Q: What does it cost to join and play in the BLA?
A: $10 annual membership. $7 per shooter on league night. Note: With 2 or 3 shooters per team, the money per ball is also reduced. This is normally only used for a new division to help get started.

Q: Does it cost anything to start your own division?
A: There are no franchise fees or charges for starting a division. The only money requirement for league rep: You must be an active member at a cost of $10 per year (same cost as players) and you are encouraged to play in your division. Division Reps can not be a team captain.

Q: How much do you pay back to the players?
A: OVER 80% of the money paid in is paid back to the players in Cash & Prizes.

Q: What is required to be a Division Representative?
A: It is actually quite simple: Get a minimum of four teams together and let us know you are ready to start. Our experience is available and in place to help you.
A: Because our office does the bookkeeping for you, your requirements are few. Print the score sheets (sent to you from our office), make them available to the players on league night, then at the end of the night, pick up the score sheets & weekly fees and send them to our office. Either scan or photograph the score sheets then email or text them to the BLA Office. The money can be deposited into the BLA League bank account (your local branch near you via check), or you can use paypal. Whichever is easier for you is the best option.
Note: When it becomes necessary, we can open accounts in additional banks to make it easier for you. Many big banks have branches in many states and we will do what we can to accommodate our League Representatives. We currently have accounts with Wells Fargo & Chase.

Q: How many players on each team?
A: You can roster up to 8 players per team; depending on number of players shooting per night. Each team can shoot either 2, 3, 4 or 5 players per match (same number for all teams for the entire session).
Note: Ideal is to have 4 or 5 shooters per team. Sometimes a new or growing division does not have many players; then 2 shooters per team can be an option.

Q: What is the maximum handicap rating allowed for a team per match?
A: There are no restrictions on your team handicap points.

Q: How are handicaps determined?
A: Handicaps are done strictly by your individual games played. Take the number of balls made and divide that by the number of games you have played. That is your handicap rank. Nothing to question or fuss about.

Q: At what handicap rating does a player start?
A: Handicaps are determined after a player has played four matches. The office will then go back and input player handicaps, total the score sheets and enter data into the database. This makes for a valid handicap instead of just picking a number to start with.

Q: Can a player's rank be changed because they shoot a jump shot or masse (like in some other pool leagues)?
A: No! Ranks are only calculated by your balls made divided by games played. Nothing else. We encourage players to learn more but we do not penalize them because they tried something new; even if it worked. Good Shot!

Q: Do we need to keep track of shots & safeties?
A: No! At the end of the game, write down the score. In nine ball & ten ball, mark the balls made by each player.

Q: If every player makes money every session, how much do the players get paid?
A: The BLA pays fifteen cents per ball in 8-Ball and twelve cents per ball in 9-Ball. This can change with lower number of players shooting per match.
A: There are also money prizes in the playoffs for the top positions. The number of places and amounts paid are determined by the number of teams in the division.

Q: How does the league office get paid if you are giving so much money back to the players?
A: The BLA operates on 10% to the office and 10% to the division rep.
A: The BLA Office takes pride in making sure the PLAYERS get taken care of. We think this is the best way to build and keep a good solid league.

Q: How does a team qualify for the playoffs?
A: Every team in the division goes to the playoffs every session!

Q: Does the BLA send teams to Vegas?
A: As of now we do not.
Note: With the development of more teams, we plan to have larger area Championships. See note below.

In order for a league to send teams to Vegas, the other teams are paying for those trips and get little or nothing in return for their money & efforts. We believe it is better to give back to ALL teams & players instead of using everyone's money on one or two teams.

With the development of more teams in any given area, we can schedule for area playoffs. It is about growing in your area.

Q: If a player dropped out of the league today, what happens to their points/score or scoring for the team? Do the points still count or do the games that that person had played not count too?

A:
Points
If a player drops out of the league during the session, nothing changes as for their matches played or team points if the player had already established their rank.

The exception would be if that player had not yet played enough matches to establish their rank, in which case there are two options:
1. Matches played by that player should be replayed by another player, either new or current, and scored accordingly. This would remove all references to the player that did not become established, including scores and balls made. Exceptions may apply.
2. The affected team captains, along with the division rep, can make a decision to score the played matches and use what rank the player had earned. This would normally be done if there was just one more match to establish the rank. If the player had only played one or two matches, it would most likely be best to replay them with another player.

Money
When a player quits the league mid-session, they forfeit all of their monies earned. The ball money earned by that player would normally go to the team they were on when they earned the money. This could apply to multiple teams if the player had changed teams during the session and earned money for more than one team. The BLA Office has final say on these funds.

The exception would be if the player had special circumstances that caused them to leave. IE: if the player had to move out of the area, or other reasons out of their control. The team captain, division rep and/or league operator can decide to not enforce the forfeiture rule, but to give ball money earned to the player at the end of the session when payouts are made.

In some situations, a player may change teams during the session. Ball money earned while on each team is to be paid to that player.

In a situation where leaving the team was determined to be 'acceptable' by the team captain & division rep, and the player was still in 'good standing' with the league, that player could still be eligible to shoot in the Members Appreciation Tournament for that calendar year. This would not apply if a player left in a negative or disrespectful manner or created unnecessary problems when leaving. Each situation is dealt with accordingly.

If you have questions you would like answered, please send them to us. We will answer you direct and maybe post those questions here on this page.