Ladder System

In 2014 PUL introduced the ladder system to help improve the quality of games week-over-week by pairing more evenly matched teams. This is a departure from the common standings approach, but it does better re ect current team results. Calculating that rating is based on this:

  1. A team’s percentage chance to win is computed based on the pre- game ratings values. This will determine what percentage of the game’s value the team must contribute. For example, if both teams are evenly matched, they will each contribute 50% of the total. If instead, Team A has a 60% chance of winning, they contribute 60% of the total value.
  2. After the game is complete, the pot value is computed. The pot value is double the winning score plus 10. For a normal game to 15, this would make the pot worth 40 points. For a game that ends in a timecapped win at 12, the pot would be 34 points. A game ending 17-16 after an overtime universe point would be worth 44 points.
  3. Each team’s contribution is calculated by multiplying the pot value by the team’s percentage chance to win. This represents the maximum number of ratings points that team could lose.
  4. The losing team then gains back the number of ratings points equal to their score. In an evenly-matched game ending 15-10, the losing team would gain back 10 points for a total loss of 10.
  5. The winning team then gains the remainder of the pot. So, for example, if their contribution was 20 points, and they won 15-10, they would get a pot of 30, for a net gain of 10. Consider this scenario:
    1. Team A (1500 pts) plays Team B (1300 pts). Based on their relative points, Team A has a 54% chance of winning, Team B has a 46% chance.
    2. They play and Team A wins 13-9.
    3. Pot value is the winning score (13) x2 +10. Team A contributes 19 pts and Team B contributes 17 to the pot. Team A now has 1481 and Team B now has 1283 points.
    4. Team B gets back as many points as they score – in this case 9. Team A gets the rest – in this case 27.
    5. For the next week Team A has 1508 pts and Team B has 1292 pts.