> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://uspa-wpr.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://uspa-wpr.gitbook.io/docs/instructions/draws-and-schedule.md). # 6. Draws & Schedule Once Seeding is complete, the TD can create the draws & schedule. ## Draws Required draw format per entries Formatting summary: Minimum 3 teams required to make a draw. <3 teams = cancelled & refunded. ≤ 5 teams: 1 group (no playoff). 6–7 teams: 2 groups with 1st Place Playoff (3rd/5th Place Playoffs optional at TD discretion). Round robin: used for ≤ 7 teams. ≥ 8 teams: First‑match‑loser consolation draw format. USPA 100: Should follow ^, but more flexibility (confirm with USPA in advance; for instance, the format must offer the same or more matches to play than ^). * For each respective division a.k.a. category you are running: * i) Select from the sidebar menu either “Group Stage” (for Round Robin) or “Knockout Stage” (for First-match-loser-consolation – and, if applicable, for Playoff stage of Round Robin) depending on the USPA “Required draw format per entries” count in that division (see Instructions 4.v). * ii) Select the division a.k.a. category from the “All Categories” orange button dropdown. * iii) Click “+ Create” (or “+ Add new”) to start to make the draw. Then, in the popup form: * **For First-match-loser-consolation:** * Draw title = same name as the category e.g. “Men’s Div 1” * \***IMPORTANT:** Select (checkbox yes) “Add first match losers to consolation draw” * De-select (checkbox no) “Publish draw after creation”. (Later, click orange “Publish Now” button top right later once all draws & schedules done and double-checked in case of errors.) * (Leave all other Settings as the default.) * Click “ADD DRAW”. The Main draw and the Consolation (FMLC) draw are both automatically created. (You can find the Consolation draw by clicking on the grey dropdown menu button that says “Main” and selecting “Consolation”.) * **For Round Robin:** * Draw title = same name as the category e.g. “Men’s Div 1” * Groups type = Multiple (if 6-7 teams) or Single (if 3-5 teams) * Number of groups = 2 (if 6-7 teams) or 1 (if 3-5 teams) * De-select (checkbox no) “Publish groups after creation”. (Later, click orange “Publish Now” button top right later once all draws & schedules done and double-checked in case of errors.) * (Leave all other Settings as the default.) * Click “Submit”. * **For Round Robin Playoff(s) (if applicable) – create in “Knockout Stage” tab upfront along with Round Robin group stage to be able to include in Schedule planning**: * Draw title = same name as the category, + playoff name e.g. “Men’s Div 1 1st Place Playoff” * Templates size = 2 * Generate Draw = From Group Results (Manual) * Groups = Select all * De-select (checkbox no) “Publish draw after creation”. (Later, click orange “Publish Now” button top right later once all draws & schedules done and double-checked in case of errors.) * (Leave all other Settings as the default.) * Click “ADD DRAW”. * …Repeat for each playoff match, e.g. if also running “Men’s Div 1 3rd Place Playoff”, “Men’s Div 1 5th Place Playoff”, etc. * Manually input top teams from the group stage into the playoff match slots using the “+Add team” button in the playoff draw. Below are a couple screenshots of a group (a.k.a. round robin) and a knockout (a.k.a. FMLC) with entries: ![RoundRobin](/files/kmm6Q6RW3QOvih1QQPzT) ![Elimination](/files/178Njr53fdXKMxugd3DC) ## Scheduling Once all draws are complete, the TD can do scheduling. There are 2 methods to do scheduling: 1. Via the Knockouts tab and Groups tab: Click on each match “Edit match” individually to enter match times - be mindful of AM:PM. (Remember to enter a court to best make use of the TMS's Order of Play functionality.) Cross-reference the Grid on the Order of Play tab, which populates as you do this, to check for no match conflicts. 2. Once generated, all matches populate into the Order of Play grid( Recomended method) with basic logic applied (e.g. Round 1 before Round 2), but without accounting for rest times, maximum matches per day, or potential conflicts between Group Stage and Knockout matches. TDs are advised to review the schedule carefully before publishing. All unscheduled matches can be found below the date — on the right side of the matches row there is a dropdown arrow where all pending matches that still need a time and court assigned will appear. Note that filters are available to make this process easier, allowing TDs to filter matches by category. In all cases for any method, it is recommended to have at least a basic sketch if not spreadsheet of desired schedule next to you as you complete scheduling in the software. **ITEMS TO REMEMBER WHEN SCHEDULING:** 1. Please remember when scheduling to include minimum rest time for players – generally 75/90 minutes (search “rest” in USA Padel rulebook for details), and to adhere to “matches per day” maximums (“two main draw matches per day in USPA 2000, 1000 and 500. In USPA 250 and 100, or where main draw matches utilize a 3rd set tiebreaker, three matches may be scheduled in one day”). 