Does your club implement DUPR well to keep programming competitive for members and players?

How does your club successfully gate programs such as leagues, open play, round robins, tournaments, or clinics?

If you were to join a different club, what is your wish list for DUPR implementation?

What is the competitiveness of programs like at your club if your club does NOT utilize DUPR gating. Did they find a better alternative to match players of similar skill level?

I am a proponent of DUPR usage in clubs. I believe time is valuable, and I am more than happy to pay my membership fees if it means I can easily show up and play good, competitive games appropriate for my skill level.

DUPR may be imperfect, but it is the most widely adopted rating system used to rate the skill level of us players accurately.

I feel bad for DUPR and Tito Machado. They're attempting to educate the general population on statistical concepts that the general population mostly does not understand. Counter arguments from the player base almost always involve anecdotal experiences, and I can see Tito's face cringe on the podcasts as he bites his lip trying to frame an answer without belittling the other person for not understanding statistics.

So as unpopular as it is, how is your club using DUPR to improve player satisfaction? My local club is now nothing but self rated open plays and court reservations. Programming is dead, and competitive players have all left. Root cause was poorly matched games due to no enforcement of DUPR requirements. Negative feedback loop of poor games, leading to fewer players, leading to worse games, etc.

A Flying Pickle is opening in a couple of months, and a lot of us are deeply concerned about how TFP utilizes DUPR to maintain event integrity.

Our local Atlanta PB community Dinkster just sent this email on tournament date change just 4 days before the event. WITHOUT a single line of apology. It's so cringe to me that they are trying to mask their misconduct as normal and "cool".

What's more outrageous to me is that they are not giving refund! only credit. We cannot participate and I really do not want to be supporting them with this credit BS

Am I overreacting here? should I suck it up and get credit? Is this normal for PB organizers???

We paid $110 for this event as mixed double.

Adding an American player (Tama) to Team Asia and then changing the eligibility criteria to accommodate him is absolutely absurd. It’s a slap in the face to Asian athletes and a mockery of the principles of fairness and integrity upheld by American institutions.

I've seen a lot of rumblings that Space Dust might have been ripped off from Hex Grit? Or is this just the competition getting up to speed and becoming privy on how to make a similar grit?

Can someone explain scores debugging in a simple way? Suppose there is some confusion if the score of 6-8 or 7-8....then some confident guy will step in and say since "X" started serving first, it can't be 6-8, it has to be 7-8 or some crappy logic like that. I get confused because how does it matter who started first because the server position keeps changing constantly. Welcome a clarification, team. Thanks.

if so, how have you done it?

I’m finding I can just lose all ability during a match, and play well below my normal level, can’t regroup until the next match (ie, tourney, or just competitive friendly game)

My DUPR is currently 3.3, but my actual playing level is closer to 3.8–4.2.

Recently, I tried registering for a 3.8–4.2 league, but the organizers wouldn’t allow me to participate because my DUPR currently says I’m too low.

The frustrating part is that I’ve played in this exact league before and consistently won 4 out of 6 games each night. I clearly wasn’t out of my depth.

I think much of the discrepancy comes from my tournament history. I’ve repeatedly found myself in one of two situations:

1. Playing against opponents well above my level while partnered with someone less experienced than me. We lose badly, and my DUPR drops.

2 Playing against lower-rated opponents with a significantly weaker partner. The opposing team identifies the weaker player, targets them relentlessly, and we lose. My DUPR drops again.

I recognize that doubles is a team sport, but DUPR can’t distinguish between two equally contributing partners and a match where one player is targeted for most of the points.

Meanwhile, I know players who deliberately keep their DUPR low so they can compete in lower-level tournaments.

I’m the opposite. I actually want to play stronger opponents because that’s how I improve.

Going forward, my plan is to find a partner at or slightly above my level, practice together, and compete in appropriately matched tournaments so my rating has a better chance of reflecting my actual ability.

The irony is that a rating system intended to facilitate competitive, evenly matched play is now preventing me from joining a league where I’ve already demonstrated that I can compete successfully.

I’m not trying to game the system or inflate my rating.

I just want my DUPR to reflect my actual ability rather than the circumstances of my past doubles partnerships.

