Judging | 2026esaanational

Judging Top 20

Judging will be handled differently than prior years, where the hands-on portion was earlier in the day and separate from the evening event. New in 2026, all judging will be done simultaneously with the music portion of the evening. Gone are the days of trying to fill two minutes with a random routine, or cutting off the songs when it got good!

Time to be announced, but no earlier than 5pm Thursday evening: All exhibits will be called into the ring together, in catalog order to before individual exams will begin. Then, remaining in catalog order, each dog will be examined by the judges (and crowed!). Each exhibit will have approximately 3 minutes for the exam (please keep this in mind with your song choice!) Only the dog’s armband number will be read by the steward, but spectators can follow along with their catalogs. The Top 20 catalog will be within the main catalog, and you will need to order your own (they are not included with the entry).

After each dog has been judged and the judges’ scorecards are turned in, there will be a break to count points where exhibits can relax. During this time, the Top 5 Junior Handlers will be presented. People’s Choice Voting will take place as well during this intermission.

All dogs will return to the ring for final awards; all Judge scores are tallied using the Davis Tuck point system, and a Top 20 winner and Runner- Up Top 20 winner will be announced. The People's Choice Award is voted on by the audience as their favorite entry. All spectators and exhibitors will be allowed to vote in person, one vote per person, free of charge.

Judging Panel Top 20

1. Breeder judge - this individual has a distinguished history and love of our breed. This individual need not be an AKC licensed judge. Please note that any breeder that has bred a Top 20 qualifier or that dog’s sire or dam, is ineligible as a judge

There are two separate categories of judging.

2. All Breed judge - this individual is an AKC licensed judge who is fair, unbiased, and enjoys judging our breed.

3. Handler judge - this individual has a successful history showing our breed and demonstrated a love for English Setters much akin to our own. Any handler that, at any point during the eligible calendar year handled a qualifying dog, is ineligible as a judge.

The judging panel is voted on by the owners of the invited dogs for each year's event—one vote per qualifier, regardless of the number of owners. A nomination committee prepares a list of 9 judges for the ballot. The committee responsible for this list of potential judges are not owners, breeders, nor owners of sires or dams of qualifiers and represent 3 regions of the membership. This is done to ensure a completely unbiased list of judges and uphold the integrity of this event.

To further maintain integrity, no one from the Top 20 Committee nor the Judges Selection Committee is involved with tallying the votes; this is done by the ESAA Secretary. In addition, the results of the voting and judging panel will be kept secret until the catalog is released the week of the show.