The principal difference between freestyle bracketing and the standard folkstyle brackets you are used to seeing begins in the second round. There is not a consolation side of the bracket; everyone advances forward until they are eliminated or the bracket is complete. Elimination usually occurs after two losses, although this may not be the case if more than one wrestler loses her second match in the same round, and there are less than three wrestlers remaining in the bracket after the elimination of everyone with two losses.

The advantage of freestyle brackets is that they can be done on short notice, since only the first two rounds are actually bracketed. They require more work during the actual event, however, since you must wait on the outcomes of the matches before you can determine how to bracket the next round(s).

To see a sample of the bracket, go to page 54 at http://www.usawrestling.org/USWOA/RULEBOOK.PDF , or if you have the USAW Rulesbook (it was sent to all USAW member coaches last year), look on page 104.