PREMIER CLUTCH ADJUSTMENT

We are happy to announce an amendment to the Premier clutch rule and an addition to our clutch design to alleviate the issue of easy clutch measurements moving forward. 

A 1 inch wide, 1.5 inch tall vertical rectangle will be drawn inside the center of each clutch. To achieve a Premier Clutch, a player’s axe must come to rest with the blade breaking the top and bottom plane of this rectangle on the surface of the target.

While this rule will come into effect as of the beginning of the 2022-2023 IATF League Year in early March, 2022, clubs are welcome to implement it earlier for their 2022 Premier Leagues.

CLUTCH BOX MEASUREMENTS DIAGRAM

HOW TOS AND BEST PRACTICES

First, while venues are welcome to create their own stencils in the interim, it’s important to note that we will be partnering with Warriors Axe Throwing to provide updated stencils for purchase prior to our March kick-off date. These stencils will be available through both IATF.com and the Warriors shop and are available to ship worldwide.

1. To Draw the Clutch Box

• Employ either your own, hand-made stencil or one purchased directly from the IATF or Warriors (stencils being the fastest and most accurate way to draw the clutch box on the fly).

• Use white (or light colored), oil-based paint markers instead of standard acrylic (oil based paints show up more clearly on painted clutches and won’t run).

• Place the stencil firmly on a dry clutch so that it won’t shift while painting (do not attempt to draw a clutch box on a wet or damp clutch, whether from being recently painted or recently sprayed with water).

• Solidly trace the edges of the stencil with the marker before filling in the center (do not squeeze too much paint from the marker nib when tracing the edges as that paint may bleed underneath the stencil).

• Remove the stencil and check your work (should a minor divot or bend be present, use either the clutch box marker or the clutch marker to touch up these issues).

2. Adjudicating New Premier Clutches

• Gauge whether the axe blade has ‘broken’ (ie; is protruding above and below) both the top and bottom horizontal planes of the clutch box as observed from the surface of the target (see diagram above with the planes marked ‘a.’ and ‘b.’)

1. If the axe has broken both these planes, this clutch attempt succeeds and the player scores 7 points.

2. If the axe has broken one plane but fallen short of the other, this clutch attempt fails and the player scores 0 points for that throw.

3. If the axe has broken neither plane, this clutch attempt fails and the player scores 0 points for that throw.

• League staff or match officials are encouraged to use phone camera zooms or flashlights to provide clarity if a clutch is difficult to judge.

1. If the axe has landed to the left or right of the clutch box and seems to run parallel to the edge of the box but players are unsure if the axe has broken either plane, league staff or match officials may remove the axe to ascertain if the axe has ‘folded in’ white from clutch box itself. 
2. If white paint is visible in the cut the axe made as the staff or official is removing the axe at both the top and bottom plane of the box, this clutch is successful and the player scores 7 points.
3. If there is no white paint visible or only white paint visible at either the top or the bottom plan of the box (but not both planes) this clutch attempt fails and the player scores 0 points.

FAQs

What prompted the change?

We spent the months following our announcement of the official rulebook changes in April, 2021 compiling data from Axescores, speaking to venue operators, and listening to our community of throwers. While the majority of the original rule changes we implemented accomplished the goals we prioritized last year, this specific rule had both pros and cons which we felt necessitated revisiting.

What were some of the reasons behind the original clutch rule change?

A majority of players and member organizations polled prior to the change agreed that any advanced ruleset needed to be more difficult in all facets of the game, not just for regular throws but also for clutch attempts. 

With that in mind, we wanted to introduce a rule that wouldn’t require venues to have multiple clutch designs (ie; not a separate target design for Standard and one for Premier), that would be robust enough to withstand several rounds of competition (ie; not a tiny or intricate clutch that could be destroyed immediately after a few throws), and require a high level of skill to achieve (ie; difficult enough to inject excitement and uncertainty into the final throw of a round while not instantaneously becoming easy for the community after a few months of practice).

Why is this better than the original rule?

While the original Premier clutch rule accomplished the goals outlined above there were still some minor issues in this mechanic uncovered over the past few seasons, those being; 

a) the lack of a visible marker to aim for when attempting a Premier clutch, 

b) the loss of an instant, visual indicator of success, and 

c) the necessity for time consuming measurements during the most high stakes portion of the game. 

While individually these issues were small, together they were contributing factors for us to decide to make this new adjustment. We believe this new rule change addresses all of these concerns in a simple and concise fashion which also does not require a complicated management process to implement. 

Looking at the dimensions of the box, does that make it harder or easier than the original Premier clutch rule?

When designing a scoring feature like the Premier scoring box, we look at scorable area. Based on a direct comparison of the original proposed Premier clutch (ie; the “1.75 inches of blade” rule), this new feature has an almost equitable amount of scorable area. Therefore neither game mechanic is easier or harder, one is simply clearer and less time consuming.

1. If the axe has landed to the left or right of the clutch box and seems to run parallel to the edge of the box but players are unsure if the axe has broken either plane, league staff or match officials may remove the axe to ascertain if the axe has ‘folded in’ white from clutch box itself. 
2. If white paint is visible in the cut the axe made as the staff or official is removing the axe at both the top and bottom plane of the box, this clutch is successful and the player scores 7 points.
3. If there is no white paint visible or only white paint visible at either the top or the bottom plan of the box (but not both planes) this clutch attempt fails and the player scores 0 points.

FAQs

What prompted the change?

We spent the months following our announcement of the official rulebook changes in April, 2021 compiling data from Axescores, speaking to venue operators, and listening to our community of throwers. While the majority of the original rule changes we implemented accomplished the goals we prioritized last year, this specific rule had both pros and cons which we felt necessitated revisiting.

What were some of the reasons behind the original clutch rule change?

A majority of players and member organizations polled prior to the change agreed that any advanced ruleset needed to be more difficult in all facets of the game, not just for regular throws but also for clutch attempts. 

With that in mind, we wanted to introduce a rule that wouldn’t require venues to have multiple clutch designs (ie; not a separate target design for Standard and one for Premier), that would be robust enough to withstand several rounds of competition (ie; not a tiny or intricate clutch that could be destroyed immediately after a few throws), and require a high level of skill to achieve (ie; difficult enough to inject excitement and uncertainty into the final throw of a round while not instantaneously becoming easy for the community after a few months of practice).

Why is this better than the original rule?

While the original Premier clutch rule accomplished the goals outlined above there were still some minor issues in this mechanic uncovered over the past few seasons, those being; 

a) the lack of a visible marker to aim for when attempting a Premier clutch, 

b) the loss of an instant, visual indicator of success, and 

c) the necessity for time consuming measurements during the most high stakes portion of the game. 

While individually these issues were small, together they were contributing factors for us to decide to make this new adjustment. We believe this new rule change addresses all of these concerns in a simple and concise fashion which also does not require a complicated management process to implement. 

Looking at the dimensions of the box, does that make it harder or easier than the original Premier clutch rule?

When designing a scoring feature like the Premier scoring box, we look at scorable area. Based on a direct comparison of the original proposed Premier clutch (ie; the “1.75 inches of blade” rule), this new feature has an almost equitable amount of scorable area. Therefore neither game mechanic is easier or harder, one is simply clearer and less time consuming.