Update from League Operator, Terry Justice, regarding the Codiv-19 Virus and its effect on APA League Play:

First off, I want to say that I hope all our APA members and your families are and remain healthy and safe. To guarantee that you stay healthy and safe, and to slow down the spread of the virus, please follow all guidelines presented by the President and Governor Hogan. At this time, no one knows how long the current situation will last, but rest assured that we will be prepared to immediately move forward once this virus has run its course, and it is safe to resume League Play. In the meantime, please know that my prayers are with you, your friends, and family … and with our Hosting Location owners and staff, and their families.

Emails have been coming in asking what’s the plan, once things get back to normal, as far as the APA goes? Are we going to require make-ups for un-played matches, or are we just going to cut things where they are and go directly into playoffs? Are we going to even have a World Qualifier or World Championship this year? And when we do resume league play, what do we do if our Hosting Location hasn’t yet re-opened, etc.

If I may, I would like to fill you in on the decisions I’ve made so far (as far as dealing with un-played matches), and what I project things will look like, in the future, once league play resumes. These are some of the steps that I’ve put into place so far:

1. If you held on to your Team Envelope to make up un-played matches, please note that there will be NO MAKE-UP MATCHES (re-schedules) required once we resume play. Also, if you didn’t have time to turn your Team Envelope in on Monday before the bars were shut down, simply turn it in once we resume play. We will send out Temporary Envelopes in the interim.

2. Rather than re-scheduling matches, we have issued “Covid-19 Points” for any and all un-played matches between the time the Governor first announced a STATE OF EMERGENCY (Thursday, March 5th) and the last day of play prior to when the Governor shut down all bars and restaurants (Sunday, March 15th). If two teams did not play their assigned match or if they played ONLY 1-2 of their 5 scheduled matches, they were issued Covid-19 “Bye Points”. In 8-Ball, both teams received a TOTAL of “7” points each, plus bonus; in 9-Ball “50” points each, plus bonus. If 3 or more individual matches were played, both teams received Covid-19 “Forfeit Points” for each individual match that was not played. In 8-Ball, both teams received “1” point each; in 9-Ball “10” points each. A similar structure was used for the other formats.

3. TEAMS WILL NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR ANY UN-PLAYED MATCHES that occurred between March 5th and March 15th. We not only went back and issued Covid-19 Points for all un-played matches during this timeframe, but we also ISSUED A CREDIT to all teams that paid for any un-played matches.

4. Once things resume, we will play out the last 2-3 weeks of the Spring Session in its entirety, followed by the Semi-Finals, Finals, Tri-Annuals, and World Qualifier. We will simply be skipping over those weeks that the bars are closed (as if they were scheduled Holidays).

5. Once the Covid-19 threat has passed and the bars are allowed to re-open, we will IMMEDIATELY resume all Spring Session League Play … most likely starting with our MONDAY NIGHT LEAGUES! We will send out an email to all our members at that time letting everyone know what’s happening. We will also post information on our APA Website and Facebook page.

6. Once play resumes, a new updated APA Calendar (displaying new Playoff and Higher Level Tournament dates) will be emailed to all APA members and also posted on our website and Facebook page.

7. APA Divisional Schedules will be updated. The new schedule will reflect the actual dates when the last 2-3 weeks of the Spring Session will be played, and will be placed in every Team Envelope, and waiting for you at your pick-up location.

8. When we resume play, if you find out that a Hosting Location has not yet re-opened or does not plan on re-opening, please call the League Office immediately and let us know. Per the APA Local Bylaws, if a Host Location is closed, the match will revert to the visiting team’s bar. If that facility is unavailable, the two Team Captains are to choose another location (preferably in their division) in which to play the night’s matches.

9. It’s still too early for the APA National Office to be able to announce new plans for the postponed Poolplayers’ Championship (Singles Event), and the status of the World Championship (Team Event). When they do, I’ll pass on that information to all our members.

And on a final note, I would like to thank all our APA members and Hosting Locations, in advance, for their patience through these trying times. Once we resume league play, I will be reducing all weekly fees for the balance of the Spring Session (last 2-3 weeks) down from $45/Team to $25/Team ($5/player). The only thing I ask, is that if you can afford to do so, please spend the other $20 each week in the bars to help them and their staff recover faster! I hope this helps, at least a little, while we all try to get our lives and our finances back to normal. 

Thanks again, and please stay safe! May GOD Bless!

Terry Justice,
APA League Operator