The rules that govern how to score each individual Team Race is given in the Racing Rules of sailing Appendix D - specifically Rule D3.1. The following provides some basic interpretation as to what each section of D3.1 actually means for whoever is scoring your racing.
- D3.1 (a)Each boat finishing a race shall be scored points equal to her finishing place. All other boats shall be scored points equal to the number of boats entitled to race. A boat that does not start or does not finish will be scored as the number of boats entitled to race.
e.g. in 3 v 3 any boat not finishing the race is scored 6 points. Unlike in fleet racing, there is no +1; for example, a boat which fails to finish after a capsize would be scored 6 points and not 7 points were it a fleet race.
- D3.1 (b)When a boat is scored OCS, 10 points shall be added to her score unless she retired as soon as possible after the starting signal.
This is probably the scoring rule that creates the most confusion. 10 points is added to any boat that is over the start line and does not return, eg if a boat finished third but was OCS it will be scored 13 points.
Another big difference from fleet racing is that other boats do not have their scores adjusted – for example if a team win 1,2,3 but the boat in third was OCS they would be scored 1,2,13 = 16 points and the opponents will be scored 4,5,6 = 15 points
The start boat needs to record which boat (e.g. boat 5) was over the line so that the results are accurately recorded. Similarly, at the finish the order in which every boat crosses the line needs to be recorded, regardless of whether they were OCS or not. - D3.1 (c)When a boat fails to take a penalty imposed by an umpire at or near the finishing line, she shall be scored points for last place and other scores shall be adjusted accordingly.
This quite frequently happens when a boat is penalised around the finish. It is worth noting that it is a situation dealt with specifically in a rule; again however even if this rule applies, the boat would still (in 3v3) be scored 6 points. - D3.1 (d)When a protest committee decides that a boat that is a party to a protest hearing has broken a rule and is not exonerated:
1. If the boat has not taken a penalty, 6 points shall be added to her score;
2. If the boat’s team has gained an advantage despite any penalty taken or imposed, the boat’s score may be increased;
3. When the boat has broken rule 1 or 2, rule 14 when she has caused damage or injury, or a rule when not racing, half or more race wins may be deducted from her team, or no penalty may be imposed. Race wins deducted shall not be awarded to any other team.
These penalties can only be given by a protest committee – scorers should liase with the chair of the protest committee (or the chief umpire) to confirm if any penalties have been awarded.
If you are using HLS and some other formats; the scoring for this may be changed by the sailing instructions. When using HLS for example, a ‘wins’ penalty this is changed to be both a wins & points penalty.
- D3.2 When all boats on one team have finished, retired or failed to start, the other team’s boats racing at that time shall be scored the points they would have received had they finished.
If a team is very behind, they can be scored 4,5,6 without having to sail the course. This means changeovers can be sped up. - D3.3 The team with the lower total points wins the race. If the totals are equal, the team that does not have first place wins.
The last sentence deals with race ties and is very important for 2 and 4 boat team racing where the total points available mean that ties frequently happen. In 2v2; while the rule is worded to count against the boat that has first; the more colloquial "last boat loses" is often an easier way to explain. Unfortunately it is not quite so straight forward in 4v4!