{"id":709,"date":"2025-12-29T15:52:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T20:52:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nhpa.flywheelsites.com\/?page_id=709"},"modified":"2026-06-04T16:17:44","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T20:17:44","slug":"running-leagues","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/resources-forms\/running-leagues\/","title":{"rendered":"Running Leagues"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1>\n\t\t\tRunning Leagues\t<\/h1>\n\t<h1>Running an NHPA Sanctioned League<\/h1>\n<p>A Quick Reference for Players &amp; Directors, any NHPA Member in good standing is eligible to run NHPA events on Sanctioned courts in accordance with NHPA Rules and Guidelines. Below you&#8217;ll find a high-level guide but please refer to your charter officials for additional support<\/p>\n\t<h1>1. Sanctioning an NHPA League<\/h1>\n<h2>To become an officially recognized NHPA league:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Request a Sanction Form<\/strong> from the National League Director or download it from the NHPA website.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Submit the completed form<\/strong>, clearly printed or typed. Include league bylaws and playing rules if available.<\/li>\n<li>Once approved, you will receive:\n<ul>\n<li>An <strong>NHPA Certificate of Sanction<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>A <strong>sanction number<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>All required reporting forms<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Appoint one League Director<\/strong> to serve as the sole contact with the NHPA.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Membership Requirement<\/h2>\n<p>All league participants must hold a <strong>current NHPA State\/Charter membership card<\/strong>. Dues are paid to the State\/Charter Secretary-not the National Director.<\/p>\n<h2>What the Sanction Covers<\/h2>\n<p>A sanction certificate covers all leagues run by your group for the year and authorizes an <strong>end-of-season Championship Tournament<\/strong> (open only to sanctioned league members). NATSTATS credit requires a separate <strong>tournament sanction number<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>Sanction Duration<\/h2>\n<p>Sanctions renew automatically each year unless unused or revoked. The sanction year runs <strong>January 1 &#8211; December 31<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h1>2. Forming a Successful League<\/h1>\n<p>A strong league offers <strong>weekly organized competition<\/strong>. Most leagues use <strong>team-based round-robin play<\/strong>, while smaller groups may use singles or doubles formats.<\/p>\n<h2>Key Steps<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Create a <strong>full season schedule<\/strong> before play begins.<\/li>\n<li>Establish an<strong> executive committee<\/strong> (officers + team captains) to handle disputes.<\/li>\n<li>Post all rules clearly and follow them consistently.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h1>Essential League Rules to Define<\/h1>\n<p><strong>Officers &amp; Committees<\/strong> President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Statistician, Publicity Director, Activities Committee.<\/p>\n<h2>Method of Play<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Point-limit or shoe-limit games<\/li>\n<li>Number of games per night<\/li>\n<li>Start times and forfeit rules<\/li>\n<li>Court rotation and home\/away procedures<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Playing Rules<\/strong> NHPA rules apply. Alternating first pitch is recommended for handicap play.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Postponements<\/strong> Define rainout procedures and captain notification requirements.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Forfeits &amp; Dummy Scores<\/strong> Avoid forfeits when possible. If needed, use a dummy score equal to a player&#8217;s average or a set point total.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Handicaps<\/strong> Choose handicap method (80%, 90%, or 100%), update frequency, and whether to use season or recent averages.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Awards<\/strong> Decide award types (cash, trophies, patches), eligibility requirements, and minimum games played.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dues<\/strong> Set weekly or seasonal dues for prizes, banquets, and league operations.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sponsors<\/strong> Encourage local business support for shirts, trophies, or equipment. Provide sponsor trophies or certificates.<\/p>\n<h1>3. Junior-Only Leagues (Optional)<\/h1>\n<p>NHPA also offers a <strong>nationally recognized Junior League Program<\/strong> for pitchers <strong>18 and under<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>Junior leagues receive:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>An official <strong>Junior League Sanction Certificate<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Eligibility for NHPA junior awards<\/li>\n<li>National recognition for top pitchers and scholars<\/li>\n<li>Special Junior League patches<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Junior leagues must submit a yearly membership report and follow NHPA rules, with an emphasis on safety, sportsmanship, and youth development.<\/p>\n<h1>4. Quick Tips for League Success<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li>Keep teams small to create more competition.<\/li>\n<li>Use weekly standings and awards to maintain engagement.<\/li>\n<li>Encourage sportsmanship, rule knowledge, and consistent attendance.<\/li>\n<li>Maintain clear communication with all players throughout the season.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<h1> Running Leagues <\/h1>\n<h1>Running an NHPA Sanctioned League<\/h1>\n<p>A Quick Reference for Players &amp; Directors, any NHPA Member in good standing is eligible to run NHPA\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":702,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-709","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=709"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":973,"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/709\/revisions\/973"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horseshoepitching.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}