*NEW* 2026 SUMMER Travel Team (TRIPLE TEAM PICKLEBALL LEAGUE)

TRIPLE TEAM ILLINOIS PICKLEBALL LEAGUE (formerly ITPL)
WINTER 2026
After much work, we are excited to finally kick off a new season of travel pickleball. This will be a 6 week season which will be a qualifier for the National tournament in October, where Sure Shot Pickleball’s Women’s 3.0 Blue team captained by Sue Kren took 3rd place in 2025! Let’s send more Illinois teams to join in on the fun!! With the changeover from ITPL to Triple Team Illinois, there are just a few minor changes to the way the league will run.

1. There will not be a season end tournament. Whichever team is 1st in the league standings will be the qualifying team for Nationals 2026
2. We will be using MatchTime for team management (rosters, scheduling, match results). ALL PLAYERS will need to be assigned to an appropriate team within MatchTime
3. ALL PLAYERS will register and pay their league fees of $15/player through MatchTime. (No need for clubs to collect the player league fees)
4. Each rostered player for a match, no matter Home or Away team, will pay a match fee of $20 per player. The match fee of $20 will be collected prior to the match start time or player check in, by the Home team
5. DUPR will be the rating system in use and ALL matches will be reported to DUPR. All players must have or create a free DUPR account.
6. DUPR ratings will determine team placement (and at discretion of club coordinators within guidelines established by Triple Team National) The format of matches played within the league has not changed. Each match date will consist of three lines of doubles per team. Each doubles line will play (2) games to
   11, win by 2 against each of the opposing three doubles lines for a total of (6) games in
   a 2 hour timeframe.
7. Round Robin (as follows)
   a) Round 1:
   (1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 1
   (2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 2
   (3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 3
   b) Round 2:
   (1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 2
   (2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 3
   (3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 1
   c) Round 3:
   (1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 3

(2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 1
(3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 2

2. Home teams STAY on the same courts for each round of play. Visiting
   teams SWITCH courts after each round.

Here are the details for player costs:
✏️ Player Registration fee – $15: this fee will cover the cost of the national league fee and cost per player for MatchTime. ALL PLAYERS are required to be assigned to a team

✏️ Match fee – $20: each time you play a match. This fee will be applied for each player rostered for a match regardless of home or away.

🔄 Subs – As all subs are required to be registered in MatchTime and have paid the
fee incurred as a result of team placement as a sub.

We are hoping to field teams at the following divisions for Winter 2026 with additional divisions to be added with enough interest and/or in Spring 2026: Women’s 3.0 Women’s 3.5 Men’s 3.5

TRIPLE TEAM PB LEAGUE – ILLINOIS RULES 2026

The Triple Team Illinois PB League will follow the National Triple Team League Rules and Guidelines, with the exceptions and additions below. The National Triple Team League Rules can be found HERE

Matches

1. Even if a match starts late, it will still finish at the scheduled time.
2. Warm up courts are not guaranteed and visiting captains should check with the host club before each match if there will be court availability to warm up.
3. There is a 5-7 minute warmup at the beginning of the first round, and no warmup for the second and third rounds. All necessary off-court situations should be attended to prior to the warmup so play can start immediately after the warmup ends.
4. Scores must be recorded immediately after each game to reduce confusion and incorrect scoring.
5. All facilities must have an easy to read clock or timer to serve as the official match clock. This clock is used for determining match end time and late arrival penalties.
6. All cell phones should be turned off during play. If a cell phone goes off during a point, that team loses the point. If it goes off between points, there is no penalty but it should be turned off immediately.
7. When only 5 minutes of the 2 hours allocated to match play remain, if one team is ahead in the game (by 1 or 2 points) the game is complete and that team wins the game. If the game is tied, play one more point (following the current serving rotation) to determine the winner of the game.
8. Players are allowed a bathroom break between games if necessary but they should not leave the court during a game.
9. Match fees are to be billed by the home club. Match fees will be set at a cost of $20 per player per match played. All Home and Away team players will pay the match fee for each match in which they are rostered and paid prior to the match start time or at club check in. Ratings (Taken from the Triple Team National Rules) PLAYER ELIGIBILITY BASED ON RATINGS: Team rosters must consist of players with skills that are
   consistent with the flight skill level in which their team is playing. Captains oversee maintaining the
   “skill integrity” of their team.

