How tournaments work
Never played a tournament before? This is the whole thing in plain words: how to enter, how the draw works, what happens on the day, and what if your plans change.
Words you'll see
A few words come up a lot. Here is what they mean.
- Division
- One competition inside a tournament, like Men's Doubles or Open Singles, with its own teams, fee, format and winners. You enter a division, not the whole event.
- Team captain
- The player who enters a team in a tournament. The captain pays the whole team's entry fee, invites the partner, and is the one who can withdraw the team.
- The draw
- Who plays whom in a tournament division. The organiser locks the division first, which closes entries and stops captains withdrawing or changing partner, then makes the draw.
- Seed
- A team's ranking going into the draw, from the players' ratings. Top seeds are kept apart so they do not meet in the first rounds.
- Walkover
- A win without playing, because the other team withdrew or did not turn up. It counts as a win, with no score.
- Withdrawal cut-off
- The last day a tournament team can withdraw and get its entry fee back. Each organiser sets their own, shown on the event page as "Refund if you withdraw".
- Score board
- A live page for a TV at the venue during a tournament: every court's score point by point, what is up next, results, standings and the bracket. Names only, no sign-in.
From entry to trophy
Every tournament on the site follows the same six steps.
- 1Pick a division
Open an event and choose a division that fits you: Men's Doubles, Mixed, Open Singles and so on. Each one shows who can enter, the format, the fee per team and the places left.
- 2Enter your team
Whoever enters is the captain. Name your team and, for doubles, add your partner's name and email. We send them an invite to accept.
- 3Pay once, for the team
The captain pays the whole entry fee. Your place is held for 30 minutes while you pay. Your partner pays nothing.
- 4The draw is made
When entries close, the organiser locks the division and makes the draw. We email every team with who they play first.
- 5Play on the day
Check your team in, wait to be called to a court, play, and send your score. Your next match comes to you.
- 6Winners are crowned
The top four of each division go on the Winners tab, and your result is added to your public player profile.
Entering, in a little more detail
Rating limits are checked against the rating on your profile, men's, women's and mixed divisions against your gender, and age limits against your date of birth. Your date of birth stays private: organisers only see that your age was checked.
Open the link in the invite email, or go to My Jam, Tournaments, and press Accept or Decline. Your captain has paid, so there is nothing for you to pay.
Nothing is paid while you wait. When a place opens, the first team in line moves in and we tell the captain. If your JamCredits cover the fee we take it and you are in; otherwise you have 2 hours to pay.
Enter by the early-bird date and you pay the lower price. Got a code from the organiser? Type it in the entry form and you see the new price before you pay.
Use the link the organiser sent you, which has the code in it, or type the code on the event page. Once your team is in, you never need it again.
The four ways a division can be played
The format is shown on each division before you enter.
In a round robin or a pool, teams are ranked by wins first. Teams level on wins are split by the result between them (marked H2H), then by games won minus lost, then by points won minus lost.
Seeds follow the players' ratings, so the strongest teams are kept apart in the early rounds. The organiser can move a team up or down if they know better.
On the day
Your matches, courts and times are all in My Jam, and we message you as things happen.
Show your team's check-in QR at the desk (it is in My Jam and your "you're in" email), or read out the 8-character code under it. Paid online? Some venues also let you check yourself in with their QR, from two hours before your first match.
When your match is ready, both teams get a notice and an email, and the score board shows "Now calling" with your court. Head straight there.
After the match, the captain or partner of either team can open it in My Jam and press Send score. The other team confirms it or disputes it; if they do nothing within 15 minutes, it counts. A disputed score goes to the organiser, whose decision is final. If the organiser has turned player scores off, tell the desk your result instead.
The bracket and standings update by themselves. As soon as your next opponent is known, we send you the round, the court and the time.
- Many venues put a live score board on a TV. Scan the QR in its corner to follow every court on your phone, with no app needed.
- Not there when your match is called? The organiser can wait, or record a no-show, and the other team wins by walkover. Please be on time.
- If a team drops out after the draw, you win their matches by walkover and, in a knockout, go straight through.
If your plans change
- The cut-off is set by each organiser and shown on the event page as "Refund if you withdraw". No cut-off means no refund for withdrawing.
- Only the captain can withdraw the team, from My Jam. If your partner can no longer play, the captain can change partner there instead, until the draw is locked.
- A refund usually comes back as JamCredits, straight away. Some organisers send it back to the card or e-wallet you paid with. QR Ph payments always come back as JamCredits.
If the event or your division is cancelled, every team gets its entry fee back in full, whatever the cut-off, and we email you.
Running a tournament
For clubs and approved hosts. Everything happens in the Tournaments tab of your dashboard.
Every button and setting is explained step by step in the guide for venue owners.
Still have a question?
The Help Centre has the full answers for players, with every rule in detail. Or email us at support.pikolmaester@gmail.com and we will help.
Ready to play?
See the tournaments coming up on PikolMaester and enter your team.