Americano rules

1. What is an Americano?

Americano is a social playing format, perfect for an evening at the club: 8–32 players, each playing several rounds in rotation with different partners and opponents. There are no fixed teams — every round you find yourself with a different partner.

Scoring is individual: in every match, each player receives the points scored by their team in that round. At the end, players are sorted by their cumulative points total and the event standings are set.

It is an ideal format for:

• Clubs that want to build a community (a recurring Monday / Wednesday / Friday evening americano)
• Players who want an evening of play without having to find a partner
• Practice in varied conditions (you adapt to each partner’s style)
• A personal ranking independent of “who you play with” — you earn the points yourself

2. The four supported formats

The Americano module on Padel Moldova Tour covers four different social formats — each one suits a different kind of evening at the club. The main differences: who you play with as a partner and how the pairing is done.

How to choose the right format as a club admin

• Americano — for community night. Everyone plays with everyone, relaxed mood, perfect as a recurring event (Monday / Wednesday / Friday).
• Mexicano — for when you want more serious competition. By the end, the best players face each other; it’s like a mini-bracket but without elimination.
• Team — for players who already have a regular partner and want a pair-vs-pair format. Easier to organise (no rotation to calculate).
• King of the Court — for events with something at stake and an audience. Tension is at its peak — every match counts for promotion/relegation. The final “King” gets a +15% bonus.

📑 Select a format below to read a focused explanation of that format only (recommended if you are interested in just one format). Full details with additional examples for each format can also be found in sections 3, 10 and 11 below. The level system (sec. 4-5), the points formula (sec. 6) and the rankings (sec. 8) apply uniformly to all four.

3. How an event runs

3.1. Number of players

Each court has 4 players (2 vs 2). When creating the event, the club sets the number of courts and the capacity, which can be greater than courts × 4: the extra players sit out in rotation, and the difference in matches played between any two players is at most one, whenever the event is stopped.

If fewer players turn up than the courts can take, play starts on as many courts as can be filled (for example 10 players on 2 courts, with 2 sitting out in rotation; 12 players on 3 courts). In a mixed Americano, the number of men and women matters.

The table shows the full version (everyone with everyone), with no players sitting out. The club can set as many rounds as it wants, up to the start; during play, rounds can be added, and the event can be ended at any time (see section 12).

3.2. Scoring mode per match

For Americano and Mexicano, the score is always based on a fixed total of points — exactly X points are played per match (usually 24, sometimes 16 — the club’s decision when creating the event), and the two teams share them. The final score always adds up to X: at 24 points it can end 13-11, 16-8 or 20-4, but never 24-22. It is not played as “first to X”, precisely so that all courts finish at the same time and the next round can start immediately — and so that all players have played the same number of points, making the scores comparable in the standings. This is how it is played at clubs across the country; we are not introducing timed modes for these formats.

Note: for King of the Court we also offer timed modes as an option, see section 11.

3.3. Match points vs ranking points — mind the distinction

Match points are the points actually won in matches (e.g. score 16-12 → each player on the winning team receives 16 points for that round). These determine the event standings.

Placement in the event is determined by average points per match played, then by total points won, then by fewest points conceded — the average matters because, when players sit out, not everyone plays the same number of matches. In a perfect tie on all three, the players share the same place and receive the same ranking points.

Ranking points are the points awarded at the end of the event according to the final position, based on a scaled formula (see section 6). These count towards the overall Padel Moldova Tour Americano ranking.

3.4. Estimated duration

On creation, the system estimates the total duration based on the number of rounds and the scoring mode. Roughly:

• 8 players × 7 rounds × ~10 min/round ≈ 70 min
• 16 players × 15 rounds × ~7 min/round ≈ 105 min
• 24 players × 23 rounds × ~6 min/round ≈ 140 min (we recommend Short Americano)

4. Playing levels

Each Americano event has one of 4 levels, set by the club:

The descriptions are indicative: the club chooses the event level, and you choose which event you register for (see section 5).

