Fairer turns
Check-in order is the base of the queue. Completed players return to the back, while the selected matching style adds the rules your group needs.
How to use PickleQ
Run open play without being the human whiteboard.
PickleQ turns check-in, court rotation, match results, live updates, and stats into one simple flow. Staff runs the session from one screen; players can follow the queue from their own phones.
Start free
No signup for casual play
1–15 courts
Doubles or singles
Guide refreshed for the current PickleQ flow · August 2026
What PickleQ changes
A good open play session should feel organized without feeling over-managed. PickleQ gives the organizer a reliable operating rhythm and gives players visibility without making them crowd around the staff device.
Less coordination
See active courts, waiting players, estimated waits, and staged matches in one place. Call players when a court is ready.
More value after play
End with session rankings, player result cards, and—when a club is connected—lifetime stats and public pages.
Best first choice: For a normal mixed open play session, select Balanced, add the players, and let PickleQ do the queue work. Explore special formats only when your group has a specific reason.
Choose your setup path
The first time you tap Get Started, PickleQ asks how you plan to use it. You can begin casually and connect a club later.
👥 Just playing with friends
Use this for a one-off or informal session. No account or club is required.
- Choose Just playing with friends.
- Set courts and doubles or singles.
- Add players, check them in, and start play.
You can add cloud sync later if the group becomes a recurring club.
🏢 I organize open play
Use this for a club, venue, recurring group, or staff-run program.
- Choose I organize open play.
- Create a new club or log in to an existing one.
- Reuse the club roster, share public links, and use multi-device features.
Already have a club? Use Already have a club? Log in on the same screen.
Returning staff: Open /app. If a club is stored on the device, PickleQ will take you back to its staff flow; otherwise it starts local setup.
The 60-second session
Once you are in the staff app, this is the loop you repeat every session.
Set courts
Choose the number of courts, session name, play format, and game mode.
Add players
Search your saved roster, add walk-ins, or import Reclub participants.
Check in
Check in at least 4 players for doubles or 2 for singles.
Start play
PickleQ fills eligible courts and stages the next matches.
Record and rotate
Record winners or scores, start the next staged match, and repeat.
Important: PickleQ keeps the next match under staff control. Recording a result does not force every court to start immediately; use the staged Up Next cards when the court and players are ready.
Visual product tour
These screens show the core journey. Sample names and numbers are illustrative; the controls and labels are the useful part to recognize.
Staff: set up the session
1. Choose courts and format
1
In Courts, use + or − to match the courts available today. PickleQ supports 1–15 courts; the free limit is 4 courts per club, with 5+ courts available through Venue Pro.
2
Select Open Play for a rotating session. If your club has tournament access, select Tournament for fixed teams and a generated schedule.
3
Choose Doubles or Singles. Doubles needs 4 players per court; singles needs 2. Tournament is doubles only.
4
Open Session options only when needed. It contains live standings, max games per player, DUPR Mode when available, and kiosk result behavior.
2. Choose a matching style
For most sessions, use Balanced. The other modes are explained in Matching styles.
Keep the name useful: Tap Rename beside the session name if players need to distinguish “Tuesday Night Open Play” from another session at the same club.
Staff: add and check in players
Add players
- Use Search or add new player to reuse a saved player or create a walk-in.
- Use Import from Reclub to paste a participant list, review the names, and import only the people playing today.
- Set the player’s six-star skill level when known. For Mixed Doubles, set gender; for DUPR Mode, add the player’s DUPR ID.
- Use Manage Players from the header to edit the reusable roster and lifetime records.
Check in and manage attendance
- Tap Check in beside an arriving player. They join the queue in check-in order.
- Use Check out for a break or early departure. They can be checked in again later.
- Late arrivals can be added after play starts and join at the back of the queue.
- For a fixed pair, use Pair / the link control. Locked partners stay together where the selected format allows it; Singles does not use partner locks.
Optional self check-in
Clubs with Venue Pro can open Player Self-Check-In and show a phone QR or set up a shared kiosk. This reduces the line at the staff device; the organizer still controls the session.
Before starting: Check the names, skill levels, gender data used by Mixed Doubles, and any linked pairs. These inputs affect who can be matched.
Staff: run courts and Up Next
When a game finishes
1
Find the completed court in Live Courts.
2
Tap Team 1 Wins or Team 2 Wins. In DUPR or tournament formats, enter the score when PickleQ asks for it.
3
Check the new Up Next card, adjust players if needed, then use the card’s start/send control when the court is ready.
Use the queue as your control panel
- Queue: see who is waiting, their position, games, win rate, skill, and estimated wait.
- Up Next: review upcoming matches, swap or remove a player, pair teammates, and use Call Players when available.
- Choose Players: manually fill a court or an empty slot when a player leaves or a special situation needs intervention.
- + Add player and + Add match keep the session moving when the roster changes.
Correct a mistake
Use the visible Undo action soon after a result or preview change. For an older result, open the match log from the stats screen to swap the winner or edit the score.
Why PickleQ pauses: Results update the queue, but the organizer decides when each court starts. That prevents one quick result from unexpectedly dispatching players while another court is still finishing.
Finish with stats people actually use
1
Tap End, review the confirmation, and choose End Session. If active matches remain, make sure that is intentional.
2
Review Session Rankings. Rankings use wins first, with opponent-strength and win-rate tiebreakers.
3
Tap a player to open their result card, then Share Stats or save the image. You can also share the session leaderboard.
4
Choose New Session when you are ready. The saved roster and useful setup choices remain available.
Session results
Use the session screen for today’s wins, games, rankings, match history, result corrections, and player cards.
Club history
With a connected club, use /club/your-club for the public all-time leaderboard. The default minimum is 10 lifetime games and staff can change it from Club Settings.
