Whether you want to host a single event or set up weeks of competitions in one go, creating a tournament in Playtomic Manager follows the same simple flow. This article walks you through every step, from the first details to publishing, to make the process easy for you.
Two Ways to Start
- Go to the Tournaments (called Programs in the US) section and click Create series
- Or click a time slot directly in your Schedule and select Tournament/Program from the list of activities.
Both paths take you to the same creation screen.
Step 1: General Information
- Name: the title of your tournament
- Sport: Padel, Tennis, or Pickleball
- Visibility: Public (any Playtomic player can join) or Private (only invited players can join)
- Enrollment type: Single (1 player per team) or Couples (2 players per team)
- Organizer (optional): assign a staff member to manage the tournament
- Program type: choose "Tournament" for a fixed-format competition or "Open Play" for casual sessions.
Step 2: Schedule & Recurrence
This is where you decide whether you're creating a one-time tournament or a recurring series:
- Does not repeat: a single, one-time tournament
- Weekly: repeats every week, same day and time (the most popular choice — 95% of recurring tournaments use this pattern)
- Biweekly: repeats every two weeks, same day and time
- Custom: define your own recurrence pattern
Then set the start date, time, and duration, and define the registration deadline and cancellation policy. These two are independent from each other, so you can allow last-minute registrations while still keeping a strict cancellation policy. Keep in mind that once the registration deadline has passed, it can't be changed.
Important limits for recurring tournaments:
- Maximum span: 365 days from the creation date
- Tournaments lasting longer than 24 hours don't support recurrence — the start and end date of the first tournament must be the same
Step 3: Restrictions
- Min/Max players: set the minimum and maximum number of players allowed
- Gender: open to all, or restricted to male/female players only
- Level restriction: optionally enforce minimum and maximum skill levels
Step 4: Price
- Set the activity price per player
- Configure custom pricing so club members or specific player categories get discounted rates
- The system automatically calculates the correct price at registration, whether it's a single or a doubles entry — each player is handled separately
Step 5: Courts
Choose the courts to include. Once selected, they're automatically booked in your Schedule — no manual court blocking needed.
If some courts aren't available when creating a recurring tournament:
- The system creates every session where courts are available
- You'll receive an email listing which sessions couldn't be created and why (with specific dates and times)
- You can then open the series and manually resolve the conflicts
Common causes: courts unavailable on specific dates, the assigned organizer unavailable at certain times, or both.
Step 6: Additional Information (optional)
- Welcome pack
- Description
- Prizes
- Poster (recommended size: 1142 × 1600 px, max 3 MB)
Step 7: Review & Finish
Double-check your settings and click Finish to create the tournament (or all sessions, if recurring).
Good to Know
- Mobile management: all tournament creation and management features are also available on mobile.
- Sharing a tournament: to get the public link for a tournament, go to the Session list, click the three-dot icon next to the session, and select Copy public link.
Tips for Success
- Plan ahead and consider your club's capacity and staff availability for the whole period
- Check that courts are available for all planned dates before creating a series
- If you're unsure which recurrence to pick, weekly is the most popular and straightforward option
💬 Need Help?
If you have any questions or need further assistance, don't worry! 😊 You can always contact us. We're here to help!
Comments
How do I get to the page where I can create my own tournament
Login to a tournament I already started creating
Hi Jessica! Ashlee from Playtomic here. You need to log in to Playtomic Manager https://manager.playtomic.io/auth/login, and navigate to the Tournaments menu. Your tournaments will be listed there. If you're still having issues, feel free to open a support chat. Thanks!
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