Question 1

What is the UTR Pickleball Rating (UTR-P)?

Accepted Answer

The UTR Pickleball Rating (UTR-P) is designed to rate every kind of player, whether you're swinging your first paddle or smashing through pro-level tournaments. The UTR-P includes both provisional and numerical ratings for singles and doubles players.

Players without match results logged will receive a provisional rating (P1-P5) based on a questionnaire. After one match, the player will receive a projected rating, and after seven matches, the rating automatically converts to a reliable decimal rating on a scale of 1.0 - 10.0 (from beginner to expert/pro).

Question 2

Why has my rating changed so much in the transition from UTPR to UTR-P?

Accepted Answer

Transitioning from a smaller 1.0-6.0 scale UTPR that included limited USA tournaments to the global UTR-P scale of 1.0-10.0, results in players’ ratings naturally moving up and changing as they continue to compete.

The 10-point scale is nearly twice as large as the UTPR 6.0-point scale, so it is normal and expected for our rating to see more movement for players. In turn, players can have a higher rating spread from their partners.

Question 3

Does USA Pickleball still offer divisions for 3.0 and 3.5 players?

Accepted Answer

Yes, USA Pickleball is still supporting all skill ratings in our tournaments. You will now see our skill divisions named for our traditional 3.0 to 5.0. For example, a player with a UTR-P rating of 2.0 to 4.4 would register in our 3.0 division.

Question 4

Why am I not in the same division any longer with my partner?

Accepted Answer

Every team can play with their partners. All teams are required to play in the division of the highest-rated partner in doubles or mixed doubles.

Your opponents are moving up as well, so there is no reason to worry that the level of play or competition will be significantly higher if you register in a higher division. You can view more of this movement by looking at your and/or your opponents’ ratings on the UTR Sports website.

Question 5

What matches count towards the UTR-P Rating, and what is verified vs. unverified?

Accepted Answer

Results are either verified or unverified scores depending on whether the match or tournament was organized and played according to UTR Sports’ verified rules, or the match or tournament was a player organized/social/recreational, for which scores are unverified.

All USA Pickleball-owned events, all APP events, and all UTR Sports events are verified events. The UTR-P algorithm takes into account up to 60 of your most recent matches.

A verified UTR-P Rating is indicated by a checkmark badge on a player’s profile. Ratings will dynamically move up and down as new results are factored in.

Question 6

What does it mean that UTR-P will now be the USA Pickleball’s standard rating?

Accepted Answer

USA Pickleball and UTR Sports have entered into a landmark partnership to connect, grow, and unite the pickleball community. Part of that partnership is establishing the UTR-P Rating for the sport.

Question 7

What will happen to UTPR (USA Pickleball Tournament Player Ratings)?

Accepted Answer

With the USA Pickleball and UTR Sports partnership, USA Pickleball is sunsetting all UTPR ratings and using the UTR-P Rating. Learn more.

Question 8

Can a player enter any division of a non-Nationals USA Pickleball event regardless of UTR-P Rating?

Accepted Answer

Using the UTR Sports platform, event organizers have flexibility for how open or restricted divisions are set up. It will be up to the organizer’s discretion, and it is possible to have open divisions where players may be placed into groups within a division using their rating as a guide to ensure level-based play.

USA Pickleball membership verification is integrated into the UTR Sports platform.

Question 9

How does the UTR-P Rating compare to the UTPR (USA Pickleball Tournament Player Ratings) and other ratings?

Accepted Answer

The UTR-P Rating is free for players and UTR Sports has no plans to ever charge for their ratings.

The rating systems are very different in terms of their approaches and how the ratings are calculated. The UTR-P is an ageless, genderless, and borderless scale from 1.0-10.0, updating every 24 hours. The UTPR is a tournament-only rating system for the United States on a scale from 1.0 to 6.0.

The UTR-P Rating has several advantages over the other rating systems. One key element is that UTR-P separates self-reported scores from organized/verified match results. This unique feature provides reliability to competitive play and helps drastically reduce sandbagging.

Also, the UTR-P rating has a strong and fast-growing pool of connected players, which provides for an accurate global rating. The UTR-P Rating is also more accurate than points-based ranking systems. It is several percentage points more accurate than today’s pro points-based rankings.

Question 10

Will my rating go up if I win? Or down if I lose?