5. Who can register

5.1. You choose the level

You can register at any level. There is no automatic level calculation and no blocking at registration — we rely on your good faith, so that the event is balanced for everyone. The club may remove from the list anyone registered at an unsuitable level.

5.2. Ladies only and Mixed

• Ladies only — women players only.
• Mixed — half the places are for men and half for women, and every team is always one man and one woman. The waiting list runs separately for each gender.

For both, you must have your gender filled in on your profile.

5.3. The waiting list

Once all places are taken, you go on the waiting list, in order of registration. If someone withdraws or the club increases the capacity, the first person on the list gets the place automatically and receives a notification.

5.4. Payment

If the event is paid online, your place is held for 10 minutes while you pay; if you don’t finish, the place is released. Anyone who gets a place from the waiting list has 2 hours to pay. In pair formats, each player pays their own share. When paying at the club, the place is yours from the moment you register.

5.5. Withdrawal

You can withdraw until the event starts, from its page. After the start, only the club can remove you from the list.

6. Calculating ranking points

6.1. The formula

The ranking points awarded at the end of each event are calculated with the formula:

ranking_points(rank, N, level_mult) =
  max(5, round(N × (1 − (rank − 1) / N) × 5 × level_mult))

where:
  rank  = the player’s final position (1 = first place)
  N     = the actual number of players present
  level_mult = level multiplier:
    Beginners    → 1.0
    Intermediate → 1.5
    Advanced     → 2.0
    Mixed        → 1.0

6.2. Concrete examples

6.3. Percentage of the winner’s points (breakdown by position)

The formula guarantees that the gap between two consecutive positions is constant and equal to 100 / N % of the winner’s points. The larger the field, the smaller the steps.

More concretely: with 8 players, each place is worth 12.5% less than the previous place. With 16 players, only 6.25%. With 32, only 3.13%.

Below is an interactive calculator: choose the event level and the number of players, and the table shows every position with its percentage of the winner’s points and the actual value in points.

6.4. Principles of the formula

• Linear by position: the gap between places is constant, with no odd jumps. 2nd place = ~87% of 1st place’s points, 3rd place = ~75%, etc.
• Scales with field size: winning a 32-player event is worth 8 times more than winning an 8-player event. That is fair — the competition is different.
• Level multiplier: points at Advanced are worth double those at Beginners (×2.0 vs ×1.0). It reflects the real difficulty.
• 5-point floor: no player leaves with zero. Participation gets a minimum reward — you come, you play, you get points.
• Points are calculated on the actual N, not on the maximum capacity. If the admin set a maximum of 20 but 12 turned up, the scaling is based on 12.

7. The 12-month window (decay)

As with the tournament ranking, points expire after 360 days. This means the ranking reflects your form over the last year, not historical achievements.

You will have two views on your profile:

• Last 12 months — active ranking, what counts now
• All-time — all points ever accumulated, for the record

8. Available statistics and rankings

8.1. Rankings

• National ranking — all Padel Moldova Tour players with Americano results
• Club ranking — top players who have that club listed on their profile
• Level ranking — top Beginners, top Intermediate, top Advanced
• 12 months / All-time toggle — on any ranking

8.2. Personal statistics (Americano tab on your profile)

• Total events played
• Cumulative points (12 months)
• Current position in the national ranking
• Best position ever + average position
• Win rate (events won / total)
• Last 5 events with details

8.3. Partner / opponent statistics (the juiciest part)

The system records every partnership from every round of every event. This means we will be able to show, for each player:

• Top partners — who you have played the most rounds with, cumulatively over time
• Frequent opponent — who you have faced most often on the other side of the net
• Bête noire — frequent opponents against whom your win rate is under 40% (the people who consistently “take you apart”)

9. Frequently asked questions

10. Pair format (Team)

Besides the classic variants with rotating partners, Padel Moldova Tour also supports a format with fixed pairs: you register together with a partner of your choice, you play the whole event together, and the pairs face each other in a round-robin. It is the preferred format of clubs that want to organise “pairs leagues” or events like “bring your playing partner, Friday night”.

