HAL's Race Results - Scoring Made Easy
Skip Navigation Links.
How do I give a boat a scoring penalty?
Boats are commonly given scoring penalties for one of two reasons: either they were over the line at the start and the race officer has imposed a 20% penalty under Rule 30.2 (also known as a Z Flag Penalty); or they admit to breaking a rule in Part 2 of the Racing Rules of Sailing and have accepted a scoring penalty under Rule 44.3 (also known as a Yellow Flag Penalty).
HAL's Race Results implements these rules by allowing the race officer to pick a finishing status of ZFP or SCP. When entering results you give each boat a status code. There are three status codes that apply to boats that actually finished the race and achieved a place: OK for a normal finisher, ZFP for a Z Flag Penalty and SCP for a scoring penalty accepted with a yellow flag.
The thing to remember is that a boat always gets the finishing place she actually achieved. What changes in the event of her having a penalty is the number of points she gets for that place. So it is important not to try to give a penalty by altering her finishing place (or finishing time in the case of a handicap race) but to set her finishing status to ZFP or SCP.
In the case of a Z Flag Penalty, Rule 30.2 states how the number of points the boat shall receive is calculated. HAL's Race Results defaults to give the correct number of points to any boat whose finishing status is set to ZFP.
In the case of a Yellow Flag Penalty, Rule 44.3(c) states that a boat taking such a penalty shall be given a score for a place worse than her actual finishing place by the number of places stated in the sailing instructions. If the number of places is not stated in the sailing instructions she shall be given points for a place worse by 20% of the number of boats entered. HAL's Race Results implements the default penalty of 20% automatically. If the sailing instructions impose a different penalty the race officer has to input it in terms of the percentage of the number of boats entered.
It is perfectly possible for a boat to accumulate more than one penalty. She might have a Z Flag Penalty of 20% and a Yellow Flag Penalty of 20%, resulting in a 40% penalty. Or she might have two Yellow Flag Penalties, resulting in 40%. The actual penalty to be imposed can be entered as a percentage after a status of either ZFP or SCP is chosen.