TD101 – TGP and tiebreakers

For the second installment of TD101, let’s get into the question of TGP and tiebreakers.

TGP (Tournament Grading Percentage) is the metric we use to determine how many meaningful games were played in a given tournament. When the IFPA initially came up with TGP as a metric, we made the decision that 25 is a reasonable number of meaningful games to be played in a tournament to determine a winner. Anything below that 25-game threshold and we remove some points from the event.

A meaningful game of pinball is one in which at least 3 balls are played in their entirety. Any game in which fewer than 3 balls are played is counted as less than a full meaningful game. If 1 ball is played, the game counts as 1/3 of a meaningful game. If 2 balls are played, 2/3.

In terms of tiebreakers, does a tie breaking game ever count toward the TGP? The answer is no.

Tiebreakers never count toward the TGP because they don’t count as additional games played in the tournament. Instead, the resolution of a tie is considered a clarification of the results. So if you have tiebreakers in your event, those only affect the standings (like whether a player comes 3rd or 4th) and do not contribute to the TGP.

Hope this helps, and thanks for reading!
#TD101

2 responses to “TD101 – TGP and tiebreakers”

  1. Ed says:

    Can you go into the whole 4 player game rule counting as two games and why it was made?

    I thought that it was to reward 4 player games, as they take twice as long.
    But now we are seeing tournaments breaking 4 player groups up in two or one player games and matching their scores to get a 4 player standing, as if they played a 4 player game.

  2. Keith says:

    I think the only time breaking up a 4-player game into 1 or 2 player machines is warranted would be because:
    a) The machine itself is only a 1 or 2 player machine (older EM’s) while the majority of the tournament bank is comprised of 4 player games, these games would have to be played out based on the inherent physical scoring limitation of the machine.

    b) For certain pinball machines where tilting through to the next player is a major concern, a 4-player machine (again, primarily older EM’s or early solid state machines) will be played using Players 1 & 3, and plunging players 2 & 4.

    If the game can handle 4 players and tilt-through is not a concern, the game should be played by 4 players in a traditional manner without breaking it up into different games to match scores to determine positions. But that’s just my opinion and how I run matches.
    I’d love to hear directly from Adam on his thoughts on the matter.

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