Players competing in each division must have a MAXIMUM rating of the following:

3.0 Division → 3.49
3.5 Division → 3.99
4.0 Division → 4.49
4.5 Division → 4.99

For the 2026 competition year, there is no MINIMUM rating a player must have to roster on a team,
although it is highly recommended that players be no more than 0.5 lower than the listed rating for
that division of play.
APPROVED RATING SYSTEM FOR PLAY:

1. While multiple rating systems exist in the pickleball world, the 2026 Official Ratings Partner for
   Triple Team is DUPR.
   a) All players competing in their local league must have a DUPR account.
   b) All players competing in their local league will compete under the rating listed for their
   DUPR on the day they registered for local play.
   c) All results from local play and the National Championships will be uploaded to DUPR.
   d) If a player has 10 or less matches in DUPR, their DUPR rating will not be used for the local
   league qualifying season. The player will enter the agreed upon rating as a “SELF RATE” at
   the level they intend to play. (1) 3.0 Self-rate Players will enter 3.0 on their league registration
   sheet.
   e) Any results garnered during the local league season or other results will NOT impact the
   player’s “division eligibility” for that season.

Rescheduling Matches

1. A request to reschedule must be made no later than the Sunday before the match.
   Rescheduled matches should be played at the original home team’s club unless otherwise
   agreed upon. Home clubs are not obligated to play away if there is no court time to
   reschedule. In this case, the requesting team will have to forfeit. If it is too late to request a
   reschedule, you must attempt to field a team for the original match time.
2. In the event your team can not field at least 2 courts (4 players), that match will be a forfeit
   and scored 11-0 for all games (36-0 match points). These games must NOT be scored in
   any official rating system such as DUPR.

On-Court Disputes

1. The Triple Team Illinois PB League is self-officiated on the honor system.
2. Players should settle on-court disputes among themselves.
3. If there is a score dispute that can’t be resolved, go back to the last score that both teams
   agree upon.

Match Format
MATCH PLAY

A. SINGLE GENDER & COMBO FORMAT. All team matches will be three (3) rounds of three
(3) lines, two (2) games each. 3 courts required for 2 hours.

1. Round Robin (as follows)
   a) Round 1:
   (1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 1
   (2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 2
   (3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 3

b) Round 2:
(1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 2
(2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 3
(3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 1
c) Round 3:
(1) Home Team 1 plays Visiting Team 3
(2) Home Team 2 plays Visiting Team 1
(3) Home Team 3 plays Visiting Team 2

2. Home teams STAY on the same courts for each round of play. Visiting teams
   SWITCH courts after each round.

Miscellaneous

1. Players may be added after the season begins but must be listed on the team roster on the
   MatchTime website prior to playing in a match.
2. Players may only be rostered as a player at one club and may only be a full time player on one
   team. If a player subs up for more than 3 times, they will be moved up to the higher level
   permanently.
3. Scores must be reported on the MatchTime website no later than the Monday after a team’s
   match. The home team Club Coordinator is responsible for reporting the match score.
4. Match fees are to be billed by the home club. Match fees will be set at a cost of $20 per player
   per match played. All Home and Away team players will pay the match fee for each match in
   which they are rostered and paid prior to the match start time or at club check in.
5. For the Winter 2026 season, the team in first place for each division at conclusion of the
   league season will be declared winners and will have the opportunity to advance to the Triple
   Team National Championships.
6. A minimum of 4 teams with each team playing a minimum of 6 matches is required in any one
   division for qualification to advance to the Triple Team National Championships.