Player Waiver & Release Form
Every player must complete the Player Registration prior to the first scheduled game of the season. Any team that has not submitted all of its player waivers by that time will have its scheduled games declared a forfeit until all registrations are received. If a player fails to submit their online player registration, all liability and legal issues will be the responsibility of the team captain. HUB Sports Boston will not be responsible for players that do not submit a player registration.
Players may be listed only on one team’s roster per season throughout the league. For a player to be considered playoff eligible (eligible to participate in the playoffs), they must be listed on a team’s roster and must have played in a minimum of two regular season games for that particular team.
LEAGUE RULES
OVERVIEW
Pickleball is played on a badminton-sized court: 20’ x 44.’ The ball is served diagonally (starting with the right-hand service-square), and points can only be scored by the side that serves. Players on each side must let the ball bounce once before volleys are allowed, and there is a seven-foot no-volley zone on each side of the net, to prevent “spiking.” The server continues to serve, alternating service courts, until he or she faults. The first side scoring eleven points and leading by at least two points wins. Pickleball can be played with singles or doubles.
Matches will consist of three games played to 11 (First team to 11 wins – you need to win by two, cap at 13).
Warm-up time will be included in the match time. The match should take roughly 40-45 minutes to complete. No new set will begin with less than 5 minutes of game play remaining.
Forfeits: Matches will be forfeited 1 game for every 10 minutes past the designated start time that the legal amount of players are not present. If the legal amount of players is not present for a match by 25 minutes after the designated start time the entire match will be forfeited and the team/player that is present will receive all three wins of the match. *Teams/Payers that forfeit more than once will be removed from the playoffs and will not get their fees returned
BEGINNING OF THE GAME AND PLAY FORMAT
The beginning of the match will start with a coin flip. The winning team will have one of two options: choose to serve first or choose which side they prefer to play on, (not both). Each match will consist of three (3) games played to 11. Each game will count in the overall standings for regular season standings. Each game will use the Side-Out Scoring System. That means that in all games, you must be serving to score a point.
TEAM SIZE
• Singles (One Player – no gender specifics)
– One player on the court at all times.
• Doubles (Two Players – no gender specifics)
– 2 player teams must have two players on the court at all times.
– In the Doubles league each team consists of 2 players on the court at one time. Teams with less than 2 players will forfeit their game unless the other team is willing to play you with a minimum of one player. Teams may have as many players on their roster as they want. All rosters must be finalized by the second week of the regular season. Players added after the second week, not on the team roster or waiver will not be eligible for playoffs. No substitutions are allowed mid-match. Players can sub in/out only before a match begins.
REFEREES
• All games will be self-reffed. Teams will call all scores before each serve, and be responsible for calling the ball “in” or “out”. All players are expected to be honest throughout the league. If there is a situation where teams are having trouble with this, HUB staff member on site will help out if he/she can, or will call the game if needed.
FORFEITS
• Teams/Players will forfeit 1 game for every 10 minutes past the designated start time that they do not have the legal amount of players. If no players are present from a match by 25 minutes after the designated start time the entire match will be forfeited and the team/player that is present will receive all three wins of the match. Exception: Teams with less than the legal number of players may still play a “legal” game but only with the opposing team’s consent. All teams consenting to play a legal game with less than the allowed minimum waive their right to a forfeit win. Teams may pick up players during the regular season in order to field a full team. Substitutes will not be allowed during playoffs.
GAME TIMES
• Teams/Players will receive a schedule that will list when their team will play each week. Teams/Players will be given an allotted amount of time to play 1 match (anywhere between 40-45 minutes). “Warm-up” time is to be included in the allotted amount of time that teams will have for their match. Teams/Players will decide if they wish to “warm-up” or not. The longer teams take/choose to “warm-up” the less time they may have to complete their match. Teams/Players will have 10 minutes to field a team before they receive their first forfeit.
SCORING
A team shall score a point only when serving. A player who is serving shall continue to do so until a fault is made by his/her team. If playing doubles, each player on a team shall keep serving until their team makes a fault, then the serve moves to the opposing team – this is called a Side Out. The game is played to 11 points, however a team must win by 2 points. There will be a cap at 13 points.
SERVING
Serves are to be made diagonally, starting with the right-hand service-square and alternating each serve. The serve must clear the seven-foot non-volley-zone in front of the net and land in the diagonal service court. Serves should always be done underhand with the paddle below the waist, and the server must keep both feet behind the back line when serving. The ball should be hit into the air without being bounced. The serving side will continue to serve until there is a fault on the service, at which point the service will be given to the opposing side. A serve in which the ball touches the net but still lands within the appropriate service court is a good serve and should be played. The Server must keep both feet behind the back line when serving. The service is made underhand with the paddle contacting the ball below the waist. The Server must hit the ball in the air on the serve. The Server is NOT allowed to bounce the ball and hit it off the bounce. The service is made diagonally cross court and must clear the non-volley zone, including the line (A serve that hits the non-volley zone line is out) Only one serve attempt is allowed. At the start of each new game, the 1st serving team is allowed only one fault before giving up the ball to the opponents. Thereafter both members of each team will serve and fault before the ball is turned over to the opposing team. When the receiving team wins the serve, the player in the right-hand court will always start play.
VOLLEYS
To volley means to hit a ball in the air without first letting it bounce. In Pickle-ball, this can only be done when the player’s feet are behind the non-volley zone line or “kitchen” (seven feet behind the net). Note: It is a fault if the player steps over the line on his volley follow-through
DOUBLE-BOUNCE RULE
Also called the Two Bounce Rule, each team must play their first shot off of the bounce. That is, the receiving team must let the serve bounce and the serving team must let the return of the serve bounce before playing it. Once these two bounces have occurred, the ball can either be volleyed or played off the bounce.
FAULT
A fault is committed when the ball: • Touches any part of the non-volley zone on the serve (including the line). • Is hit out of bounds • Does not clear the net • Is volleyed from the non-volley zone • Is volleyed before a bounce has occurred on each side Player Position for Doubles At Start Of Game
Double Play Positioning Movements In Image A below, you can see that Server (player 1) serves from the right hand side of the serving team’s court diagonally across court to the Receiver (player 3) in the opposite right hand side of the court. The receiver (player 3) must let the ball bounce before returning the serve. The serving team must also let the return bounce before playing it (the Double Bounce Rule). After two bounces have occurred, the ball may then be either volleyed or played off the bounce until a fault is made.
In Image B below, you can see that after a fault is made by the receiving team, and a point is scored by the serving team, the serving team’s players switch sides of court and the same player will continue to serve. When the serving team makes its first fault, the serving team’s players will stay in the same side of the court, and the second partner will then serve. When they make their second fault, they will stay in their same court positions, and turn the ball over to the other team. Players switch sides of the court only after scoring.
COURT DIMENSIONS
LEAGUE POLICIES
GAMES:
Matches will be played within the allotted time, (warm-up time included).
REFS:
ALL GAMES WILL BE SELF-REFFED. There will be a HUB staff member on-site to help interpret rules or if there are any discrepancies between the two teams that need to be addressed. Captains are responsible for recording the results of their game. Clipboards will be provided on each court to record the scores. Our staff will provide constant reminders with regard to this process.
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ALL RULES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.
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