League Format
and Policies
POLICIES
Scarborough follows Columbus City health department guidelines.
Our club is privately owned and may have at any time additional policies that everyone must follow.
Our club currently has a minimal observer policy for all events. This includes our pickleball leagues. The club prefers NO observers at the club solely for watching the pickleball league play.
All league members and substitute players must abide by Scarborough East Tennis Club's rules. Our club is a family friendly club and our club rules reflect this. All players must have shirts on at all times. This includes playing in shirts and NOT just sports bras regardless of how much covering the sports bras provide, and 2) changing clothes in the locker room only (i.e. NOT on the side of the court.)
LEAGUE PLAY
DETAILED RULES GOVERNING COMPETITION OF ALL PICKLEBALL LEAGUES
DETAILED RULES GOVERNING COMPETITION OF ALL PICKLEBALL LEAGUES
WHO CAN JOIN OUR LEAGUES
Our pickleball leagues are generally open to anyone who already knows how to play pickleball, who has been playing for a year, and who has at least a 3.01 DUPR skill rating We ask that low skilled, inexperienced, or total beginners join only our Beginner league or take lessons to achieve a higher skill prior to registering for our leagues.
You do not have to be a member of Scarborough East Tennis Club to join our pickleball leagues. However, if you are a club member you receive a discount on league fees and don't have to pay the session fee. In addition club members get priority over non-club members for filling any open spots. During registration a club member can bump a non-club member out of a league as long as the non-member has another open spot option in another league. Club members are also at the top of the wait list to get into a league, and at the top of the list of substitutes that the Pickleball Director maintains.
The Pickleball Director may fill any league with players who have specific official DUPR skill ratings (measured at the time of registration). This is strictly at the discretion of the Pickleball Director.
In addition, Scarborough's leagues have the following ranking on precedence of getting into our leagues:
- Scarborough club members
- Current league members as long as the league is balanced.
If the league is not balanced such that all league members get a great experienced playing in our leagues, the Pickleball Director may have to limit current players from being in the next session according to skill level (i.e. eight 3.0 players, eight 3.5 players, eight 4.0 players...).
- Everyone else.
Players who are non-club members have to qualify for all leagues based on each league requirements. Exceptions to qualifying for requirements: If a player is returning from injury and has not yet achieved his/her previous skill level. This exception may not be granted if there are sufficient number of players who already meet the skill requirement of the league and take all available spots.
Scarborough Club members may be exempted from the requirements of any league at the discretion of the Pickleball Director.
Any league may be co-ed so men and women all playing together, or any league may be gender specific. Any league may also be age specific generally following accepted USAPA practices. Any league may have specific DUPR skill restrictions.
FORMAT & RULES TO WHICH THE LEAGUE ADHERES
2025 International Federation of Pickleball regulations or USAPA 2025 official rule book, which supercedes the other, are the guidelines we follow in our leagues.
At any time the League Director may institute a new rule -- even if it does not align with USAPA or IFP rules of play -- for the fairness, safety, or fun of the league as a whole.
Scarborough incorporates DUPR by submitting weekly league game scores to DUPR so all players get official ratings after sufficient play history exists. All games, no matter if finished or not, are submitted to DUPR. No exceptions!
In addition the League Director uses DUPR ratings (Or USAPA ratings or a Skill Assessment by a pickleball Pro) to decide where players should be started when either a new player joins the league or when a new session starts (seepolicy above). At the beginning of each session, the Pickleball Director will sort players according to their OFFICIAL DUPR/USAPA/assessment ratings to give players their initial court assignments. A new player is put on a court that has players closest to the new player's official skill level.
LADDER LEAGUES
You do not need a partner to join a ladder league. You will be placed on a court each week with 3 other people. Each week you will have 2 different players on your court. You may also share a permanent spot -- and the costs -- with one other person if you want to play less than once per week, or if you know you are going to miss several weeks straight.
The ladder format is designed so that players mostly play others of similar skill level. The player's weekly ranking in the league and, thus, which court they play on for any given week, is based on the player's winning percentage of the previous week. The winning percentage is defined as the ratio of points won to total points possible. Two players out of four on each court will move up or down the ladder (or one court) each week according to whether they have the highest or the lowest winning percentage. The other two players will stay on the same court.
