Frequently Asked Questions

Open the local Tournament Quick Start from the Director reference page or FAQ. Complete all five Guided Setup stages in order, run Tournament Check, verify every expected scorer or paper-table plan, choose Publish Online or Continue Locally, then use Start Tournament & Open Live Control. Save and create a recovery point before the first whistle.

Use one reliable non guest event network, keep the Director laptop plugged in and awake, confirm the signed V14.13 application opens, verify the event roster and mat plan, test the printer, and have the Full Event Backup location ready. For electronic scoring, open each exact mat link on its assigned device and confirm it appears connected.

After Build Tournament, open authenticated Device Links and scan the QR code for that exact mat. If the codes are too close together, click the selected code or choose Enlarge QR to show one large, clearly labeled code with Copy, Open, and Close actions. Confirm the device is on the same non-guest network, the mat number is correct, and the station appears connected in Guided Setup. Use exactly one scoring page for each assigned mat.

Tournament Check must pass for the chosen operating plan. Confirm the built tournament, expected mat count, roster, saved division and weight configuration, scorer connections or paper-table plan, current backups, and public access choice. Do not start if a required check is red or a gold warning has not been deliberately reviewed.

Use Live Control to send the next eligible bout to the intended mat. At an electronic table, confirm bout and corner identity, score the bout, review the result, and submit it. Wait for the Director save confirmation before clearing or assigning another bout. For paper operation, enter each completed result once from Director Live Control.

Leave the scorer page and current mat state intact. Restore the same event network, reopen the exact mat link if needed, and compare bout number, wrestlers, corners, score, period, time, and injury timers with the Director. A recovered clock stays stopped. Resume only after both stations agree; do not clear the mat or force another bout.

Stop the affected workflow, identify the exact bout, use the Director correction or Undo path, confirm the corrected winner, method, score, statistics, advancement, standings, and next-bout dependencies, then save and create a fresh recovery point. Do not edit around a pending scorer result or force a dependent bout to hide the error.

Confirm no result is pending, finish or deliberately stop every active mat, verify standings and brackets, mark the tournament complete when appropriate, export the final roster and records, create a recovery point, export a Full Event Backup, save required prints, then use Tools > Shutdown Tournament Server. Store the backup and final reports securely.

No. MatCommand reserves a wrestler while a bout is assigned, live, or waiting for result commit on any mat. The Director and server reject a second assignment or start. The blocked front bout stays in its sequential queue position, and the Director identifies the mat that currently owns the wrestler.

Reorder before staging. After the server owns the bout as assigned, live, or result-pending, a cross-mat move is refused. Moving an active bout down or to the bottom is also refused. Finish or correct the owning mat state first. The Director also protects the brief interval between sending an assignment and receiving the server echo.

Assignment, scoring, corner, clear, and result changes must match the exact Tournament ID, bout, and allowed mat status. Mutations that carry a state revision must also match the current revision. A stale, eventless, wrong-event, or superseded message fails closed instead of overwriting newer state. Reopen the correct tournament and exact mat link; do not reuse a tablet tab left on another event.

For the same Tournament ID and configured mat, the live-mat journal restores the active bout, scores, period, displayed time, scoring audit, rule counters, and blood, injury, and recovery timer values. Atomic latest and previous copies allow fallback if the newest journal is unreadable. Every recovered clock is deliberately stopped.

When an outer recovered mat state carries the Tournament ID, the current release copies that identity into the recovered assigned bout before sending corner or result messages. This keeps valid recovery traffic attached to the exact event while wrong-event traffic remains rejected.

Open the same tournament and scorer link. The Director and table worker should compare the bout number, wrestlers, score, period, displayed time, and the blood, injury, and recovery timer values. Correct any discrepancy while the clocks remain stopped, then manually restart the appropriate clock only after both stations agree.

The server received and journaled the result, but transport delivery alone is not completion. The Director sends a connection-local application acknowledgement only after applying, or proving it already applied, the exact result; that is not the durable commit. The scorer remains protected until the canonical save succeeds and the server returns the committed acknowledgement. Keep the scorer page open when possible, reconnect both stations, and do not clear browser/site data, clear the mat, or assign another bout.

Yes. The scorer retries the same stored result envelope and stable delivery ID after reconnection. An exact retry is idempotent and cannot add a second result or duplicate statistics. Reusing that ID for different result data is rejected. Public result output is sent only after the canonical result is committed.

Pending entries and compact committed receipts are retained by tournament. Opening or recovering another event does not discard the evidence needed to classify an exact delayed retry from an earlier event. Continue to use Full Event Backup for customer-facing archives.

In Setup, select Scramble as the tournament format, then choose Grapevine League in the Scramble preset list. MatCommand Default keeps the established Scramble behavior and does not enter the Grapevine module.

Choose MatCommand Default for the established Scramble generator and its hard selected weight window. Choose Grapevine League for the league regular-meet defaults. Choose Custom to use the same isolated age, weight, rating, distribution, team, repeat, and approval editor with event-specific values; review every setting and pass Tournament Check before starting.

Choose Scramble, then choose Custom. Configure the pairing and timing settings, review the season year, enter a name under Name Current Custom Format, and select Save Current As. The saved format stays in browser storage on the same Director computer and browser and survives Clear / Reset. For a later tournament, choose it under Saved Format and select Apply, then review the season year and every setting before Build Tournament. MatCommand Default and Grapevine League are protected built-ins and cannot be overwritten or deleted. The saved-format library is not exported, not published to the public viewer, and not sent to Tournament Cloud.

