We determine three things before seeding any national-level 3WB event:
1. Whether previous singles finalists are returning and whether previous doubles finalists are returning as intact teams
2. Current USAR outdoor rankings
The USAR Rankings, Rankings and FAQ are available at https://www.usaracquetball.
These rankings are also available at https://www.
3. Which 4 singles players or doubles teams would be seeded 1-4 if the event was an LPRT or IRT event with the same participants
Note: the pro tours provide us with these seeds.
Draws are then seeded as follows:
| Seed | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 Seed | Previous year winner or team (if intact) |
| 2 Seed | Previous year runner up or team (if intact) |
| 3 Seed | #1 Pro team (unless they earned a higher spot) |
| 4 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 5 Seed | #2 Pro team (unless they earned a higher spot) |
| 6 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 7 Seed | #3 Pro team (unless they earned a higher spot) |
| 8 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 9 Seed | #4 Pro team (unless they earned a higher spot) |
| 10 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
- If the previous winners are not intact, that spot will be removed and everyone else moves up
- If a Pro team earned a higher spot than 3, 5, 7 or 9 by being a returning intact finalist or by outdoor rankings, they will be placed in the highest seeding they earned
- If a Pro team uses a higher spot earned, their pro spot is eliminated and moves all teams below up. It is NOT replaced by another pro Team
- The Tournament Director reserves the right to slightly change first round matchups so as to avoid players from the same geographic region from playing each other in the pursuit of a more diverse draw
- The rest of draw will follow the outdoor ranking system, with zero adjustments
These are the only factors that will be considered when seeding the national 3WB events.
Why we don’t exclusively use the USAR outdoor rankings for 3WB national events:
- R2’s ranking system depends on a volume of matches to be accurate
- LPRT or IRT pros who pop into outdoor tournaments without any results shouldn’t be seeded dead last: that is not fair to the top seeds nor the rest of the draw
- Nobody wants players from the same hometown to fly across the country to play each other in the first round
Example 1
What if the #2 Pro team is also the previous year runner up and the previous year winner is *not* intact?
The seeding in this case will be as follows:
| Seed | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 Seed | #2 Pro team as previous year runner up |
| 2 Seed | #1 Pro team |
| 3 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
| 4 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
| 5 Seed | #3 Pro team |
| 6 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
| 7 Seed | #4 Pro team |
| 8 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
| 9 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
| 10 Seed | Next in line using Outdoor rankings |
Notes:
- The spot vacated by a team not being intact (ie. the number one seed) simply moves all teams below up
- The rest of the draw will follow the outdoor ranking system, with zero adjustments
Example 2
What if the #1 Pro team is also the intact returning winner, and the runner up is also intact?
The seeding in this case will be as follows:
| Seed | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 Seed | #1 Pro team as previous year winner |
| 2 Seed | Previous year runner up |
| 3 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 4 Seed | #2 Pro Team |
| 5 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 6 Seed | #3 Pro team |
| 7 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 8 Seed | #4 Pro team |
| 9 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
| 10 Seed | Next in line using outdoor rankings |
Notes
- The spot vacated by a pro team (ie. the number three seed) simply moves all teams below up
- The rest of the draw will follow the outdoor ranking system, with zero adjustments