Yeah I see I used the word 'competition' where I shoulda used 'league', I guess. Anyway, like I mentioned here:
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=5938593&postcount=2951 we don't have a handicap system, we always play on 9ft tables and besides 8 and 9 we also play 10ball, straight pool and 10ball scotch doubles.
The leagues are organized in districts and divisions.
Districts cover a smaller area (so closer to home). Levels are a bit lower. Played in the evenings on week days.
Divisions cover a bigger area of Holland (higher division = bigger area), played during weekends and play level increases with each higher divisions too. The highest division has players like Niels Feijen, Marco Teutscher, Nick vd Berg etc.