Compass Draw General Overview

What is a Compass Draw?

• A compass draw is a tennis tournament draw that is divided up into 8 brackets, each bracket representing a point on a compass (i.e., North, South, North-East, etc.). When a player loses a match, he or she simply moves into a new bracket. This is shown in Figure 1 below.
• All players start in the middle column of the large draw shown at the center of Figure 1.
• In round 1, winning players move into the East bracket and losing players move into the West bracket.
• In round 2, winning players in the East bracket stay in the East bracket, while losing players in the East bracket move into the North bracket. Similarly, winning players in the West bracket stay in the West bracket, while losing players in the West bracket move into the South bracket.
• This process continues in rounds 3 and 4 where players can also be moved into the Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, or Southwest brackets.

How the Compass Draw Tournament Works

• Players play one round every two weeks. Opponents contact each other to find a mutually agreeable date and time to play.
• In each round, there is a home player and an away player (determined randomly). The home player gets to select the court location.
• Both players bring a new can of balls to each match. One can is used in the match and the new, unopened can is awarded to the match winner.
• All matches are best 2 out of 3 sets.
• After a match is complete, either player can enter the match scores on the website using an easy score entry system.
• Once scores are entered, the draw is updated automatically.
• The first 4 rounds use the compass draw format described above. After each round is over, all players are seeded (i.e., ranked) based on their match performance.
• At the end of 4 rounds, the final seeds are determined and then a new draw (the Final Draw) is posted.
• The Final Draw is a traditional elimination draw with a consolation bracket. Better seeded players have easier matches in the early rounds and also get home court advantage.
• Gift card prizes are awarded to the winner and runner-up of the main bracket and the consolation bracket.

Benefits to Players

• The tournament provides a structured way for players to get competitive, pre-arranged matches in their geographic area.
• The intuitive website makes it easy for players to find out who their opponent is, contact them to setup the match, and then enter the scores.
• It’s fun and easy for players to see who else is playing and how everyone is doing.
• When players lose a match, they aren’t out of the tournament; they just move to another bracket.
• Matches tend to get more competitive after each round, since players of similar skill levels tend to gravitate towards the same brackets.
• The two-week deadline for each round provides enough flexibility to accommodate most schedules.
• An automated notification system automatically reminds players when they still have an un-played match and provides opponent contact information.
• Winning players receive gift cards and local tennis merchants often provide special discounts for Compass Draw participants.

Benefits to Community Tennis Associations (CTAs)

• The Compass Draw helps the CTA in its mission to promote the growth of tennis in their area.
• The Compass Draw can be a complementary addition to existing programs, such as tennis ladders. Players often sign up for both.
• The Compass Draw provides an opportunity for CTAs to cross-promote their other activities, such as sanctioned tournaments, tennis-carnivals, leagues, ladders, and other CTA-related activities.
• No additional CTA personnel needed to run the Compass Draw. Everything from player registration to tournament administration and prize distribution is handled. All that is needed is assistance in marketing and promotion.