If I regularly partner with players who are considerably below my level, and we lose matches that I might have won with a similarly skilled partner, could that systematically hold down my DUPR?

If my goal is an accurate individual rating, does it make more sense to compete with similarly rated partners, stronger partners, or a mix?

I’m not opposed to playing with less experienced teammates. I’m just curious how much partner selection influences an individual DUPR rating over time.

This was posted on LinkedIn a few weeks ago.

Gilberto (Tito) Machado

DUPR has never been stronger.

We have more users than ever, more matches than ever, more usage than ever, and we are breaking records every week.

We have the best partners in the world across tours, federations, clubs, booking platforms, tournament software, media, equipment, and basically every part of pickleball. We will go to war for our partners, and they will go to war with us. I wake up every day and work with a world-class team that is completely obsessed with this sport, alongside partners who care just as much as we do.

People have no idea how much time and money we have invested in growing pickleball. We have invested in nonprofits, federations, players, juniors, colleges, clubs, events, technology, and markets around the world. We have supported this sport at every level, not because everything had an immediate return, but because pickleball needed people willing to build the infrastructure for what it can become.

DUPR is the only truly agnostic company working across every part of the sport.
We work with everyone. Different tours. Different federations. Different software companies. Different clubs. Different countries. We are not trying to control where people play or who they play with. We want every player, every club, and every organization to be able to participate in one connected global system.

That is why the idea that somebody can announce a new AI rating and suddenly replace DUPR makes no sense.We believe in AI and computer vision. We are building with both. They will help players understand their movement, positioning, shot selection, and exactly how to improve.

But analyzing someone's game and creating a rating that the entire sport can use are not the same thing. Anyone can create a number. Where can you use it? Who accepts it? Does it work at your club, in your league, at a tournament, or in another country? Someone can create a different credit score for me, but if no bank accepts it, what does it matter?

Someone can give me a different mile time, but if the Olympics do not recognize it, it is not getting me into the Olympics.

A rating is only as good as the data behind it and the network that uses it.
DUPR has years of data and a global network connecting players, clubs, tours, federations, tournaments, and technology platforms. You do not create that by announcing a new algorithm. This is bigger than a rating. We have spent years helping build the sport, and we are going to keep investing in it from the grassroots all the way to the professional level.

And by the way, you will not have to wait long to see what we have been building.

We have some massive announcements coming around AI and the player experience. I cannot wait for everyone to see this.

LFG.

I am a 4.5 dupr from doubles only, but have practically never played singles before. Do I need to play 4.5 men’s singles as well? Or will it be frowned upon if I start lower at 3.0 or 3.5?

speeding up out of the air 🙅‍♂️🚫
speeding up off the bounce 🤢🤮
lifting dead dinks middle and sitting on my backhand 🕺🤩

Hey guys. M 21, trying to start Pickle ball in the sfl area. Any ideas on the best accessories I could get to be ready?

Thanks for the advice/criticism last time guys! I did 100 serves and 100 top spin drop practice today. I know I have to improve more!!!

Hi so i just purchased it, I liked the overall feel with dinks but with my twoeys i keep missing it or hitting the net. I might not be getting the sweet spot yet. Should I add weights - I played two OP and it feels weird but one hand drives are okay. Just two handed dinks and drives are messing my game up.

PICKLR LEGAL UPDATE — OCTOBER 20, 2026
Newly surfaced bankruptcy disclosures specifically identify The Picklr Wheaton in a corporate lease-guarantee dispute. Additional court records reveal several landlord claims and lawsuits involving Picklr corporate.
1. Wheaton specifically named in bankruptcy disclosures
A litigation schedule filed October 15 and detailed in an October 19 bankruptcy report identifies Picklr Franchise, Inc. as a guarantor of the Wheaton facility’s lease.
This is significant because Picklr Franchise, Inc. has not filed for bankruptcy, unlike parent company Picklr, Inc.
The filing identifies Wheaton among landlord disputes, but it does not establish that Bobby Nelson or PB Wheaton LLC filed a lawsuit against corporate, nor does the available summary establish the amount allegedly owed for Wheaton.
2. Other corporate litigation disclosed
The bankruptcy’s litigation schedule identifies:
$337,510.27 demanded

