Tournaments
Tournaments are auto-scheduled brackets that run on their own — there's no host to set them up or start them manually.
:::info Currently 501 only Like Matchmaking, tournaments are currently limited to 501, played either Straight In / Double Out or, for one specific format, Double In / Double Out (see Grand Double Trouble below). :::
Format and naming
Every tournament has a duration (how many legs it takes to win a match) and, optionally, an average restriction that limits who can join. The combination of duration and restriction determines the tournament's name:
| Duration | Example names | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| First to 1 Leg | Rapid Ricky | Always this name, regardless of restrictions. |
| First to 2 Legs | Intermediate Intermezzo, Flights of Fury, Kings Clash, Evening Skirmish | Name depends on the average restriction for that run. |
| First to 3 Legs | Prime Time Brawl, Night Owl Yudo, Grand Double Trouble | Grand Double Trouble is the exception: it's played Double In / Double Out instead of Straight In. |
Average restrictions limit entry to a specific skill band — for example, some tournaments only admit players averaging 40–60, others only players below 40. Not every tournament has a restriction; some are open to everyone.
Schedule
Tournaments run on a recurring schedule that's currently weighted toward Central European time, since that's where most players are active. The schedule may change over time, so it isn't documented in detail here.
Bracket size and byes
Tournaments need at least 4 players to start — if fewer have joined by the scheduled start time, the tournament is simply canceled instead. Beyond that minimum, the bracket size adapts to however many players actually joined, up to the maximum of 32:
- With the minimum of 4 players, the first matches played are the semi finals.
- If the number of joined players isn't an exact bracket size (4, 8, 16, or 32), some players get an automatic bye for that round instead of playing it.
If you get a bye, you simply wait for your next opponent to be decided — you'll be notified once they're ready. In fact, a notification always appears whenever any of your matches is ready to play, bye or not. If you expect to be waiting a while, that's a good time to start a custom lobby practice game or a round against a bot to fill the time.
Once you're notified that your match is ready, you have 5 minutes to mark yourself ready — miss that window and you automatically forfeit the match, the same way declining a matchmaking invite works. From there, the same match and turn timers as Matchmaking apply for the rest of the match.
Viewing a tournament
Each tournament page has three tabs: Information, Bracket, and Rankings.
Personal data redactedInformation shows the podium (once finished), the ruleset (Game Settings), scheduling and sizing details (Tournament Details — including the same Ready/Turn/Match timer values described above), and the full Participants list with each player's average bracket.
Personal data redactedBracket shows the full tree from the first round through the Finals. Notice how this bracket's Round One only has enough matches to feed a Round of 16 rather than starting from a full 32 — a live example of the bye/sizing behavior above.
Personal data redactedRankings lists every participant's final placement alongside detailed stats for their run: average, average until 170, first 9 average, checkout percentage, highest checkout, and counts of 100+/140+/170+/180 scores.
Finished tournaments list
The Tournaments page itself (as opposed to an individual tournament's page above) has Upcoming, Running, and Finished tabs:
Personal data redactedEach card shows the tournament's name, ruleset, when it started and how long it ran, and how many players joined — click through to reach the Information/Bracket/Rankings view above. Screenshots of the Upcoming and Running tabs, and of actually joining a tournament, will be added later.