South America and Caribbean Region

Virtual PetroBowl® 2020

Rules and Regulations

Table of Contents
Table of Contents .........................................................................................................................1
About PetroBowl® ........................................................................................................................2
SACR Eligibility Criteria .................................................................................................................2
Teams .......................................................................................................................................2
Individual players .....................................................................................................................2
Prizes, awards and stipend funding ..............................................................................................3
Game format, bracket and seeding ..............................................................................................3
Seeding for the Championship .................................................................................................3
Tournament officials ....................................................................................................................3
Judges.......................................................................................................................................3
Additional on-site support roles ...............................................................................................4
Equipment ....................................................................................................................................4
Teams and Players........................................................................................................................5
Time .............................................................................................................................................6
Questions .....................................................................................................................................6
Toss-up Questions ....................................................................................................................6
Bonus Questions ......................................................................................................................7
Correct Answers .......................................................................................................................7
Toss Up Question Overview .....................................................................................................7
Study resources ............................................................................................................................8
Appeals.........................................................................................................................................8
Ethics and conduct .......................................................................................................................9
Rule changes ................................................................................................................................9

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
About PetroBowl®
The PetroBowl® competition pitches SPE Student Chapter teams against each other in a series
of quick-fire rounds, answering technical and nontechnical industry-related questions. Teams
from all over the world are selected to participate at the Championship games which take place
during SPE’s Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition (ATCE).

The regional selection process for qualifying Chapters will run by volunteers under the authority
of the Regional Directors who manage those regions. How teams are selected is at the discretion
of the region and can be done in any way they see fit. It is recommended that any regional events
are run in a similar fashion to the PetroBowl® Championship, as this would be the most effective
way to ensure a good performance of the region’s teams at the Championship.

SACR Eligibility Criteria

Teams
1) The top five teams from the SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 will represent our region at the
2020 PetroBowl® Championship.
2) The top two teams from the previous year’s Regional PetroBowl Competition will be
automatically invited to the Regional PetroBowl Competition as long as their university
remains a compliant SPE Chapter.
3) Teams must be compliant SPE Student Chapters (the definition of which includes submission
of the prior year’s annual report).
4) Teams will consist of no more than five members. There will be no degree specific criteria
for each team, although it is strongly recommended that teams diversify participants
amongst Bachelor, Master and PhD level to ensure continuity in future years.
5) Teams must identify a Faculty Advisor and a team captain at the time of registration. The
team captain shall be responsible for all team-related decisions and any correspondence
with the SACR Planning Committee. The Faculty Advisor must be member of the university
community and SPE and cannot be a student.
6) Teams will be required to submit a team roster at the time of registration.

Individual players
1) Players participating must be SPE Student Members in good standing, and enrolled in the
university represented at the time of the competition.
2) Players will be considered eligible as long as they are currently enrolled in the institution,
are studying towards a degree, and do not have more than two (2) years of full-time

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
 technical work experience (excluding internships) at the time of the competition. The latter
rule shall be self-enforced by the team’s Faculty Advisor.

Prizes, awards and stipend funding

The SACR PetroBowl Planning Committee will not provide financial sponsorship for participation
at a regional competition, nor for the Championship. Prizes and awards at the Regional
PetroBowl may be provided, but are not guaranteed.

Game format, bracket and seeding

The Regional games will follow a standard single elimination bracket-style process in which two
teams (designated Team A and Team B in the software) compete and the winning team (team
with most points at end of the round) advances to the next round.

Note: There is an exception for the First Round stated in Point 1) below.

Seeding for the Championship

1) Eighteen (18) teams will participate in the First Round of the Regional. However, out of the
nine teams that advance to the Second Round, the team with the lowest score will
automatically be eliminated. ONLY eight (8) teams will participate in the Second Round of
the competition.
2) The Regional Bracket will be randomly generated and reorganized as needed to minimize
the number of same-country teams playing against each other during the First Round.
3) The SACR Planning committee reserves the right to re-seed teams prior to the competition
in the event of a cancellation/disqualification. In the event of a “no- show” the morning of
the competition, said team shall be removed from the bracket and the other team will still
have to play the round.

Tournament officials
Tournament officials will be recruited as volunteers amongst SPE members, and selected by the
SACR PetroBowl Committee.

Judges
1) Each match (A to T) will have at LEAST three judges.
2) Each match (A to T) will have ONE super judge who is assigned user rights to the SACR Virtual
PetroBowl software.
3) After the end of each match, the super judge will log into the SACR Virtual PetroBowl
software.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
4) The judges will then review the answers for each question. If the answer from the fastest
team is correct, you select YES and then confirm. If the answer from the fastest team is
wrong, you select NO and then confirm. You then evaluate the answer for the opposite
team.
Note: You ONLY evaluate the answer for the opposite team if the answer from the fastest
team is wrong.
5) The judges are to work together to score the teams, validify answers and address appeals.
6) Once no appeals are made, the judges' decisions (concerning compliance to the rules and
awarding of points) will be final.
7) The super judge is responsible for submitting the final scores in the software.

