Tournament Management

This guide covers everything you need to know about creating, configuring, and managing tournaments in Dutchie's Brackets.

Tournament Lifecycle

Every tournament in Dutchie's Brackets follows a standard lifecycle:

DRAFT → REGISTRATION_OPEN → READY → IN_PROGRESS → COMPLETED

Status Definitions

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Tournament Settings

Basic Information

Tournament Name

• Maximum 100 characters
• Displayed on all pages and shared links
• Can be edited anytime before tournament starts
• Best Practice: Use descriptive names with date/location

Description

• Maximum 500 characters
• Optional but recommended
• Include tournament rules, prize information, or special instructions
• Supports plain text only (no HTML/Markdown)

Sport Type

• Cannot be changed after creation
• Determines venue terminology (tables, courts, boards)
• Affects default scoring settings

Dates

• Start Date: When registration/play begins
• End Date: Expected completion date
• Both are optional but helpful for participant planning
• Quick sessions expire 30 days after end date

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Tournament Formats

Dutchieb supports three tournament formats:

Single Elimination

How It Works:

• One loss and you're eliminated
• Winners advance to next round
• Losers are out of the tournament

Best For:

• Large tournaments (32+ participants)
• Time-constrained events
• Quick, decisive competition

Structure:

• 8 players = 7 total matches
• 16 players = 15 total matches
• 32 players = 31 total matches

Pros:

• Fastest format
• Clear winner
• Simple to understand

Cons:

• One bad match eliminates you
• Some players get very little play time
• No second chances

Double Elimination

How It Works:

• Must lose twice to be eliminated
• Winners Bracket: Undefeated players
• Losers Bracket: Players with one loss
• Grand Finals: Winners bracket champion vs. Losers bracket champion

Best For:

• Competitive tournaments (8-32 participants)
• Fair play where luck is a factor
• When you want maximum engagement

Structure:

• 8 players = 12-14 total matches
• 16 players = 28-30 total matches
• Winners bracket + Losers bracket + Grand Finals

Pros:

• Most fair format
• Everyone gets at least 2 matches
• True skill-based results
• Exciting comeback opportunities

Cons:

• More matches = more time
• Bracket can be confusing for first-timers
• Requires more venue space

Recommended - Best balance of fairness and excitement

Round Robin

How It Works:

• Every participant plays every other participant
• Points awarded for wins
• Highest total points wins

Best For:

• Small groups (4-8 participants)
• Social/league play
• Maximum play time per person

Structure:

• 4 players = 6 total matches
• 6 players = 15 total matches
• 8 players = 28 total matches

Pros:

• Everyone plays multiple matches
• Guaranteed play time
• No elimination pressure

Cons:

• Many matches required
• Not suitable for large groups
• Can take very long to complete

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Generating Brackets

Once you have participants, you can generate the tournament bracket.

Prerequisites

Required:

• Minimum 2 participants registered
• Registration is closed (or ready to close)
• Tournament status is DRAFT or REGISTRATION_CLOSED

Step-by-Step

1. Close Registration (if still open)

   • Navigate to your tournament
   • Click "Close Registration"
   • Confirm the action

2. Review Participants

   • Click "Participants" tab
   • Verify all names are correct
   • Remove any duplicates or test entries

3. Generate Bracket

   • Click "Generate Bracket" button
   • Review the bracket structure preview
   • Confirm generation

4. What Happens:

   • Bracket is created based on tournament format
   • Participants are seeded (if seeding enabled)
   • First round matches are created
   • Status changes to READY
   • WARNING: Cannot be undone

Bracket Generation Rules

Participant Count Handling:

• If participant count isn't a power of 2 (4, 8, 16, 32)
• Lowest-seeded participants receive "byes"
• Byes automatically advance to next round
• Example: 6 participants → 2 byes in first round

Seeding:

• Players are seeded randomly by default
• Manual seeding available in Settings
• Higher seeds face lower seeds in first round
• Example: Seed 1 vs Seed 8, Seed 2 vs Seed 7

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Editing Tournaments

Before Bracket Generation

You can edit these settings freely:

• Tournament name
• Description
• Start and end dates
• Maximum participants (if no participants yet)
• Privacy settings
• Participant requirements

How to Edit:

1. Go to tournament dashboard
2. Click "Settings" tab
3. Modify desired fields
4. Click "Save Changes"

After Bracket Generation

WARNING: Limited Editing

Once the bracket is generated, you can only edit:

• Tournament name
• Description
• Privacy settings

Cannot Edit:

• Tournament format
• Maximum participants
• Sport type
• Bracket structure

Why? Changing these would invalidate the existing bracket.

