Rules

The 2018 Topcoder Open First2Finish Competition will take place in four (4) online stages.

The top three (3) performers, per the leaderboard, of each stage from the First2Finish Competition will win a prize and/or a trip to compete in the TCO18 Finals in the USA on dates and a location to be determined at a later date.

Topcoder shall determine at its sole discretion which First2Finish Competitions are Tournament-eligible. The First2Finish Competition is part of the Tournament, and by participating in the First2Finish Competition, you agree to the rules on this web page as well as the Tournament rules and the topcoder Terms of Use (collectively, the “Rules”).

Topcoder reserves the right to add or remove competition tracks as needed. Competition stages and prizes may be changed at any time at Topcoder’s sole discretion.

Schedule

During each Stage, Contestants who participate in Tournament-eligible First2Finish Competitions on the Topcoder website will receive points for that Stage as outlined in these Rules.

Only Tournament-eligible First2Finish Competitions in which registration has opened during the four (4) Stages shall be included in determining points for that Stage.

All Tournament – eligible First2Finish Competitions will be clearly marked on the active challenge listing page.

First2Finish Online Competition Stages Dates
Stage 1	August 1, 2017 – October 31, 2017
Stage 2	November 1, 2017 – January 31, 2018
Stage 3	February 1, 2018 – April 30, 2018
Stage 4	May 1, 2018 – July 31, 2018

Competition Scoring

Scoring in the First2Finish Competition is determined based on the monetary award of the first place finisher in a Tournament-eligible First2Finish Competition (as applicable) in accordance with the rules of such competition.

A maximum of 800 points can be awarded to a competitor in one single challenge (i.e. a member winning a First2Finish challenge with a prize of $1200 will earn 800 TCO Points).

Upon the completion of all Tournament-eligible First2Finish Competitions, the individual scores that a Contestant receives during all Stages will be added for a cumulative score.

All final fixes will be completed according to the schedule specified for the applicable First2Finish Competition. On a case-by-case basis, as determined by Topcoder admins, TCO points may be deducted for failing to complete final fixes on time.

Placement Ties

In the event of a tie for a Stage, the tie will be resolved in the following manner:

The tied Contestant with the highest number of first place submissions will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition in that Stage.

• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied Contestant with the highest number of second place submissions will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition in that Stage.
• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied Contestant with the highest number of third place submissions will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition in that Stage.
• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied Contestant with the highest number of fourth place submissions will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition in that Stage.
• If a tie still remains, then all remaining tied Contestants will receive the same placement.

Tie for Prizes

In the event of a tie, the tie will be resolved in the following manner:

The tied Contestant with the highest number of first place submissions across the First2Finish Competition Stage will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition.

• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied Contestant with the highest number of second place submissions across the First2Finish Competition Stage will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition.
• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied competitor with the highest number of third place submissions across the First2Finish Competition Stage will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition.
• If a tie still remains, then the remaining tied competitor with the highest number of fourth place submissions across the First2Finish Competition Stage will receive a higher placement in the First2Finish Competition.
• If a tie still remains, then prizes will be divided equally between tied Contestants.

Prizes

Any and all applicable taxes on prizes are the sole responsibility of the prize winner.

Stage 1-4 Online Winners	Prize
1st Place	Trip to TCO18 Finals
2nd Place	Trip to TCO18 Finals
3rd Place	Trip to TCO18 Finals

Prior to Contestants receiving their cash prize, they must complete all work for all underlying First2Finish Competitions and Tournament and First2Finish Competition-related work, such as final fixes.

Contestants are eligible to win only one trip to the onsite tournament regardless of the track they compete in. However, contestants with more than one win across different tracks will receive $500 in lieu of each extra trip won.

Onsite Final Winners	Prize
Champion	$10,000
2nd place	$1,500
3rd place	$500

• Prize will be awarded at the conclusion of the Onsite Championship Round. Winner must be present at the onsite Championship announcement to receive prize.