Skill Levels (2024)

"Rec" Level (sometimes referred to asPicnic Volleyball)
"Recreational" players are pretty muchbeginners. There's nothing the matter with it, as everybody starts at this level! Recreational players oftenare notvery familiar with the basics of volleyball, or have not spent much time honing their skills. Recreational players will bejust learning the fundamentalsof the bump, set, and spike. Rec players have a great time meeting folks and making friends, while they enjoy the game under significantly loosened rules.In some sports, Rec is "D" level. Until I can see a discernible difference between Rec "D" Beginners and what may be labeled "C" Level,anything below the "B" Intermediate Level at Alpharetta Beachwill be considered Rec.

"B" Level is Intermediate
"B" players are still in the learning stages, but have had much more time in the game and have thus becomea bitmore familiar withthe individual skill setsused in the game. "B" players are beginning to get comfortablewith thebump, set, and spike, and are trying to use 3 hits more often, but have a good bit of time and practice yet in order to play the game skillfully. "B" players make a good bit of mistakes, but they can often see where they want their skills to be, and are working towards that place. B players are getting a bit of consistency with their touches, but have not yet gained the ability to make consistent shots or clean contacts like BB players can. B players often welcome advice from more skilled players, so don't be afraid to ask for tips from better players.

"BB" Level is High-Intermediate
"BB" players know where to be on the court at all times, and are consistent with their contacts most of the time. BB players generally know where to be defensively most of the time, and are can see open spots to allow their hits and shots to be more effective to earn points offensively. While some BB players still can work their way to becoming A or better, many BB players have hit their ceiling for development due to individual abilities. Those BB players that want to grow their skills should always feel comfortable to ask more skilled players. It's amazing how for example you can have 25 folks explainhow to set,but the way the 26thperson explains it is the magic key that changes your setting skillsforever. Keep asking.

"A" Level is Competitive
"A" players know all the skills extremely well, but still often do not always execute the super-high level plays extremely effectively. "A" players will periodically have nearly fault free games, but generally make a few less than perfect or less than effective plays each game that should have been done better. "A" players are also often limited by their own physical characteristics, that prevent them from ever getting muchbetter. For this reason, "A" level is often the best a player will ever get. While some "A" players will ask for advice, often they don't want to hear or take advice as much, because they'refull of themselvesand think they know everything. For that reason, please don't tell me what to do- haha.

"Open Level Men" should not join A level leagues. If you have signed up for Open Level beach tournaments or leagues in the past few years, you are only allowed to play in Open level events (described below).

"Open" meansAdvanced Players
This is about as good as it gets in Atlanta, though there are a couple folks that have greater potential."Open" Players usually keep to themselves and set up private gatherings to play, so they can best regulate their competition. Totally valid, so don't put a hex on 'em. Instead look for opportunities to watch them play.
I'd be glad torun some Open events here at Alpharetta Beach, but you Open players are very limited in numbers. If you are Open, I hope you'll reach out to me if you're interested in having activities here, so we can work a bit off your other Open Player connections to fill anyevents Alpharetta Beachmay host for you.

Not sure where you fit in? Feel free to give me a call, and I'll see if I can define you over the phone, or get you out here for a few minutesto show me what you'rebringing.