Explore
Explore is where you find events and leagues you haven't joined yet.
What you'll see
Competitions near you that you're eligible for and allowed to see. Two separate filters are working:
Privacy — an event set to Invite Only or Private won't appear unless you qualify. See Joining an Event or League.
Skill range — organizers can restrict registration to a PaddleRank range. If your rating is outside the range, you won't see the event at all.
That second one surprises people. An empty Explore doesn't necessarily mean nothing is happening nearby — it can mean the events happening are outside your tier or set to a privacy level you don't qualify for.
Reading a listing
Before registering, check:
Type — event or league. A league is a season-long commitment, not an afternoon. See Events & Leagues.
Format — single elimination, round robin, pool play with bracket, or king of the court. This determines how many games you're likely to get. See Tournament Formats.
Play style — singles or doubles.
Game rules — game point, win condition, and scoring style, set by the organizer and applied to every match.
Skill level — shown as a tier range like Rally Rookie – Smash Spark, or Open if unrestricted.
Gender category — Open, Men, or Women.
Picking a first one
Round robin if you want to actually play. Most guaranteed games, and one bad match doesn't end your day.
Avoid single elimination for a first event unless you don't mind the possibility of one game and out.
Open skill level is the better learning experience. You'll meet higher-tier opponents, and beating one is the largest opponent bonus available — while losing costs nothing.
Event before league. An event ends the same day. A league is a season.
If nothing's near you
Two options.
Widen what you'll accept — a format you hadn't considered, or a venue slightly further out.
Create one. Hosting casual pickup events is free on Rookie. It's often faster to organize the people you already play with than to wait for something to appear. See Creating & Organizing.