Can a boat take a points penalty instead of doing turns?
A · Advanced · Penalties and protests · 7 of 12Only if the event's rules say so. Where a scoring penalty is in use, a boat shows a yellow flag soon after the incident, keeps it up until the finish and has its race score made worse, by 20% of the score for not finishing unless the event states another figure.
How it works
- When it is available: when the notice of race or sailing instructions specify it. It then replaces the One-Turn and Two-Turns Penalty.
- Taking it: display a yellow flag at the first reasonable opportunity after the incident.
- At the finish: keep the flag displayed until finishing, call the race committee's attention to it at the line and tell the committee which other boat was involved.
- The sum: the boat's score is the score it would have had, made worse by the number of points stated. If no number is stated, the penalty is 20% of the score for Did Not Finish, rounded to the nearest tenth of a point.
- A ceiling: the penalty cannot make the score worse than the score for Did Not Finish.
- Other boats: their scores do not change, so two boats may end with the same score.
The Z flag starting penalty is worked out the same way.
Where the event also uses arbitration, a boat may take a Post-Race Penalty of 30% after the race, at any time before a protest hearing on the incident begins.
Tricky cases
In a 40-boat series a boat finishes fifth and takes a scoring penalty with no figure stated. What does it score?
13.2 points. Did Not Finish scores 41, and 20% of 41 is 8.2, which is added to 5.
Can a boat choose between turns and a scoring penalty?
No. Where the event specifies the scoring penalty, it replaces the turns penalties.
A boat finished fifth and its penalty makes its score 13.2. Do the boats that finished sixth to thirteenth move up?
No. The scores of other boats are not changed.
Why the rule exists
Turns are quick in a dinghy and slow and risky in a large keelboat with a spinnaker up. A points penalty lets such a boat pay for a mistake without a dangerous manoeuvre in a crowd. This reason is general knowledge. The rule gives only the procedure.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Racing Rules of Sailing | As above | RRS 44.1; RRS 44.3 |
| Each event | Sets the number of points | RRS 44.3 (c) |
| Events using arbitration | A 30% Post-Race Penalty is available | RRS T1 |
From the rule book
World Sailing The Racing Rules of Sailing 2025-2028, rules 30.2, 44.1 and 44.3 and Appendix T, rule T1. In force from 1 January 2025. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: The Racing Rules of Sailing 2025-2028 (PDF).