It’s your first big event as a head judge. Congratulations, and welcome to the madhouse! If you’re going to be overseeing a team of floor judges for the first time, you might be wondering what exactly to do with them. There’s a lot of ground to cover at any event and the head judge can’t be everywhere at once—although, you’ll probably feel like you were once the end of the day rolls around. And while you probably know a few of your judges, there are probably some judges at the event that you haven’t worked with before, or who are new to judging and unfamiliar with what they need to do. What’s the best way to provide reliable judging for a huge event when there are judges with such widely varying skills?

The answer is zoning! This is the practice of assigning floor judges to specific physical areas within the event. If an event is organized in a series of rows of tables—say, each row with ten pairings—you can assign one judge to rows 1 and 2 (tables 1–20), the next to rows 3 and 4 (tables 21–40), and so on. This is a practical approach for a number of reasons. It will provide you (as head judge) with more options and flexibility, and give you more control over your event. It will also keep the floor judges under control and make the workload equitable for everyone.

It’s a daunting experience to be a new floor judge, tossed into the tournament with only the barest of directions and expected to cope with pairing sheets and match slips like you’ve handled them all your life. And where are you supposed to stand? Head judges should assign floor judges to individual tasks, but many don’t realize the efficiency of extending those assignments to covering different areas in the main event. When everyone knows exactly what they’re supposed to be doing and where they’re supposed to do it, the event runs much more smoothly.

Dividing judges into zones breaks up your staff into easily directed units. Where you put judges at a big event is important, and assigning judges to particular zones means you can guarantee that all areas of the event receive equal attention. Judges without a specific task to perform have a habit of migrating towards the judge station, and when they encounter one another they often form a judge cluster to exchange anecdotes about the day. Inexperienced judges might become distracted by friends playing in the event or by exciting matches at the upper tables, and hang around there while the lower tables go unattended.

Assigning zones to each judge will ensure that they each have their own areas for which they are clearly responsible. Organizing the zones themselves in a linear and evenly spaced pattern also helps guarantee that if a judge needs to be briefly pulled into another zone (because, say, two players within the same area need a ruling at the same time), there are judges available within a close proximity to attend to those needs. Look at Judge Buffoon, busy handling a tough ruling. Uh-oh, there goes another hand in the air! Good thing he’s got Judge Awesome on one side and Judge Competent on the other. One of them will see the hand and can help cover Judge Buffoon’s zone.

You’ll also find that as the rounds go on, there are likely to be more requests from the players at the top tables. You can re-zone judges if you need to provide more support for the tables that are most likely to require the most assistance. While a head judge needs to remain conscious of the integrity of the tournament as a whole, the reality is that a mistake or lag time on the tables that contain players who are in contention for the Top 8 is going to cause more problems than a small backlog of requests down at table 95. Judges should be available and make accurate calls for all tables, but most events see a shift towards more judges at the Top 20 or so tables as the event goes on.

One of the strengths of zoning is the ability to choose which judge goes where. Experienced judges usually go to the top tables, while newer judges can cover lower tables where rulings issues carry a bit less risk. No judge is flawless, but more experienced judges are going to make fewer mistakes. If errors do get made, it’s best that they don’t happen at top tables where they can affect players in contention for Top 8. Resist the temptation to rely solely on experienced or higher-level judges, because developing new judges is important. If you constantly deprive newer judges of higher-level judging opportunities, you’re hurting the judge pool as a whole. Rotate beginning or less-skilled judges off of those lower tables as needed, and then rotate them back to their initial posts when they’ve had a couple rounds of experience. New judges are usually eager to prove their merit, and often think that sticking close to the top tables is the way to do it. Give them the chance to do so, but make sure that they don’t neglect their original positions.

If a judge has specific tables to watch, that judge gets the opportunity to build relationships with the players in their zone. Most people don’t stray wildly in their position during a tournament—you’re never going to suddenly leap or fall 60 tables from the outcome of a single match. Even if you start out in the running and then completely scrub out, your slide will be a gradual one. Players feel better about their tournament experience when there’s a sense of familiarity with and consistency from the judging team. Learning the judge’s name and getting a feel for his or her presence will help reinforce that. When players get to know you, they get the chance to trust you (as long as you know your stuff) and that makes them more likely to accept and understand your calls. Yes, you need to remain neutral and not show exceptional interest in one group over another, but it never hurts to be recognizable to your players.

If they’ve been zoned, your judges will not only develop relationships with the well-behaved players, but they’ll be able to identify troublemakers a lot faster. Problems caused by individual players can be recognized much more easily if one judge is focused on each area, rather than cycling multiple judges around the hall. A single judge can build a mental record of complications that arise and penalties that have been given out in his or her area. Contrary to what some might think, judges are not blessed with a collective consciousness (“But I told the other judge about it!” is a common complaint), so consistent observations will allow for better handling of problem competitors. Few people show up to an event with the intent of being a jerk and getting disqualified. Simply identifying problems on a consistent basis can often be enough to make sure that everyone, including the potential troublemaker, has an enjoyable tournament experience.

Zoning is also a good way to keep judges away from players who might cause them personal trouble. If a conflict occurs and a player becomes angry with the judge, it’s easy to have two judges swap zones so that the troubled judge can be removed from the situation. Putting in a fresh judge who hasn’t been riled by the situation can ease a lot of frustration, both for the players and for the judge. Everyone will eventually encounter one player that drives them insane—it’s a basic fact of life. Rotating in a different judge lets all involved parties cool off without creating delays or confusion amongst the judging staff.

Zoning is an effective way to control naughty judges, too. Inexperienced judges are often chatty and end up hanging around each other instead of adhering to all of their responsibilities. While it’s important for judges to form bonds so they’ll feel like part of the team, groups of judges that do more hanging out rather than judging attentively should definitely be discouraged. Zoning allows you to keep those judges away from each other, or away from friends playing in the tournament if they can’t keep themselves in good professional order. The socializing happens after the event, and if you’ve got judges that can’t seem to remember that, do what they do in kindergarten and separate them!

You’ll also find that many judges don’t understand that it’s their responsibility to keep the tournament area neat. Ideally, the players would tidy up as they go, but we’re all realistic about this, and we know what actually happens. Tablecloths need to be evenly spread on playing surfaces and chairs should be pushed in so players don’t trip over them. Booster-pack wrappers and the mortal remains of nachos and other event-site food need to be in the trash, not on the tables. If Judge Awesome and Judge Competent each have a zone that’s perfectly clean shortly after each round, but Judge Buffoon’s zone looks like the aftermath of a frat party, you’ll know who needs some gentle guidance.

If you are already or if you aspire to become a head judge who regularly handles judging teams of five people or more, give zoning some serious thought and try it out if you haven’t before. You’ll need to invest some time in planning who goes where, but the return is worth it. The level of control you’ll have over your event will eliminate a lot of problems before they even start, and you’ll find it much easier to supervise, evaluate, and train your floor judges. Floor judges of every level of experience look to their head judge for guidance and organization. Assigning floor judges to zones is an easy way to fulfill that obligation and ensure that both your players and judges are happy with the outcome of the tournament. Try it—it’s worth it!