Adult teams must have their Qualified Roster on line With usssa.com .

b. In the men’s "C", "D", and "E" programs, the Mixed "C", "D" and "E" programs teams may qualify for the Oklahoma USSSA State Championship Tournament in either of two (2) ways:

(1) By finishing in the top 33% of a State Qualifying tournament.

Or

(2) A team not qualifying by finishing in the top third of a tournament, may qualify by participating in at least (3) USSSA Sanctioned events within the State of Oklahoma. One of these events may be a sanctioned league, and One of these events must be a State Qualifying tournament (regardless Of Finish). Qualified rosters for teams qualifying through this participation option will be the roster submitted for their last State Qualifying Tournament played in prior to the state tournament.

c. In the men’s "B" and above, Women's" and above, Mixed Major and any other adult programs not specified in the preceding paragraphs, the Oklahoma USSSA State Championship will be played as an "open" tournament. As such it will be open to all properly classified Oklahoma USSSA registered teams, provided a fully completed team roster is provided on line at usssa.com at least one (1) week prior to the State tournament.

d. At large state tournament berths may be awarded by usssa slow-pitch ballparks. 1 berth per night of league played: I.E. Park plays league six nights each week, they may award 6 State tournament berths.

3. In order for a team to be eligible to compete in the National, and World tournaments, they must play in a minimum of three (3) USSSA recognized events within the state of Oklahoma, including the State Tournament. League play may count as one of these events. For teams participating Men’s (c", (D" or "E" classifications or Mixed "C", "D" and "E" classifications the requirements will be four(4) USSSA events within the state of Oklahoma, including the State Tournament with league play counting as one of these events.

4. In the event a team wins three (3) tournaments in any single classification, that the Oklahoma State Classification Board will automatically review team’s classification. This will determine whether or not the team’s classification is appropriate, and may or may not reclassify it. At the State Tournament the team may be allowed to compete in their original class level, providing that team has not been permanently moved to a higher classification, and then only with the approval of the Classification Board and/or the USSSA State Director.

5. A team’s classification may be changed at any time during the season by the State Director, and/or the Classification Board, unless reclassified by the USSSA Constitution.

6. The main criteria for classifying a team is the overall strength of the team offensively and defensively regardless of whether the team has any home run hitters.

7. Team classification may be appealed only once in the current year by the following procedure:

A. Notify the state Director in writing, using the national Reclassification form (click here for form) of the desire to appeal, and of reasons for wanting this consideration. No appeals will be heard unless the request is in writing. Teams must play in there class a minimum of four (4) tournaments before appeal will be considered. Classification board meets in June and July. If a team is reclassified, that teams roster will be LOCKED.

B. Team representatives will be permitted to appear before the Classification Board as established by the State Director.

C. The ruling of the board will be final.

8. State tournament entry fees must be submitted prior to the State Tournament entry deadline, 7PM, Wednesday, before the State Tournament. Entry fees not received by the appointed USSSA Tournament Director, prior to entry deadline, will result in forfeiture of all berths earned, however, rosters remain frozen.

9.  Oklahoma USSSA State Tournament qualifying tournaments will be awarded by the Oklahoma USSSA Executive Committee, and will be published on the Oklahoma usssa web site (www.oklahomausssa.net). No tournament will be held in the State of Oklahoma, when a N.I.T. of the same classification is being held

10. Upon final qualification for USSSA State, National, World or other post season tournaments, players are frozen to the roster. They remain frozen whether that team continues on or not. The only exceptions are the four(4)  which may be added and/or released in accordance with the USSSA Official Rule Book, (note: 20 player total may not be exceeded. This total includes all released players.) or if the team is recognized as disbanded by the USSSA State Director. In either event, it is the team’s responsibility to notify the state office in writing.

11. A disbanded team is one in which fewer that five(5) players from the same frozen roster remain together for further play during the current season. A team is not considered disbanded until the Oklahoma USSSA state Office has been notified in writing by the registered team manager.

