Round Robin Play at Heather Gardens

Round Robin play is an organized way of mixing up players after each game. Everyone plays 5 or 6 games. You play with random partners against random opponents each game as assigned by assignment sheets. There are different assignment sheets for different numbers of players. We use up to 7 courts depending on the number of players signing up.

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•  Players sign their names on a numbered signup sheet prior to the start time and remember their number.

• The players will arrange themselves according to skill level so that the better players go to the higher numbered courts.

• The players read the assignment sheets and goes to the court.  The top two numbers play on the north end of the courts and the bottom two numbers play on the south end.

•  The leader blows a whistle calls “Start Play” so all rounds start at the same time.

•  The first game to finish calls out “Rally Scoring” so the remaining games finish faster. (See Rally Scoring below)

• After each game, the players read the assignment sheet and go to the assigned court.

• Play begins when the leader calls “Start Play.”     

• Round Robin Play ends after 5 or 6 games.

• Please come on time.  Please find a substitute if you need to leave. The assignment sheet is based on the number of players signing up at the start and it evenly distributes the players and those extra players sitting out.

Rally Scoring

The matches start at the same time, but some games can last a lot longer. To minimize the time the first team to wait for the last team to finish,  the first finishers yell “Rally One.” When the second team finishes it yells "Rally Two". At that time, a point is scored after every serve.  The point goes to the team that did not fault even if they did not serve.  Each side still gets a first and second serve before a side out. The first team to reach 11 wins.

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Ladder Play at Heather Gardens

Ladder play is an organized way of mixing up teams after each round. The winning partners move up the ladder and split up.  The losing partners move down the ladder and split up.  The winners at the top of the ladder stay on top and the losers at the bottom of the ladder stay on the bottom. The players sitting out rotate in and out with the losers at the bottom. 

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​The expectation with the Ladder format is that the better players will move towards Court #8 and the weaker player will move towards court#1. The games should be very competitive since all courts should have players with similar skill levels.

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•  Players will put their names on a magnetic tag and put it in a basket according to their own assessment of their skill level.  The skill levels are high, low and tweener.

• The leader will randomly assigning groups of players starting with the high skill level going to court #8, the next four to court #7 and the lower skill level players to the lower numbered courts.. Left over players sit on the sideline or play on court #1 which is reserved for players who do not want to participate in Ladder Play.

• Play starts on all courts at the same time when the leader blows a whistle and calls "Start Play".

• Each game lasts until a team scores 11 points and wins by two or 12 minutes at which time the leader blows a whistle and calls "Stop Play".  The team can complete the point that is in progress when the whistle blows. If the score is tied at 12 minutes, the team who was ahead before the tie is the winner.

• There will be 3 minutes between games to rest, get a drink and move to the new courts.

• Winners on court #8 split up and stay on the same court.

• Winners on courts #7 and lower move to the next higher numbered court and split up. 

• Losers on all courts except the lowest numbered court move to the next lower numbered court and split up. 

• If there are players waiting on  the sideline, they replace the losers on the lowest numbered court. Otherwise, the losers on the lowest numbered stay on that court.

• Ladder Play ends after 6 games or when players agree.

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PADDLE TUB PLAY

 

The goal of tub paddle play is to organize open play more effectively and to allow more evenly and fairly matched games. Players can choose the level they wish to play at.

• There will be two sets of tubs on the east court (Lighter Play) and on the west courts (Harder Play). The tubs will be labeled W (winners) and L (losers)

• Initially you choose to play on the east (lighter) or west courts (harder).

• At the start of play, the first 4 paddles on the east court will start on #4, the next 4 will start on #3. (Leave court #1 open for chairs and court #2 for those that do not want to participate in Tub play. If there are more than 4-5 people sitting out on the lighter side, add court #1 as needed)

• Similarly, the first 4 paddles on the west court will start on #8, the next 4 will start on #7. If there are more than 4-5 people waiting on the harder side, add court 6 and then court 5 as needed)

• The winners of each game will put their paddles at the front of the W tub and the losers will put their paddles at the front of the L tub.

• When a court becomes available, pull 4 paddles from the back of the fullest tub. That foursome goes to the open court.

• Those entering after tub play has started should put their paddle at the front of the L tub on their chosen side and wait until their paddle is pulled from the back to make a foursome.

• If you want a longer rest, just do not put your paddle in the tub until you are ready.