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The ABF is changing the format of the GNOT in 2024. There will now be 3 phases to the event rather than 2 as has been the case in recent years.

PHASE ONE – CLUB & REGIONAL QUALIFICATION EVENTS

The first phase is not changing. During this first phase there will be club and regional qualification events as has been the case in the past.  As was the case last year, there is a $10 charge per team payable to the ABF for these qualification events.

Some regions may be entitled to qualify an additional team to the next phase.  Those regions will have already received notification. Otherwise, there is no change to the teams that the region can send to the next phase.

PHASE TWO – 64 TEAM KNOCKOUT EVENT

Phase two will be run online (on RealBridge) over a 3 day weekend (Friday September 20^th through Sunday September 22^nd).

Players who are not familiar with RealBridge will be offered some training.

The format of this event will be similar to last year’s face-to-face finals.  However, 64 teams will be targeted rather than 60.

As was the case previously, the event will run as a knockout with the losing teams moving into a Swiss repechage.

There will be FOUR stanzas per day with each stanza comprising 12 boards.  Each knockout match will be over two stanzas.  Each match in the Swiss will be 12 boards.

The TWO teams that have not been knocked out at the conclusion of the FIFTH round will not be required to play the last two stanzas, as they will progress to the phase 3 knockout event (see below).

The TWO teams that were knocked out in the FIFTH round will join the Swiss.

At the conclusion of the Swiss, the top TWO placed teams will progress to the phase 3 knockout event (see below).

The next EIGHT highest placed non-metropolitan teams will progress to the phase 3 round robin event (see below).

Those teams/regions designated to be non-metropolitan are listed below.

To accommodate all time zones the first match will commence at 11AM AEST and the fourth stanza should finish by 5:35PM AEST.

Teams may comprise 4, 5 or 6 players.

The entry fee per team will be $300.

PHASE THREE – FACE TO FACE FINALS

Phase three will take place in Sydney (venue to be confirmed) on Saturday November 23^rd and Sunday November 24^th.

Phase three will comprise two separate events.  There will be a 4 team knockout event and an 8 team non-metropolitan final.

The 4 team knockout event will be contested by the two teams that remained undefeated in phase two after five rounds and the top two teams from the phase two Swiss repechage.

The 8 team non-metropolitan final will be contested by the 8 highest placed non-metropolitan teams from phase two that did not qualify for the 4 team knockout final.

The knockout final will comprise FOUR by 14 board stanzas on the Saturday.  The two winners will continue to play FOUR by 14 board stanzas on the Sunday.

The two losers will playoff for third place via THREE by 14 board stanzas on the Sunday.

The non-metropolitan final will be a round robin event of SEVEN by 14 board matches.

Play in all aspects of phase 3 will conclude at the same time (i.e. the winners of the knockout on Saturday will start earlier on the Sunday than the other teams).  All participants will be expected to remain at the venue for the closing ceremony and presentation of medals.

Non-Sydney based participants in the face to face finals will receive a travel subsidy the amount of which will be determined by the ABF based on where they are travelling from.

The venue in Sydney and the timing of all matches will be communicated prior to phase two.

There will be no additional entry fee for the face to face finals.

This revised format enables the ABF to reduce the entry fees for phase two from the previous $750 per team to $300 per team whilst still providing the opportunity for many more players across Australia to earn Gold points without having to travel.

Teams from the following regions are eligible for the Non-Metropolitan final:

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The Grand National Open Teams (GNOT) is an Australia wide event selecting up to 64 teams to play in the GNOT National Qualifying, a 3-day online event in September.

The National Qualifying event willl qualify four teams to the National Final and eight to the Non-Metropolitan Final. Both finals will be held in Sydney in November.

Gold points are awarded for Club, Regional and National Finals. PQP's are awarded in the National Final.

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