Seal clubbing

Seal clubbing or baby seal clubbing is a slang term for a skilled player(s) competing in and dominating at a tournament well below their skill level due to low difficulty or a weak field. The term does not originate from quiz bowl and is used to describe similar scenarios in other activities.

It is most frequently applied to tournaments with eligibility restrictions such as ACF Fall or NAQT's Division II tournaments. Accusations of seal clubbing are often accompanied by accusations of trophy whoring.

Seal clubbing differs from other practices such as smurfing or sandbagging, during which players misrepresent their skill level to be lower than it actually is. In contrast, the concept of seal clubbing is generally only applied to players widely known to be good.