• COMPETITION SUPPORT

Competition Support

If you are looking to organise a squash competition and request sanctioning at any of our competition levels, some of the information below may be useful. If you would like to discuss the conditions of your event and linking it with the Scottish Squash competition pathway, please e-mail info@scottishsquash.org.

The documents below give further information on Scottish Squash sanctioned events and will support you running your event on SportyHQ,  Scottish Squash’s preferred competition management system.

Roles & Responsibilities for Sanctioned Competitions

This document details the roles and responsibilities for all sanctioned competitions (Bronze/Silver/Gold/Regional Masters). It explains the specific role and responsibilities for both the club/region and how Scottish Squash will support.

The document also explains the role and responsibilities for host clubs/regions for all Scottish Squash Platinum events.

Regulations for Sanctioned Competitions

This document details all the information clubs/regions are required to know prior to applying to run a sanctioned event or applying to become the host club/region of a Scottish Squash Platinum event.

SportyHQ Tournament User Guide 1 (How to set-up a Tournament)

This user guide takes organisers through the appropriate stages of setting-up an event on SportyHQ and everything required to be completed prior to the days the event runs.

SportyHQ Tournament User Guide 2 (How to run a Tournament)

This user guide takes organisers through the steps on how to use SportyHQ to run your event during the competition days.

Draw Templates

Various knock-out and round robin draw templates which can be downloaded quickly to run tournaments on a paper based system.

Scottish Masters Circuit – Poster (coming soon)

A poster for clubs/regions to help promote and advertise the Scottish Masters Circuit

Scottish National League – Poster Template

A poster specifically for advertising the Men’s and Women’s Scottish National League. Clubs/Regions can download this to use as they wish.

Competition Hosting: Frequently Asked Questions

Competition organisers are a key supporting network for the player pathway within squash in Scotland. At Scottish Squash, we are keen to support the growth and learning of new organisers at every opportunity and greatly value the contribution of local volunteers.

If you have not hosted a tournament before, on this page you can find documents under the SportyHQ toggle which provide step-by-step walkthroughs of setting up and running a tournament on SportyHQ, Scottish Squash’s preferred tournament software. You can also find answers to frequently asked questions below.

If you need further assistance, contact info@scottishsquash.org and a member of our team will be happy to set up a call to talk through any questions as you get started.

You will need to be an administrator of a club or region in order to access this function on SportyHQ. Contact your club or regional committee and inform them you wish to host a tournament. The option to ‘Create Tournament’ is accessible from the club or region’s administration page.

You are not restricted to hosting at the club you are an administrator for. However, you should always inform the host club in advance of creating and publishing your tournament on SportyHQ.

To do this:

  • Click Request Sanctioning in the Administrator Panel via the tournament home page
  • Select Scottish Squash (Squash in Scotland) from the Governing Body dropdown menu
  • Select the desired sanctioning level of your competition. More information on competition structure in Scotland can be found here.
  • Tick the box to agree to the terms
  • Click Submit Sanctioning Request 

Scottish Squash will then view your application for sanctioning and either approve or reject the application. In the case of a rejection this will come with correspondence and reasoning.

No, you do not. Often, local competitions in Scotland are not sanctioned on the national level within the Scottish Squash Competitions Structure. However, there are many benefits to sanctioning your competition at the Bronze or Silver level* if you decide to do so:

  • Insurance coverage for all players
  • Increased multiplier for SportyHQ ranking points
  • Inclusion of your tournament on the national competitions calendar
  • Promotion via the Scottish Squash SportyHQ dashboard and social channels; increased profile
  • Entry data at your tournament contributes to national statistics, providing a clearer image of the sport to the NGB and sportscotland.

* The number of Gold and Platinum sanctioned competitions each season is prescribed by Scottish Squash. Platinum and Gold sanctioning requests cannot be submitted unless a club is selected as a host venue following the annual application process. See Host Gold and Host Platinum for more details.

Entry fee refunds at Bronze and Silver sanctioned competitions are at the discretion of the tournament organiser.

The entry fee refund policy for Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum competitions can be found in ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions.

For Bronze and Silver sanctioned competitions, this can be set as the competition organiser wishes. Enough time should be allowed for seeding, draws and communication before the tournament. One week prior to the start date is generally sufficient for most competitions, but a larger entry may require more work. Contact info@scottishsquash.org if you need assistance.

For Gold and Masters Regional competitions, we suggest clubs and organisers allow some more time after the entry closing date to allow for the coordination of draws and seedings with Scottish Squash, and communication with entrants. We recommend 10 – 14 days in advance of the tournament being optimal to allow for this, but the closing date can be set or changed as the organiser(s) wishes.