Accepted Answer

Not necessarily. In order to provide the most accurate rating, the UTR-P algorithm calculates your rating based on your performance vs. the expected outcome of a game. For example, if you are victorious over a lower-rated player, but only by a slim margin, your rating may not increase.

Question 11

Is the UTR-P Rating for singles or doubles?

Accepted Answer

Both! UTR-P Ratings are separate for singles and doubles. Partners are not averaged. UTR Sports considers each doubles game as two individual games which allows for connection across genders and more accuracy.

Question 12

What does it mean for a rating to be Reliable?

Accepted Answer

When you see “Reliable” along with the player’s UTR-P Rating, there are enough results provided to have confidence in the rating being an accurate indication of a player’s true skill level.

Question 13

What does it mean for a rating to be Projected?

Accepted Answer

When you see “Projected” it means there are not yet enough results to have confidence in the rating, but there are enough results to display a projection. Seven results are needed before a rating becomes Reliable.

Question 14

Is Reliable or Projected associated with recreational or competition play?

Accepted Answer

A social or recreational player may have a fully Reliable rating if they have played enough verified matches to provide an indication of a player’s skill level.

A Projected rating is an indication that the player does not yet have enough scores submitted in order to determine an accurate rating. It will disappear after scores are counted on seven matches.

Question 15

What is an Estimated or Provisional UTR-P?

Accepted Answer

If you see a P1-P5, then it is an estimate of the player’s eventual rating based on self-reported answers to the UTR Sports pickleball questionnaire.

Question 16

How does the UTR-P Rating solve for sandbagging?

Accepted Answer

The UTR-P Rating is built on large volumes of high-quality score data. The algorithm does not factor in self-reported results for its verified ratings, and players must be close enough in level for the match to count (i.e. if ratings differ by 1.0 or more, it will almost certainly be a blowout). Players with fully reliable verified ratings are not impacted by playing against players with partially reliable ratings.

Question 17

Why isn't there a separate gendered doubles rating and mixed doubles rating?

Accepted Answer

The UTR-P rating was specifically developed with sophistication around the data science needed to provide for an accurate genderless doubles rating. Meaning, you can rely on the UTR-P double ratings for gendered or mixed doubles. This way, finding a good mixed doubles partner is simple — just look for a person with a UTR-P rating around your level in doubles either male or female. The UTR-P Rating reflects how you individually play in a doubles match.

Question 18

I don’t think my rating is accurate. Can I appeal it?

Accepted Answer

The UTR-P rating algorithm runs daily and is fully automated - it is a probability-driven, dynamic algorithm that is constantly taking in and optimizing on match results. Ratings cannot be changed through an appeal process. The algorithm will continue to improve, evolve, and strengthen over time to provide you the most accurate rating.

Question 19

Who has a UTR-P Rating?

Accepted Answer

More than 100,000 players around the globe, including all APP and USA Pickleball players, already have a FREE rating on the UTR Sports platform. Click here to log in or sign up for a free account, to claim your profile, and get rated.

Question 20

How do I get a UTR Pickleball Rating (UTR-P)?

Accepted Answer

All players competing in Nationals already have a UTR Pickleball Rating. Learn more about how to claim your UTR Sports profile here. To learn more about the UTR Pickleball Rating, click here.

Question 21

What if I already have a UTR Rating for tennis?

Accepted Answer

If you already have a UTR Rating for tennis, get your UTR-P Rating for pickleball by clicking here.

Question 22

Does UTR Sports support any of the large-scale tours?

Accepted Answer

In addition to being the rating standard of USA Pickleball, UTR Sports and the UTR-P rRating is also the official rating of the APP (Association of Pickleball Players). This includes the APP Tour, APP Next Gen, and all other APP pickleball play.

Question 23

Where can I find tournaments to compete in?

Accepted Answer

Members can search and find USA Pickleball and USA Pickleball-sanctioned events across the nation by visiting the USA Pickleball and UTR Sports websites at usapickleball.org and utrsports.net.

Question 24

Why should I be confident in the UTR-P rating?

Accepted Answer

From the makers of the world’s most accurate rating system with patented technology, UTR Sports’ capabilities in algorithm development. UTR Sports monitors the rating continuously and refines the analytics around the algorithm to watch for edge cases, inflation, and fraud. UTR measures our accuracy against pickleball pro points rankings and has statistically significant advantages in predicting winners.

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UTR-P Rating FAQS

Definitions of Player Skill Ratings

UTR-Pickleball (UTR-P) Rating

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