Create a Tournament

The tournament wizard walks you through three steps to set up a complete event. Most tournaments can be configured in under five minutes. Each step is checked before you move on — for example, you can't leave Step 1 without a name and bowling center — so nothing's missed by the time you create.

Step 1: Event Details

Start with the essential details of your tournament.

Step 2: Structure, Squads & Divisions

Choose how your tournament is organized, configure squads, and set up divisions.

Tournament Structure

Select the format that fits your event:

• Simple Sweeper — Single event, everyone bowls together, total pins wins.
• Multi-Squad — Multiple qualifying squads with combined or per-squad standings.
• Match Play — Qualifying squads feed into match play finals for top bowlers.
• Elimination — Qualifying squads feed into bracket elimination for top bowlers.

Qualifying Squads

For multi-squad, match play, and elimination tournaments, each squad is a qualifying session. Configure for each squad:

• Squad Name — e.g., "Squad A", "Saturday 9 AM"
• Time — when the squad bowls
• Games — number of qualifying games
• Lane Range — which lanes are available (e.g., lanes 1-24)
• Max Entries — squad capacity (leave blank for unlimited)

Finals Configuration

For match play and elimination structures, configure how many bowlers advance from each squad and the finals format (number of rounds, bracket size, games per round, byes).

Divisions

Create divisions to group bowlers by eligibility. Each division can have its own criteria:

• Open — no restrictions
• Average Range — min/max average limits
• Age Range — age-based eligibility
• Gender — gender-specific divisions

Step 3: Funding & Payouts

Set up the financial structure for your tournament.

• Entry Fee — total amount each bowler pays to enter
• Lineage — portion that goes to the bowling center for lane usage
• Admin Fee — your operating costs (optional)
• Added Money — additional prize money contributed by sponsors or the house
• Payout Ratio — what ratio of entries receive payouts (e.g., 1 in 4, 1 in 5)

Director automatically calculates the total prize fund using the formula: (Entry Fee - Lineage - Admin Fee) × Entries + Added Money. The live preview updates as you adjust values.

Side Brackets (Optional)

Still in the Funding step, you can sketch out optional side brackets — set each one's name, buy-in price, format (single/double elimination), and seeding. The full range of side pots (high game/series, eliminator, survivor, doubles, strikeout, and more) is managed from the tournament's Side Pots tab after creation. See the Side Pots guide.

Review & Create

Tap Create Tournament and Director shows a quick confirmation summary — name, center, date, format, squad/division/bracket counts, entry fee, and whether it will publish immediately or save as a draft. Confirm to create, or go back to fix anything. You can also edit any setting later from the tournament detail screen.

After Creation

Once your tournament is created, you can:

• Publish — make it visible to bowlers for online registration
• Share Links — get shareable registration and standings URLs with QR codes
• Add Staff — assign team members with role-based access (scorers, assistants, viewers)
• Manage Entries — add bowlers manually or approve online registrations
• Sync Standings — push live standings to the public page during the event

See Entries & Check-In, Standings, and Registrations for next steps.