Talk:Playoff format

Average number of frames/matches
What are the average numbers of frames/games/matches/etc. needed to resolve a best-of-five and best-of-seven playoffs? The figures I came up with are 4,125 and 5,8125 respectively, but I might be wrong. Can anybody confirm, and perhaps put the correct figures into the article? Ariosto 20:17, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

best of 7
It says that the NHL uses the 2-2-1-1-1 format and the 2-3-2 format at other times in the playoffs. I believe they use the 2-2-1-1-1 format for all playoff series. Specifically it says 2-3-2 for the finals, but I'm pretty sure this is not the case. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pollard666 (talk • contribs) 05:34, 15 June 2009 (UTC)

Swiss format? Missing from article
There's no mention of Swiss format in this article, which is the format used to match players with similar ranking/MMR/seeding/rating against each other. (Swiss-system tournament) WinterSpw (talk) 02:34, 17 April 2017 (UTC)


 * This is not exactly a "playoff". See Tournament, instead. Howard the Duck (talk) 17:34, 8 May 2023 (UTC)

Nippon baseball?
>Nippon Professional Baseball's final championship round, the Japan Series, uses a best-of-seven playoff with a 2–3–2 format. However, since games can end in ties in that league, in the event that there is a tie after seven games, an eighth game is held with no innings limits. This format is also called first-to-four playoffs.

For someone with knowledge - is there a single tiebreaker 8th game if the series is tied after 7? Or is it a first-to-four? In other words, if there are two tie games in the series, does the team with 3 wins take the series? Or do they keep playing until someone has 4? Or if there are three ties in the series, is there a single tie-breaker game or do they keep playing until someone has four? If there's a single tiebreaker, I don't see how this can be a "first to four", if you could technically win with less than four wins (3-2-2 or 3-2-3 after a tiebreaker... or even 2-1-4 or 2-1-5 after tiebreaker) TheHYPO (talk) 02:52, 18 November 2022 (UTC)


 * revised based on the Japan Series page which confirms the first to four. Only once has the 8th game been required, but others are theoretically possible.
 * Your scenario did arise once. The 1975 Japan Series was completed with a 4-0-2 record; The Hankyu Brave lead the series with three wins and two ties and were not awarded the title until they won a fourth game.
 * This is in alignment with the two ways ties are considered in competitions. In many, a tie is considered a fractional win for both teams (1/2 in NFL, 1/3 in FIFA).
 * However others, including the Japan Series, treat a tie as a no-contest. This is also true where a tied game is replaced with a new game. Since 2007, a tie is only declared if the teams will not meet again in the season (otherwise it is deemed suspended), and the replacement game is only contested if there is a playoff implication. JKPrivett (talk) 20:14, 21 November 2022 (UTC)

Ygfgggjjjbgvy
Ggghbh 36.252.49.165 (talk) 09:30, 19 March 2023 (UTC)

Newbie here ...
2-2-1-1-1 I don't get it.

Do the numbers indicate the seed ranking? If so, that would indicate that the lower seed has home field advantage for the first 2 games and for the last 3 games the higher seed has home field advantage. Why then does the article say (see Best of Format: Best of Seven Playoff, 2nd paragraph): "In a "2–2–1–1–1" format, the first two games are played at the team with the better record venue, the next two at the team with the worse record ..."

It gets more confusing with 2-3-2. " ... in a 2–3–2 series, the first two games are played at the home venue of a team with the home-field advantage, the next three games (including Game 5, if necessary) are played at the home of the team without it, and the final two games (if necessary) are played at the home of the team with the advantage."

Clear as mud. DreaSteu (talk) 22:25, 25 April 2023 (UTC)


 * 2-2-1-1-1 means Team A hosts the first two games (the first "2"), then Team B hosts the next 2 (the next "2"), then both teams alternate hosting (the three "1"s).
 * 2-3-2 means Team A hosts the first two games (the first "2"), then Team B hosts the next 3 (the "3"), then Team A hosts the last 2 games (the last "2").
 * It illustrates, how many games each team hosts, in alternate, and in sequence. Howard the Duck (talk) 17:28, 8 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Howard the Duck,
 * Thank you so much for this info. This just didn't make sense. I was trying to attribute the numbers to the standings or ???.
 * From what you say, the first number represent the number of games hosted by Team A, then the 2nd number is games hosted by Team B, and so on. {(games hosted by A),(games hosted by B),(games hosted by A),...}
 * I would never have figured that. Thanks again for the help!
 * DreaSteu (talk) 18:15, 8 May 2023 (UTC)
 * I'd have to say you illustrated it much better (Games hosted by Team A), (Games hosted by Team B), and so on.
 * I'll rewrite this later on to see if it removes the confusion. Howard the Duck (talk) 19:00, 8 May 2023 (UTC)
 * I'll rewrite this later on to see if it removes the confusion. Howard the Duck (talk) 19:00, 8 May 2023 (UTC)

Merge?
How is this article's subject matter different from that of Tournament? 2607:FEA8:1280:5D00:0:0:0:D92 (talk) 22:45, 31 March 2024 (UTC)