League age is the wrestler age on December 31 of the selected season year. BirthDate is preferred. If BirthDate is missing, MatCommand can display an existing age value as a visible fallback; missing age data keeps the pairing out of the automatic within-guideline group.

The default limit is 10 percent using the lighter wrestler as the denominator. A 100-pound wrestler and a 110-pound wrestler are exactly 10 percent apart and remain inside the default limit. The Director can change the tolerance type to pounds or change the value before building.

Required for Grapevine: 0.5 through 6.0 in half-point steps. A blank remains blank and blocks tournament building; MatCommand does not silently assign 4. The standard allowed difference is 1.0 and remains configurable.

First resolve every blank or out-of-range Rating; Grapevine requires 0.5 through 6. Then read the specific Preflight message for age or BirthDate, weight, team, availability, repeat-opponent history, or selected tolerance conflicts. Approval-required candidates are never selected automatically.

Minimum matches is the lowest expected regular-meet count used by Tournament Check. Target matches is the scheduling goal used by automatic pairing. A wrestler can receive the minimum but still appear below target when no safe, opposing-team, non-repeat option remains.

It means automatic pairing first considers wrestlers who currently have fewer scheduled bouts so opportunities are distributed toward the configured target. It does not lower the target and it does not tell MatCommand to create fewer bouts.

The Grapevine default keeps same-team bouts out of automatic pairing and shows them as fallback options requiring approval. The Director can configure same-team pairing as never allowed, fallback with approval, or normally allowed. Opposing-team options are ranked first when available.

The option remains visible in the approval-required section when the preset allows Director overrides. Before the bout can be queued, the required coach approval, referee-notification confirmation, and written reason must be completed. The exceeded criteria and reason are stored in the local audit record.

Choose the first wrestler to see opponents ranked by fewer bouts, guideline compatibility, team, repeat history, age, weight, and rating. The review is separated into Within guidelines, Approval required, and Not recommended groups. Unavailable wrestlers stay visible but disabled.

The new Director-created bout receives a unique identity in the current tournament build, enters the selected mat queue, and follows the same scorer, local display, Parent Portal, Tournament Cloud, result, and audit paths as an automatically scheduled bout. If that mat is still committing its prior result, the new bout waits until the prior reservation clears; it must never inherit the prior bout clock or score.

Eligible Grapevine bouts are staged in ascending bout-number order. A fresh two-mat card begins Mat 1 with B1, B3, and B5 and Mat 2 with B2, B4, and B6. Match-distribution priority cannot promote B10 or B12 ahead of B1. A safety conflict can hold the next bout until it is safe, but cross-mat protection keeps that blocked front bout in place instead of silently skipping it.

Yes. The selected preset, modified settings, wrestler BirthDate, and Rating are included in the local tournament save and recovery state. Older saved events with no Grapevine selection open with MatCommand Default, preserving their established Scramble behavior.

After the tournament is marked complete, choose Export Final Roster & Records from the completion panel or from Tools/Admin under Save, Backup & Server. The reusable CSV records each wrestler tournament W-L result and includes separate TournamentWins, TournamentLosses, and TournamentMatches columns. Private birth dates and Athlete IDs remain protected by the export warning.

Open the public Live View, click Projector Mode, then press F11 for browser full screen. Up to six mats fit in a 3-by-2 board showing Now Wrestling, On Deck, and In The Hole. Events with more than six mats rotate through six-mat pages every 12 seconds; Pause, Previous, and Next controls remain in the projector header. Add #projector to the viewer address to open a display directly in Projector Mode.

No. Ratings, Grapevine settings, compatibility calculations, and approval records remain on the Tournament Director computer and are omitted from the public tournament projection. Birth dates are also omitted from the public projection. When Tournament Cloud identity matching runs, an optional birth date may be sent over HTTPS to the private authenticated matching endpoint for comparison; it is not added to the permanent Cloud athlete record. Store reusable roster exports securely.

No. View Scramble Schedule (Optional) only opens the Print page so you can inspect mat assignments, scheduled bouts, or print sheets. It does not rebuild, renumber, reorder, approve, or start bouts, and it is not required for Tournament Check. Continue directly to the next required step when no separate review is needed.

Yes. Mark the intended mats Paper Scoring. No scorer devices are required. Start the bout in Live Control. When the runner returns the sheet, choose B# Enter result, click the winner (the name turns gold), then B# Submit result. Add result details (optional) lets you choose how they won. Pin / Fall, Injury Default, and Disqualification need no scores. Fall time is optional: 215 becomes 2:15; blank stays unrecorded, not 0:00. For other outcomes, enter both scores or neither; Decision scores must agree with the winner. Wait for the saved notice. Winner-only results advance the bout and count wins and losses. Missing methods are labeled Method not recorded. Method-based points remain incomplete without a method, and verified athlete-record synchronization waits for method and scores. Local results and the public event display still show the winner.

A selected Digital mat requires its matching scorer before Tournament Check and Start can pass. An extra scorer, or a scorer connected to a selected Paper mat, is shown as a gold review warning so the Director can confirm the intended plan. Paper mats need no scorer and use completed bout sheets entered once from Director Live Control.

No. The current release covers configurable regular-meet pairing only. The unresolved championship proposal, including any unapproved age groups, weight classes, or team-allowance rules, is intentionally not exposed as a selectable format.

The selected program is gold and the prior program is not. After you apply its checked divisions, Stage 2 is complete and Stage 3 becomes current. The exact program or custom subset must remain after autosave, browser reload, application restart, and saved-event recovery. Roster division and Assigned Weight Class lists must also come from that committed configuration. If any of those checks fail, do not build or run the tournament.

