How to Collect Entry Fees for Pickleball Events

Charging an entry fee shouldn't mean chasing people for Venmo the morning of your tournament. Pikel builds the money into registration, so players pay when they sign up — or, if you collect it yourself, tick a box saying they'll pay you at check-in. Here's how to set it up, get paid, and handle discounts and refunds.

First: fees attach to tournaments, not casual games

One thing to know up front. In Pikel, entry fees live on tournaments, not on games or leagues. A regular game night and a weekly league stay free to join, and there is no online fee to attach to them. When there's money involved, you create a tournament, and that's where the fee tools appear. If you try to charge for a game and can't find the option, this is why.

Step 1 — Set up payouts (once)

Before you can collect money online, tell Pikel where it should go. Open Profile → Payouts (the tile appears once you organize events; your club's gear → Payouts opens the same setup) and tap Set up payouts to onboard with Stripe. Stripe is the payment processor that moves money from your players to your bank account, and the onboarding is a standard, secure flow — bank details, a bit of identity verification, done. You do this once, and every event you run afterward pays out to the same place.

Prefer to handle the money yourself? Skip this step and choose Manual — see below.

Step 2 — Add an entry fee to your event

When you create a tournament, set the Entry fee on the first step (Event) — one price for the whole tournament. Then choose How players pay:

• Online — players pay by card through Stripe when they register. The money is collected up front and paid out to you through Stripe. Who pays the fee? decides whether players cover the card fee (Players) or you do (I'll cover it).
• Manual — take cash, Venmo or a bank transfer the way you always have. Players register in the app without paying, tick I'll pay the organizer at check-in, and see the amount due. The money itself changes hands outside Pikel.

For a doubles entry paid online, whoever signs up the pair chooses how to split the fee at checkout — Pay for the team (both entries in one charge) or Pay separately (each partner pays their own half).

Step 3 — Create promo codes (optional)

Want early-bird pricing, a members-only rate, or a way to comp a volunteer? Create a promo code for your event. Players enter it at checkout and the discount applies automatically. It's the clean way to run a sale without maintaining two different prices.

Step 4 — Set your refund policy, and refund by hand

Decide up front what happens if someone can't make it. With an Online fee you can make the entry refundable until a date — while creating on iPhone, or later under Edit settings on either app — so the terms are clear before anyone pays.

No refund happens on its own. Withdrawing a team from Entrants does not return its money, and players can't request a refund in the app. When you do need to return money, refund it yourself from the run console: on iPhone open Refunds and tap Refund & withdraw on the entry; on Android open Revenue, which lists each paid entry with Refund & withdraw. Pikel returns the fee through the same Stripe connection the payment came in on, and withdraws the entry.

Pro tip

Pick your collection method to match your event. For a serious tournament with a bracket and prizes, take payment up front with Stripe checkout — it locks in commitment and kills day-of no-shows. For a low-key event with your regulars, Manual keeps signup frictionless — just remember the cash is yours to collect at check-in. And always set the refund policy before you open registration, so the rules are the rules for everyone.