If two players on the same court have a tie in their total game points on a given day of play, the player with the lower Player Order # (e.g., higher ranked order) in the Court Assignments for that day of play wins the tie. Example: Player Order #1 is higher than Player Order #2, and Player Order #2 is higher than Player Order #3, etc. If applicable, the player who wins the tie might move to the next higher court, or, the player who loses the tie may go down a court. If both stay on that court, the player who won the tie gets the lower Player Order # again the next week relative to the other tied player. In the case of a tie between a player and a substitute player, the normal league player automatically wins the tie regardless of the Player Order #.
There is no rule stating which team's starting server begins a new game (i.e. serves the first ball in the game). Players are not compelled to use another player's personal preference of who serves first.
Each team may take one 30 second time out during one game.
There is a maximum 3 minute break between games during which players should enter their game scores or go to the restroom.
Ladder League Management tabs for each league are kept on this website for a minimum of 4 sessions. The tabs have all game scores of all players in all leagues.
SINGLES LEAGUES
Singles leagues are based on specific USAPA skill levels and skill level definitions, and accepted match formats for tournament competition.
Players rate themselves often times so one player's opinion of his/her own or someone else's skill level may differ. If players have official DUPR or USAPA ratings, these ratings must be used as a player's stated skill level.
Singles leagues are conducted via a round robin format. This means each player in a specific league plays every other play in the same league one time.
Each player may take two 30-second time outs during one 11 pt game.
Players decide who serves in all games.
There is a maximum 3 minute break between games during which players should enter their game scores.
Previous league scores are kept on this website for 3 sessions.
LADDER LEAGUE MATCHES
The match format is 3 games.
All ladder league games go to 21 points win by 2. This means match lengths will be around 2 hours. NOTE: Due to the win by 2 rule, the matches may go to 25-23, for example.
SINGLES LEAGUE MATCHES
The match format is 2 games to 15, win by 2. Match tie break first to 5 points if both players win 1 game.
This means match lengths will be around 75 minutes. NOTE: Due to the win by 2 rule, the matches may go to 19-17, for example.
GAME BALL
Only the yellow Franklin X-40 outdoor ball is allowed on court. Players rightfully expect the same ball to be used throughout a league season. Ladder league players expect the same ball on every court as they move up and down the ladder.
Any player bringing another type of ball to use in the league is subject to REMOVAL FROM THE LEAGUE.
ENTERING SCORES
All points and all game results from all matches count towards your accumulated points and your DUPR rating!! Game results are entered by someone on the winning team of the game. The score entry is done by the online ENTER GAME SCORE tool on this website. Players on the losing team of the game need to verify scores being entered. Verification should be using the VERIFY GAME SCORES tool so the player can see the data has hit the copleagues database.
All scores, once entered, are final.
This will become the "official" game score in the copleagues.com database and the DUPR database as well.
Any points above 21 (i.e. 25-23) will be counted so all players receive all points they earn!
Any singles game points above 11 will be counted.
No raw data (i.e., individual game scores entered via the Enter Game Score tool) will be kept longer than 3 months in the copleagues.com database since DUPR keeps game score data for years.
WHAT TO DO IN CASE OF A TIED GAME
NOTE: DUPR does not take tied scores. At 3 minutes before your league's ending time, if your game is tied, players must play a sudden death point and use rally scoring for that last point so games do not result in ties. It is acceptable to have only 1 point between opponents final scores in this one case since there was not time to win by 2.
MAKING LINE CALLS (including No Volley Zone lines, sidelines and baselines)
Calling the ball in or out is done by either player(s) that is on the side of the court where the ball bounces last. Everyone MUST respect a player's call (even when we may disagree with the call). THERE IS NO RE-DO of any points unless the official USAPA rules call for a re-do in the rule book.
All players MUST give the benefit of the doubt for balls very close to the lines i.e. if you are not 100% positive that a ball is out, then, by definition, you MUST call the ball is IN. If team members playing on the same doubles team disagree with each other on a call, by definition (you both don't see the ball OUT), you MUST call the ball IN. This is different than one player seeing the ball bounce, and the other player being unable to see the ball bounce. In the latter case, two players cannot call the ball since only one saw the ball bounce.
