Today was an exciting day for the West Wales Graded 2024 Badminton Competition as we met to finalise the draw. Joining us were Josh and Huw from Badminton Wales, who played a crucial role in grading the players and setting up the competitions format. Here's a little look at how we organised the draw for this year's event.
1. Player Grading
The first step was to grade the players and Josh and Huw from Badminton Wales took the lead. The players were categorised into grades E, F, G, and H. From someone who has never taken part in this, it was fascinating to observe. I also learned that players who had previously won a graded competition were moved up a grade. This ensures that the competition remains fair and competitive.
2. Organising the Format
With everyone graded, we then evaluated the number of entries in each grade to determine the competitions we could run. For instance, there were only 4 entries in the Mens Singles Grade E, so we combined these with the 5 entries in Grade F to ensure a more robust competition.
Next, we worked out how many groups we would need within each category. Our goal was to fit all the games into a single day, so we aimed for groups of three, or groups of four when necessary. So for example in the Men's Singles E/F category we had 9 total entries and decided with advice from Badminton Wales to run with three groups of three.
4. Choosing the Top Seed for Each Group
The next step was to select a top seed for each group. I never realised the importance of this until today! With four Grade E players and only three top seeds in the three groups, we used their position according to their Badminton Wales rankings. The highest-seeded player was placed in Group 1, ensuring they had the easiest route to the final. While this might seem a bit unfair to some, it is a standard practice to reward the top-ranked players for their hard work and skill.
5. Random Allocation of Remaining Players
Once we picked the top seed for each group, the remaining players were placed into a random generator and assigned to groups randomly. This part of the process was particularly enjoyable, as it added an element of surprise and anticipation.
So there we have it, the deadline has passed, 105 players are in and the draw has been made. Now we work out how we squeeze 168 best of three games into a 10 hour day. Simple right!??!
We plan to publish the draw later this week, aiming for Thursday. This allows us to accommodate any last-minute withdrawals and avoid frequent changes to the draw. So, stay tuned for the official draw announcement and prepare for an exhilarating day of badminton!
Pictured above: Tom, Dan, Sharon and Phil during todays draw.
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