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MasterLeague brings pickleballers' results together into unified leaderboards, allowing players to earn ladder points that are comparable without having to play every other participant or attend every fixture.
This can't be done by traditional means. We achieve this using a formula to take into consideration the variables at play in different groups. The MasterLeague Points System considers each player's score, Player Skill Rating, and track record to determine current standings - without penalising players based on their availability to play.
Total MasterLeague player points calculations
Total MasterLeague player points calculations
CURRENT YTD POINTS STATUS: This is the running average between each player's best year-to-date round in each quarter and best round in the last week played, less the square root of the number of weeks since the last game played, plus or minus the square root of that player's nett win/loss differential. For quarterly results, only from within that quarter are used.
MASTERLEAGUE CLUB LADDER POINTS: Club points are based on the proportion of points won in the MasterLeague rotating-doubles ladder by players from each club, using the MasterLeague points formula at the index 5.0 player skill rating. Players can update their nominated club from time to time and this will change how future matches are allocated.
The idle deduction for the club ladder is in the form of the square of the number of weeks since a player from a club last played.
The above descriptions do not include the 2025 no-show penalty deduction, which is the number of missed rounds for which a player was registered, but failed to attend. Note that most fixtures feature two rounds, so a player who is AWOL will have 2 added to the number of missed rounds, while someone who is late will miss the first round if the second game has already started.
NB. An exception to the above calculations occurs where only a single game is played in a round. Firstly, a single game cannot not count as a player's best round result. Furthermore, if it is the player's latest result, it shall be combined with the previous round and the weighted average of both rounds shall be used to determine the player's current points, which means that this and at least one other game will form part of the calculations, but not a string of more than two consecutive one-game rounds.
The MasterLeague formula will yield points for any given round or match along a curve as illustrated by the below graph and benchmarks. The overall points formula above explains how these results are treated when calculating each player's current standings.
AVERAGE SKILL RATING:
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 5.5
POTENTIAL PLAYER POINTS YIELDED (+/-1):
15 25 35 50 65 80 100 120
Treatment of extended games
Treatment of extended games
In games such as standard-scoring matches where the game is extended due to win-by-two scoring, each involved player's points achievement will be calculated according to an adjusted maximum available points for the round.
Treatment of foreshortened games or rounds
Treatment of foreshortened games or rounds
Out-of-time situation or withdrawal from play due to a new injury: results are taken as read, i.e., no further adjustments are made to the scores, but each player's points achievement will be calculated on the basis of an adjusted maximum potential points for the round. All unplayed games will be cancelled and not counted.
Player abandoning a match in progress due to an emergency or aggravation of an existing injury: player (and partner) receive no further points for that game, whilst the opponents will be awarded all remaining points and be declared the winners, while each player's points achievement will be calculated on the basis of an adjusted maximum potential points for the round. However, all unplayed games will be cancelled and not counted.
Refusal to play: at the organiser's discretion, offending player (and partner) receive no further points for that game, whilst the opponents will be awarded all remaining points and be declared the winners, while the offending player also receives a nil score for all unplayed games.
Overlapping points potential between stratified courts
Overlapping points potential between stratified courts
Players are not boxed in by virtue of their court allocation. In fact, if they perform well on a lower-rated court they could earn more points than players struggling on a court above them.
Examples:
A player who wins every game on a rotating-doubles court will earn about the same MasterLeague points as a player who wins two thirds as many points on a court with an average player skill rating that is 0.5 higher.
A player who wins three out of four games on a court will earn about the same MasterLeague points as a player who wins half his games on a court with an average rating that is 0.5 higher.
However, this does not negate the need to put players in the correct (or most accurate) ranking order for the start of a MasterLeague session. The reason for this is twofold: 1) the rules and format can have unintended consequences for those who are put out of order, and 2) the higher the average player rating on court, the more MasterLeague points players will earn given the same total number of points won in the round.
Handicap system for fixed pairs ladders
Handicap system for fixed pairs ladders
We take the points forumula and apply it in such a way that it provides a competitive ladder for fixed pairs of players with various ratings - essentially a handicap system. This encourages pairs to be formed without too much concern about their average player rating and play being stifled.
Factoring in the average opponent rating:
if one fixed pair is rated an average of 0.5 lower than their opponents on the Player Skill Ratings scale (say 3.5 and 4.0 respectively), they will earn about the same ladder points if they win two-thirds as many game points (e.g., 14-21).
if one fixed pair is rated an average of 1.0 lower than their opponents on the Player Skill Ratings scale (say 3.5 and 4.5 respectively), they will earn about the same ladder points if they win one third as many game points (e.g., 7-21).
The following table shows some examples using typical game formats (first to 21, first to 15 and first to 11), and how many points out of those a pair will require in the match against opponents with the stated average DUPR rating, based on various MasterLeague Points targets listed in the first column.
Swipe margins to scroll entire page.You can use this chart to check approximately how many points a team would require to get more MasterLeague points than their opponents.
What happens in a local MasterLeague rotating-partners round
What happens in a local MasterLeague rotating-partners round
A typical doubles round will consist of four or five players on each court, rotating partners in a set sequence of combinations. Players are placed on each court according to the local club's discretion, usually according to DUPR rating but allowing for overriding factors. After completing the round, players are ranked in order of their total points won on that court, with the top and bottom players moving up or down a court if there is a second round immediately following.
Although it sounds simple, there are many factors that are taken into consideration. The minutiae of MasterLeague's format help with everything from handling late arrivals or injuries to syncronising round times and player points across different courts with different numbers of players.
While total points won determine player ranking on each court, turning these results into MasterLeague points involves additional calculations.
Even though players' points reflect their total number of wins & losses as well as their best and last rounds, the promotion/relegation nature of league fixtures means this difference should reach equilibrium over time, rather than constantly increasing or decreasing, as players move up or down to face games at a higher or lower level.
Origins of MasterLeague
Origins of MasterLeague
MasterLeague is actually an expansion of Auckland's oldest pickleball league, which has been operating - and evolving - since 2021. As others clubs have adopted the league's format, we wanted the latest iteration to fairly compare results from different groups playing at different times and places - a unified ladder that anyone can climb.
To join MasterLeague, register for the 2025 series at any time. Register for the league, ladders and fixtures here:
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