The 2025 Arizona state domino championship

The Preliminary Rounds consist of 7 matches, where all 200 players will compete in individual head-to-head games. This format ensures that every player gets multiple games and that standings are determined by skill and consistency, not elimination luck. 

HOW IT WORKS

• Players will be randomly paired in Round 1.
• After each round,starting with Round 2, players will be paired based on their win/loss record.  For example: players with similar records (e.g., 2–0 vs. 2–0, or 3–2 vs. 3–2) will face off in the next round. 
• Players will not face the same opponent more than once during the 7 Preliminary rounds. Each round features a new matchup based on win/loss records.
• All players compete in all 7 rounds. There is no eliminations in the preliminary phase. 
• Format: Head-to-head (1v1). First to 150 points (3 Houses) wins.

At the conclusion of the 7 preliminary rounds, the Top 16 players with the highest number of match wins will advance to the Sweet 16 Championship Bracket. Players will be ranked according to the number of wins from 1-16. In the event of a tie, the following tiebreakers will be used:

• The first tiebreaker is total points scored over all 7 rounds. Each time a player earns points in a round (and receives chips), those points are added to their cumulative tournament total. At the end of the Preliminary Rounds, the player with the highest overall point total (chip value) will receive the higher seed.
• The second tiebreaker is total point differential, calculated by subtracting the total points a player has allowed from the total points they have scored (based on chip totals across all rounds).
• The third tie breaker is as follows for qualification into the top 16 Finals only. If two players are tied for 16th place, they will play a head-to-head playoff match (race to 100 points). If three or four players are tied for 16th place, they will play a multiplayer playoff game (race to 100 points). The winner of that game will claim the open seed. If the tie is only for seeding order (not qualification), the tournament director may opt to use a Bone Draw to determine final placement.

Players are seeded #1 through #16 based on their final Preliminary Round standings.  #1 plays #16, #2 plays #15, and so on. All finals matches are played head-to-head (1v1). First to 200 points wins. 

After the Sweet 16 and Quarterfinal rounds are completed, the four remaining players advance to the Final Four, where they will compete in the semifinals and the championship match to determine the winner of the tournament. 

In the Final Four, players will compete in a best 2 out of 3 head-to-head (1v1) series, with each game played to 200 points. All standard tournament rules remain in effect. The first player to win two games advances to the next round or, in the case of the championship match, is declared the tournament winner.