If Assigned Weight Class is blank, MatCommand uses the smallest configured class at or above actual weight. A 104-pound wrestler therefore enters 106 when 106 is the next configured class. A valid explicit imported class is preserved. If no eligible numeric class exists, HWT is used when configured; otherwise the row is rejected for Director correction. Scramble and Grapevine do not use this fixed-class assignment and continue to pair from actual weight.

Open the official Downloads page for the current release number and date. Inside Tournament, the running version is also available in the Director header and About screen. Use only the accepted, signed installer linked from the Downloads page for production events.

Use https://www.matcommandhq.com/downloads. The Downloads page presents one current Tournament installer link. Older versioned installer addresses redirect to that same accepted release.

Yes. The production installer and the MatCommand application executable are Authenticode signed and timestamped. Windows should show Scott Crum as the verified publisher when the signature is inspected.

Download the official installer, close any running Tournament server, run the installer, and use the Start Menu or desktop MatCommand shortcut. Administrator rights are normally required because the installer writes under Program Files and can add the limited local-subnet TCP firewall rule for Private and Public venue-network profiles.

Before updating, choose Save Now and Export Full Event Backup. Never update during an active bout. Choose Check for Updates or the Install Update indicator, then confirm the verified download. MatCommand blocks the update while the current Director has a live unpaused tournament or any mat has a live or result-pending bout. A freshly cleared Setup screen is not treated as live merely because an older recovery file exists. The embedded shutdown helper stops only Tournament processes owned by that exact installation. Portable or unrelated same-named applications are not stopped. If safe shutdown cannot be proven, Setup stops before replacing files. After Setup completes, launch MatCommand normally, confirm the revision in Director Info, and verify the intended saved event before scoring.

No. Installed builds store tournament data under %LOCALAPPDATA%\MatCommand\Tournament, separate from the Program Files installation. A backup is still strongly recommended before every update.

MatCommand runs a local Tournament server on the Director computer and uses the browser as the Director interface. Keep the MatCommand process running while the event is in use.

On the Director laptop, use http://localhost:8765/. If another unrelated application already occupies that port, MatCommand can use the next supported port through 8774 and will open the correct address.

Only one MatCommand server should own the Tournament data folder. A second launch detects the running server and reopens it instead of creating an independent event on another port.

Use Tools > Shutdown Tournament Server after saving. Closing only the browser tab does not necessarily stop the local server.

Releases before V14.00 could check the last durable recovery file after Clear / Reset removed the current event identity. That old recovery file could still say started even when the visible Director was at an empty Setup screen. Install V14.13 once with the signed website installer if the older in-app updater is blocked. V14.13 uses the current Director lifecycle while still refusing to update during a genuinely live or result-pending mat.

MatCommand Tournament Director is USD 349.99 per year. It includes Tournament Cloud and permits up to two activated Director computers.

The qualifying Youth Organization plan is USD 129.99 per year for youth recreational leagues, nonprofit clubs, and school programs. It includes Tournament, Team, Drills, and Tournament Cloud on up to two organization computers. During the annual term it permits unlimited Scramble / Grapevine events plus up to three unique Round Robin, Single Elimination, or Double Elimination tournaments.

No. Tournament Cloud is included with every active Tournament Director and Youth Organization license. The Director still chooses for each event whether to Publish Online or Continue Locally.

Open License Center, enter the issued MatCommand license key, and choose Activate License. Internet is required for initial activation. The signed annual license then remains usable offline through its expiration date.

Enter the customer details in License Center, choose Buy License with PayPal, complete the hosted checkout, return to MatCommand, and choose Check Purchase Status. A completed and verified purchase issues or activates the matching entitlement.

Yes. Choose Create Offline License Request, send the .mctrequest file to MatCommand, receive a privately signed .mctlicense file, and choose Import Offline License File. Never send or distribute the owner signing key.

Only Director computers consume activations. Scorer stations, mat displays, public viewers, parent viewers, and bracket displays do not consume activations.

Two Director computers are allowed per annual Tournament license. A third Director computer must be rejected until an existing activation is revoked or support resolves the activation record.

Revoke the old device activation through the licensing administration process, then activate the replacement computer with the same customer entitlement. Keep the old device ID and customer email available for support.

No. After successful activation, local scoring, clocks, results, recovery, printing, and completion continue offline through the license expiration. Cloud publication may pause, but the local event remains authoritative.

A tournament that was validly authorized and started remains protected so licensing cannot interrupt that event's scoring, recovery, corrections, printing, exports, or completion. A valid license is required before a different tournament starts live.

No. Only one Director browser controls a running server. Other Director tabs are read-only until the active Director explicitly transfers control using the configured takeover PIN.

The default is 2468. The active Director can change it under Tools. Restarting the Tournament server resets the PINs to 2468, so do not treat the default as a permanent secret.

1 Event Setup, 2 Format and Rules, 3 Roster, 4 Build Tournament, and 5 Check and Start.

Yes. After all bouts are finished, choose New Tournament, then Save Results and Start New Tournament. A full backup is saved before Event Setup opens. Finished events need no extra Reset or typed RESET. If backup fails, nothing is cleared. Unfinished events retain their safeguards. To resume an event, open its saved tournament instead.

Green means complete, gold means the next needed action or a warning to review, and red means required or blocked. Do not start until every required item is resolved and Tournament Check passes.

