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JH Sweet 16 Second Chance Pool

It’s just about that time again – for March Madness to begin! Championship Week is already underway. Next week the tournament goes into full swing. And then, in the following week, for the 38th consecutive year, I will be running my Sweet 16 Pool. The site is the SAME as last year.

Instructions for joining the pool entitled 'JH Sweet 16'

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Please follow the steps below:

1. Go to http://www.runyourpool.com/join/?id=53176 PLEASE REMEMBER YOUR PASSWORD – IT WILL BE A PAIN FOR BOTH OF US IF YOU FORGET IT!

2. In the Join Password box, enter 'sweet16' (without the single quotes)

3. Fill out the form information, including a personal username and password. Be sure to complete fully the “Address/Phone #/Referral” box. If you do not include a referral, your brackets will not be accepted. Thank you.

4. Make your picks, with the ability to change them right up until the tournament deadline. When making picks please your actual name, NOT AN ALIAS. Thank you.

The rules and scoring remain the same as they always have – please read the entire rules at the website. The website pool administrative fee is based on the number of entries, so I cannot tell you what their fee will be until the final count is in. Last year the number of entries dropped from 892 to 792, primarily because of a change of website. My (optimistic) goal this year is 900. Recruiters, as usual you’re assistance is always appreciated. My fee will remain, as it always has been, zero.

[While I am on the topic of fees, I would appreciate your assistance. in 2016 one of our participants, MICHAEL IMBRIALE, failed to pay for his 5 entries - $75. Those of you who live on Long Island might know, or know of, him. His last known town of residence was Farmingdale, NY, and his last known business area was Hicksville, NY. Anyone who is able to collect from him will receive two free entries into this year’s pool. Thank you in advance for your help.]

The pool website is very easy to use. Either click on the link above or copy and paste the link into your browser address bar. You will need the “Password” shown above, so save this e-mail. Even better, go there now and sign-up while it’s fresh in your mind so you will be ready to go beginning on Sunday night, March 18 at 7 PM CDT.

Entries (brackets, as they called in the website) are $15 each and you may have as many as you want. As soon as the field is determined and you have logged-in, a bracket will (should) appear. If you are entering brackets only for yourself, your entry will already be in your name (please do not make-up names like “Batman”, “The Wizard”, or “Suzy Q”- use your own name) and if you have multiple entries, they will be numbered sequentially automatically, for example, John Doe, John Doe (2), etc. If you are entering brackets for someone other than yourself, then click on “rename” in the “Bracket Name” column - with their first and last name – again, no nicknames please. If they have multiple entries, they will also be numbered sequentially. All that’s left to do is to click on each team you expect to win. Simple!

Payments for entries are due by Thursday, March 15th. You have three ways to make payments (four if you expect to see me). If you are entering only my pool, you have three options - handing me a check (or cash), or making a deposit via Chase QuickPay, or mailing me a check,. My address is:

274 Charal Lane

Highland Park, IL 60035-5102

If you are participating in Wimpy’s (aka Jim Diebel’s) pool (see below), you can include payment for my pool with your payment to him. He accepts checks, ZELLE (preferred), and cash. If you pay him for entries into my pool, however, please let both of us know that you are doing that. Thank you.

Please feel free to forward this e-mail to all of your reputable (i.e., good credit rating) relatives and friends. Please copy me so I will know who the potential new recruits are. The more the merrier! Please ask anyone who has not participated in this pool in the past to enter YOUR NAME (NOT MINE!) in the “Referral” section of the Sign Up page, or I may very well reject their entry. In addition, I will expect YOU to be responsible for their payment if necessary. This is a condition of referring new players: if they do not pay, then I expect YOU to pay (and then collect from them). I will make every attempt to contact you whenever someone lists you as a referral. If you have any questions about referrals, or any other aspect of the pool, please let me know.