Your first pickleball session is done. Players showed up, had a good time, and a few of them are already asking about next week. That's the signal.
One-off sessions are a great way to get started, but weekly sessions are where real community forms. The same players show up every week, get comfortable with each other, and start bringing friends. A few months in, you're not organizing a session anymore — you're running the group.
This guide walks you through the full setup: recurring schedule, automatic invites, and deciding if a league or ladder is the right next step.
Set up your recurring session
The Repeat Weekly feature handles the scheduling so sessions generate and invites go out automatically every week. You configure it once and let it run.
💡 Good to know: Weekly Sessions is a Pro feature. If you're on a free account, you can still create your weekly sessions manually. See what's included with Pro →
1. Create your Weekly Sessions
If you already have an existing session that you want to repeat weekly: Edit the session and toggle Repeat Weekly on.
If you're starting fresh rather than converting an existing session: Create a new session by selecting the Weekly Game option.
This tells the system to generate this session on a repeating schedule and send invites automatically, instead of treating it as a one-time event.
2. Set your schedule
Choose the day(s) of the week and the time window for each session, then set your start date — the date your first recurring session will take place.
Add an end date if you're running a defined season (eight weeks through the end of summer, for example). Leave it open and the series runs indefinitely.
3. Set your invite timing
Choose how many days before each session invites go out and when the signup window opens. Most organizers set this to 4–5 days out — enough time for players to plan, not so far ahead that they forget.
Once this is configured, you don't have to touch it again. Players get notified each week, the roster fills, and you show up to play.
4. Decide whether to auto-add yourself as a player
Toggle whether you're added automatically to each session as a player, or whether you'll join manually on the weeks you plan to play. If you're running the session but not always on the court, turn this off.
💡 Not ready for full automation? If you want to quickly recreate last week's session without setting up a recurring series, use the Duplicate option from your session page. It copies all your settings — location, format, player limit, description — and lets you update the date before you publish. One session copied and live in about 30 seconds. Duplicate is also a Pro feature. Once you're ready for the full recurring setup, come back and run through steps 1–4 above.
Invite your players
For a recurring session, the goal is to get the right players into the session every week with as little back-and-forth as possible. Here's the approach that works best, from the simplest starting point to the most automated setup.
Start with your session link
Every session has a shareable link. Paste it in your text thread, WhatsApp group, or GroupMe, and players can sign up directly — even if they don't have a Pickleheads account yet.
On mobile: open the session, tap Invite, and choose Text an invite link to your friends. On web: open the session and copy the invite link from the invite options.
This works immediately, no setup required, and it's the right starting point if your group isn't fully on Pickleheads yet.
Level up with a list
Once you've got a regular crew, a list is a more efficient way to invite them. A list is a private, organizer-only tool — only you can see it, and players aren't notified when you add them. Build it once from your regulars, and you can invite the whole group in a few taps.
When you create your session and reach the invite screen, tap Invite lists, select your list, and turn on the Invite every week toggle. Hit Save, and every future session in the series will automatically invite that list — you only have to do this once.
💡 Good to know: Lists are also useful for sub pools — keep a separate list of last-minute fill-ins so you can fill open spots fast without texting around.
Automate it with a group
A group is a shared community page with members, group chat, and admin controls. The invite flow works the same way as a list: when you reach the invite screen, tap Invite groups, select your group, and turn on Invite every week. You can invite everyone at once or filter to a specific skill range if the session is level-restricted.
💡 Good to know: Inviting a group to a session is separate from having the session appear on your group's page. If you want the session listed there and want co-admins to help run it, add the group as a co-host in the session settings as well.
Want the full picture? Groups, lists, individual invites, and more — all covered here:
Want standings to roll up? Try a league or ladder
If your group keeps coming back week after week and players start caring about how they're stacking up against each other, a league or ladder might be the right next move.
Weekly sessions track who showed up and who won. A league or ladder does that and rolls the results into standings that update over time — so players can see where they rank, who they've played, and how they're improving.
A league works well for a defined season: a set number of weeks, points that accumulate, and clear standings at the end.
A ladder works well for something ongoing with no end date. Players move up or down based on results, the standings are always live, and a player can skip a week without disrupting the group.
You can link your existing weekly sessions directly to a league or ladder, so the sessions you're already running feed the standings automatically.
💡 Good to know: Leagues and ladders are available with a Pickleheads Ultra subscription or by Plus-powering.
You've got the session. You've got the players. Get Repeat Weekly configured and your invites set up, and let it run.
You're good to go.