The matching workspace opens in place. The primary gold action follows the current stage so the Director does not have to hunt for the next control.

Choose the mat count in Stage 1, Event Setup. MatCommand supports 1 through 18 competition mats, and the count remains editable before building.

In Stage 1, Event Setup, choose Paper Scoring or Digital Scoring for every configured mat. A Paper mat needs no scorer device. A Digital mat needs the matching scorer connected before Tournament Check and Start can pass. Save Event Information only after every mat shows its selected method.

Yes. Stage 1 provides optional minimum age, maximum age, minimum weight, and maximum weight for each Scramble mat. Automatic assignment follows those limits. A Director can deliberately place a ready bout outside them from Live Control only after confirming the visible override warning.

No. For Bracket and Double Elimination, MatCommand prepares a valid automatic seed order before Build Tournament. Review or swap seeds only when an approved correction is needed. Any manual change must be made before Build because the seed editor becomes read-only after the bout graph is created. Round Robin and Scramble do not use this seed editor.

Tournament Check validates roster, match build, mats, queues, connected devices, public projection, and recovery readiness. It reports problems but does not change tournament data.

Use Run Tournament Check above Public Access in Stage 5, after building matches and reviewing the scoring method for every mat. A selected Digital mat must have its matching scorer connected before Start. Extra scorers, or scorers on Paper mats, remain gold warnings for review. Run Check Again after major roster, mat, scoring-plan, format, recovery, or queue changes.

Stage 5 requires a built tournament, a passing Tournament Check, and an explicit choice of Publish Online or Continue Locally. After the tournament starts, Open Live Control becomes the normal action.

Yes. Choose Continue Locally. Cloud failure must never block local tournament setup, scoring, saving, displays, or recovery.

CSV, XLSX, XLS, MatCommand Team Tournament CSV, and the supported MatCommand Weigh-In and Registration transfer JSON are accepted.

CSV: roster-template.csv. XLSX: roster-template.xlsx. The XLSX file includes a separate Instructions sheet and keeps Roster Template as the first sheet.

Use CSV for maximum portability and the fewest formatting surprises. Use XLSX when staff need Excel guidance, filters, and validated Skill entries. Save the final workbook with Roster Template as the first active sheet.

Name,Weight,Division,Team,Record,Skill,BirthDate,MatCommandAthleteId,Rating,Assigned Weight Class

Name and Weight are required. Division, Team, Record, Skill, BirthDate, MatCommandAthleteId, and Assigned Weight Class may be blank when the selected format permits it. Grapevine requires the coach-provided Rating from 0.5 through 6; a blank rating remains blank and blocks Build Tournament. In a fixed-class format, a blank imported Assigned Weight Class uses the smallest configured class at or above actual weight.

Enter a number in pounds, such as 68 or 68.5. Do not include lb, lbs, or other text in the cell.

Use W-L, such as 5-2. The imported record is the submitted tournament record and is used for seeding unless the Director deliberately applies a verified record before building.

Use YYYY-MM-DD, such as 2017-04-12. BirthDate is optional, private, and improves exact Athlete ID matching.

Use Novice, Intermediate, or Advanced. Skill assists Scramble matching and is not used to seed Bracket or Round Robin formats.

The importer recognizes several aliases, but the safest customer workflow is to keep the canonical ten columns in the documented order. Do not add title rows, merged cells, or blank rows above the header.

MatCommand reads the workbook's active worksheet. Keep Roster Template first and active when saving. Do not leave an instructions or cover sheet active.

No. Stage 3 intentionally keeps two clear roster paths: choose Import Roster File for CSV or XLSX, or enter wrestlers one at a time under Enter Wrestlers Manually. This avoids hidden paste-format errors and keeps the loaded roster visible for review.

Yes. Use Manual Entry in Stage 3, complete Name and Weight, add optional fields, then choose Add.

Export the Tournament CSV from MatCommand Team and import MatCommand_Team_to_Tournament_roster.csv in Stage 3.

Complete Staff Review and Weigh-In in the registration app, export for Tournament, and import the supported MCWeighNReg_Transfer.json file.

Do not build. Correct missing names, nonnumeric weights, extra title rows, malformed dates, or shifted columns in the source file, then re-import and review the Build Summary.

Choose Export Reusable Roster. It preserves private BirthDate and MatCommandAthleteId values when available and writes Assigned Weight Class immediately after Rating. Reimporting the export preserves each canonical assigned class; a genuinely blank exported class remains blank rather than being replaced in the CSV with an invented value.

No. It can contain birth dates for minors. Store and transfer it securely. Use only the public viewer link or sanitized public reports for parents.

After tournament information and the roster are available, an active online license can prepare the private Cloud session. Unresolved athletes are matched or assigned IDs in small background batches without publishing the tournament.

No. Private preparation is separate from the Stage 5 public access choice. A public event exists only after the Director chooses Publish Online.

The safest exact match is a retained MatCommandAthleteId. The same normalized name and BirthDate can also reconnect the existing athlete even after a team change.

Team does not own the permanent Athlete ID. The exact ID or the same name and BirthDate can reconnect the wrestler across licensed organizations and tournaments.

MatCommand does not silently merge athletes using only name, team, age division, or weight. Without BirthDate or a retained ID, a same-name entry remains separate and may be flagged for owner review.

Without a retained Athlete ID, a different spelling or nickname is normally treated as a different athlete. Use Find Athlete for reviewed correction instead of guessing.

The Director's imported or manually entered Record remains the submitted seeding record. The verified MatCommand record appears separately and never silently replaces it.

