In rally scoring, the team that wins a rally scores a point, whether it served or received. The score is called as two numbers, doubles has no second server, and the game is won by 2 points, with the last point scored on your own serve. It is an option some events use, so it sits beside the other formats guides rather than replacing the usual game.
Who scores a point in rally scoring?
Whoever wins the rally. The rule pages say a point goes to the serving side or the receiving side after every rally. Nothing is wasted. A rally never ends with "no point" except in one case at game point, covered below.
Rally scoring is an approved option for tournament play, not the standard game. Canadian rules list it as an option for singles and round robin doubles. If you are not sure which scoring an event uses, ask before the first serve.
How is it different from side-out scoring?
In side-out scoring only the serving team can score. In rally scoring both teams can. That one change removes a few things from the game, and the call gets shorter.
| Side-out scoring | Rally scoring | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can score | Serving team only | Winner of every rally |
| Score call | Three numbers, with server number | Two numbers |
| Servers per turn (doubles) | Two, except at the start | One |
| Receiver wins a rally | Gets the serve | Gets a point and the serve |
If you know the usual game, how to keep score in doubles shows what you can drop. There is no server 1 or server 2, and no 0-0-2 start.
Who serves, and where do they stand?
There is no second server. In doubles, each team serves until it loses a rally, and then it is a side out.
Position still follows the score:
- The server stands in the right court when the team's score is even and in the left court when it is odd.
- When the serving team wins a rally, the server and partner swap sides, as in the usual game.
- After a side out, the serve always starts from the right court.
The last point is the one people forget. For the side-out version of the same question, see who serves first after a side out.
What happens at game point?
You have to win by 2, and the game-winning point has to be scored on your own serve. That is where rally scoring departs from "every rally scores".
Take a game to 21. Your team is serving at 19-20, and the other team wins the rally. They are at game point but were not serving, so no point is awarded. It is a side out, and they serve next at 20-19. Had your team won that rally, you would have tied it at 20-20.
The reverse is simple. If you serve at 20-19 and win the rally, the game ends 21-19.
The target score varies by event. The rule pages use 15 in some examples and 21 in others, and games can run past the target until someone is ahead by 2. Rally scoring has no freeze: you do not switch to side-out scoring near the end. The rulebook treats rally scoring as an option, so check the event's posted format.
What does a few rallies look like?
Say the game is to 21 and Team A is serving at 14-13. Team B wins the rally. Team B scores, so it is 14-14, a side out happens, and Team B serves next from the right court. Its partners do not stay put: they switch positions to match the new score.
Now Team B wins the next rally on its own serve. It leads 15-14, and the server and partner swap sides again. Every rally moved the score by one.
Count the serves and you will see the pattern. The serve changes hands only when the serving team loses a rally. The point goes to the rally winner either way, except at game point.
What about singles?
Singles uses the same idea with one player per side. A point goes to the rally winner, the server stands in the right court at an even score and the left court at an odd score, and the server switches sides after winning a rally. When the server loses a rally, the opponent gets a side out. Games are won by 2, and a player at game point who did not serve gets the serve rather than the point. The game-winning point must be won by the server, the same as in doubles.
How is the score called?
Two numbers: the server's score, then the receiver's score. "Seven, five" means the serving team has 7 and the receiving team has 5. You do not add a server number, because there is only one server per turn.
How do you keep rally score with Pickle Call?
Pickle Call is built around one tap per rally, which suits rally scoring well, because every rally changes the score. It keeps the call and the serving side for you, supports side-out and rally scoring, and plays to 11, 15 or 21 in best of 1, 3 or 5. Pickle Call is coming to iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
Bottom line
Rally scoring means every rally is worth a point to the team that wins it, with two-number calls and one server per turn. Win by 2, and win the last point on your own serve. When in doubt about the target, ask the organiser.
Questions
- Is there a second server in rally scoring?
- No. In doubles each team has one server per turn. The team serves until it loses a rally, then it is a side out.
- Can the receiving team win the game?
- Not on a rally they win as receivers. The game-winning point has to be scored on your own serve. Win the rally at game point as the receiver and you get the serve, not the point.
- Do rally scoring games go to 11?
- Not necessarily. The target depends on the event, and the rule pages give examples to 15 and to 21. You still win by 2. Check the format before the first serve.
- How is the score called in rally scoring?
- Two numbers: the server's score, then the receiver's score. There is no server number to call.
