Rules
Badminton rules can be found on the Badminton World Federation website here.
House Rules: We will use the 21-point rally system. Only doubles and mixed doubles games are permitted, unless attendance is exceptionally low and one or more courts are available for single’s play. Also please limit your warm-up time in order to maximize the number of games per evening.
Equipment: Nets and birds are provided. Please bring your own racquet, and wear non-marking athletic footwear.
Safety: For safety and liability reasons, only paid members can be on the courts during play. Please stand clear and walk around the courts during play. We ask that if you are not playing that you leave the gym and stay in the hallway to observe the games, stretch, socialize, pick your next game, etc.
Children are not permitted on the court.
Colour System
Players are grouped into four colour-based rating categories:
- Green – Beginner
- Blue – Intermediate
- Red – Advanced
- Yellow – Competitive
These colour categories are used for selecting balanced games using the board system using the following priorities:
- The selecting player must select other players of the same colour within the next 10 waiting players.
- When there are not enough players of the same colour rating, then the player can use a balance of higher and lower level players, again within the next 10 waiting players. For example, two reds playing with one blue and one yellow, or two greens and two blues.
- If this is not possible, it is permitted for a group of three higher colours to pick a lower colour (i.e. three reds can select a blue for a match). It is NOT permitted for a lower level member to select three higher level players.
- If no balanced game can be created using the next 10 waiting players, players beyond the next 10 can be selected, so long as it follows the priorities listed above.
A player cannot select players more than one level above their colour.
Colour Promotion
General guidelines for colour/level shifts:
1. Demonstrated improvement in consistency and quality of play.
2. Player level maturity: ability to lead/support your partner during the game.
3. Sportsmanship: including pre/during/post game behaviour (gaming the board, disputes for line calls, attitude, etc…).
A detailed rubric can be used for purposes of self/peer evaluation:
Board System
When one of the Wait squares is empty, the player at the top of the Waiting section places their tag in this empty Wait square, and must select 3 other players to create a balanced match using the colour rules explained above. Please DO NOT select players on someone else’s behalf. Players must be selected from the Waiting pool, and not from any of the Wait squares as these players are already queued to play.
If a player is picked but would rather wait for a different game, that player’s name falls to the bottom of the waiting list.
Upon completion of a match, the players from that court are moved into the back of the Waiting pool, and the players in Wait 1 are moved into the vacated court. Players from Wait 2 are then moved into Wait 1, and Wait 3 into Wait 2. Wait 3 will now be empty, so the top player in the Waiting pool will then select players for their match.
Wait 1 and Wait 2 should be filled at all possible times to ensure as much play time as possible. Due to our limited facility time, please pick games quickly to avoid leaving any court(s) unattended.
If you notice someone not following these rules, you can let one of the execs know. That person will be reminded of the board system rules. Otherwise, you may kindly remind them of the rules.