Yes, before matches are built. Open Edit Wrestler and choose Use Verified Record. The action is unavailable after build because changing the seeding record then would misrepresent the completed bracket build.

Parents can search the current public tournament roster by wrestler name or school/team. A linked public Athlete Record can show the verified record and published tournament bout history.

No. BirthDate is used only for private matching, is excluded from the public projection, and is not retained in the permanent Cloud athlete record. The Director's local and reusable roster copies must still be protected.

Yes. Uncertain matches remain separate for protected owner review. Support can correct or merge records through the Cloud administration workflow without exposing the permanent athlete database to public search.

Open Privacy Policy from License Center or Tournament Cloud setup. PRIVACY_POLICY.txt is also included in installed and portable packages. It documents verified local storage, private Athlete ID matching, public Cloud fields, retention behavior, correction and deletion requests, security, and tournament-operator responsibilities. The EULA and privacy policy are the owner-adopted terms for this release and do not certify legal compliance in every jurisdiction.

Use the red remove control beside the wrestler, confirm the removal, review the roster, and build only after the list is correct.

Yes, if the wrestler is not currently active on a mat. MatCommand removes every unfinished pending, ready, and queued bout involving that wrestler from the canonical match list, mat queues, and global queue while preserving completed results. Live Event Lockdown requires typed ROSTER confirmation after start.

No. Finalize the active bout first using the correct result method, then handle the remaining withdrawal.

No. The elimination graph is locked once built. Deleting or rebuilding the wrestler in place could corrupt advancement routes.

Keep the wrestler in the bracket and complete each required future bout with the accurate Forfeit / No Show or Injury Default result. This advances the correct opponent without rewriting the bracket.

Before build, remove the wrestler. After an elimination bracket is built, use Forfeit / No Show for the required bout. For Round Robin or Scramble, remove the inactive wrestler to cancel pending matches.

End the active bout using Injury Default when that is the correct result, then use Injury Default or the appropriate no-show result for later required elimination bouts.

Use the Disqualification result method. Do not delete the wrestler simply to force advancement.

No. Completed results remain. Only unfinished bouts involving that wrestler are removed from the active scheduling structures.

No. Do not reset or rebuild an active elimination tournament to remove a participant. Use the bracket result methods so canonical advancement stays intact.

Single Elimination, Double Elimination with an If-Needed Final when required, Round Robin, and Scramble/Grapevine.

Use it for a traditional one-loss-out bracket with the shortest path to a champion.

Use it when wrestlers should remain eligible until a second loss, including wrestlebacks/consolation and an If-Needed Final when the undefeated finalist takes a first loss.

Use it when every wrestler in a group should face every other wrestler in that group.

Use it for flexible youth bout scheduling within the chosen weight window and match-goal settings, with optional skill/record balancing instead of fixed brackets.

Automatic seed order is ready by default, so manual review is optional. If the Director chooses to swap seeds, make that change before Build Tournament. Build converts the current seed order into the elimination graph; the editor then locks so already-created advancement routes cannot be changed silently.

It creates the canonical bout list, bracket or group structure, initial mat queues, and public projection inputs for the selected roster, format, and mat count.

Before wrestling starts, after intentionally correcting roster, format, mats, or seeds. Run Tournament Check again after rebuilding. Do not rebuild a live elimination event to solve a withdrawal.

Return to Stage 4, Build Tournament, confirm the roster, format, mats, and any optional seed changes, then choose Build Tournament. Run Tournament Check again in Stage 5.

Only enable Allow multi-division wrestlers when intentional. Tournament Check still warns about unsafe overlap, rest, or concurrent queue conditions.

Each configured division stores P1, P2, and P3 for championship and consolation / wrestleback bouts. The USA Wrestling Kids Folkstyle Nationals 2026 starting preset uses 1:00 / 1:00 / 1:00 for 8U and 10U, 1:00 / 1:30 / 1:30 for 12U and 14U championship bouts, and 1:00 / 1:00 / 1:00 for 12U and 14U consolation bouts. If the schedules differ, the Director must choose which one Round Robin or another unclassified format uses before building.

Build Tournament creates a new match generation. Every rebuilt bout receives a new match-instance identity, all prior active-mat and scoring-session state is invalidated, and scoring stations must load the rebuilt bout from the Director. The roster, tournament setup, divisions, and weights remain available unless the Director separately changes them.

No. A normal rebuild starts every rebuilt match in Period 1 with its full configured clock and no score, penalties, injury time, or scoring history. A scoring station automatically discards cached state from the previous generation. Reset controls are emergency recovery tools and should not be needed after a normal rebuild.

After all bouts are finished, choose New Tournament, then Keep Roster for Next Tournament. MatCommand saves a full backup before clearing the previous bouts and results. Review the new event details, format, rules, and roster before building new bouts and running Tournament Check.

Live Event Lockdown protects a tournament that has already started or recorded bout activity. For a destructive reset, match rebuild, or format change, the exact confirmation word appears on the first visible line of the prompt above the entry box. Type that word only when the change is deliberate. Cancel leaves the live event unchanged.

Live Control shows Now Wrestling, On Deck, In the Hole, Coming Up, and later bouts for each mat.

Yes. Live Control keeps every configured mat, from 1 through 18, in the primary Live Mats grid. Director Controls stay collapsed below the full grid so normal mat status is visible first.

Yes. Open Director Controls, then Place Bout. Choose any eligible ready bout, any safe mat, and Now Wrestling, On Deck, In the Hole, or Coming Up. MatCommand refuses unresolved, completed, active, result-pending, wrestler-conflict, or paused-mat placement.

