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| Formation | March 1980 |
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| Founders |
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| Headquarters | Roseburg, Oregon |
| Location |
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| Membership | 6,716 (April 2012) |
| President | Jeanne Hofbauer |
The American Cribbage Congress (ACC) was established in March 1980 with the primary goals of promoting the game of cribbage at both the national and local levels and to standardize the rules under which cribbage tournaments were conducted. Secondary goals of the ACC included the recognition that cribbage tournaments should benefit tournament players instead of tournament directors and to establish a points and awards system to reward players.
The ACC operates on three levels: sanctioned tournaments, local clubs (called "Grass Roots"), and internet tournaments.
The ACC also publishes a monthly newsletter called Cribbage World. As of April 2012, it had a membership of 6,716.
Cribbage tournaments sanctioned by the ACC are formatted in one-day or two-day durations. Tournaments are generally held on weekends, but can be held on any day of the week. Entry fees are usually required to play: the amount of which vary by tournament. Sanctioned two-day tournaments (and a few one-day tournaments) often have multiple non-sanctioned satellite tournaments.
Tournament game formats can vary by geography, with some areas preferring one game each against multiple opponents with a cut for first deal before each game, one game each against multiple opponents with alternating first deal before each game, or two games each against multiple opponents with alternating first deal before each game.
In every sanctioned ACC tournament, the top 1/4th of finishers qualify for a bracketed knock-out playoff (best 2 of 3 or best 3 of 5 game matches). Each player who qualifies for the playoffs must be given the opportunity to win the tournament they've entered. Players who qualify for playoffs in a sanctioned tournament also receive Master Rating Points (MRP's) which accumulate towards levels of recognition. In addition, players who finish in the top 1/8th of the field receive automatic MRP's.
Every sanctioned ACC tournament must follow the official tournament rules of the American Cribbage Congress and has certified judges on hand to adjudicate any disputes.
One-day tournaments will have all sanctioned events in the same day. The morning portion will have a sanctioned main tournament of 12-16 games. The afternoon portion will have the main event playoffs, and a sanctioned consolation tournament of 7-12 games with consolation playoffs immediately after.
Two-day tournaments will have the sanctioned events spread out over two days. The first day will have a sanctioned main tournament of 18-22 games with main event playoffs in the evening or held on the next day. The second day of the tournament will have the beginning of the main event playoffs (if not started the evening before) and a sanctioned consolation tournament of 7-12 games with consolation playoffs later in the day.
The annual National Open Cribbage Tournament in Raleigh, North Carolina uses a classic double elimination match play format. It is the only sanctioned ACC tournament to use this format.
Muggins (claiming points that your opponent has missed) is an option that is occasionally included in ACC tournaments.
Named after the first President of the American Cribbage Congress, the Joseph P. Wergin/ACC Open (JPW/ACC Open) is held in February of each year in Reno, Nevada and is the largest cribbage tournament in the world, with annual attendance near or over 1,000 players.
Satellites of the JPW/ACC Open include the annual invitation-only Tournament of Champions and the All-American Tournament.
In 2012, Jeanne Jelke became the first woman to win the JPW/ACC Open.
The Grand National is held in the Autumn of each year. The location of the Grand National is determined through a bidding process and rotates between different geographic regions.
Future locations for the Grand National tournament:
| Year | Location |
|---|---|
| 2015 | Yankton, South Dakota |
| 2016 | Bethesda, Maryland |
| 2017 | Lincoln City, Oregon |
Satellites of the Grand National tournament include the annual invitation-only Grass Roots Tournament of Champions.
Tournament players are awarded Master Rating Points (MRP's) based on tournament results. MRP's accumulate towards the following recognitions:
| Points | Description |
|---|---|
| 2,000 | Master |
| 4,000 | Grand Master |
| 6,000 | Life Master |
| 10,000 | 1 Star Life Master |
| 15,000 | 2 Star Life Master |
| 20,000 | 3 Star Life Master |
| 25,000 | 4 Star Life Master |
| 30,000 | 5 Star Life Master |
| 35,000 | 6 Star Life Master |
There are nearly 200 local cribbage clubs sanctioned by the ACC. Clubs (called "Grass Roots") are divided into geographic regions and further divided into divisions determined by the frequency of club meetings.
Each Grass Roots session consists of a 9-game round-robin tournament with the top finishers earning Grass Roots Rating Points (GRP's) which accumulate towards levels of recognition. Each Grass Roots club also hosts two 18-game tournaments each year. Club champions are invited to play in the annual Grass Roots Tournament of Champions held at the Grand National.
Grass Roots players are awarded Grass Roots Rating Points (GRP's) based on the results in local club play. GRP's accumulate towards the following recognitions:
| Points | Description |
|---|---|
| 1,000 | Bronze |
| 2,500 | Silver |
| 4,000 | Gold |
| 6,000 | Platinum |
| 8,000 | Diamond |
The ACC sponsors a limited number of regularly-scheduled sanctioned online tournaments held on select websites.
Formats vary by website, but can follow a match-play knockout format or a Grass Roots-style 9-game round-robin format. The top 25% of finishers in sanctioned internet tournaments earn Internet Rating Points (IRP's) which accumulate towards levels of recognition.
Internet players are awarded Internet Rating Points (IRP's) based on the results in internet tournaments. IRP's accumulate towards the following recognitions:
| Points | Description |
|---|---|
| 2,000 | eMaster |
| 4,000 | Grand eMaster |
| 6,000 | Life eMaster |
| 10,000 | 1 Star Life eMaster |
| 15,000 | 2 Star Life eMaster |
| 20,000 | 3 Star Life eMaster |
| 25,000 | 4 Star Life eMaster |
| 30,000 | 5 Star Life eMaster |