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Ladder league kit

Pickleball ladder league kit

Rules you can post, a score sheet sized to your courts, and a plan for the season. A ladder sorts a mixed group by level without anyone having to rate anyone.

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What a ladder league is

"Ladder" means two different things at pickleball clubs, and it helps to say which one you are running.

  • A court ladder, often called Up and Down the River. Courts are ranked from the top court down. After each round, winners move up a court and losers move down. Within a night, strong players rise and everyone ends up in close games. Run it weekly and carry each player's finishing court forward, and you have a ladder league.
  • A challenge ladder. Players are ranked on a list and challenge someone a few places above them, arranging matches on their own time. It suits singles and small groups; it needs one person keeping the list honest.

This kit covers the court ladder, the version most clubs mean when they post a ladder night.

Post these

Ladder rules

  1. Four players per court. Court 1 is the top court.
  2. Each round is one game to 11, win by 2, or a time cap of about 15 minutes.
  3. Winners move up one court and split; losers move down one court and split. So you get a new partner on every court.
  4. Top-court winners stay on the top court. Bottom-court losers stay on the bottom court.
  5. Each player records games won. Ties break on point differential.
  6. A player who arrives late starts on the bottom court.
  7. In a season ladder, next week starts where you finished. Say in advance what happens to a player who misses a week.

A common variation plays three games per round on each court, so each player partners each of the other three once; the top two by games won move up and the bottom two move down. It is fairer to individuals and takes longer per round.

Printable

Ladder score sheet

Choose your courts and rounds and print. The first page records each court's score per round; the second is a tally with a line for every player.

Courts

4

Rounds

5

16 players: four on each of 4 courts.

Ladder night score sheet

Date ________ · Court 1 is the top court · pikel.app

Winners move up one court and split; losers move down one court and split. Court 1 winners and bottom-court losers stay put.

Scores by court and round
CourtRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5
1top____ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ____
2____ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ____
3____ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ____
4____ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ________ – ____

Player tally

Write each player's court for the round, and W or L. The total is games won.

Court and result per player per round
#PlayerR1R2R3R4R5Won
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

How-to

Run a ladder night, then a season

  1. Step 1

    Fix the courts and the order

    Number your courts from the top court down and plan four players per court. Seed the first night by level, by a rating, or at random, and write each player on a starting court.

  2. Step 2

    Play the round

    Each court plays its game or games for the round. Record every score on the sheet as the court finishes.

  3. Step 3

    Move players

    Winners move up one court and losers move down one. Top-court winners and bottom-court losers stay where they are. New partnerships form on every court.

  4. Step 4

    Repeat for the night

    Five or six rounds is a typical night. By the end, players are on courts that match how they played that night.

  5. Step 5

    Carry the ladder to next week

    Start next week's first round where each player finished, and keep a season tally of games won so the ladder means something in week eight.

Season decisions to make before week one: how long the season runs (six to ten weeks is common), whether the final week is a playoff, what a missed week costs, and whether subs are allowed. Our league guide covers each one.

No clipboard

Run a Up & Down the River league in pikel

Pikel runs Up & Down the River as a one-off night or as the format of a league night. On each court you play a game with each of the other three as your partner, so the record is yours alone. Then the top two on each court move up and the bottom two move down; the top and bottom courts keep their own. You set the opening order by hand, by Pikel rating or DUPR, or at random.

Create a League and each week is its own game day: players join the league once and RSVP every week, a waitlist fills dropped spots, scores go in at the net, and every night's results add into one league table. You can change the format any week, and close the season with a playoff.

Run it in Pikel

Skip the score sheet

Pikel is free on iPhone and Android, with no ads. It moves players between courts, keeps scores and standings, and carries the table across the season.

Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play

Questions

What is a ladder league in pickleball?
A ladder league ranks courts from top to bottom. After each round, winners move up a court and losers move down, so over a night players sort themselves by level. In a season-long ladder, each player's finishing court carries into the next week.
What is Up and Down the River in pickleball?
It is a court-ladder format: courts are ranked, and after each round players who win move up a court while players who lose move down. Partners change as players arrive on a new court, so nobody is stuck with one partner.
How do you score a pickleball ladder league?
Most ladders count individual games won across the night, with point differential breaking ties. Some also give a bonus for finishing on the top court. Whatever you pick, post it before week one and don't change it mid-season.
How many players do you need for a ladder?
Four per court, and at least two courts, so eight players. Ladders work best with three or more courts, because the movement between courts is what sorts players by level.
What if a ladder has players left over?
With a number that isn't a multiple of four, extra players sit out a round and rejoin at the bottom court, or rotate sit-outs in order so nobody sits twice before everyone has sat once.
Can Pikel run a ladder league?
Yes. Pikel runs Up & Down the River as a single night or as a league night, and the league keeps one standings table across the season. On each court you partner each of the other three players in turn, then the top two on each court move up and the bottom two move down.

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