It re-sends the current assigned bout to that mat's scoring station. It does not create a new bout or change the bracket.

Use it after a scorer reconnects, when a scorer is showing an old screen, or after the Director verifies the correct current assignment.

An unstarted active bout can be moved only before any time, score, period, stall, caution, injury, or other match activity exists. Follow the Director confirmation and verify both scorer stations.

A required feeder result, participant, rest buffer, or other safety condition is unresolved. Complete or correct the prerequisite rather than forcing a guessed participant.

Only through the narrow Release Bout control when both direct feeder bouts are complete, both wrestlers are resolved and available, neither is active or already queued, and the recovery buffer is satisfied. It queues only that bout and never rewrites advancement.

No when the control is available. Its safety checks require resolved feeder results and preserve the existing bracket graph. It must not be used to invent or override participants.

It refreshes queued and pending placements from the current canonical state. It does not alter completed or active bouts.

Only the Director can choose + Add Scramble Bout. Add any late wrestler to the roster first, select two eligible wrestlers, review the displayed age, weight, rating, team, and approval guidance, then assign the mat. The bout follows the same scorer, local display, Parent Portal, Tournament Cloud, result, and audit paths as an automatically scheduled bout. A scorer cannot create this bout.

It prevents additional bouts from being started while active bouts and Director review continue. Use it to stabilize an event without stopping clocks already in progress.

Yes. Open Director Controls, then Mat Flow. Select the mat and choose Pause New Bouts on Mat. The mat stays visible with its queue and a PAUSED banner; its active bout can finish and queued bouts can be moved away, while all other mats continue. Choose Resume New Bouts on Mat when the delay is over.

The scorer chooses Request Delay. The Director reviews the request in Live Control and can move or hold the bout using the available safety controls.

Use the Director Message area, select the mat, enter a short instruction, and choose Send. The scorer page also provides Call Wrestler and Request Delay controls.

Starting idle mats should fill only idle assignments. Active mats must not be repushed or restarted. Verify the queue status before using the control.

Complete the remaining required results, confirm Tournament Complete status, save, create a recovery point, and export a Full Event Backup. Ending a Cloud event is a separate public-publishing action.

Open http://DIRECTOR-IP:PORT/scoring.html?mat=1 and replace 1 with the assigned mat number. Use Device Links to copy or display the correct addresses.

Confirm the mat number, bout number, wrestler names, teams, and red/green corners. Mark both wrestlers present before Begin Bout.

Yes. Use Swap Corners on the scorer check-in screen. The scoring screen and public projection follow the active corner assignment.

Another device currently owns that mat's scorer lease. Use the scorer takeover PIN only when the Director confirms the original device should be replaced.

Reconnect it to the same tournament network, reopen the same mat URL, then have the Director choose Push to Scorer if the current bout does not return automatically.

Do not score it. Confirm the mat number and Director queue, then use Push to Scorer for the correct current bout.

Use Red No Show - Green Wins or Green No Show - Red Wins from the check-in workflow when that is the correct result.

Use the scorer match tools or manual result controls for Injury Default or Disqualification. Do not substitute a normal points result.

Choose B# Enter result next to the active bout. Click the winner; the name turns gold. Optionally choose how they won. Pin / Fall, Injury Default, and Disqualification need no scores. Fall time is optional: 215 becomes 2:15; blank stays unrecorded. Choose B# Submit result and wait for the saved notice. Hidden score drafts cannot block these outcomes. Switching back to Decision restores the score draft for correction.

Use Request Delay or Call Wrestler and wait for the Director response. The Director can also send a message directly to that mat.

Verify final score, winner, period/clock state, and result method. Finalization writes the result, audit trail, bracket/group advancement, and next queue actions.

Yes. In Director Live Control, find Completed on this Mat, choose Correct or View Log, restore the protected pre-result checkpoint, and re-enter the correct result. Review downstream effects before continuing.

Stop and do not score that bout. Confirm the Director completed the rebuild and the scoring station shows the rebuilt bout. Reopen the exact mat link or choose Push to Scorer once. If the old clock remains, use Reset Entire Match only as an emergency recovery control and send a Full Event Backup to support because a normal rebuild must discard old scoring state automatically.

Use Reset Period Clock only to restore the current period to its full configured duration while keeping the current period, score, penalties, and scoring history. Use Reset Entire Match only when the assigned bout itself must return to pre-bout verification with Period 1, a full clock, zero scores and penalties, cleared injury timers, and cleared scoring history. Previous Period moves back one period and resets that period clock while preserving scores and penalties.

Fall 1:45 means the pin occurred after one minute and forty-five seconds of total wrestling time. It is the elapsed match time recorded when the Fall result is finalized.

It is total elapsed match time, not the time remaining on the active period clock. For example, after a completed one-minute first period, a fall with 15 seconds remaining in a one-minute second period is recorded as Fall 1:45.

MatCommand adds the configured duration of every completed regulation period, then adds the elapsed portion of the current period. It also includes completed overtime segments and elapsed time in the active overtime segment. A 1:00 / 1:30 / 1:30 schedule therefore uses the actual configured duration of each period.

Older saved tournaments and Cloud records may identify a Fall without storing a reliable numeric elapsed time. MatCommand displays Fall for those records and does not invent Fall 0:00 or modify the old result merely by loading it.

Undo Result or reopening the completed match removes the stored fall time. Changing the result method away from Fall also removes it. Finalizing a corrected Fall records the corrected elapsed time and sends that corrected result to connected local and Cloud views.

