Domino Tournament Rules
#1 Rule: Have fun!
Goal of Tournament
The goal of the Stay and Play Game Cafe Domino Tournament is have fun, meet new people, and connect with community. All playing levels are welcome and we encourage you to enjoy food and drink while you play. Prizes will be awarded to tournament winners. See tournament details below for more info.
Match Format:
Two-person teams playing head-to-head with double-six dominoes
Teams of two will be randomly drawn at start of tournament
Tournament Format:
Swiss-style format - each team will play same number of games
Top 2 teams (determined by records then cumulative point differential) will then face off in single match championship
High-level Tournament Rules (if you already know how to play Spanish dominoes):
- Opening play of match is to person with double-six; play goes clockwise
- Play to 250 pts
- Passes are worth 10pts
- Capicú and Chuchazo are worth 50pts
More Detailed Match Overview (for those new to game or need a refresher):
At start of any round in the match,
- Dominoes are all placed face-down in middle of table and shaken up (i.e. randomized) by the players
- Each player will then randomly draw 7 dominoes that only they can look at
- If any player draws 4 or more "double" dominoes (i.e. blank-blank, 1-1, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5, or 6-6) into their hand, they can reveal them to the table so as to trigger a re-shake and re-draw.
Opening play of first round of game is to player with double-six domino in hand
First player to play their final (i.e. 7th) domino from hand wins the round for their team
If locked round (i.e. no more dominoes can be played by any players - aka "trancado"), the team that has the lowest combined sum of pips (i.e. dots) on non-played dominoes wins the round
- If player triggering the locked round is on winning team, they start next round
- If winning team of locked round did not trigger the lock, they can discuss and determine who they'd like to start next round
Winning team of round will score points equal to the number of pips (i.e. dots) on all non-played dominoes from both teams
At end of any round,
- End of round points are updated
- If match end not triggered, then team that lost round generally prepares dominoes for next round (i.e. shakes)
Match ends when a team has reached 250 or more points at the end of a round
If both teams reach 250 or more points and are tied at the end of a round, then the teams play one more round to determine winner of match
Turn Overview:
First player of first round must play double-six domino, otherwise the starting player (as determined by previous round) can play any domino of their choosing
If the active player has any domino in hand that matches either "end" of current domino line (see above image) they must play one, orienting it so that matching domino halves touch
If the active player has no domino in hand that they can play, they must declare a pass
- Note: it is tradition to "knock" on the table when passing
- The non-passing team immediately scores 10pts
- Play continues clockwise
Tournament Policy
The goal of the tournament is to have fun, meet new people, and connect with community. While we've chosen to include prize(s) for the tournament winners, the spirit of event is friendly. Any intentional cheating, poor sportsmanship, unreasonable slow play, bullying or intimidation or other behavior deemed inappropriate will not be tolerated and Stay and Play Game Cafe management reserves the right to disqualify any person(s) from tournament for said inappropriate behavior.
The expectation is that each participating person will play in a minimum of three (3) matches, with no match taking more than 40 minutes. The top two (2) teams would then play in a final, tournament championship match to decide the winning team. Unreasonable slow play is frowned upon. Should any of the non-final matches look to lag beyond the 40 minutes, tournament officials may apply a time clock.