Judges Corner for March 2010
Tardy Answers in Reading Games - II
Part I
- Usually, the players themselves handle the situation.
- Players may call a judge to handle the situation.
Last month's corner handled the situation where a player clearly answers a reading game question after players had been told to put pens and pencils down or to reveal answers.
Now we tackle the trickier situation where it is not as clearcut that the player marked or changed an answer after time was up.
If the choice was marked before the tardy player saw any other player's answer as it was revealed and before the correct answer was announced, players are inclined to allow the tardy answer.
However, if the player marked after the other answer sheets were turned over or the correct response was revealed, the player's answer is not accepted and scored accordingly.
The judge can apply the criteria listed above to determine whether the tardy responder answered independently of the other players. At the very least, the last-second answerer should be warned to mark answers in a timely manner for the remainder of the tournament. Otherwise, the benefit of the doubt will no longer be applied, opening up the possibility of cheating penalties.
