How to build a tournament schedule

A schedule is four numbers: teams, fields, hours, and game length. Get those right and the grid almost builds itself.

Step 1: Set your game length

For slow pitch, plan a time limit rather than innings. A common setup is 60 minutes of play with a 15-minute gap for the change over, so one slot is 75 minutes. Championship games often get more time.

Step 2: Count your slots

Slots equal fields times hours divided by slot length. Four fields for eight hours at 75 minutes is about 24 slots (4 fields x 6.4 slots each, rounded down).

Step 3: Count your games

• Pool play: teams times games per team divided by 2
• Single elimination: teams minus 1
• Double elimination: about 2 times teams, minus 1

Example: 12 teams, three pool games each, is 18 pool games. Add a 12-team single elimination bracket at 11 games, and you need 29 slots. With 24 slots available you are over budget, so either cut to two pool games, shorten slots, add a field, or move the bracket to a second day.

Step 4: Space each team's games

• Give every team at least one slot of rest between games
• Avoid three straight games for the same team
• Try to keep a team on the same field for back-to-back games

Step 5: Leave buffer

Hold the last slot of the morning and one slot before bracket play open. One long game with extra innings will use them, and a schedule with no slack falls apart by noon.

Step 6: Publish it in one place

Post the schedule where teams already look, and update that same place when something changes. Two versions of a schedule is worse than a late one.

Sample morning grid

• 8:00 — Field 1: A1 vs A2, Field 2: B1 vs B2
• 9:15 — Field 1: A3 vs A4, Field 2: B3 vs B4
• 10:30 — Field 1: A1 vs A3, Field 2: B1 vs B3
• 11:45 — open buffer slot

Doing it in The Rooster

Set your fields and times, build pool games or a bracket, and enter scores as games end. Teams check the same event page for the current schedule. See scheduling and brackets or the tournament tools.

Want a second look at your grid? Book a free 20-minute setup call.