Compass - Full Format Walkthrough
Compass is a 16-team bracket format where every team keeps playing regardless of losses. Teams drop into lower brackets after each loss, guaranteeing multiple matches and a full final ranking from 1st through 16th place. This format works for singles or doubles. In singles, each team is one player. In doubles, each team is a two-player pair.
How the Compass format works
Compass uses four cascading single-elimination brackets. All 16 teams start in Bracket 1, then drop to a specific lower bracket based on when they lose:
Bracket | Places | Who plays here |
|---|---|---|
Bracket 1 (Main Draw) | 1st–4th | All 16 teams start here |
Bracket 4 | 5th–8th | Lose in Round 2 of the Main Draw |
Bracket 2 | 9th–12th | Lose in Round 1 of the Main Draw |
Bracket 3 | 13th–16th | Lose in Round 1 of Bracket 2 |
Once a team drops into a bracket, that bracket becomes single elimination for them. Each bracket produces its own winner, creating a complete placement ranking across all 16 teams.
The bracket numbers (1, 2, 3, 4) reflect the quality level—not the order they're played. Bracket 4 determines 5th–8th place because it catches teams who made it one round deeper than those in Bracket 2.
Add players or teams
Before generating the bracket, your event needs players or teams registered.
If Using CourtReserve
Players sync automatically from CourtReserve registrations. To refresh manually:
Go to your event
Open the Players tab
Click the sync button to pull the latest registrations
For detailed syncing steps, see Sync players into an event.
If Not Using CourtReserve
Add players or teams manually or import from a spreadsheet:
Go to your event
Open the Players tab
Click + Add Players to add manually, or import from a spreadsheet
For doubles events, players register as pairs. For singles events, each player registers individually.
Generate the bracket
All four brackets are generated together from Bracket 1. You cannot generate them separately.
Open the division and go to the Knockout tab.
Tap Generate Bracket on Bracket 1 (Main Draw).
The system creates all four brackets at once and displays a success message.
Admin controls—Generate Bracket, Clear Knockout Bracket, and other actions—only appear on Bracket 1 to avoid confusion.
Compass requires exactly 16 teams. If you have fewer than 16, the system pads the bracket with byes. See How seeding and byes work in bracket formats.
Score a match
Tap any match card to open the score dialog. Enter set scores for each team. The system automatically determines the winner and advances them to the next match.
Win in Bracket 1 → advance to the next round in Bracket 1.
Lose in Bracket 1 Round 1 → drop to Bracket 2.
Lose in Bracket 1 Round 2 → drop to Bracket 4.
Lose in Bracket 2 Round 1 → drop to Bracket 3.
Lose in any other bracket → eliminated from that bracket.
For detailed scoring instructions, see Scoring bracket matches.
Walkovers and forfeits
From the score dialog, you can declare a walkover and select which team wins. The match displays an orange Forfeit badge, and the winning team advances automatically. No scores are required.
Swap teams
Admins see a pencil icon on each team slot in the bracket. Tap it to open a substitution dialog showing the current team and all available replacement teams with player names and seed information.
Select a new team to swap them into that bracket slot. Use this to correct seeding errors or handle last-minute team changes.
Only admins can swap teams. Non-admins receive an error message if they attempt this action.
Assign courts
Each match card has a status badge that serves as a court action button:
Badge | Meaning | Action |
|---|---|---|
Assign Court (dark blue) | No court assigned | Tap to select an available court |
Upcoming (blue) | Court assigned, match not live | Tap to make live or change the court |
LIVE (red) | Match in progress | Tap to unassign court or set back to upcoming |
Completed (gray) | Match finished | No action available |
Courts occupied by live matches appear unavailable in the court list.
When you set a match to Live, the system sends a push notification to players: "Your Match is Live! Your match has been called to Court [#]."
Auto-assign courts
From the admin menu, toggle Auto-Assign Courts on or off. You can also choose which round to start auto-assigning from. When enabled, the system automatically assigns available courts to matches as they become ready.
For more court management options, see Court management in bracket formats.
Clear the bracket
From the admin menu, tap Clear Knockout Bracket. A red warning dialog confirms:
ALL bracket matches will be deleted
ALL scores and results will be lost
ALL court assignments will be cleared
This cannot be undone
You must tap DELETE ENTIRE BRACKET to confirm. After clearing, you can regenerate a new bracket from scratch.
Print the bracket
Tap the print icon (web only) and choose between:
Bracket View – Prints the full tournament bracket tree as displayed on screen.
Individual Match Cards – Prints scorecards with configurable settings.
View the bracket
On mobile: Rounds display as swipeable pages. Tap the round pills at the top (Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Final, etc.) to jump to a specific round. Pull down to refresh.
On web: The full bracket tree displays horizontally with connector lines between rounds. Scroll left and right to see all rounds.
What's next
Learn about seeding and byes at How seeding and byes work in bracket formats
See Scoring bracket matches for detailed scoring instructions
Compare with Double Elimination and Single Elimination formats