Any local devices in use - the Director, electronic scorer tables, mat displays, and local viewers - must be on the same private LAN or Wi-Fi network. A paper-only event may run with the Director computer and zero scorer devices.

No. Guest networks often isolate devices from one another. Use a dedicated tournament router or the Director laptop's Mobile Hotspot.

Yes. Internet is optional for local scoring, clocks, displays, saving, and recovery after activation. Internet is needed for public Cloud updates and initial online activation.

The Director laptop commonly uses 192.168.137.1. A Mat 1 scorer would then use http://192.168.137.1:8765/scoring.html?mat=1 when port 8765 is active.

No. Disable VPNs on tournament devices unless your network administrator has explicitly validated local-device routing. VPNs commonly block discovery or send traffic away from the tournament LAN.

Open Tools and choose Run Network Test after connecting any electronic scorer and display devices you plan to use. Review Director HTTP, Live State API, Director socket, configured scorer mats, and public displays. For paper-only operation, zero scorer devices is the expected result.

MatCommand uses TCP ports 8765-8774 for the exact MatCommand executable. The installer creates one inbound rule for Private and Public venue-network profiles, limited to devices on the same local subnet. Never create a broad Any-port or Internet-wide rule.

A remote device cannot automatically claim initial Director ownership. The local Director browser owns the session; remote takeover requires the configured Director PIN.

After start it requires typed confirmation for dangerous changes such as reset, roster imports/deletes, format or mat-count changes, backup loads, and checkpoint restores. Safe live operations remain available.

The Wizard, Tournament Readiness, Device Links, Live Control, and Tools network test show scorer presence by mat. Online identifies an electronic mat; PAPER identifies a mat with no scorer device. Partial, missing, wrong, or extra coverage remains visible for review but does not block Tournament Check or Start.

The active tournament autosaves every 60 seconds. Manual Save Now remains available for deliberate checkpoints between major actions.

After roster review, after building, before start, after major corrections, and whenever the Director wants an immediate current-state save.

Create one before finals, corrections, queue repairs, roster withdrawals, or any risky live change. It gives the Director a deliberate restore boundary.

MatCommand lists the newest valid tournament and available recovery, autosave, data-file, and legacy entries. Resume Latest Tournament is normally the fastest safe choice.

It creates one support/archive ZIP containing tournament state, recovery entries, public viewer state, restore points, autosave checkpoints, logs, and recent backups.

JSON Backup is a lighter tournament-state restore file. Full Event Backup is preferred for support, archiving, or moving an entire event because it includes the broader recovery package.

Use Tools > Load Backup and select a supported JSON backup or Full Event Backup ZIP. During a live event, Live Event Lockdown requires explicit confirmation.

Installed builds use %LOCALAPPDATA%\MatCommand\Tournament. Portable builds use MCTournament_Data beside the extracted application.

Restart MatCommand, use Tournament Recovery, load the newest valid clean entry, and verify current bouts and queues. Reconnect only the mats intended for electronic scoring, keep paper mats on printed sheets, then run Tournament Check. Use Push to Scorer only for electronic mats that need the current assignment again.

Recovery validation skips an invalid latest save and offers the newest valid recovery entry. Do not overwrite all recovery files while investigating.

Send the Full Event Backup ZIP, the version number, tournament name/date, approximate problem time, affected mat/bout, and a plain description of the last successful action. Do not send private signing keys or passwords.

In Stage 5, Check and Start, select Publish this tournament online and choose Publish Online. Wait for Cloud Live, then copy the viewer link or print the public QR.

Yes. The Cloud viewer is Internet-accessible and does not require the parent to join the tournament's local network.

The sanitized public projection can show tournament identity, roster names and teams, live mats, current and upcoming bouts, scores and clocks, brackets, results, and event-scoped athlete lookup.

No. The public viewer is read-only and never receives the Director authorization token or complete private tournament state.

Yes. Current public views include Now Wrestling, On Deck, In the Hole, and the published upcoming information available for each mat.

Yes, when the scorer station has begun and synchronized the bout. Public updates are intentionally lighter than local scoring traffic so Cloud cannot affect tournament performance.

Elimination formats use bracket-form layouts in the Cloud viewer. Round Robin and Scramble use format-appropriate group or bout views rather than inventing an elimination tree.

After Cloud is live, choose Print Public QR in Stage 5 or Share / Print QR on the viewer. Print or display the branded page where parents can scan it.

MatCommand warns the Director and requires the separate confirmed End Previous Event & Publish This One action. That ends only the previous public session and does not delete either local tournament.

Verify the current tournament name/date, confirm Stage 5 shows Cloud Live for the current public ID, use the new viewer link, refresh the parent page, and choose Retry Cloud if the Director reports a pending mismatch. Do not rebuild the local tournament to fix a Cloud publication issue.

Local scoring continues. Cloud status can retry automatically or when the Director chooses Retry Cloud. Parents may see stale data until connectivity returns.

Use End This Cloud Event when the event should no longer be public. This does not stop or delete the local tournament.

No. Parents search the current published tournament roster. The permanent athlete database is not exposed through unrestricted global public name search.

No. Publishing sends the current sanitized public tournament state online. It does not rebuild matches, change match identities, reset clocks or scores, or alter the local tournament graph. Rebuilding is a separate intentional Director action.

Use http://DIRECTOR-IP:PORT/viewer.html from a device on the same tournament network.

Use http://DIRECTOR-IP:PORT/parent.html. The Cloud viewer provides event-scoped athlete lookup for Internet users.

