Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By creating an account or using Paddle Country Club, you agree to these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, please do not use the platform.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old to use Paddle Country Club. By using the platform, you represent that you meet this requirement.

3. Membership & Billing

Paddle Country Club offers a free tier and a paid Member tier. Paid memberships are billed monthly or annually via Stripe. You may cancel at any time; access continues until the end of the billing period. No refunds are issued for partial periods.

A 14-day free trial is offered on your first paid subscription. After the trial, your selected billing cycle begins automatically.

3a. Tournament Entries & Prize Money

Tournament entry fees are collected by Paddle Country Club on behalf of the tournament host. A pending checkout holds your spot for 30 minutes; if payment is not completed in that time the spot is released. If you withdraw before the organizer's refund window closes (shown on the tournament page), your entry fee is refunded automatically; the 10% Paddle Country Club service fee is non-refundable. After the window closes, refunds are at the organizer's discretion. If the organizer cancels the tournament, every paid entry is refunded in full.

Prize money is distributed by the host after the tournament is marked complete. Payouts are made only to players who have connected a Stripe account with payouts enabled; a team's share is divided among its eligible players. Paddle Country Club does not guarantee prize amounts, which are set and funded by the host.

4. Platform Fee on Paid Events

Paddle Country Club charges a 10% platform fee on all paid event entry fees collected through the platform, capped at a maximum of $15.00 per entry. This fee is deducted from event proceeds before payout. By hosting a paid event, you acknowledge and accept this fee structure.

5. User Conduct

You agree not to use Paddle Country Club to harass, threaten, or harm other users; post false or misleading information; commit fraud or misrepresent your identity or DUPR rating; or engage in any unlawful activity.

Paddle Country Club reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms.

6. User-Generated Content (UGC)

Users may post content including text, images, and game-related posts ("User Content"). You retain ownership of your User Content, but by posting, you grant Paddle Country Club a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to display, distribute, and promote that content within the platform.

You are solely responsible for the content you post. Paddle Country Club is not responsible for any User Content and does not endorse any user's opinions, statements, or materials.

Prohibited content includes, but is not limited to: content that is defamatory, obscene, threatening, harassing, or illegal; content that infringes any third-party intellectual property rights; spam or false event listings; or impersonation of any person or entity.

Takedown Policy. Paddle Country Club complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe content on the platform infringes your copyright or violates these terms, you may report it using the in-app report feature or by emailing legal@paddlecountryclub.com. We will review all valid reports and remove content that violates these Terms within a reasonable timeframe. Repeat infringers will have their accounts terminated.

7. Events & Commitments

Players who commit to a game or event are expected to attend or cancel with reasonable notice. Repeated no-shows may negatively affect your reliability score. Paddle Country Club is not responsible for disputes between players or event hosts.

8. DUPR Ratings

Paddle Country Club integrates with DUPR for player rating verification. We do not control or guarantee the accuracy of DUPR data. Any misrepresentation of your DUPR rating may result in account suspension.

9. Limitation of Liability

Paddle Country Club is provided "as is." We are not liable for injuries, disputes, or losses arising from participation in events or games organized through the platform. Players participate at their own risk.

10. Binding Arbitration & Class Action Waiver

PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY. IT AFFECTS YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS.

You and Paddle Country Club agree that any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the use of the platform ("Dispute") will be resolved exclusively by binding individual arbitration, and not in a class, representative, or consolidated action or proceeding.

Arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, administered by the American Arbitration Association. The arbitration will take place in the county of your residence, or by telephone or video conference. The arbitrator's decision will be final and binding, and judgment may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Class Action Waiver. You and Paddle Country Club each waive the right to a trial by jury and to participate in a class action, collective action, or representative proceeding. The arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person's claims.

Exceptions. Either party may bring an individual action in small claims court. Either party may seek emergency injunctive relief from a court to prevent irreparable harm pending arbitration.

Opt-Out. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement within 30 days of first accepting these Terms by emailing legal@paddlecountryclub.com with the subject line "Arbitration Opt-Out" and your account email. Please be aware that opting out of arbitration will result in the immediate termination of your access to Paddle Country Club and all content, features, and services within the platform. Your account will be deactivated upon confirmation of your opt-out request. If you opt out, any remaining disputes will be resolved in the courts of the State of Virginia.

11. Privacy & California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)

We are committed to protecting your personal information. Regardless of where you reside, Paddle Country Club honors the following privacy rights for all users:

• Know — You have the right to know what personal information we collect and why we collect it.
• Access — You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct — You may request correction of inaccurate personal information.
• Delete — You may request deletion of your account and associated personal data.
• Opt Out of Sale/Sharing — We do not sell or share your personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. You may request written confirmation at any time.
• Limit Sensitive Data Use — You may request that we limit the use of sensitive personal information (e.g., location data, payment data) to only what is necessary to provide the service.
• Non-Discrimination — We will never deny you service, charge a different price, or provide a lower quality of service because you exercised any of these privacy rights.

To exercise any of these rights, email legal@paddlecountryclub.com with the subject line describing your request (e.g., "Data Access Request" or "Delete My Account"). We will respond within 45 days and will verify your identity before processing sensitive requests. Full details are in our Privacy Policy.

12. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Virginia, without regard to its conflict of law provisions, except as modified by the arbitration agreement above.

13. Changes to Terms

We may update these terms from time to time. Continued use of Paddle Country Club after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated terms.

14. Contact

For legal matters: legal@paddlecountryclub.com
For general support: support@paddlecountryclub.com