Additional on-site support roles

1) Event Coordinators
2) Software Coordinators
3) Social Media Coordinators

Equipment
1) Each player is responsible for ensuring that they have a functioning laptop (with webcam,
microphone and speakers) and live internet connection on the event days (Saturday 4th July
and Sunday 6th July).
Note:
1) In the event that there is a blackout in your city, you are to continue playing the game
until it ends. You do not require an internet connection to play the game, only to upload the
score at the end of the game. At the end of the game, the Team Captain is to immediately
contact the SACR Planning Committee via the WhatsApp group assigned to the Team. The
SACR Planning Committee will then confirm same and if it is indeed true, they will give the
Team some time to upload their scores. In the event that the team fails to do this, they will
automatically be disqualified.
2) In the event that there is an issue with a player’s laptop during the game (for example the
laptop crashes) and he/she is unable to complete the game and submit his/her score, this
players participation will be discarded.
2) Each player is responsible for downloading the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software as well as,
Zoom (a cloud-based video conferencing application) before the event and familiarizing
themselves with it. Any questions or concerns related to the software should be addressed
with the SACR Planning Committee at the final Team Players meeting on Thursday 2nd June.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
 Note: For the Zoom Accounts each player is required to have their User Name in the
following format: Univeristy Initial_First Name_Second Name.
For example: UFRJ_Matheus_Gonzaga, ADEKUS_Ryan_Harripersad, UWI_Paul_Singh
3) In the event that a player encounters difficulty with the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software
during their match, this player is to alert the judges immediately via the chat in Zoom
without distracting the other players. The judges will determine the appropriate action to
take.
4) Once a player has completed his/her game, he/she is to inform the judges by typing “DONE”
in the chat in Zoom.
5) Before the match commence, the judges will ask to see the area you will be playing from. If
you need to use a pen and paper during the game please inform the judges before the start
of the match. Players are not allowed to use calculators during the game.
6) Players are not to use any reference materials at any point during the game. If they are found
guilty of doing this by the judges, their team will immediately be disqualified from the
competition.

Teams and Players

1) A team consists of up to 5 players who meet all eligibility requirements, though only 4
players are involved in a game at any given time.
a) It is considered “Best Practice” that a team diversifies its participants such that a mix of
graduates and undergraduates represent the student chapter. However, this
recommendation will not be enforced.
b) Any combination of the 5 players is allowed, but each team may have a maximum of 4
players in the game at any given time. Substitutions may not occur during a game except
during stoppage of play due to halftime intermission. Substitutions may occur between
games.
c) Teams may play short, with a minimum of two players.
d) Each team shall designate a team captain, who will be the main point of contact
throughout the event.
2) All Players are expected to treat each other, on-site support personnel, judges and the SACR
planning committee with respect at all times. Even though a process for protesting disputes
is provided, final decisions by judges must be accepted by all teams.
3) Any violation of ethics or sportsmanship may result in disqualification of a player or team
from the competition. The violation may also be reported to SPE International for additional
action.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
Time
1) Tardiness will not be excepted! All players are expected to use the WhatsApp groups during
the matches where they will be informed when to log into Zoom.
2) In all rounds, the match will commence when the judge(s) gives you permission you click on
the “Start” button in the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software. The time structure of each round
is as follows:
a) Each match in the First Round (on Satruday 4th July 2020) will be 8 minutes with no
intermission.
b) Each match in the Second Round and Third Round (on Sunday 5th July 2020) will consist
of two 8-minutes halves with a brief intermission between them.
c) Each match in the Final Round (on Sunday 5th July 2020) will consist of two 10- minutes
halves with a brief intermission between them.
3) The half or match will end when:
a) The team answers all the questions allotted for the 8 minutes interval.
b) The 8 minutes provided to answer all the questions has finished.
4) The team with more points at the end of the match wins. In the event of a tie, the two teams
will be required to play a tie-breaker match which will have 3 questions. If the game is still
tied after the 3 questions, they continue to play tie-breaker matches until the score changes.
5) The clock used in the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software is the official time and not
contestable. It will not stop until the match has ended.

Questions
1) Each match uses ONLY toss-up questions worth 10 points each. There are NO bonus
questions in this year’s Regional Qualifier.
2) Questions are selected from a pre-screened question bank.
3) Questions are intended to test the contestants’ knowledge of petroleum engineering and
the petroleum industry. Questions may include history, trivia, current events, technical
questions and problem solving.