10.1. How it works

• Registration is done as a pair: the first player chooses their partner (from their profile or by searching), and the partner confirms the invitation. Only if both confirm is the pair registered.
• Number of pairs: courts × 2, i.e. from 4 pairs (2 courts) to 16 pairs (8 courts), so that all courts are in use at the same time. The maximum capacity derives from the number of courts set by the club.
• Round-robin: every pair plays every other pair exactly once. With 4 pairs → 3 rounds, with 6 → 5 rounds, with 8 → 7 rounds.
• Score: same as solo — a fixed total of points per match.
• Event standings: pairs sorted by cumulative points total.
• Both players in a pair share exactly the same results — they played every match together, so identical score, identical wins, identical position.

10.2. Levels

The same 4 levels as in solo: Beginners / Intermediate / Advanced / Mixed levels, chosen in good faith (section 5). The pair registers together: one invites, the other accepts.

10.3. Calculating ranking points

To keep parity with solo events (so that 1st place in the team format is not worth less than 1st place in solo with the same number of people involved), the formula is calibrated on the total number of players, not on the number of pairs:

ranking_points(rank, N_pairs, level_mult) =
  max(5, round((N_pairs × 2) × (1 − (rank − 1) / N_pairs) × 5 × level_mult))

where:
  rank        = the pair’s final position (1 = first place)
  N_pairs     = the number of participating pairs
  level_mult  = level multiplier (1.0 / 1.5 / 2.0 / 1.0 for Mixed)

Both players in the pair receive the same value.

10.4. Examples

Compare with solo: 16 Advanced players solo → 1st place = 160pt. In team Advanced with 8 pairs (16 players) → 1st place = 160pt per player. Full parity.

10.5. Trophies and rankings

• Individual ranking points: both players in the pair receive (equal) points in the common national Americano ranking (together with solo, as per section 6).

10.6. Difference from classic pair tournaments

At first glance it looks similar to a regular tournament (you play with the same partner), but the differences are essential:

11. King of the Court (Rey de la Pista)

In short: King of the Court is an evening format in which fixed pairs face each other across several ranked courts. Each round, the winners move up one court (closer to the “throne”), the losers move down one court. Whoever wins the last match on Court 1 = the King of the event.

11.1. How it works

• Registration is by fixed pairs (as in the team format) — you register with a partner of your choice and you play the whole event together.
• Ranked multi-court — the club sets the number of courts (3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8), and they are arranged in a hierarchy: Court 1 = the king’s court, Court 2, Court 3, ... last Court = the lowest.
• Capacity: max_pairs × 2 = max_players (each court hosts 4 players = 2 pairs). With 5 courts you have 10 pairs = 20 players.
• After each match (round):
  • Winners move up one court (Court 3 → Court 2)
  • Losers move down one court (Court 3 → Court 4)
  • Winners on Court 1 stay (they defend the throne)
  • Losers on the last Court stay (there is nowhere lower to go)
• Number of rounds: typically 6-8 rounds per event, chosen by the admin at creation. At the end, the pair on Court 1 that wins the last match = the King of the event.

11.1.1. Walkthrough — a typical evening step by step

To make it clear how things actually unfold, follow the scenario below: 5 courts (Court 1-5), 10 pairs (20 players), 6 rounds, Intermediate level.

11.1.2. Why it’s different from everything you’ve played before

• In Americano, each match is self-contained in its significance — win or lose, it doesn’t affect who you play next. Points add up linearly.
• In KoTC, every match has a direct, immediate consequence — win → you move up to a harder court, lose → you move down to an easier one. Matches are not equal in difficulty, so the points received cannot be equal either.

11.1.3. What you need to know as a player at your first KoTC

• Keep an eye on your current court — at the end of each match, you will be moved. Don’t go to the toilet just as the changeover is coming up.
• Don’t get discouraged if you end up on Court 5 — the points earned there are small, but not zero. Plus, if you climb from there with 1-2 consecutive wins, you get that “comeback” feeling, which really counts as an experience.
• The strategy is different — in Americano you try to win as many points as possible (the margin counts). In KoTC, only winning the match counts — extra games won give you nothing more. So if you can see you are winning anyway, don’t force it; save energy for the next round.
• The king’s bonus is only for the winners of the last Court 1 match — not for whoever spent the most time on Court 1. Someone who was king for 5 rounds and loses the last one does not get the bonus.
• There is no total “loss” — even if you lose all 6 rounds, you get a minimum of 5 points (floor). The event rewards participation.