12. In tournament play all lineups may be checked against the official team roster before or during each game, and all players must have proper pictured identification. Players not able to show such proof will be declared ineligible and team dealt with as set forth in the " Official Rule Book." Primary proof of identification document will be the player’s driver’s license.

A. Number of "upper class players" Allowed: Beginning in 2006, A team can ONLY have three (3) upper class players on its roster and be legal to participate in USSSA events.

***NOTICE***

Oklahoma USSSA will enforce a "one class" rule regarding the numbers of classifications a players can "drop" from his previous years team's classification. For example, if you played on a Men's A team in 2005, you can play on a Men's B team or higher in 2006. If you played on a Men's B teams in 2005, you can only play on a Men's C team in 2006.

Attempts to "Beat the ISTS System"

It is the player's responsibility to make sure that his name is entered into the system the same way for each team he plays on in 2006. Also if a player's birthday is entered incorrectly, then THAT PLAYER needs to contact the State Director and notify him about the error. If your name is "Robert" and your name is entered as "Robert" and "Bob"  for two (2) different teams, then this will be considered a fraudulent attempt to "beat the system" and will incur a penalty to both the player AND the team's coach/manager. If your birthday is listed differently Example (2/15/81 on your Men's D team roster and 2/15/80 on Mixed D" team roster) this too, is considered an attempt at trying to trick the system.

EFFECT: The first attempt will result in a 30-day suspension for both the player and the coach/manager. The second attempt will result in both that player and manager suspended for a period of one year. If it means that much for a player or coach to cheat and "beat the system" then, if caught they will have to face the consequences of their actions. The ISTS system has been improved and has given the State Director with several tools to help prevent this from happening, or at least being able to 'catch' those that are 'guilty'

***Player Classification Prior Years***

If a player did not play in 2005, his classification for 2005 will be his last classification played.

EXAMPLE: If a player played Men's C in 2004, did not play in 2005 (for whatever reason), he will classified as a Men's C player for 2006

 

13. Tournament rosters for each team will be turned in on the official state roster or national  roster form, and official registration cards must be presented, prior the beginning of their first game. Roster forms will include manager’s name, address, and telephone number, as well as the names and date of berth of all of the players on the team. No change to a team’s roster will be allowed after the team has begun play in its first game during a tournament. Players must sign roster prior to participating in the event. Note: Any Forfeit for this rule counts as a game played for the winning and losing team.

14. State Championship Tournament awards will determined and approved by the Oklahoma State Director in advance of the tournament.

15.Criteria for State Tournament and "qualifiers" award considerations will include, but not limited to:

A. Fields in one location.

B. Ability and experience to conduct a quality tournament.

C. Location in the state.

D. Support of the USSSA program.

E. Complex administrative skill demonstrated.

F. Services provided. (Scorekeepers are mandatory for State Championship Tournaments.)

G. Contract agreement between the host complex and Oklahoma USSSA.

16.Adult State Tournaments entries shall be $175.00. All other State Tournament entry and sanction fees shall be set with the approval of the State Director.

17.Tournament Directors for State Tournaments will be appointed by the Oklahoma USSSA State Director.

18.For State Tournament entries, it is USSSA policy to accept cash, cashier’s checks or money orders only! However, if an event director gives you permission you may submit a company check for the event. If a check is returned unpaid (bounces) for any reason, all members of the team that submitted the bad check will be suspended from further USSSA play until the check is made good, and a $30.00 processing fee will be added.

19.It is policy and has been upheld by a court decision that a manager or acting player representative who contacts a tournament promoter to enter his tournament, has initiated a verbal contract. Hence, failure to honor this commitment constitutes breach of contract, and the team shall be liable for entry fee and any other expenses incurred by the promoter. All members of the team who fail to honor their commitment will be suspended until the debt has been paid.

