Getting started with Pecking Order
Players are seeded to start, then the whole field re-ranks itself after every round and re-cuts into courts of four. Win and you climb into a tougher court; lose and you drop into an easier one.
Start with How Pecking Order works.
Any number of players from four up works, on any number of courts, for any number of rounds. There is no count to hit before you can generate.
Lifecycle
1. Create the event. League across dates, or a single day. See Create a Pecking Order event.
2. Add players individually — no partners to record.
3. Add ratings if you want the first round seeded by DUPR or anchor rating.
4. Generate round 1 and pick your seeding. See Generate rounds in Pecking Order.
5. Score the whole round, then generate the next — the field re-ranks and the courts reform.
Repeat step 5 each round or session, and stop whenever you like.
Good to know before you start
One game per player per round. Not a mini round robin.
Partners change every round, and the strongest on each court is paired with the weakest to keep the game close.
Movement is not one court at a time. A player can jump or fall several courts in a single round.
Standings are win percentage, so players with different numbers of games compare fairly.
Byes cost nothing. A round you sat out is not counted rather than scored as a loss.
Byes rotate by default, so the same players are not benched every round.
Your court count caps the field. Three courts means twelve players on court, whatever the roster.
Seeding only affects round 1. After that the order is entirely results-driven.
How it compares
Ladder formats | Pecking Order | |
|---|---|---|
Movement | One court at a time | Straight to wherever your record places you |
Driven by | Your last result | Your record across the whole event |
Recovery | Climb back a court at a time | A good round puts you straight back up |
Player count | Usually a multiple of four | Any number from four up |
Which sessions suit it
Pecking Order is a good fit when your numbers move week to week, when players arrive and leave mid-session, or when a wide spread of abilities turns up and you want the games to even out on their own.
It suits a fixed, evenly matched group less well. With a narrow ability range the re-ranking has little to sort, and a format with a set schedule gives more predictable partner variety.