As of March 21, 2021, the One-Time Lottery Bye has been eliminated as it is no longer necessary to qualify and enter consecutive lotteries to maintain ticket counts.
Purpose:
To address unexpected life events, the One-Time Lottery Bye gives runners with accrued lottery tickets the opportunity to skip one lottery cycle and maintain their consecutive lottery status at 2^(n-1) where n is the number of years applied. The One-Time Lottery Bye is a once-in-a-lifetime option open to any runner with accrued lottery tickets.
Who is Eligible to Use the Bye:
- Any runner who holds at least one lottery ticket and has not previously used the One-Time Lottery Bye.
- The One-Time Lottery Bye may be used for any purpose (e.g., injury, deployment, lack of qualifier, etc.).
Procedure to Exercise the Bye:
To exercise the One-Time Lottery Bye, eligible runners must register during the normal lottery registration period and declare that they wish to use their One-Time Lottery Bye for the upcoming lottery.
Runners do not need to provide a reason for exercising their One-Time Lottery Bye.
Lottery Rules After Exercising the Bye:
- All rules and requirements for entry in the lottery after the One-Time Lottery Bye has been exercised will apply, including having a valid qualifier.
- The runner’s ticket count in the lottery after exercising the One-Time Lottery Bye will be 2^(n-1) where n is the number of years in the lottery, not including the Bye year.
- If a runner does not enter the lottery in the year after exercising the One-Time Lottery Bye, his/her lottery ticket count will revert to zero.
Example:
Tyler Smith holds eight accrued tickets after unsuccessful entry in the 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 race lotteries. Prior to the 2019 race lottery, Tyler decides to exercise his One-Time Lottery Bye for that lottery. If he enters the 2020 race lottery, it will be his fifth lottery in six years. Just like any other runner applying to the lottery for the fifth time, he will have a total of 16 tickets calculated in accordance with the WSER 2^(n-1) formula for consecutive lottery entries. If he does not qualify or apply for the 2020 race lottery, Tyler will forfeit all accrued lottery tickets and his ticket count for the next lottery he enters will revert to zero.