Inviting players and sharing your tournament

Filling a tournament is usually more work than creating one. It does not have to be. There are four ways to get people into a draw, and picking the right one saves you an evening of group-chat admin.

1. Add players directly

Fastest when you already know who is coming. You type the names, they appear in the draw, and nobody has to sign up for anything. Perfect for a regular group that plays every week.

2. The general invite link

One link, shared in a group chat or on your club's social media. Anyone who opens it can register. Use it when you are opening the tournament to the club rather than to a fixed list.

3. Personal invites

A personal invite link reserves a specific spot for a specific player. Send it directly and that place is held for them until they claim it. This is how you guarantee the players you actually want, in a tournament that is otherwise open.

4. The view-only share link

The one to send on the day. Anyone who opens it sees the participants, the matches and the live standings, without an account and without being able to change anything. Send it to players, partners, parents and the club's social channels.

A sequence that works

1. Create the tournament and set the registration deadline.
2. Send personal invites to the players you definitely want.
3. Post the general invite link a day later to fill the remaining places.
4. Close registration the evening before and generate the draw.
5. Share the view-only link with everyone, including the people not playing.

Things worth saying in the invite

• The format and how many matches each player is guaranteed.
• Start time and finish time.
• The scoring rules, especially anything unusual.
• The cost, if there is one, and how to pay it.
• What happens if it rains.

That last point saves more arguments than anything else on the list. If you have not built the tournament yet, start here; if you want it to look like a proper club event, see branding, sponsors and exports.