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Participant Limits

Configuring Max Participants

When creating a tournament:

• Choose from: 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 participants
• Cannot be changed after participants join
• Bracket will adjust if fewer participants register

What Happens When Tournament is Full?

1. Registration automatically closes
2. Invite link shows "Tournament Full"
3. No new participants can join
4. Organizer can still manually remove participants

Increasing Participant Limit

Before Any Participants Join:

• Edit tournament settings
• Change max participants
• Save changes

After Participants Join:

• Cannot be increased
• Must create a new tournament
• Or remove participants to make room

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Tournament Privacy

Private Tournaments (Default)

Characteristics:

• Not listed in public browse
• Only accessible via invite link/code
• Most common for casual events

Best For:

• Private events
• In-person tournaments
• Controlled participant lists

Public Tournaments

Characteristics:

• Listed in public tournament browse
• Anyone can view bracket and results
• Still requires invite link to join

Best For:

• Public competitions
• Building audience/spectators
• Community engagement

Note: Even public tournaments require the invite link to join. Visibility doesn't affect registration.

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Participant Requirements

Control who can join your tournament:

Allow Quick Join (Recommended)

How It Works:

• Participants enter just their name
• No account creation required
• Instant registration
• Session expires after tournament

Best For:

• In-person events
• Casual tournaments
• Quick participant onboarding
• Events where you know participants

User Experience:

1. Participant opens invite link
2. Enters display name
3. Clicks "Join Tournament"
4. Immediately registered

Require Full Account

How It Works:

• Participants must create an account
• Email verification required
• Permanent user profile
• Can join multiple tournaments

Best For:

• Online tournaments
• Scheduled events
• When you need participant contact info
• Preventing duplicate entries
• Professional competitions

User Experience:

1. Participant opens invite link
2. Clicks "Sign In" or "Create Account"
3. Completes registration/sign-in
4. Clicks "Join Tournament"
5. Registered with verified account

Changing This Setting:

• Can be changed anytime before registration opens
• Cannot be changed after participants join
• Affects all future participants

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Deleting Tournaments

Before Bracket Generation

Tournaments in DRAFT status can be deleted:

1. Go to tournament settings
2. Scroll to "Danger Zone"
3. Click "Delete Tournament"
4. Confirm deletion
5. Tournament is permanently removed

WARNING: This action cannot be undone

After Bracket Generation

Once brackets are generated or tournament starts:

• Cannot be deleted
• Can only be CANCELLED
• Preserves data for historical records

To Cancel:

1. Go to tournament settings
2. Click "Cancel Tournament"
3. Provide cancellation reason
4. Confirm cancellation

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Multi-Tournament Management

Tournament Dashboard

Access all your tournaments:

1. Click your profile icon
2. Select "My Tournaments"
3. View list of all tournaments you created

Filter By Status:

• Active (in progress)
• Upcoming (registration open)
• Completed
• All

Creating Multiple Tournaments

You can create unlimited tournaments.

Best Practices:

• Use clear naming conventions
• Include date in tournament name
• Archive completed tournaments regularly
• Don't reuse invite codes

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Advanced Settings

Venue/Table Management

Configuring Venue Count:

• Set during tournament creation (Step 3)
• Represents simultaneous match capacity
• Used for automatic scheduling

Examples:

• 3 pool tables = 3 concurrent matches
• 2 pickleball courts = 2 concurrent matches
• 4 cornhole boards = 4 concurrent matches

Match Scheduling:

• Dutchieb automatically schedules matches
• Respects venue count
• Optimizes for minimum wait time

Sport-Specific Settings

Each sport has unique settings stored in settings JSON:

Pool/Billiards:

• Scoring type: Race to X, Games won
• Break type: Alternating, Winner breaks

Pickleball:

• Game format: 11, 15, or 21 points
• Win by 2 required

Custom Sports:

• Define your own rules
• Set custom venue terminology
• Configure scoring system

Access Sport Settings:

1. Tournament Settings
2. Advanced tab
3. Sport Configuration

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Next Steps

Now that you understand tournament management:

• Manage Participants - Add, remove, seed players
• Run Your Tournament - Start matches and enter results
• Use Real-time Features - Enable live updates

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Quick Reference

Tournament Creation Checklist

□ Choose sport
□ Enter name and description
□ Select tournament format
□ Set max participants
□ Configure venue count
□ Choose privacy level
□ Set participant requirements
□ Open registration
□ Share invite link
□ Generate bracket (min 2 participants)
□ Start tournament

Common Tasks

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Questions? See FAQ or Troubleshooting.