Toss-up Questions
1) A player must press “Enter” or click on “Answer” to answer a toss-up question at any point
after the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software has begun playing a question.
There is to be absolutely NO COMMUNICATION between team players during the match. If
teams are found communicating during matches by any means, they will automatically be
disqualified from the competition.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
2) The first player from Team A and B that press “Enter” or click on “Answer” will be the only
players in the match allowed to answer that question.
The player, from Team A or B, that that clicks the “Answer” button the fastest will be
awarded 10 points if the question was answered correctly. If this player answered the
question incorrectly, -5 points will be deducted from the team. In addition, the answer from
the others team will be assessed provided they submitted one.
3) Once a player press “Enter” or click on “Answer” he/she must provide a written answer to
the question in the SACR Virtual PetroBowl software within the 15 seconds time cap.
Note: If a written answer is not recorded after the 15 seconds time cap and this is the only
person to press “Enter” or click on “Answer” for this question, then this case will be treated
as a no answer and -5 points will be deducted from the team.
4) Players have 5 seconds to press “Enter” or click on “Answer” after the SACR Virtual
PetroBowl software has completed reading the question.
5) After the answer is submitted, the next question will start.
6) Each correct answer to a toss-up question is worth 10 points. An incorrect answer will be
assessed a -5 point penalty.

Bonus Questions
There are NO Bonus Questions in this year’s Regional Qualifier.

Correct Answers
1) The SACR Virtual PetroBowl software will record and analyze the answers submitted by the
players. The judges review and confirm the answers and submit the final scores.
2) There are no questions in the Regional Qualifier that will require multiple answers
3) Common acronyms and abbreviation will be acceptable (e.g., chemical symbols, state postal
abbreviations, organizational acronyms), unless they appear in the question, in which case
you will be required to type out the acronym or abbreviation.

Toss Up Question Overview

1) Description: Only questions for this year’s Regional PetroBowl which can be answered by
either team. The player who buzzes in first will be allowed to answer.
2) Type: Fast pace with single answer.
3) If answered incorrectly: The player who buzzes in first from the other team will be allowed
to answer.
Note: If both teams answer incorrectly, the correct answer is not read out by the judge.
4) Buzz in required: Yes, within 5 seconds.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
5) Conferring allowed: No
6) Team member who can answer the question: Only the person who buzzes in can answer
the question.
7) Number of points awarded for a correct answer: 10
8) Penalty for incorrect answers: -5
9) Answer time: 15 seconds

Study resources
Suggested (but not all inclusive) list of study materials as possible sources of questions.

Academic, Technical, Fundamentals of Petroleum Engineering such as:

1) Content from Society of Petroleum Engineers (www.spe.org)

2) Content from SPE’s PetroWiki (www.petrowiki.org)
3) Petroleum Engineering and related (Geology, Reservoir Engineering, etc.) textbooks
4) Glossary of Industry Terminology:
http://www.spe.org/spe- app/spe/industry/reference/glossary.htm
5) Schlumberger Oilfield Glossary: http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Default.cfm
6) http://www.spe.org/industry/statistics.php
7) Journal of Petroleum Technology
8) SPE Annual Reports
9) Yergin, Daniel, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power.
10) Industry Statistics

Appeals
1) An appeal is defined as a team’s petition to reconsider a decision/judgment on an answer.
Success of an appeal shall be defined by a reversal by the judges to said decision/judgment.
2) All teams will be allowed:
a) Two (2) appeals per match (8 minutes with no intermission) in the First Round on
Satruday 4th July 2020.
b) Four (4) appeals per match (two 8-minutes halves with a brief intermission between
them) in the Second Round and Third Round on Sunday 5th July 2020.
c) Six (6) appeals per match (two 10- minutes halves with a brief intermission between
them) in the Final Round on Sunday 5th July 2020.
3) Reversals to a decision will only be considered if an appeal has been made by a team.
4) Appeals can come from the team captain as well as the team players.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations
5) Appeals must be expressed to the judges while they are reviewing the questions and
answers for the match with the students. All appeals must come before the judges announce
the final score.
6) A team will have 15 seconds immediately after the appeal to state their position. It will be
up to the judges’ discretion whether to sustain or overturn a decision.

Ethics and conduct

1) All players are bound by the SPE Code of Conduct to behave responsibly and ethically. All
Players are expected to treat each other, on-site support personnel, judges and the SACR
planning committee with courtesy, not receiving or giving impermissible assistance, not
creating the temptation for another to cheat, abiding by all decisions of the tournament
officials, not colluding with another person to "fix" a match result, not intentionally
"throwing" a match, honestly reporting details of game situations to tournament officials,
and promptly reporting violations of this honor code to a tournament official. For more on
SPE’s Code of Conduct, please refer to http://www.spe.org/about/professional-code-of-
conduct.php
2) Any tournament official may find that a player has committed misconduct. Misconduct
includes disruptive behavior, unethical behavior, any violation of the honor code, or other
un-sportsman like conduct. Officials may interpret these categories at their discretion.
3) Major infractions and/or repeated infractions may result in ejection for an individual and/or
disqualification for a team at the discretion of tournament officials.

Rule changes
Regional PetroBowl rules are subject to change, and made at the discretion of the SACR Planning
Committee. Any rules changes, clarifications, and/or agenda will be announced to all
participating student chapters in advance of the competition.

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SACR Virtual PetroBowl® 2020 – Rules and Regulations