1) How do I determine my rating to play in a tournament for the first time?
It is very important a player neither rates too low or too high, but rather based upon their current skill level. You cannot predict the future. Be sure to consult with “reliable” sources before selecting your skill level. We suggest you read the material on ratings at the PCO website starting at Ratings 2025.
2) How can I find my Canadian Tournament Player Rating (CTPR) on Pickleball.com?
There are two different way players can find their CTPR on Pickleball.com. One way is head to ‘My Profile’ which can be found on the top right of the screen on Pickleball.com. Once in ‘My Profile’ then head to ‘Edit Profile’ and Association Memberships this is where players will be able to find your CTPR.
Another option is to navigate to the CTPR club page and click on members to view and search for players. Players can then click on ‘flip card’ to view their CTPR (click here to watch the informational instructional video).
3) Does the tournament software automatically screen for a player attempting to play in an event below their skill rating?
Yes, a player will automatically be blocked from registering in an event lower than their current rating.
4) What is the trend for players entering a tournament event for partner ratings?
With the maturing of game results being uploaded, many players are starting to choose a partner with consideration for age and the current rating of that partner within the skill level. A 4.450 player might be chosen over a 4.100 player. Both are 4.0 level players.
5) Do I need to be rated to play recreational pickleball?
This often depends upon the club to which you belong. Generally, there is no need for a rating when in the social recreational environment. Typically, these types of sessions generally focus on mingling with other players and really having fun.
6) Will a club league/ladder at my club use my club rating for court placement?
For competitive club play the most effective way to provide players ‘with the best games’ is to use performance-based ratings for court placement always using the most current (reliable) rating number. What performance game results provide is a rating number more accurately positioned within the basic skill level.
7) What should be the main goal for clubs in using effective player ratings in competitive club play events?
The mantra for Clubs should be to provide “the very best games for players as possible”.
8) Can I have a duplicate personal player account at Pickleball.com?
This is not allowed. We have seen duplicate accounts being set up for the same individual using a different email address or changing Richard to Dick or Susan to Sue. Often this is for no other reason than to attempt to start over in ratings with a fresh, no history, rating. When this is discovered, we merge the accounts and re-capture the tournament or club history. If this becomes a problem, you may see some consequences or penalties enacted. If a player needs to change their email address, it is as simple as editing their Pickleball.com personal player profile and re-saving.
9) What is the difference between being rated using subjective observation and performance-based game results to establish a player rating?
Subjective ratings come from basic skills testing and hopefully some form of actual controlled game results as part of the process. Most often the controlled game results are left out. This method only produces a basic skill rating such as 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, etc.
Performance-based ratings take actual game results from club leagues, special rated sessions, or tournaments and processes them using complex algorithms of probability based upon each players current rating and producing a number within that 499 point range of the basic skill (3.5 vs. 3.792 as an example). This produces a much more reliable rating.
10) Do reliable performance-based ratings make “seeding” players into tournaments more effective for the players and spectators?
Indeed, they can. Knowing those more precise ratings allows Tournament Directors to make events more competitive and fair with the use of seeding tools.
11) How important is it to a competitive player to be able to see the actual game-by-game scoring results in performance-based club or tournament ratings?
Most competitive players are not fixated on the actual game-by-game results (which over time can be many games) but are more interested in their most current rating as that is where their next tournament or club results session seed them. For very highly rated competitive players, being able to view the game results of a future opponent can be very useful.
12) For a competitive pickleball player, how reliable are results-based ratings over time?
Player ratings are increasingly more reliable as more data is captured on every player. The system at Pickleball.com uses a modified ELO Algorithm which predicts the probability of a stronger rated team winning and then based upon projected outcome prospects redistributes a calculated number of rating points between the participants.
Time and frequency are both very important and club ratings should never be discounted or minimized, as club ratings will often have game data that far exceeds tournament game data in both time and frequency.
13) Is information used from my Pickleball Canada membership by Pickleball.com?
We have a platform that checks player data daily and confirms the correct PCO membership #, date of birth, and PCO expiry date. If any of these do not match it can affect both tournament registration and club events. Players should ensure these fields are the same for both organizations.
14) What tournaments affect my Canadian Tournament Player Rating (CTPR)?
Only sanctioned tournaments affect a player’s Canadian Tournament Player Rating (CTPR). You can determine if a Tournament is Sanctioned by Pickleball Canada by searching for it under the Associations tournament section (Click here to watch the instructional video).
15) When does my Canadian Tournament Player Rating (CTPR) get updated after playing in a sanctioned tournament?
For sanctioned tournament players Canadian Tournament Player Rating (CTPR) are sent at the time that the tournament is locked. Tournament locking typically happens between 5-14 days after the tournament ends. If a players rating has not updated after 5-14 days after the tournament then the player should contact support@pickleball.com .
16) Where can I find tournaments in my area?
Players should go to https://pickleballtournaments.com/ → Find a tournament → “where” →enter their desired search location (Click here to watch the instructional video).
17. My membership appears to be expired even though I registered, where can I fix this?
When this occurs players should first confirm their Pickleball Canada membership. Once confirmed the player should email support@pickleball.com .
18. I tried to submit a payment for registering a tournament, but it has not gone through. Where can I fix this?
If a player has submitted payment for registering for a tournament it appears that it has not gone through, please contact support@pickleball.com.
19. How do I register for a sanctioned tournament as a player?
To register for a sanctioned tournament players will need to head to the ‘Tournament Listing’ and click on ‘Register’ . Players must ensure they have their Pickleball Canada membership added to their player profile before registering for a Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournament. In order to do so players must head to ‘My Profile’, then ‘Edit Profile’, and ‘Association Memberships’ to add their Pickleball Canada number.
20. How do I register my tournament for sanctioning on Pickleball.com?
There are two steps for sanctioning a tournament with Pickleball Canada. First please complete this following online form for sanctioning : https://form.jotform.com/243526470309052
Once this is completed Tournament Directors will need to also sanction their tournament through Pickleball.com. This can be found by heading to their tournaments 3-line menu and select the ‘Sanctioned/Approved & Results’ tab. Then Tournament Directors will then need to find the Pickleball Canada line and put a checkmark in the box to the left and save their selection. After this is completed the tournament will appear and say ‘Pending’ (Click here to watch the instructional video).
21. What is the fee to register a tournament on Pickleball.com (Sanctioned vs. Non-Sanctioned)?
The Setup fee for a non-sanctioned tournament is $25.00 USD. The Setup fee for a Sanctioned Tournament is $12.70 USD.
22. Why is my profile on Pickleball.com not showing a Mixed Doubles and Gender Doubles rating?
Pickleball.com recently unified the Mixed Doubles and Gender ratings into a single Doubles rating. The reasoning was that the Mixed rating was outdated and no other rating distinguishes between gender and mixed doubles.
The issues in distinguishing between Mixed Doubles and Gender rating are the following:
- A player’s rating in doubles is not generally impacted by their partner’s gender, but rather their partner’s skill level.
- By segmenting a player’s doubles matches by gender and mixed, the dataset the algorithm uses is reduced and the accuracy of the rating produced is diminished.
By consolidating these ratings, they now provide a more accurate and comprehensive assessment of a player’s doubles proficiency, based on performance across all doubles matches.
Some benefits in the single Doubles rating is the following:
- Eliminates Redundancy – Streamlines the rating process by removing unnecessary distinctions.
- Enhances Accuracy – More data points and match results under a single Doubles Rating reflects a player’s overall doubles skill more precisely.
- Increases Efficiency – Simplifies rating administration and interpretation.
For more information on ratings, please contact ratings@pickleballcanada.org .