Location / Landlord
Legal development
Amount reported
Villa Park, Illinois
Eviction lawsuit; Picklr, Inc. corporate guarantee
$138,029.99 demanded
Slink Holdings
Lawsuit against The Picklr, Inc. and others
$832,497.02 claimed
Vestavia Hills, Alabama
Landlord dispute; Picklr Franchise, Inc. guarantee
$428,009.97 claimed past due
Bluffdale, Utah
Landlord demand; Picklr Franchise, In

3. October 19 — Judge combines corporate bankruptcy administration
The Texas bankruptcy court entered Docket #35, ordering joint administration of the Picklr, Inc. and Picklr Clubs, Inc. Chapter 11 proceedings.
The court also extended the parent company’s financial-disclosure deadline to November 6, 2026. The financing request was still awaiting approval in the latest reviewed docket.
View Picklr corporate bankruptcy docket — Case 26-34687⁠

Let me explain/gripe about what I see out there. A tournament gets posted as a 3.0 - 3.5 men's doubles on a given date. When you arrive you find out that they didn't have enough participants for the 4.0 - 4.5 men's doubles contest so they just combine both together. We end up getting stuffed by the upper guys and our DUPR's plummet. This also happened another time when my age bracket 65+ was condensed into the one contest, I played a 16 year old and a 20 year old in my first match. If someone decided not to participate, well too bad they have your money and there's no refund. At this point in time, I'm no longer going to join tournaments and I feel that others will also based on the conversations of a lot of the players. My county is 100,000 population and I'm assuming this doesn't happen in larger cites and counties.

Three of us are opening an indoor pickleball club in a former furniture store outside Raleigh. Eight courts, memberships plus open play, a pro shop corner, leagues four nights a week and a couple of coaches who'll run clinics. Doors open in February if the flooring shows up on time.

The lease says we need insurance in place before the build out starts and that's as specific as it gets. My partners assumed that means one general liability policy and done. Then a friend who runs a tennis club told me most of his claims are people falling, and that he carries something separate for player injuries.

What does a pickleball facility actually need? General liability I get. Is an accident and health policy on the members a normal thing or an upsell? What about the coaches, tournaments, or the beer cooler we keep talking about?

If you own or manage a club tell me what you carry and roughly what it costs you for the year.

So, I am organizing an open play this friday, and I am still confuse or wondering what type of queuing app should I use. First app I have in my mind is pickleQ which common, but what type of matching mode should I use. I really want to be a good organizer since the open play includes novice to intermediate level. Any recommendations po for the best rotation for those levels.

What are you all using that plays similar to your main quiet paddle? Thinking a “loud” one might simulate real play better to help partner drill or play doubles better for those that rely on the sound.

I'm looking for a pair of good lensless eye protection. I specifically want to avoid lenses since I sweat a ton when playing and don't want to deal with the sweat/fog. I know Kitchen Blockers are the most well known lensless option, but I'm curious if anyone has experience with these other two pairs of glasses, and if so, how much of your field of view gets blocked by the frames? Do you ever lose sight of the ball due to the thick frames?

DINK Shield - https://www.dinkeyewear.com/products/shield

STRATE DEFENDER - https://stratepickleball.com/products/defender

Obviously the ideal scenario is that both players push together but sometimes you push too early or your teammate just gets stuck with a lot of deep hits. Do you step back to try and cover the cross court hit inbetween you two or simply stick to your guns on the kitchen line?

Guys there is this Halloween themed pickleball social event in Scarborough this Saturday. I like the theme they are planning and might go. is there anyone else going and want to tag along? I am a beginner btw !

...precede to target the weaker player no matter who they play. I have been playing for 4 years and sadly this is not uncommon at the numerous facilities in different states I have played. In fact, I find this is the norm for teams playing in open play under the guise of tournament prep.

Do you think that the subconscious desire to win an open play match simply overrides the benefit of getting better by targeting the better player?

I know when I get matched up against a better player the last thing I want to do is ice out that player. 1. They might get frustrated and leave. 2. The benefit of learning from them far out ways winning some meaningless open play.

Anyone else have the same experience?