20. A Team may withdraw prior to event brackets being drawn without penalty from USSSA.

21.Tournament entry fee refund shall be as follows:

A. 100% before bracket is drawn.

B. 100% if weather forces postponement of the tournament before any games are played.

C. 50% if tournament canceled or postponed after one game has been played by the team.

D. No refund after two games have been played by the team.

22. Registration and sanction fees will be consistent statewide.

A. Adult Official’ Registration (19 & older)                                         $50.00

B. Youth Officials Registration (18 & under)                                        $40.00
   (Above fees include mandatory officials clinic)

C. Adult Team Registration Fee                                                              $20.00

D. Slo-Pitch Youth Registration Fee                                                      $ 6.00

E. Tournament Sanction Fee (all tournaments) per team                    $ 3.00

F. League Sanction Fee                                                                           No Fee

G. Slo-Pitch National tournament Sanction Single Division              $50.00
   Multiple Division                                                                                   $75.00

23. A home run rule shall be in effect for all USSSA tournaments, in accordance with the USSSA Official Rule Book. The following are home run limitations per game, per team, by program.

Note: An offensive ejection is defined as: when an over the fence home run in excess of those permitted, results in the offending hitter being removed offensively from the batting order, and replaced by an automatic out. The offending hitter may remain in the game defensively, however his position in the batting order remains an out whether substituted for or not. Runners may not advance, and no runs shall score. In specified recreational programs an inning ending out is declared.

24. Deleted 1-9-2008

25. Deleted 1-9-2008

TOURNAMENT DIRECTORS

26.Tournament directors will have the responsibility of insuring that all required paperwork is postmarked within 72 hours of the conclusion of the tournament. The phrase "required paperwork" shall be deemed to include the following:

1. Tournament fees payable to USSSA-State and National.
2. Original copy of all Official rosters from qualifying tournaments.
3. Any new registrations resulting from the tournament.
4. Sanction report

Please note: These requirements apply to USSSA sanctioned leagues as well as tournaments. The penalty for being late will be a monetary fine. The fine will be $5.00 per team in the tournament. All late fees must be paid prior to any State Tournaments being held by a delinquent organization.

OFFICIALS

27.All persons wishing to become a USSSA registered Official, must take the USSSA official’s examination, and receive a score of 70% or above.

28.All officials wishing to work State level and above tournaments will be required to attend a minimum of two (2) rules clinics. At least one of which is a divisional or State Official’s clinic held within the state of Oklahoma.

29.Other criteria for selection of officials to work post-season competition will include but not limited to:

a. Test results

b. Participation in USSSA functions such as the USSSA St. Patrick’s Day Tournament, additional clinics conducted by the State UIC, and other USSSA functions held throughout the year.

c. On-Field mechanics.

NOTE: As of one January 1990 " post season competition" is deemed to include State Championship tournaments.

30. Officials Uniform code adherence is mandatory in all programs

a. Jewelry (other than for time keeping purposed) is not allowed.

b. Officials may not wear pagers or cell phones of any kind while officiating.

c. Shirttails must be tucked in and a neat/clean appearance must be maintained.

d. Sunglasses if necessary must be worn in a normal fashion across the eyes, and may not contain mirrored or reflective surfaces of any kind. If worn, sunglasses must be removed during any official conferences.

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OKLAHOMA USSSA SPONSORED

TOURNAMENT RULES

 

TEAM CLASSIFICATIONS

 

Teams are classified “Major”, “A”, “B”, “C”, “D”, “E”, “Mixed Major, Mixed “C”, Mixed “D” and Mixed “E” by the State Classification Committee. Prior too 1 June, if they do not have enough information on your team to classify it, you must play in one (1) tournament of higher classification. This is to give the classification committee a chance to see your team play, helping them classify your team correctly. The State Director reserves the right to reclassify a team at any time.

 

Please note: in the event a teams wins three (3) tournaments in any single classification, that team’s classification will automatically be reviewed by the Oklahoma State Classification Board. This Board will determine whether or not the team’s classification is appropriate, and may or may not reclassify it.

