How to play
Scoring system
The SportGuru scoring system aims to reward different aspects of prediction with different types of points. You'll see these represented all around the site as WP (Win Point), MP (Margin Point), BP (Bonus Point) and, in some tournaments, GSP (Grand Slam Point) and CP (Challenge Point).
Win Point (WP)
The meat and bread of SportGuru. You'll score a Win Point if you correctly predict the winner of a game (or a draw, where applicable), irrespective of margin.
Value
The core Win Point value is usually 1 pt, but it does vary through the different stages of a tournament, increasing in value as picking the winner becomes harder.
For Autumn Internationals:
| Value | Rounds |
| 1.00 pt | From Round 1 to 5 |
Margin Point (MP)
The Margin Point rewards accuracy in margin: if your margin prediction is within 5 points of the actual score margin, you'll pick up a MP worth 0.5 pts.
The Margin Point can cross the win boundary...
Unlike other points, the Margin Point can still be awarded if you get the winner of the game wrong, but only if you are very close: within 5 points of the actual margin. E.g. you pick Ireland by 2 but South Africa win by 1. The Margin Range is 5 points either side of the actual margin, in this case from Ireland by 4 to South Africa by 6. You'll score a MP.
... but is not irrespective of winner
For clarity, the Margin Point does not simply ignore your choice of winner: if you pick Ireland by 22 and South Africa wins by 22, you will not qualify for a Margin Point. It's only in cases of games ending with a win by less than 5 points where the MP can cross the win boundary.
Bonus Point (BP)
The Bonus Point rewards the closest pick(s) in a given pool. It applies inside each pool only and does not count globally. This means whilst you could score the BP in one pool, you might not in another where someone else has made a better pick than you.
Pre-requisites and value
To qualify for a Bonus Point, you must have correctly predicted the winner of the game. The BP is worth 1 pt. If two or more players share it, the point is divided up amongst them, down to a minimum split of 0.25.
| Value | Split |
| 1.0 pt | If 1 player alone is closest |
| 0.5 pts | If 2 players are equally close |
| 0.33 pts | If 3 players are equally close |
| 0.25 pts | If 4 or more players are equally close |
How is "closest" defined?
If you predict the exact winning margin, then it's very easy: obviously that's the closest possible pick. However, if no-one in the pool picks the exact winning margin, the player(s) with the closest margin(s) will qualify, as long as they have correctly predicted the winner of the game.
What if nobody got the winner right?
If nobody in the pool correctly predicted the winner, no Bonus Point will be issued for the game. Even if your pick was the losing team by 1, you will not qualify for a BP.
Bonus forfeit
If you join a pool after the start of the tournament, your picks will be copied across, but you will not qualify for Bonus Points for any of the games you missed in that pool, even if your margin was better than someone else's. You'll see DNQ (Did Not Qualify) next to your picks.
Grand Slam Point (GSP)
The Grand Slam Point rewards getting all the winners in a given round of the tournament correct. It does not necessarily apply to all rounds.
Value
The Grand Slam Point is awarded if you correctly predict the winner (or draw) in all the games in a round (for definition of our rounds, see the fixtures. You will only qualify if you picked all the games in the round and if you did not default on any of them.
| Value | Rounds |
| 1 pt | From Round 1 to Round 4 |
| 0 pts | Round 5 |
