The Compass Draw, also known as the Waterfall format, is a unique pickleball tournament structure where every team is guaranteed 4 matches, each match is best of 3.
Players join the tournament must have a partner as a team. Teams are seeded based on their ratings, ranging from #1 to #16, and placed in the draw accordingly. Winners move to the East Bracket, while losers go to the West Bracket. In subsequent rounds, teams move to different brackets (North, South, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, Southwest) based on their win-loss record in each match. After four rounds, teams are ranked based on their performance in their final bracket, with the East Bracket’s winner being the overall champion.
This format ensures that every team plays the same number of matches, but with a variety of opponents and potentially different game lengths in each round, adding to the tournament’s dynamism and appeal.