It’s back, bigger and better!
Lisburn Pickleball Club is proud to announce the return of the Night Owls League and for the first time we will have a Men’s League and a Women’s League.
The Women’s Night Owls will finish on the 16th December. The Men’s league will commence in early January – we will confirm the exact dates ASAP.
Here is a breakdown of the key information:
Location: Lisburn Leisureplex (Courts 1, 2)
Dates: Game Nights will be played every Monday  |  Game Night 1 starts early January
Rules: Players will play one night on, one night off during the season
Time: 8.30pm – 10pm (Please be there 10 minutes early)
Ball: Franklin X40
Game Type: 15 minute games with 2 minute interval per game (5 games per night) – score recorded at the end of the time

Here is format:
~ Max 16 players in each league.
~ Each league will be split into 2 pools of 8 players (this will be randomly selected). Pool A will play Game Night 1, Pool B Game Night 2 and so on.
~ The first part of the season will be played over 10 weeks (5 game nights for each player).
~ The top 4 in each pool will be placed in the Premier League for 10 more weeks (5 game nights for each player)
~ The bottom 4 in each pool will then compete in the Challenger League for the same period
~ The Premier League players will compete for the exclusive Night Owls Trophy. The Challenger league will compete for the Night Owls Shield and both 2nd & 3rd place will receives Silver & Bronze retrospectively.
~ There will also be prizes for the most successful ATP’s, Erne’s and Hot-dogs made by players in the season!

If you’re new to the Night Owls format, it is slightly different to normal pickleball tournaments. In this league you are playing with different partners, against randomly selected doubles opponents in each match. The end goal may be about being the top player in the league, but the best player will only succeed by being able to play as a team in their matches across the season.   

Playing Rules: We will follow the USAPA rules for game play. However, there will be a different scoring system to what you are used to. Instead of sets, we will be playing 15 minute games. We will be using standard scoring during the games, but if the scores are level at the end of the match, the result is a draw. At the end of the 15 minutes (recorded by a visible digital timer) the total score will be recorded. It may be 25-12 or 5-4, so it is fair to say that every point counts.  Here are some factors to consider:

• The team that wins will gain 3 points each for the league ladder. Games can end in a draw and if that is the case, each player gets 1 point.
• Total amount of points scored and conceded will be recorded for every player. If two players amass the same amount of points – their point difference will be used to determine the league positions.
• Contentious calls must be sorted out between the four players on the court. Please do not involve anyone else. For a ball to be called out – it must be clearly out and shouted ‘out’ at the time. Please show sportspersonship and be the bigger person for contentious shouts. Play let if you all can’t decide.
• Foot faults – these should be called by the player (or partner) who commits them. Again, be the type of player who can admit to their own faults.
• No time outs are allowed and time wasting is considered against the spirit of the league.
• If there is more than 5 seconds left on the timer when the last rally finishes – the next serving player must serve one more ball even if the timer is up when they do. This is a measure to stop time wasting and create fairness.
• If a player is late for a match – the opposing team will gain a point for every minute until they arrive.
• There will be a 5 minute warmup time before the first match. The first match will begin at 8.35pm. There will be 2 minutes break between games for refreshments and toilet breaks.

We have 16 players in each league, meaning that out of the 20 weeks of the season, you will play 10 game nights. Each player will play 50 games over the season (5 games a night).

The schedule and pools will be announced by 20th December 2024 – then the fixtures will be announced on the morning of the Monday game night.

If there are any particular weeks that you know you can’t play – either a swap or a substitute must be arranged. You can swap with a player from the other pool to play prior to the game night. Points will be allocated on that night to the player who has swapped and vice versa when you play in their game night. A substitute has to be someone who doesn’t play in the league, be a Lisburn Pickleball Club member and have the same ‘self-rating’ (or lower). We must be notified of the substitution prior to the game night.

Any questions – please email us at info@lisburnpickleball.club and we’ll get back to you ASAP.