It's simple, Bryan. If you need the guy to dump, put him up against the toughest opponent on the other team and let the bagger go down. He basically takes one for the team. Gets shut-out. So, if he was a 29, he drops down to say a 27. This allows him to match up better the next time around, instead of cresting at 30, which tacks another game on him. Now he can win 2 in a row, before taking yet another shut-out.
You'd think that it's not that simple. However, when you have a guy rated in the 20's who can run 5-6 balls on occasion, not to mention riding the money ball every chance he gets......and you're spotting him something ridiculous like 8-2, it becomes pretty textbook. The spot is so crazy, that he can toss away a game, so he doesn't shut YOU out and risk going up 2 points.
Does everyone do it? No. But, the keen observers who stick around long enough figure out the system.
They also like to hold back those baggers till the last couple of matches to see if they can afford to take a loss or the shut-out. If they can't afford to, then they generally play someone else.
With that said, some of the teams aren't too successful on using that to help their actual team record, but they can upset the balance of the league by pulling it at the right team.
I ended up liking TAP A lot more because no one could figure out the system. And I didn't want to know the system. Just didn't want it used against me. Everyone seemed to play all out, because you could lose a match, but play good pool, and still see your rating rise. Conversely, a guy played poorly and won a few matches......and went down.
Players decided it was just more fun to try to win and play well. Because everyone has more fun when the do. Not to mention that TAP paid out better and offered many more prizes.