No. Public viewers, parent viewers, mat displays, and bracket displays do not consume Director activations.

Confirm the display is on the same network, the active port is correct, the tournament is built, and the Director network test sees the display. Refresh after the Director state is available.

No. Public pages use the sanitized public projection and cannot retrieve Director audit history, recovery state, licensing details, or complete private roster data.

Yes. Use Print for bracket sheets and use Brackets for live bracket viewing and bracket displays.

Yes. Mat-assigned bout sheets and schedules are printable, including Scramble assignments, so paper can be used as an operational backup.

Yes. After build, use View Scramble Mat Assignments & Scheduled Matches and the Print page to produce mat-ready bout lists.

Use Standings for wrestler and team results, records, points, and placements. Public standings use only sanitized published data.

Each completed bout retains searchable scoring order, period and clock context, result revisions, and Director activity for review. It can be printed or exported as JSON.

Export Full Event Backup, final brackets, standings, mat/bout reports, and any required audit logs. Store private roster exports separately from public reports.

Finish every required bout and confirm there is no active, queued, ready, or pending work. When Tournament Status shows Ready to Complete, choose the final gold Complete Tournament button and confirm. Then print or export final records, create a Full Event Backup, and end the correct Cloud event if it was published.

Yes, but tournament-day reliability depends on the Director laptop, browser, and network. Rehearse the exact roster, format, and mat count before the event, especially for 500-wrestler or 9-mat configurations.

Use a modern Windows laptop on AC power, disable sleep, keep adequate free disk space, close heavy unrelated applications, and use a dedicated tournament router.

For electronic scoring, use a dedicated dual-band router or validated wired access points, keep every scoring device on the same private LAN, avoid guest isolation, and perform the Tools network test with every configured mat connected. Paper-only events may use zero scorer devices.

Cloud publication is designed as an asynchronous, read-only projection. Cloud outages or retries must not block local scoring, clocks, saving, displays, or recovery.

Stop opening duplicate Director tabs, close unrelated browser tabs and applications, verify the local network, avoid repeatedly repushing active mats, save a recovery point, and inspect queue/device status before making structural changes.

Yes. Import the actual roster, build the intended format, and rehearse the scoring method you will actually use. For paper mats, print sheets and enter a sample result from Director Live Control. For electronic mats, connect the correct scorer link and run a sample bout. Also test results, reports, the viewer, recovery, and Tournament Check.

Confirm the MatCommand process is running, open the Start Menu shortcut again, try the printed localhost address, verify no security software quarantined the signed executable, and inspect whether port 8765 or a fallback port is listening.

The request came from a browser without the active connection-bound Director authorization. Use the active local Director tab or explicitly take control with the Director PIN. Do not weaken private endpoint protection.

Return to the active tab, or enter the takeover PIN only when you intend to transfer control. A successful takeover disconnects the prior Director.

Reconnect the device to the correct network, reopen its exact mat URL, confirm the mat lock, and choose Push to Scorer for the current bout.

The scorer is verifying the exact Director assignment before enabling controls. The current release automatically retries the authoritative replay and confirmation if a network message is lost. If the banner remains for more than a few seconds, confirm the device is on the correct network, reopen the same mat URL, then verify the current bout in Live Control and choose Push to Scorer once.

Confirm both wrestlers are marked present, the bout is the Director's current assignment, no other device owns the mat lock, and no unresolved blocked-feeder condition exists.

Check the tournament name, roster, format, mats, built count, and Tournament Check status. Load the intended clean recovery entry if the state is wrong. Do not clear the tournament simply because a card is red.

The result stays beside the Run Tournament Check button and says Tournament is ready to run or Tournament needs review. The page does not jump. Choose Open Full Summary only when you want the complete detailed report at the top of the page; the same check is also available under Tools/Admin.

Confirm the current event is Cloud Live, use the current viewer URL, refresh the public page, and use Retry Cloud. If another event owns the license, use the confirmed end-and-publish workflow.

Choose Open Backup Folder again or use Windows task switching. The current release requests the folder in the foreground, but Windows focus policy can still affect Explorer.

Include the running MatCommand version from About, the Windows version, tournament name/date, format, wrestler and mat counts, exact bout/mat, approximate time, screenshots, and a Full Event Backup. Email [email protected].

Do not distribute private license keys, delete all recovery files, rebuild a live elimination graph to remove a wrestler, edit canonical state files by hand, or create broad Any-port firewall rules. The installer limits local device access to TCP ports 8765-8774 from the same subnet on Private and Public venue-network profiles.

Yes. If the bout is still On Deck, choose the gold Start B# action on that mat first. Confirm that the exact bout and wrestlers now show as Now Wrestling. Then choose B# Enter Result, click the winning wrestler, optionally add how they won, scores or Fall time, and submit. Digital scoring mode stays unchanged. A specifically paused mat must be resumed before starting another bout, and a result already pending must finish recovery first. Future/TBD bouts and wrestlers active on another mat remain protected.

Reconnect to the same mat URL. The saved Director result remains official; a later conflicting scorer result must not replace it. Verify the completed bout before resuming new bouts. If the whole mat will use paper for future bouts, change its scoring mode only after the current assignment and any pending result are safely finished.

Choose the absent wrestler: Green No Show selects Red as the winner; Red No Show selects Green. The result opens with the correct winner and Forfeit / DNS already selected. Verify the winner name and choose Submit Result. Swapped corners follow the names currently shown. Back to Match returns to presence verification without starting the clock.