Tournament guides

• Your first pickleball tournament: what to expect

  Check-in, warm-up, when to report to your court, late penalties, and how players call the lines at a pickleball tournament.

• How pickleball brackets and ratings work

  What a DUPR rating is, how it changes, how tournaments place you by skill and age, and when you can play up a level.

• What to pack for a pickleball tournament

  A packing list for tournament day, with the rules on approved paddles, shoes, clothing and earbuds explained in plain English.

• Common pickleball tournament formats

  Games to 11, 15 and 21, rally scoring, double elimination, round robin and pool play, explained with the official rules.