Any team that has four(4) or more players from any combination of teams moved up within the same classification, and/or players from a team the previous season of the same or higher classification of the team’s new classification, must participate in the new classification unless reclassified by the USSSA Classification Board and/or the USSSA State Director.

Team classification within the state of Oklahoma; will be governed by the State Classification Board. The board will be made up of the USSSA Executive Board, State program directors, one (1) representative from each complex, two player representatives from each program, and other representatives appointed by the State Director.

The classification board will meet four (4) times during the year. The classification board meeting will be the first Tuesday of each month beginning in April, with the fifth meeting to be scheduled if and when it becomes necessary.

ADULT "E" PROGRAMS

THESE CLASSIFICATIONS (I.E. Men’s E, Women’s E, Mixed “E”, Etc.) are for programs which are completely recreational in nature. This classification is designed for programs, which are organized for leisure and part time purposes only. No home runs are allowed.

EQUALIZER TOURNAMENTS

EQUALIZER TOURNAMENTS WILL BE PLAYED USING Official Rule Book rules applicable to the classification of the highest class participating in the tournament if no “spot” points are accepted. If accepted, teams will be required to “spot” opponents four (4) runs per class (i.e. class “C” teams will “spot” class “E” teams eight (8) runs). When “spot” points are accepted team will be limited to the number of homeruns allowed in their own classification only. Equalizer “spot” points will not be included in the “run rule” counts. For “spot” purposes, teams must remain in the same classification throughout the tournament.

TOURNAMENT ROSTER

A completed team roster must be submitted to the Tournament Director prior to your first scheduled game in each tournament. No additional players may be added to the team roster once the team starts their first game of the tournament. (A forfeit, for purposes of this rule, counts as a game played).

TEAM REGISTRATION

The fee for adult teams shall be $20.00 payable to the USSSA, and given to the area or State director. The fee for youth softball teams shall be $6.00 for Slo-pitch. Qualifying teams must pay entry fee to State, National, and World Tournaments within 14 days after qualifying, or they may lose that tournament berth.

SAFETY BASE

For State level play when the “safety-base” is used: on the initial throw to 1^st base from the infield or outfield the batter-base runner must touch the red or orange portion of the base. The game official will make the call whether an appeal is requested or not.

UNIFORM REQUIREMENT

FOR STATE LEVEL PLAY IN THE Men’s “C”, “D”, and “E”, all Mixed and all Women’s programs players must wear shirts of similar color with non-duplicating numbers at least 3 inches in height. Numbers are not required to be permanent. For State level play in the Men’s “B” and above programs players must wear matching shirts with non-duplicating numbers.

In accordance with the USSSA Official Rule book, jewelry will not be allowed in any program. In the event that a player enters the game in violation of the above uniform and/or jewelry requirements, all play will be stopped. The offending player will be allowed reasonable time, determined by the official, to either conform to the rule (in which case the game will continue without penalty), or to remove himself/herself from the game, until such time as he/she conforms to the rule.

In the event of inclement weather, the Tournament Director may wave the uniform requirements

TIME LIMITS

If time limits are used in tournament play, they will be no less than 1 hour, beginning with the 1^st pitch of the game. No time limits will be allowed in champion ship games.

 

Run Rules:

The run rule for adult State Tournaments will be: 15 after 4 innings, 3 ½ if home team is ahead, 10 after 5 innings 4 ½ if home team is ahead

ALLIANCE AGREEMENT WITH ASA

In December of 1975, the United States Slo-Pitch Association and the Amateur Softball Association signed an agreement that would allow teams of both organizations to engage in the play of amateur softball with one another under certain conditions as spelled out in an article of alliance between the two organizations. In January of 1976, the alliance was dissolved after ASA amended its by-laws to allow teams to participate in non-ASA sanctioned tournaments with    out penalty or suspension. Teams of each organization are now allowed to play against one another.