11.1.4. Tips for clubs organising it for the first time

• Mark the first event as “demo / training” — spend the first 10 minutes explaining how it works, play a test round that doesn’t count, then start officially. That way you avoid confusion.
• Start with 4-5 courts, not 7. With 7 courts, the players on Court 6-7 feel they are “far from everything”, and the changeovers become more tiring. With 4-5, everything is manageable.
• Use the “fixed time” mode the first time (10-12 min/match) — predictable, players know what to expect. The game-based modes can be tried at the 2nd or 3rd edition, once people are used to it.
• Make it clear that the “final king” gets a bonus — unless it is obvious from the start, players won’t understand why the last round on Court 1 is so heated.
• Prepare numbers for the courts — a physical sign “1”, “2”, “3”, “4”, “5” at each court. People need to know quickly which court to go to.

11.2. Match mode (how a round is played)

Unlike Americano and Mexicano (which are always played to a fixed number of points), KoTC offers three modes for the club to choose from. All produce the same final scoring — only the time management differs.

Important note: the choice of mode only affects duration and management, not the points calculation. The scoring system described below gives the same result regardless of the mode chosen.

11.3. Points calculation — court-weighted (weighted by court)

This is the key difference from Americano. In KoTC, each match’s contribution to your final points is weighted by how hard the court you played that match on is. Winning on Court 1 (against the best) is worth more than winning on the last court.

This answers a legitimate question: it is unfair for someone who battled all evening on Court 1 to receive the same points as someone who stayed on the last court — the matches differ in difficulty, and the points must reflect that.

For each round played:
  base = (N_courts − court_number + 1) × 2
  contribution = base   (if you won the match)
  contribution = base × 0.5   (if you lost)

Raw total = SUM of the contributions across all rounds

ranking_points = max(5, round(
  Raw total × level_mult × king_bonus
))

where:
  level_mult  = 1.0 / 1.5 / 2.0 / 1.0 (Beginners / Intermediate / Advanced / Mixed)
  king_bonus  = 1.15 if your pair wins the last match on Court 1
              = 1.0  otherwise

Example with 5 courts: the contribution per match per court looks like this:

Use the interactive calculator and select the “King of the Court” mode to see the full calculation for any combination of level × number of courts × typical scenarios.

11.4. Bonus for the king (+15%)

The pair that wins the last match on Court 1 receives a bonus of +15% on their final ranking points. This is the official recognition of the “King of the event” title — more than just the points accumulated along the way.

The bonus applies only to the winners, not to the losers of the last Court 1 match (even though they got to play for the throne). Simple and clear.

11.5. Levels

The same 4 levels as in Americano and Team: Beginners / Intermediate / Advanced / Mixed levels, chosen the same way, in good faith (section 5).

11.6. Difference from the classic team format

At first glance they seem similar (both with fixed pairs), but their mechanics are fundamentally different:

12. During play

• Extra rounds — if the set rounds finish early and there is still court time left, the organiser adds 1, 2 or 3 rounds from the scoring phone. The sit-out rotation and the partners continue from where they left off.
• End at any time — the organiser can stop the event, even in the middle of a round. The unfinished round is either cancelled entirely (everyone stays on the same number of matches), or the matches already played are kept. In King of the Court, the unfinished round is always cancelled. The standings and points are based on what has been played.
• Recurring events — an event can be set to repeat every one or two weeks; when it ends (or when it is cancelled, if the organiser does not stop the series) the next edition appears automatically, with the same settings.

13. Feedback

These rules are updated as the platform changes. If you organise americano at a club, are an active player or simply have comments, open the feedback form below. Changes made on the basis of feedback will be reflected here with a change of version number.