DUPR workflow: Turn on DUPR Mode before play, save player DUPR IDs, record scores, then use DUPR Export on the results screen to download the CSV. Normal open play does not require this.
Matching styles
PickleQ keeps queue order as the starting point, then applies the rules of the selected format. Choose the simplest style that matches your session.
| Style | What it does | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Balanced | Builds fair teams and turns while trying to reduce repeat partners. | Most mixed open play. This is the recommended default. |
| Skill Separated | Keeps similar skill levels together, even if a court has to wait. | Your group has a wide range of skill. |
| Winners / Losers | Winners play winners and losers play losers. | Competitive ladder-style open play. |
| Skill Courts | Runs separate queues for named skill groups on dedicated courts. | You run beginner/intermediate/advanced pools at once. |
| Mixed Doubles | Forms each team with one male and one female player. | Your session has a mixed-doubles rule and complete gender data. |
| King/Queen of the Court | Winners move up courts and losers move down; partners can rotate or stay together. | A court-ladder event. |
| Club Wars | Two named groups compete; every match is Group A versus Group B. | An inter-club or team-vs-team event. Venue Pro beta feature. |
| Tournament | Creates fixed doubles teams, a schedule, and optional pools/playoffs. | You need a scheduled competition rather than rotating open play. |
Singles: Select Singles for 1v1 play. It uses its own pairing flow, does not use the doubles matching styles, and does not support partner locks.
Skill levels
PickleQ has six optional skill levels. A skill level helps matching and replacement choices; it is not a permanent rating.
| Stars | Label | Approximate DUPR band |
|---|---|---|
| ★ | Beginner | ~2.0 |
| ★★ | Advanced Beginner | ~2.5 |
| ★★★ | Intermediate | ~3.0 |
| ★★★★ | Advanced Intermediate | ~3.5 |
| ★★★★★ | Advanced | ~4.0 |
| ★★★★★★ | Expert | ~4.5+ |
Club links, cloud sync, and Venue Pro
Create or join a club
1
Choose I organize open play, then select New Club or Existing Club.
2
To create one, enter a club name, a private recovery email, a club link slug, and a password with at least 12 characters. Confirm the password, then choose Create Club.
3
To join one, enter the club link slug and club password, then choose Join Club. Use Forgot password? if you need a reset email.
Keep the recovery email current. It is for staff password recovery and is not shown to players. Do not put a shared public inbox there unless the club controls it.
What a connected club gives you
- A reusable club URL such as
pickleq.app/club/your-cluband a QR code. - Cloud roster and session history across authorized staff devices.
- A public all-time leaderboard and completed session pages.
- Live-session sharing at
/club/your-club/live. - Optional player self check-in and shared kiosk links when Venue Pro is active.
Canonical public links
Club leaderboard
/club/:slug
Live session
/club/:slug/live
Session results
/club/:slug/session/:sessionId
Shared kiosk
/club/:slug/kiosk
Player self check-in
/club/:slug/checkin?t=...
Older links: PickleQ still accepts the legacy /venue/... form and redirects it to the canonical /club/... link.
When Venue Pro is useful
PickleQ is free for up to 4 courts per club. Venue Pro is for clubs that need 5+ courts, player QR check-in, shared kiosk mode, DUPR Mode and exports, saved divisions, or Club Wars. If a control is marked Venue Pro, the core session still works without it.
Recommended rollout: Run one normal Balanced session first. Connect a club when you need history or public links. Add self check-in, kiosk, divisions, or DUPR only when that operational need is real.
Player guide
Players do not need the staff device for every question. Give them the club link or live-session QR and let PickleQ show the current state.
During a normal session
- Give your name to staff, or use the organizer’s self check-in QR if the club offers it.
- Confirm your skill level when asked, then tap Check In.
- Open the live link to see active courts, the queue, Up Next, and estimated wait.
- When your match is called, play on the shown court and tell staff the winning team when you finish.
- Take a break by checking out; check in again when ready.
Live view and notifications
The public live page requires a connected club and an active staff-published live session. Tap your name on the live page when offered to enable a browser alert, vibration, or chime as you move into Up Next. Browser notification and sound permissions can affect this.
After the session
Open the session results link or the club leaderboard. Tap your name for wins, losses, games, win rate, skill, and a shareable result card.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
I cannot start the session.
Doubles needs 4 checked-in players; Singles needs 2. If the button is still blocked, look for a live-session warning, a missing Club Wars/Venue Pro requirement, or an incomplete tournament schedule.
The next match did not start automatically.
That is expected. Review Up Next, adjust the card if needed, and start/send the match when the court is ready. Staff control prevents premature dispatch.
A player left or a court has an empty slot.
Remove the player from the court, then use the court’s auto-fill or Choose Players action. Check the mode rules if PickleQ rejects a replacement.
I recorded the wrong result.
Use the visible Undo action. For an older result, open the match log from the stats screen and swap the winner or edit the score.
Players cannot see the live page.
Confirm that the staff device is online, the club is connected, and the staff app shows an active live session. Re-share the current link or QR; old live links may belong to a finished session.
Cloud sync is delayed or shows an error.
Do not clear browser data. Keep the staff device open, restore connectivity, and use the cloud status/retry control. Local session work remains on the device while the sync queue retries.
My local data is missing.
Local play is tied to the browser/device that stored it. Private browsing, clearing site data, or switching browsers can hide local records. A connected club can restore cloud-backed roster and history after staff logs in again.
Are account and club setup required?
No for casual local play. A club is the right choice when you want staff sign-in, shared history, public links, live view, or club operations.
How do I get help?
Message PickleQ on Facebook with the club/session context and what the screen shows. Avoid sharing passwords or private player details.
Ready to run the next session?
Start with Balanced, four players, and one court. You can add every advanced feature when your group is ready for it.