How ratings work

Every rated game you play at club sessions updates your club rating. You have two: a doubles rating and a separate singles rating, each worked out the same way from games of that kind only. It works like DUPR, but it's our own number — it isn't an official DUPR rating and doesn't sync with DUPR.

The number

Ratings run from 2.000 to 8.000, like DUPR. Most club players sit between 2.5 and 4.5.
New players start at a level the organiser picks with you (below), or your DUPR rating if you have one. Singles starts at the same level unless the organiser sets it separately.
Until you've played 5 rated games your rating is provisional (shown with a *) and moves quickly while it finds your level. After that it settles down.

What moves it

In doubles your team's rating is the average of you and your partner. In singles it's just yours.
Before each game the system works out what share of the points each team should win from the rating gap. Even teams should split the points; a team 0.5 higher should win roughly 11–5.
Score matters, not just the win. Beat the expectation and both partners go up; fall short and both go down. Losing 9–11 to a much stronger team can raise your rating, and scraping an 11–9 win as heavy favourites can lower it.
Each partner moves by their own amount — newer players move more than established ones.
Casual sessions record results and win–loss but don't change ratings.
Challenge-court games are doubles games; singles courts move only your singles rating.

Reliability

The bar next to each rating (0–100%) shows how much to trust it. It rises as you play more rated games (full at 20) and fades if you haven't played for over a month. Play regularly to keep it high.

Starting levels

2.5 — Beginner: new to the game, learning rules and serves
3.0 — Novice: sustains short rallies, learning the kitchen
3.5 — Intermediate: consistent dinks and drives, some strategy
4.0 — Advanced: controls pace, drops and resets reliably
4.5+ — Expert: tournament-level shot selection

Fair queues

Open-play courts take the player who has waited longest, then pick three more from the next few in line with the closest ratings, and split them into the fairest two teams. It also tries not to repeat the same partners in one session. Singles courts work the same way one-on-one, but only take players who said they'd like to play singles. On the challenge court, winners stay on until they lose or hit the win limit, then both rejoin the open queue.