2. As much as possible, schedule matches such that upcoming opponents will have equal rest prior to their match – i.e. If the final is at 1pm, both semis should be at 10am rather than one semi at 10am and one semi at 9am. 3. Do not schedule a player in 2 matches at the same time, even in Walkover situations, as this creates errors in the results upload to the WPR rating database. 4. **IMPORTANT:** Scheduling of consolation matches for ‘First match loser consolation’ format draws in divisions where there are main draws with byes: The team with a main draw bye (often a seed) may (if they lose) or may not (if they win) slot into the consolation draw. If the former, enter a bye in the consolation draw on the line where they would have slotted in had they lost, advancing their would-be consolation opponent to the next round. If the latter, upon score entry for the relevant main draw match they are automatically slotted into the consolation draw. TDs should keep in mind in these scenarios to: * i) only schedule first round consolation match times for after the second round of a corresponding main draw is completed, * ii) communicate to awaiting teams that their consolation match time depends on the outcome of a main draw match, * iii) be aware that outcomes of main draw matches may create gaps of unused court time in your schedule if a consolation match becomes n/a. **TO CHECK WHEN DONE SCHEDULING:** Once done scheduling, use the Order of Play (left sidebar) --> "Matches" bank to double-check that there are no matches missing having been scheduled. To do so, use the down arrow on the right side of the "Matches" bank rectangle to expand the bank, then select all "Categories", all "Bracket" and checkbox the "Show only unscheduled matches" -- the matches bank should be empty if there are no matches missing scheduling. (IMPORTANT: All matches must have both a score and **a scheduled date & time** entered before 11:59pm local time of the last day of the tournament. Missing data blocks the match results upload to the WPR rating database/player profiles.) **TIP:** Project the Order of Play with auto-scroll onto a TV screen in your club. To do so, in the Order of Play tab, click the TV icon button. This cycles through all the tournament's matches in a grid view, noting scores as you enter them and noting which matches are Completed vs. Upcoming. (Matches must be assigned courts in order to make use of this Order of Play projection functionality.) 1min video of how to publish and project publicly the Order of Play: **TIP:** In case of, e.g., rain: You can navigate in Order of Play tab to Bird’s View, click “Select all” (or select the matches in question individually), then click the “Move” button that appears and in the popup move all the matches, e.g., 2h later. ## Publish Deadlines TDs must publish the draws & schedule by the following times or earlier, and inform and when they are complete: * **USPA 100 tournaments:** **Tuesday 3:00pm local time** (tournament week). * **USPA 250+ & Seniors tournaments:** **Monday 3:00pm local time** (tournament week). > **Important:** Clubs that do not publish draws & schedule on time risk the cancellation of future tournaments by the USA Padel Federation. **TO PUBLISH:** Publish only once you've double-checked the draws and schedule, to avoid confusion of revising public content. To publish, click the orange "Publish now" button near the top right of all three of the i) Group Stage tab, ii) Knockout Stage tab, iii) Order of Play tab. **TO NOTIFY PLAYERS:** Usually players are actively checking for publication. If you would like to send a notification, there are multiple possible ways to do so: 1. Go to Tournament Overview on the left side --> Announcements button --> + Create --> in the "Create an announcement" popup enter & send a message from within the TMS. ("Make visible to all..." posts it on the tournament public page; "Send email and push notification..." sends it as an email & USPA app message.) or 2. Go to Participants on the left side --> i) check names to send notification from within the TMS or ii) use contact info listed (can download as a spreadsheet too) to send contact players outside of the TMS. (IMPORTANT: Be careful to have "Rows per page"-->"Show all" on the Participants tab, otherwise the draft email created only addresses to the first 25 players, which is the default # of rows/players in the Participants tab.) --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. 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