The Rincon Country West Pickleball Club

The general concept of a Shootout, also known as Ladder Play, is that players of equal skill level will play with and against other players of the same skill level.  Initially, players are skill-level ranked by previous Shootout play, but can improve their rank, i.e., move up the Ladder, by winning during a season of play.  Winning (or losing) over a season of weekly play can lead to a player moving up (down) in rank.  Highest ranked players play on Court 1 while lowest ranked players play on Court 8.  So, the top 4 or 5 players will play on Court 1; the next 4 or 5 players will play on Court 2; and so on for up to 40 players playing on 8 courts.

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The determination of how many people will be in each group will be made by the Court Activities Committee based on skill level and number of players playing during the week of play. 

 

Groupings of 4 will play 3 games (one with each of the other 3) as shown on a posted Shootout Scoresheet.  All games are played “first to 12”, win by 1. At the end of each game, the points for each player will be noted on the scoresheet.  The maximum score a player can earn is 36 points ( = 3 x 12).

 

Groupings of 5 will play 4 games (one with each of the other 4 and one bye each) as shown on a posted Shootout Scoresheet.  All games are played “first to 9”, win by 1. At the end of each game, the points for each player will be noted on the scoresheet.  The maximum score a player can earn is 36 points ( = 4 x 9).

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At the end of the first set of games, the points for each player will be totaled. The players with the lowest number of points will move down one court (e.g., from Court 1 to Court 2; from Court 2 to Court 3; etc.).  The players with the highest number of points will move up one court (e.g., Court 6 to Court 5; Court 5 to Court 4; etc.).  The highest player on Court 1 stays on Court 1, and the lowest player on Court 6 stays on Court 6.  Ties will be decided by most wins and then a coin toss.

 

The new, reformulated groups will then play a second set of games, record the points, and calculate new totals for each player.

 

At the end of the second set of games, a grand total will be calculated for each player by adding the player's points from both sets of games. 

 

This total will be recorded by the Activities Committee for each player for each week of the season.  A four-week moving average will be calculated and used to determine the player's ranking for the next week of play.  

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A player's score is determined by the number of points that s/he scores and the difficulty of the court played, called the “Court Difficulty Factor."  The Activities Committee scales each round up to a maximum score of 50, so the two rounds together result in a maximum potential score of 100.  This 0 to 100 scale enables the Committee to group (i.e., rank) players of similar abilities.

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The shootout score is calculated as follows:  Score = Points x (50/36) x CourtDifficultyFactor, where the "Court Difficulty Factor"  is found from the following table:

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                                                                        Court  Factor

                                                                              1    1.00

                                                                              2    0.92

                                                                              3    0.85

                                                                              4    0.78

                                                                              5    0.72

                                                                              6    0.66

                                                                              7    0.61

                                                                              8    0.56

 

Using this formula, a player on Court 1 winning all their games during both rounds of play, will have earned a score of 100 points for the week ( = 36 points x (50/36) on the first round plus 36 points x (50/36 on the second round).

 

A player's total score for the two rounds is the player's score for the week.  That week's score is then is averaged with prior weeks' scores to create a moving average. The Activities Committee will use up to four weeks of scores for the moving average score, starting with last year’s final average score. A player's four-week moving average score is what determines which court the player will be assigned to the next time they play. The Committee arrays the moving average scores for the players who  signed up for the week of play, sorts them, and creates the groupings of players based on ranking the moving averages.

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It is important to understand that a player does not “pick up where they left off” in terms of court assignment.  A player's court assignment is determined by their four-week moving average score and the average scores for all the other players that have signed-up for the week of play.

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The Activities Committee use a four-week average for the following reasons:

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    1  If a player has a bad week, the effect of their low score is somewhat mitigated by the other 3 weeks            in their average score.

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     2  If you have a bad week, after three subsequent weeks that low score drops off from your average.

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     3  A four-week score should more accurately reflect a player's current level of play. Thus, a player who           is consistently improving in skill won’t be “held back” by older weeks of low scores.

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     4  A four-week average score will “smooth out” the variations in scores that we all players                                experience.

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FAQ

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Q: How does the Activities Committee rank players before they have four weeks of scores to average?

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A: The Committee uses a player's final average score and last court assignment from last year for an initial court placement. After that, court placement is driven solely by the running average of up-to-four weeks of scores, which will include last year's final average score, until we have four weeks of data for the current year.

 

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Q: How does the Committee assign a court for a new player with no history of play?

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A: For new players, the Committee will ask other club members who have played with this new player for court assignment suggestions.  Under no circumstances will a new player be placed on Court 1.

 

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Q: Suppose a player moved up a court last week, but this week they are back down a court. What gives?

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A: Remember that a player doesn't pick up where they left off the week before. Placement is determined by a player's four-week average relative to all the other players playing that week.

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Q: What about winning games, doesn’t that count?

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A: A player's shootout score is driven only by points scored --  there is no “bonus” for winning a game.

 

                                                                          ................

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If the Committee's system is working as intended, each week a player will be on a court among players with similar skill levels.  Result:  fewer lopsided games.  

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Complicated, yes;  clearly written, no;  that the system will be equitable... let's hope.

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