The withdrawal deadline is the last date on which withdrawals from the event will be accepted without consequence. Commonly this is set as the same date as the closing date for entries, or within a few days after.

For Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum competitions, the withdrawal deadline relates to the Scottish Squash refund policy which can be found in ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions.

To improve consistency and transparency for players and organisers, the Scottish Squash ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions will apply for all Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum competitions. Organisers should include the following in the SportyHQ Terms & Conditions section:

“The Scottish Squash Competitions & Events Terms & Conditions apply to this competition (link below). We recommend that all players (and parents) familiarise themselves with them before submitting their entry.

Scottish Squash Competitions & Events Terms & Conditions: https://www.scottishsquash.org/policies-procedures/#toggle-id-7”

For local Bronze and Silver sanctioned competitions, organisers may set their own Terms & Conditions to account for differences between events. If any assistance is required, contact info@scottishsquash.org or view the Scottish Squash policy for Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum competitions by visiting ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions, which may be a helpful guide for your competition.

This section can be used to welcome players to your tournament and give a short introduction to the tournament after players click the sign up button.

Some organisers simply copy the information from About the Tournament (in Tournament Settings) here, as it’s not guaranteed that entrants will visit the tournament home page before signing up.

For Gold and Masters Regional competitions, Scottish Squash recommend including the following:

“This competition is [Gold / Masters Regional] sanctioned by Scottish Squash. Please note entrants without a Squash in Scotland membership will be subject to a £6.00 guest fee. Memberships can be purchased with the entry fee if desired.”

This section should be set up before the tournament is published.

Allowing entry of multiple events or age groups is at the discretion of the tournament organiser based on capacity. Typically, Gold and Masters Regional competitions allow entry of two age groups. Three age groups is also possible, but can be very difficult to schedule for the player to give sufficient break times.

If you change the amount of events a player can enter, don’t forget to set up pricing for entry of multiple events in Setup Tournament Pricing.

The age limit cut-off should be set in the settings for each applicable draw. Settings can be accessed via Manage Draws in the Administrator Panel.

For junior age categories, players should be under the age limit on the last day of the tournament.

Example:

For a tournament from 20th – 21st September, Under 13s must be a maximum 12 years of age on the 21st September. Players turning 13 on the 20th or 21st September are ineligible for the Under 13s, and should compete in the Under 15s age category.

The Scottish Squash age policy for Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum events reflects the above, and can be can be found in ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions.

The age limit cut-off should be set in the settings for each applicable draw. Settings can be accessed via Manage Draws in the Administrator Panel.

For Masters age categories, players should be over the age limit on the first day of the tournament.

Example:

For a tournament from 20th – 21st September, Over 45s must be a minimum of 45 years of age on the 20th September. A player turning 45 on the 20th September is therefore eligible. A player turning 45 on the 21st September is ineligible for the Over 45s, and should compete in the Over 40s age category.

The Scottish Squash age policy for Gold, Masters Regional and Platinum events reflects the above, and can be can be found in ADM10-G08 Competitions and Events Terms and Conditions.

Gold and Platinum Sanctioned Competitions

Seeding for Gold (and Platinum) sanctioned competitions will be determined by SquashLevels rankings on the Monday morning the week the competition starts. The required information will be sent to organisers on the Monday morning so that seedings can be completed. For further information please visit ADM10-G03 Regulations for Sanctioned Competitions.

Bronze and Silver Sanctioned Competitions

Seeding is not required. However, if you feel it would be beneficial to seed your competition, seeding should be completed by the organiser(s) using local knowledge of players, checking historical results, and speaking to coaches or other organisers as necessary. Scottish players competing in sanctioned competitions will also have SportyHQ and SquashLevels rankings to assist with seeding. If necessary, you can contact info@scottishsquash.org for assistance.

In this instance please contact info@scottishsquash.org and inform us of the decision to cancel your tournament. We will endeavour to assist with any announcements and sharing of the cancellation decision via our channels.

Furthermore, below are key actions you should take as the organiser:

  • On SportyHq, head to Tournament Settings in the Administrator Panel.
    • Change the event title to include *CANCELLED*
    • Close entry by ensuring the registration deadline has passed.
    • Optionally change About the Tournament to include a note about the cancellation for anyone who visits the tournament home page.
  • Inform those who have signed up of the cancellation by using Email Participants.
  • Administer any refunds in the Transactions section.
  • Communicate a notice of the cancellation to any prospective entrants via your own channels.

This is a root issue identified within the SportyHQ framework that is affecting some competitions created by regional administrators.

Scottish Squash are aware of the issue and are working with SportyHQ developers to remove this requirement.

Please contact info@scottishsquash.org if your competition is affected by this issue.