Can I have loads of suggestions on how best to organise club nights so there is no fixing of games, i.e the better players always playing together and the not so good ones playing together, so everyone gets a fair crack of the whip, we have 3 courts for 3 hours with approx 16- 24 players
IMO, it's better when the beginners get the chance to play against the more advanced players from time-to-time. Without the games being challenging, they won't improve much, would they ? My gosh, at this club I used to play at last year, they only put E-grades with E-grades, D-grades with D-grades, C-grades with C-grades, etc. I found it too boring ( and too expensive, also too easy ), so I moved onto playing at another club ( cheaper, more games, better games ) where the C's would play with B's, D's play with C's, etc occasionally. It is absolutely boring to play against opponents who aren't challenging, IMO. It's not good to play against those who are too-advanced, but it is fun and challenging when I play against those that are of around the same level as me, or a bit more advanced. The pricing of the club must also be fair.. Not too expensive. It'd be best if you can charge an annual membership fee, and let the members play for free the rest of the time, when-ever the club is on.
Its very difficult to please 100% of people 100% of the time. So it needs to be made clear to all that, respect and patience, is required for the Club session to be successful and enjoyable for everyone. Its a difficult balancing act. We all want to improve and playing against those of a higher standard should help here. Although at times it can be frustrating for those that are the high flyers in the club. 3 hours is quite a long session so this could be divided up into more specific elements. Bearing in mind that if 24 turn up, that will be 12 on playing doubles and 12 sitting out. Its probably not fair on those sitting out to dedicate a whole court to singles, unless you introduce half court singles. For instance you could play half court singles, 2v1. So that would be 6 players on per court. Maybe for an hour of the session you could use a competition ladder or pyramid. If you go to Wilkinson or similar shop you can purchase a magnetic white board and strips( in the kids section) to use for comp ladders etc. Most Clubs use a peg board type system (or above) where the player at the top of the list chooses 3 players from top 6 in the list to play doubles. Take these off the list and place onto a specific court number on the board. When the game finishes the winners pegs are then placed at the bottom of the list before the losers. With three courts running, the turnaround and mixing is fairly good.