Here is an excellent detailed post on line calling.
Making frequent poor line calls is subject to removal from the league.
WINNING THE LEAGUE
LADDER LEAGUES
At the end of the season, the player with the most accumulated points across ALL matches of the session is the 1st place winner and receives a medal. We will also present 2nd and 3rd place medals as well as most improved player (chosen at League Director's discretion). In the case of a tie for a certain place, all players who tie get medals.
NOTE: You must be present to accept your medal or make arrangements for you medal to be picked up. Otherwise, I will declare the player with the next most points the winner. I don't hold medals for anyone.
SINGLES LEAGUES
At the end of the season, the player with the most match wins across ALL matches of the season is the 1st place winner and receives a medal. We will also present 2nd and 3rd place medals . In the case of a tie, the official tournament rules will determine a tie. Namely head to head results is the first tiebreaker, and differential points is the second tiebreaker.
AUTOMATIC BILLING FOR LEAGUE FEES
You pay $12.50 per match at the beginning of each month for the matches taking place during the previous month.
There is also session registration fee ($25) for non-members of the club that is good for as long as the player is in consecutive sessions (i.e., spring, summer, fall, winter). If covers all leagues you play in.
Scarborough requires your credit card to be on file if you are not a club member. Scarborough will bill the monthly fee to your credit card automatically. Otherwise, if you are a Scarborough member, your league fees go onto your account.
New players must submit a policies and billing form prior to any play. You will read about this during registration. Players may not play in the league without this form on file. Failure to turn this form will result in your registration being voided.
if you are a Scarborough club member, you get a club member discount on league fees, and members do not have to pay the session fee.
RESPECT ON COURT RULES
Scarborough has a "respect all players on court" rule that we all are REQUIRED to follow in our pickleball leagues. We insist on maintaining a healthy, fair, and FUN atmosphere for everyone in our pickleball leagues!
If the league director gets 3 complaints from different people about the same person**, the league director will ask the offending party to leave the league. The offending player will not be welcome back for 1 year. Remember you are being recorded so it is easy to verify accuracy of the complaint.
** The complaints can vary. Any unsportsmanlike behavior may qualify as a strike. This is ultimately at the League Director's discretion. After all, the League Director should not receive ANY complaints about players' sportsmanship. **
Other complaints such as these also qualify:
-frequently making incorrect line calls in your favor
-arguing line calls or rules (you can look up rules in 10 seconds. DO IT!)
-being late 3 times in one session or 4 times in two consecutive sessions
-frequently not following the time management policies
-not submitting your sub in the "My Substitute" form and not getting a sub from the sub list
MISSING A DAY OF PLAY - USING A SUBSTITUTE PLAYER IN LADDER LEAGUES
LADDER LEAGUES
If a player has to miss a day of their league, that player must use a substitute player off of the sub list.
A substitute player's game scores are entered as official results just as if the permanent player was there. These results determine if the absent player will stay on the same court or move down a court. To protect against an inappropriately skilled substitute player advancing a permanent player up a court, a sub cannot advance a player up to the next court no matter the substitute's game results. A sub can keep a player on the current court or drop a player to a lower court.
The points added to the absent player's accumulated point total is the average of all four players' game totals. This protects the absent players from a sub's poor game while also preventing the absent player getting a substitute player who is too skilled for the absent player's court.
SINGLES LEAGUES
If possible, 9 players will be in each singles round robin. This means all players get 1 bye. The players can tell the League Director which one day of the 8 weeks they cannot play. The League Director will try to schedule that player with a bye on that date.
If a player must miss a 2nd day of the league, that player must use a substitute player so the league can stay on schedule. That substitute player's results are counted as an official score.
USING A SUBSTITUTE PLAYER
Players MUST find their own substitute players if they need to miss a week. To make this very easy, the league director maintains a list for each league with many substitute players names, skill levels, contact info AND availability. To protect substitute players' contact information, the League Director does not keep sub lists online. The league director will include a link to the sub list in the "Important Information for The First Day of League" email that all players receive shortly before league begins. In addition the league director will frequently email this link to each league member in subsequent "league update" emails so the sub list link is easy to obtain. Players should BOOK MARK the sub list link for easy access.
