# Seed the first-round pairing

You seed a contest bracket when the field is not even and you still want a fair first round. Knockdesk is field sales software that runs Bracket as single-elimination matchups. Each round is a head-to-head on the metric for that round's own dates. The end date follows the start plus rounds times days.

## How the first pairing is built

Generate writes the first-round slots. Adjacent pairs neighbors. High vs low pairs the top seed with the last. Split halves pairs each top-half seed with its bottom-half twin. Random shuffle labels slots as draws, not seeds. Refresh reloads the board. You can generate again before you advance if the pairing is still wrong.

| Round-one pairing | First-round pairs |
| --- | --- |
| Adjacent | 1st vs 2nd, 3rd vs 4th |
| High vs low | 1st vs last, then the next pair inward |
| Split halves | Top half vs bottom half, in seed order |
| Random shuffle | Draw slots, then neighbors after the shuffle |

## Keep going from here

- [Knockdesk help center](/help): The rest of the task list on this desk.

- [Sales gamification](/features/sales-gamification): The score beside the bracket.

- [Create a contest](/help/create-a-contest): Start a game, save the draft, then make it live.

- [Knockdesk pricing](/pricing): Full desk is the only plan on this desk.

## FAQ

### What sizes can a bracket be?

4, 8, 16, or 32 reps. The number of rounds is the power of two that fits that size.

### When should I generate the bracket?

After enrollment is closed and the field is full. Generate writes the first-round slots.

### Does each round reuse the whole-game total?

No. Each matchup only counts the metric inside its own round window.

### What does Advance round do?

It moves winners into the next round after that window ends. Later slots read Winner of the prior match.

### What if the field is not even?

Pick a pairing that fits the seeds you have, then Generate. High vs low keeps the strongest away from each other in round one.