Player plays entire season at the 75 Major Plus level. The following season he signs up and plays for a 70 Major team. Can he get a release after 1 tournament and join a 70 AAA team as one of their three Major players?

That's a good question. I'd like to know the answer.

As is always the case, the best way to get the correct answer is to call the office in Sacramento. That being said, my understanding is that once you play at a level like Major Plus, you carry that level with you for 3 years. Playing down in age does not drop the rating you carry. So in the hypothetical case above, a Major Plus player cannot play down 2 levels even when you drop an age bracket. Just my opinion.

YES he may play 70-AAA after receiving his release from the 70-Major team... The Rating Index for BOTH 75-Major Plus and 70-Major is four (4) ... The R/I for a 70-AAA team is three (3) ... In your hypothetical fact pattern, he is only playing down one "equivalent rating index", and may do so if the target team has an available (one of three) "out of rating" exemption spot on their master roster ...

missouridave is correct as it relates to the general rule on Major Plus restrictions, but that applies ONLY to the same age division ... The more concise evaluation is made when "equivalent rating index" numbers are applied to the analysis ...
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4.2(7) • MAJOR-PLUS PLAYER RESTRICTION

Major-Plus players may only play on Major-Plus or Major teams in their same age group. Players who have no Major or Major-Plus team in their region OR players who are determined not to be Major-Plus caliber by SSUSA may request an exemption in writing.

Forgot to mention the actual rule that governs the original question ...
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§4.2(6) • PLAYING IN TWO AGE DIVISIONS

A player may play in two age divisions under the following conditions:

A. Player is playing in two separate age divisions. EXAMPLE: One team is in the 55+ division and the other is in the 60+ division; AND

B. A player can only play on a team in the same or equivalent skill level when playing in two age divisions. EXAMPLE: A player on a 55-Major division team cannot play on a 50-AA division team unless the 50-AA team has an approved “out-of-rating” roster exemption available.

Please help me clarify this for me. In the example above, the 75 Major Plus player may play 70 major or 65 AAA. But no matter what age group he plays he is still considered one of 3 out of rating exemptions for his team? So even if he played 50 Major (5 age divisions lower, he would still count as one of the 3 Major Plus players that 50 Major team is allowed to have? Thanks for your help on this!

MurrayW ... Please take a look at the "Team Rating Index" chart available from the TOURNAMENTS ► FORMS page of this website ... A 75-Major Plus team has an R/I of four (4) ... That means a player from that team may play on a younger team with the SAME R/I (70-Major, 65-AAA or 60-AA) without being one of the "out-of-rating" allowance ... He may also play down ONE R/I (75-Major, 70-AAA or 65-AA) as an "out-of-rating" roster spot ... That player should be cautioned that if he plays UP to a higher R/I, he could cause potential unintended consequences as it relates to his player rating experience history ...

As mentioned above, the Major-Plus restriction is based on the SAME age group ... Your 50-Major hypothetical is, therefore, irrelevant ... Think in terms of "equivalent rating index" numbers, and this is quite simple ... Good luck! ...

Thanks Dave, that's what I thought it was but was just a little confused about the ability to play down age groups vs. counting against the out of rating players. I guess I should be looking at everything as equivalent rating rather than actual rating within a specific age group.