Players must get a sub off of the sub list.
Players must follow any notes in the sub lists that indicate which subs can play on what courts.
A substitute's DUPR rating must be generally within .25 or less of the player's DUPR skill. This can be challenging because ratings move each week. The day that you get the sub is when you need to check the sub's DUPR rating. As long as the rating on that day is within .25 then you can get a particular sub.
Players must fill out the MY SUBSTITUTE form with what day(s) the player will be absent and provide the name of the substitute player. The 'My Substitute' form is located as a sub-menu of the Substituting tab. Not submitting the 'My Substitute' form means you get 1 strike against you. See Respect On Court section above.
The league director requires everyone who substitutes to be on the official sub list so we have ready access to the sub's contact info, emergency contact info, DUPR email address. However, league members already provide me with ready access to this information and are DUPR members. League members ARE considered as "on the official sub list."
If a player who gets a sub that is entirely too highly rated, the League Dir. will automatically drop the player down to the lower court for an unfair advantage. The player will lose all points for that day.
Subs play for free. Invite your friends to sign up to be a sub at https://www.copleagues.com/substitute-list
NOTE THAT SUBSTITUTE PLAYERS MUST COMPLY WITH ALL LEAGUE RULES!
OPEN SPOTS IN THE LEAGUE ARE FILLED WITH SUBS UNTIL A NEW PLAYER JOINS
At times a league may have an "Open Spot" shown on a specific court. Open spots happen when there is an odd number of players in the league such that an entire court cannot be filled. To allow any permanent player to play in the league on a court with less than 4 players, the League Director puts substitute players in any open spots until another permanent player joins the league. These open spots also commonly exist at the beginning of the season when the league is still filling.
A new open spot occurs during the league when a player has to drop out. The League Director puts the open spot on the same court where the player drops to keep the level of play roughly the same on that court.
When a new player joins, if there are any open spots in the league, the new player will take the open spot exactly where it is if the new player's official DUPR skill is roughly the same as players on the court where the open spot exits. If the new player has much greater or much less skill, the League Director will assign the new player to a different court better suited for the new player. This may result in existing players being moved down a court.
At times, the Pickleball Director may move the Open Spot to a higher court to improve the ease for which subs are gotten. Higher courts have more subs available typically.
PLAYERS WHO NO-SHOW AND/OR OTHERWISE DO NOT TAKE APPROPRIATE RESPONSIBILITY IN GETTING A SUBSTITUTE
Sometimes players cannot make their court time. Occasionally, for whatever reason, a substitute player doesn't show up, and no one hears anything from the absent player either. When no one shows up to play at a scheduled league time, this is called a no-show. (No shows are extremely upsetting to the other 3 players who are there to play.)
No-show is generally defined as no one actively hearing anything from the permanent player, and neither the player nor a sub show up to play.
Not taking appropriate responsibility for getting a sub is considered the same as a no-show. This includes (but not limited to) things like:
only following some of and not the entire substitute process (process includes putting your sub in the "my substitute" form as well as the sub's cell number if they are not on the sub list),
emailing the League Director the morning of the league day, assuming she'll read the email and find a sub,
emailing a sub and assuming it all works out,
arranging a sub 2 months prior and never reminding them again about subbing so they don't forget,
asking players on your court to start the games late because you know you are going to be late,
not getting a sub even though you know you may not arrive on time ("on time" means on the hour and before warm-up),
asking a buddy at the last minute to sub for you even though you have not cleared it with the League Director and/or your buddy does not have your same skill level, and/or is not on the sub list.
Not taking appropriate responsibility means someone else most likely has to take some extraordinary measure to prevent a no-show and/or quality of play is at risk for 3 permanent players through no fault of their own.
To crack down on the number of no-shows, we are allowing only one "oops!" The FIRST TIME a player no-shows or doesn't take appropriate responsibility for getting a substitute, this is the one and only free oops! The player receives zero points for that day including accumulated points, and the player will move down a court the next week.
