The tournament will be held on Sunday, October 16, 2022.There is not a rain date selected. In the case of weather, the tournament will be postponed as much as possible to wait for the weather, but will need to be completed within that day by 9:00pm. If divisions cannot be completed, refunds will be issued with a $5.00 processing fee withheld. The Grand Champion brackets are not guaranteed in cases of inclement weather.
Location
The tournament will be held in its entirety at Lexington Athletic Complex, Blaine MN. The courts are located at the East end of the park. the address is 4286 121st Ave. NE, Blaine MN, 55449. There is ample parking available next to the courts and in the lot across the path.
Surface
All play will be played on an outdoor tennis surface. There are four permanent courts and 6 striped courts with temporary nets. Courts are assigned by tournament staff and are randomly set. All courts are in great condition and were resurfaced this year. 10 foot wind screens surround the entire facility.
Ball
Dura is the NSPA club ball for all competitive play in 2022. This tournament will use the Dura Fast-40 neon ball for all play. No exceptions unless otherwise noted by the tournament director.
Start Time
The start time for the tournament is 8:00am on tournament day. Please arrive 15 - 30 minutes early to check in. All Men's divisions are currently scheduled to start at 8:00am and the Men's Grand Champion Bracket is scheduled to start at 12:00pm. All Women's divisions are scheduled to start at 1:00pm and the Women's Grand Champion divisions is scheduled to start at 4:00pm. All of these times are subject to change per registration turnout, weather, and tournament logistics. All times can be changed per tournament directors discretion.
Duration
The average duration of a tournament of this type is 2 hours - 5 hours. This includes round robin play, bracket play, and grand champion brackets. All registered players will participate in the round robin and single elimination bracket play. The duration time depends on pool size, registered players, and success throughout the tournament. See the format section for more details.
Fee
The registration fee is $30.00 for this tournament and only one evet per person is offered. In the case of cancellation for weather, a $25.00 refund will be issued to each registered player. The $5.00 less is held back for payment processing and website fees incurred.
Format
Round Robin
All divisions (see division descriptions below) are split into pools for round robin play depending on their numbers. Some divisions could have multiple pools while others may only have one. Pools will be a minimum of 4 players and a maximum of 7 players. If certain divisions do not fill with at least 4 players, they could be combined with other divisions. In that case, there would only be one round robin with multiple divisions; but the top player from each age division in that event would still advance to the Grand Master Bracket. Example: if 35-44 and 55-64 were combined into one event to create appropriate sized pools, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place medals would be awarded to the top three players in each age division even though the event was played as one. That event could award 6 medals if applicable. All players play in the round robin. All round robin play is to 11, win by two. Players are required to switch at 6.
Single Elimination Bracket
All players will advance into a single elimination bracket after the round robin play has completed. The round robin play will serve to seed the brackets accordingly. Bracket play is played to 11, win by 2 until the bracket is down to the final four players (semi-finals). The semi-finals, the finals, and the bronze medal game, will all be single elimination and 2 out of three to 11, win by two. Players are required to switch in between each game to 11 and at 6 in the third game if applicable. Medals will be awarded to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in each age division.
Grand Champion Bracket
The winner from each age division will be automatically entered into the "Grand Champion" Bracket. The winner from each age division will be sent to the Grand Champion bracket. If age divisions have been combined, the winner for all age divisions will still be entered in the bracket. There are 5 age divisions and all divisions will will have a player in the bracket unless that divisions had zero registered players. Example: If only three players entered in the 65+ division, and they were combined with the 55-64 division, all players in the 65+ division would receive their perspective medal on how they ended in the event and the 65+ player that was the gold medal winner of their age division would advance to the grand champion bracket.
Divisions
All divisions are separated by age only. There are no skill divisions for singles events. The tournament is separated into Men's and Women's events. Each player is allowed 1 event. The Men's and Women's events are split into the following 5 divisions: 0-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, 65 and over. A player's pickleball age is determined by the highest age they will be in the calendar year of the tournament. Example: if your birthday is January 5, 1972; you play as a 50 year old. If your birthday is December 31, 1972, you also play as a 50 year old. Divisions could be combined as the registration numbers dictate, but medals are awarded by age regardless of tournament day event placement.
Games
Each round robin has a minimum of 4 players. That guarantees 3 round robin games. All players are entered into the single elimination bracket, so they will receive at least one more game after that. If a player is eliminated in the single elimination tournament, they will be done unless they qualify for the Grand Master Bracket. A player could play 6 round robin games at most and up to 4 in the single elimination tournament. This could 11 games plus the grand master bracket if applicable.
Players
Each division would only allow for 8 players. Each event (Men's and Women's) can hold a total of 40 players. For the majority of the registration, the divisions will be capped at 8 players each. When the deadline for registration has closed, divisions will be evaluated and any divisions that did not fill to 8 players will be closed and players on the waitlist for other divisions can be entered in. The 8 player limit may be increased after the registration deadline has passed and if divisions and waitlists are applicable. Any division that does not reach at least 4 players will be combined with an adjacent division. The decision as to what division the low number will be combined with will be determined by the numbers. All division decisions are subject to change and amendment per the tournament director.
