The competitive roundnet scene is gaining traction, but following the sport can be incredibly frustrating and confusing—especially when you’re first getting into the sport.

That confusion ends today. This blog is going to map out the competitive scene clearly so you’ll be able to follow the sport (and our newsletter) without any headaches. The amount of time it took us to gain all the materials for this blog is reason enough why this newsletter needs to exist. 

You’ll learn about:

• The Spikeball Tour Series

  • Challengers, Majors, The Championship

• Divisions

  • Skill level and qualifications

• Prize money

Here we go.

🟡 The Spikeball Tour Series (STS)

STS is the main competitive roundnet tour—just like the PGA Tour for golf.

The STS is composed of three different event types:

• Challengers

  • Challenger events happen every week in various locations throughout North America, and are independently ran with sanction from the tour. 

• Majors

  • There are Majors every year which have larger prizes and earn you more points (again, similar to the professional golf landscape). In the 2023 season, there were five majors.

• The Championship

  • The Championship happens at the end of every season. It is the most prestigious tournament in the sport, and includes an Open Pro Division, which teams can only qualify for through strong performances at Majors earlier in the season.

📊 Ratings and Divisions

In roundnet, there are ratings that describe your skill level and determine which division you will play in at tournaments. You can enter yourself in any level you want up until Premier, where you have to qualify. 

• 1.0: Recreational. Play for a good time, no need for a lot of space. Will probably be on the beach with a beer in hand. 

• 2.0: Beginner. Have a basic knowledge of 360 degree play. Can move around the net effectively. 

• 3.0: Intermediate. You can use your non-dominant hand, you understand positioning, and consistently beat beginners. 

• 4.0: Advanced. Multiple serves in your bag, return long hits to the net, can put points away effectively.

• 4.5: Contender. You’re really good, just not ready to play with the big boys or girls. 

• 5.0: Premier. Change type of hit mid-rally, body block with control, you post on social media about playing roundnet.

• 6.0 (often referred to as 5.0+): Pro. Masterful control of the ball, game, and strategies. 

Qualifications

In order to become a premier player you must win a sanctioned tournament in the Contender Division (4.5). Once you attain that qualification, you keep it for a calendar year and can play in as many Premier tournaments as you please (every tournament has unlimited spots for the Premier Division).

Men’s Pro Division: “The top 3 teams at each Major will receive an auto-bid for the Pro Division [at The Championship]. The rest of the spots are given to teams based on the sum of top 3 team points from the 2023 season.”

Women’s Pro Division: “12-team division at the Championship. The top 2 teams at each Major will receive an auto bid for the Pro Division. The rest of the spots are given to teams based on the sum of top 3 team points from the 2023 season.”

The points breakdown is as follows:

🤑 Prize Money (as of the 2023 season)

There’s not an insane amount of money for roundnet… yet.

Here’s the purse breakdown:

Summary

The STS works a lot like other professional tours at a smaller scale. There’s smaller tournaments every week (Challengers) to allow players to qualify for bigger tournaments (Majors), which all lead to the big finale for all the marbles (The Championship).