The SECOND TIME a player no-shows or doesn't take appropriate responsibility, the League Director will ask the player to leave the league. THE PLAYER WILL STILL BE CHARGED FOR ALL LEAGUE DAYS THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN PRESENT OR FOR ALL DAYS OF PLAY PRIOR TO AND INCLUDING THE LAST LEAGUE DAY OF THE MONTH.
Scarborough doesn't reimburse any player for no shows on their court.
TIME MANAGEMENT FOR PLAY AND PENALTIES FOR BEING LATE
10:00am-10:01 All players arrive on the court.
11:00am-11:01 All players arrive on the court.
1:00pm-1:01 All players arrive on the court.
7:00pm-7:01 All players arrive on the court.
8:05pm-8:06 All players arrive on the court.
Not arriving on time is a Respect on Court issue and gets a late player 1 strike against them. Not arriving on time a second time will result in the late player getting 2 strikes and be assigned a no-show status. Not arriving on time a 3rd time will result in the League Director asking you to leave the league.
10:00am-10:10 All players warm-up.
11:00am-11:10 All players warm-up.
1:00pm-1:10 All players warm-up.
7:00pm-7:10 All players warm-up.
8:05pm-8:15 All players warm-up.
10:10am First games start on all courts.
11:10am First games start on all courts.
1:10pm First games start on all courts.
7:10pm First games start on all courts.
8:15pm First games start on all courts.
10:10am /
11:10am /
1:10pm /
7:10pm /
8:15pm If any court has not started game 1 because someone is missing (has not shown up at all), whoever is missing will receive a game score of zero for the first game. As soon as the missing person is present, game 1 should start.
10:20am /
11:20am /
1:20pm /
7:20pm / If any court has not started game 1 because someone is missing (has not shown up at all), whoever is missing will receive a game score of zero for all 3 games. As soon as the missing person is present, game 1 should starts.
The game scores will be entered with whatever score the games end at even if unfinished (no ties!).
2:58pm - Sunday The entire match must be concluded by 2:57pm at the very latest. Players should be walking off the court with the nets, balls, and ALL of their belongings at 3:00pm.
8:58pm - Sunday The entire match must be concluded by 8:57pm at the very latest. Players should be walking off the court with the nets, balls, and ALL of their belongings at 9:00pm.
10:02pm - Monday The entire match must be concluded by 10:03pm at the very latest. Players should be walking off the court with the nets, balls, and ALL of their belongings at 10:05pm.
11:57am - Tuesday The entire match must be concluded by 11:58am at the very latest. Players should be walking off the court with the nets, balls, and ALL of their belongings at 12:00pm.
12:57pm - Wednesday The entire match must be concluded by 12:58pm at the very latest. Players should be walking off the court with the nets, balls, and ALL of their belongings at 1:00pm.
PLEASE NOTE: Even if a player is 25 or more minutes late and will receive a score of zero for all 3 games, we all expect that late player to show up and play as soon as possible so no players have an incomplete court.
DURING AND AFTER A GAME.
Each team may take one 30 second time out during one game.
There is a maximum 3 minute break between games
These time management rules fall under Respect on Court policies.
ADDITIONAL LEAGUE INFORMATION
Players may enter a ladder league permanently at any time as long as there is a spot open. The League Director reserves the right to add new players where those players generally belong in the rank order of players. In other words, a high skilled player won't start on the bottom court. The high skilled player will be put on a court with similarly skilled players and start there. Alternatively, we may also be able to add an entire court to the league if there are 3 other people wait listed (you would be the fourth). Our numbers must stay even (i.e., multiples of 4) to have enough players on each court to play a game.
Players can also share a permanent spot with one other person. A schedule for the season must be kept up to date so that the Director knows what players are expected for each week.
The only requirement for leaving the league permanently is that a player must leave at the end of a month and must inform the league Director 10 days before they plan to drop out of the league. This way Scarborough can cancel the payment of the next month's league fees as well as get a replacement player
A "League Management" tab for each separate weekly league is on this website for updated League information (weekly scores, etc).