Tennis League Rules And Considerations

1. Match Scheduling & Location

Mutual Responsibility: Both players are equally responsible for contacting each other to agree upon the date, time, and location of the match.
Court Fees: A player hosting at a club court may request their opponent pay half (1/2) of the guest fee, provided this is agreed upon beforehand. If the opponent does not agree, the players must find an alternate location.

2. Equipment and Balls

New Balls: Both players must bring a new can of approved tennis balls (Penn or Wilson, Extra Duty).
Ball Protocol: The player hosting at their home court opens their can. The match winner receives the unopened can; the match loser takes the balls used during the match.
Penalty for No Balls: If you fail to bring a can of balls and lose the match, you must pay your opponent $5.00.

3. Contact & Communication

Website Message Center: Use the League’s Message Center to send messages to other players. Messages are received in the recipient’s personal email.
Replying to Messages: Do not reply directly from your personal email. You must use the link provided in the email, which redirects you back through the Message Center. This ensures privacy by keeping personal email addresses protected.
Recommended: Players are encouraged to mutually exchange personal contact information (cell phone, etc.) to minimize scheduling issues.

4. Match Formats & Scoring

The default format is best of three sets, traditional scoring:
Sets 1 & 2: Traditional scoring (first to 6 games). At 6 games all, play a standard 7-point tiebreaker (must win by 2 points).
Set 3 (Deciding Set) – Play a 10-point Super-tiebreaker (first to 10 points, must win by 2 points).
Full 3rd Set: Players may mutually agree to play a full, traditional 3rd set instead of the Super-tiebreaker.
Match Shortening Options: (Must be Mutually Agreed Upon)

If time is limited (e.g., a one-hour court reservation), players can mutually agree to use one of the following formats:

Pro-set : One single set. First to 8 games wins. At 7 games all, play a 7 or 10-point Super-tiebreaker.

Fast 4 Sets: Best of 3 sets, first to 4 games. At 3 games all, play a 5-point tiebreaker (sudden death at 4-4, receiver chooses side). Option: Use no-ad scoring during game play (receiver chooses side at deuce). Play a 7 or 10-point Super-tiebreaker if tied after 2 sets.

Timed Match: Play for a fixed duration (e.g., 1 hour). When time is up, winner is the player with the most games won. If tied, a 7-point tiebreak is played.

5. Posting Scores

Winner’s Responsibility: Only the winner posts League match scores on their Member’s Page.

Corrections: Scores can be edited or deleted using the “Manage Scores” function after submission.

6. Defaults, Forfeits, and Retirements

Forfeits/Defaults: A player has the option to take a forfeit/default win if their opponent:

Is a no-show for the scheduled match.

Is more than 15 minutes late.

Fails to give 4 hours notice for a match cancellation.

Posting Default Win: The player taking the default posts the score as: “Set 1: 1 – 0”.

Standings Impact: A forfeit/default win does not count toward the winner’s playoff qualifying
record. It is counted as a loss for the player who defaulted, which may impact their playoff
standing.

Repeated Offenses: Repeated offenses may result in removal from the League without a
refund.

Retirement (Stopping Mid-Match)

Scenario: If a player has to stop play before the match is completed (due to injury or other
reason), that player is defaulted. The other player will take the win, irrespective of the score.

Posting: The winner posts the score as is (e.g., 6-3, 4-6, 1-3). The incomplete final set score
indicates a retirement occurred.

Standings Impact: A retirement win counts in the player’s record and toward the playoffs, provided more than one full set was completed.

Rescheduling: Players may mutually agree beforehand to reschedule an incomplete match to either replay it or finish it later. They can also agree to award the match to the player who won the most total games at the time of stopping.

7. Court Etiquette and Conduct

Line Calls: Call only balls on your side of the court. Give your opponent the benefit of the doubt if you are not 100% sure.

Disputed Calls: Players may mutually agree to “Play two (balls)”,meaning the point is replayed if a disputed call cannot be resolved amicably.

Coaching & Guests: Coaching is not allowed. Guests and spectators must remain quietly outside the court area and must not disrupt play with noise or cheering.

8. Sportsmanship and Removal

Good sportsmanship is mandatory. Tennis should be fun.

Complaint Policy: A member may be subject to removal from the League (with no refund) if the Director receives 3 complaints in a season regarding poor sportsmanship (e.g., chronic bad line calls). The offending player will be warned after the 2nd complaint.

Egregious Conduct: Immediate suspension or removal may occur for egregious displays of poor sportsmanship (e.g., ongoing foul language, abusive behavior toward opponents, threatening action, or behavior resulting in a complaint from a club’s management).

League Right: The League reserves the right to refuse membership to any player with a history of poor sportsmanship.

9. Season, Division Management & UTR

Match Limits: A maximum of 2 wins against the same player are permitted per season (excluding playoffs). (Exception: 3.6 Division may take a maximum of 3 wins vs the same player.)

Withdrawal: A player who withdraws must inform the administrator to be removed from the active roster. No refunds will be given for withdrawal (due to time/expense of registration setup).

Unauthorized Moves: Established players may not move to another division without League approval. Match results, not preference, must dictate any move.

Division Changes: Players may be moved up or down divisions after three matches based on performance. As a guideline, a 80% game-win/loss percentage often indicates a division change is appropriate.

Universal Tennis Ratings (UTR): TLSD members receive verified match credit towards these ratings from playing League matches. We also use UTR to help vet members’ correct choice of Division. For that purpose, the following guidelines have been established.

TLSD Divisions & UTR Correlation Guide

TLSD 3.6 = UTR 2 – 3.5

TLSD 4.0 = UTR 3.5 – 4.75

TLSD 4.5 = UTR 4.75 – 6.0

TLSD 5.0 = UTR 6.0+

10. Playoff Tournament

Qualification: The Top 8 players in each division qualify for the single-elimination tournament at the end of the season. This is contingent on them meeting Playoff Availability(below).

Seeding Rationale (Top 8):

Highest number of wins.

If wins are equal, the player with more matches played will generally seed higher
(e.g., 5-3 trumps 5-0). This holds true until losses are equal to, or one below a
player’s win total (e.g. 5-5, 5-4).

Ties in W/L record are broken by: 1) Highest percentage of games won, 2) Head-to-
head results, 3) Results over common opponents.

Home Court: Higher-seeded players receive home court selection.

Playoff Availability & Deadlines:

Commitment: Qualifiers must assume they will advance and be available for the entire 3-week playoff schedule. If you are unavailable, notify the Director before the qualifying deadline to decline your slot.

Scheduling: Each of the 3 rounds (Quarters, Semis, Finals) has a one-week window.

Mandatory “Fail-Safe”: If players cannot agree on a match time, the mandatory default times usually Sundays at 2 PM for each round. All qualifiers must commit to being available for the Fail-Safe time.

Extensions & Defaults: Failure to play by the deadline without securing a prior extension request from the Director will result in a default loss. Note that deadline extensions are rare due to the playoff’s tight scheduling windows. Director’s decision on scheduling conflicts is final.

11. Disputes and Final Authority

Member Resolution: Members are strongly encouraged to resolve all disputes (especially those involving potential defaults) between themselves first.

Director Involvement: The League Director should only become involved if an honest effort at resolution fails. The Director’s decision in mediating disputes is final.

Failure to Comply: Failure to follow the Director’s decision may result in removal from the League, with no refund issued.

Enjoy the tennis – Tennis League San Diego