Frequently Asked Questions

King of the Beach is a beach volleyball tournament format where players rotate partners each round. Everyone plays with and against everyone else. Rankings are individual — your performance follows you, not your partner. The system automatically handles group assignments, scoring, and standings.

You need at least 8 players (2 groups) and at most 64 players (16 groups). The format works best with multiples of 4, but the system also handles 3, 5, and 6-player groups when player counts don't divide evenly.

No! Only the tournament organizer needs an account. Players access their group page through a QR code — no login required. They just scan, enter scores, and go.

Sign up for an account, click '+ New Tournament', enter player names, choose your format (Random Seed or Preseed), configure scoring, and submit. The system generates QR codes for each group that you can print and share.

Random Seed shuffles players randomly for the first round, then uses a ladder system (2 up, 2 down) for subsequent rounds. It's flexible about round count. Preseed uses player ratings for a snake draft, then follows a fixed bracket tree with recursive splits. Preseed is more structured while Random Seed is more casual and flexible.

Choose Random Seed for casual tournaments, flexible schedules, or when players don't have seed points. Choose Preseed for competitive tournaments with known player ratings (e.g., WVV points), or when you want a more structured bracket system with frozen groups.

For Random Seed, you can choose any number of rounds (minimum 2). The system recommends a default based on your player count. For Preseed, the number of rounds is fixed by the bracket tree — typically 3 rounds for 16 players (4 groups) or 4 rounds for 32 players (8 groups).

No, the format is locked once the tournament starts. Choose carefully before the first round. You can, however, adjust round count and scoring settings between rounds.

A frozen group is a group that has completed its bracket path in Preseed format. Its standings are final and it won't be redistributed further. Lower groups tend to freeze earlier in the tournament.

Three modes: Single Set (first to 21, win by 2), Best of 3 (first to 2 sets of 21, deciding set to 15), and Custom (set your own targets). You can also override scoring per group type.

There is no cap. If the score reaches the target (e.g., 20-20), play continues until one team leads by 2 points. Scores like 22-20, 25-23, or 30-28 are all valid.

Yes. From the tournament dashboard, you can override the scoring mode for specific group types. For example, use Best of 3 on standard groups and Single Set on 5-player groups. Overrides apply from the next round.

The deciding set (if needed) is played to 15 points instead of 21, still win by 2. This keeps the match length reasonable while maintaining fairness.

Non-standard groups play more games per round (4 games instead of 3). To keep round duration consistent, the default point target is lowered to 15. You can change this in Custom mode.

When player counts don't divide evenly by 4, the system creates non-standard groups. 3p groups use a solo rotation format. 5p and 6p groups use parallel game systems with runs and alternating partners.

5 players play 4 games across 2 runs. In each run, there are 2 parallel games. One player ends up playing 4 games while others play 3. The role of the 4-game player is randomized each round.

6 players play 4 games across 2 runs. Some players play 3 games and others play 2. Roles are randomized each round. The partnership rule ensures no pair plays together in both runs.

Virtual groups are groups in the system. Physical courts are actual beach volleyball courts. When virtual groups outnumber physical ones, groups are scheduled in batch shifts — some groups play while others wait.

Yes! During tournament creation, you can assign custom labels to your physical courts (e.g., 'Court A', 'Main Court', 'Beach 1'). These labels appear in the scheduling view.

Yes. When groups outnumber physical courts, they alternate. You can choose between sequential (one group finishes, then the next) or alternating (matches interleaved for better flow and shorter total time).

Players are ranked by: Total Points → Point Differential → Player ID (deterministic). For non-standard groups (5p, 6p), scores are normalized. Tie-break factors are configurable and can include round points, round diff, total points, total diff, seeding, dice, or manual ordering.

The system supports 7 factors: Round Points, Round Diff, Total Points, Total Diff, Initial Order (seeding), Dice (random), and Manual (organizer decides). You can reorder and enable/disable them.

Dashed icons mean the factor was checked but didn't separate players. Colored icons show the deciding factor: gold = player won, green = middle, blue = lost on that factor.

Yes. From the tournament dashboard, open Tie-Break Rules. You can reorder factors by priority, disable factors, and choose the final tie-breaker (dice or manual).

The winner is the 1st place player in Group 1 (the top group) after the final round. In Preseed format, the winner is the player who finishes 1st in the Gold bracket. Total points are used for redistribution but the final group position determines the champion.

The Total Standings page shows the complete ranking of all players, winners, tournament achievements (Most Improved, Consistent Performer, Group Champion), and retired players with their reasons.

The app works on all modern browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. Mobile browsers are fully supported since players often access group pages via QR codes on their phones.

No, the app requires an internet connection. Scores are submitted to the server in real time. However, the mobile interface is optimized for beach-side use with large buttons and high contrast.

The organizer's email address and player names are stored in the database. Player names are only visible within their tournament. We do not store cookies for tracking or advertising.

Closed tournaments are auto-deleted after 14 days. Inactive tournaments are auto-deleted after 31 days. You can also delete a tournament manually at any time.

There is no built-in export feature yet. You can view standings on screen and take a screenshot. Export to CSV or PDF is planned for a future update.

Player names are stored temporarily for the duration of the tournament. See the Privacy page for full details on data handling and your GDPR rights.