Rules? You’re climbing for your own enjoyment and absolutely nothing else. Unless you’re an elite sponsored athlete, your ascents matter not at all, and to no one but you.
To have “sent” or “ticked” a route that means climbing each pitch clean, without falls. If you want to “claim” a successful ascent of a route, each pitch must be done clean, with no falls. If you lower to the anchor the rope must be pulled.
The one possible exception to this is a “team free” ascent of a bigwall, where one climber leads the pitch and the other climber jugs the pitch. This is a specific style pioneered on some of the hardest free routes on El Cap. It’s not an ideal style but was necessary in a few unique situations.
