Rules and Regulations
1a) Competitive Format (2 out of 3 sets)
TennisRichmond uses the best two out of three 6-game pro sets with ads. If a set goes to
6-6 a first to 7-point tiebreaker should be used to determine the winner of the set. The
tiebreaker format should be used for all three sets.
1b) 2 sets with 3rd set tie-breaker
If the match is
tied at 1 set a piece and the match is running too long, the players
can agree to play a 10-point super tie-breaker to decide the match.
1c) 10 game pro set
If the players agree before the
match or you are limited to 1-hour of court time, a 10-game pro set can be used with ads.
This means the first to win 10 games. But, if the match is ended because of a time restriction
than the score at the conclusion is the score for the match. At 9-9, a best to 7-point tiebreaker
will be used to determine the winner.
For any match to count in the standings at least 1 6-game pro set will have needed to be completed.
2) Tennis Balls
Each player is required to bring a new can of tennis balls to
every match. The winning player will take home the un-opened can.
The other player can take home the used balls. Players not following this rule will receive a playing strike towards the 3 strike policy.
3) Honor System
Line calls must be made without delay by the
side playing the ball; otherwise, the ball shall be presumed to have
been good. In general, no ball can be called out upon
less than 100% certainty. The best approach on a call that both players
disagree on is to replay the point.
4) Changing court ends
Participants must change court ends after odd number of games
have been played.
5) Choosing court location
The league wants players to chose a location to play that is convenient for both players. The league does provide a schedule with a player defined as a home court player, that is just a guideline. The first choice should be a location that works for both players.
6) Abiding by the rules of the court at which you are playing. Added 8/18/09
Players need to follow the rules of the courts they are playing at. Participating in a TennisRichmond matchup doesn't give you privileges to break the rules of the local court.
If we receive word that players are improperly using the TennisRichmond name in such cases it will lead to immediate removal from the league.
7) Reporting Scores
All scores shall be reported by the winning player using the
website developed for the league. If an issue shall arise reporting
the score please send an email to
TennisRichmond1@gmail.com.
8) We now allow players to record 2 wins in a season against an opponent. Updated 9/7/11
We now allow players to play a 3rd match against each other if the first
2 match results are split between the players. We will be checking for a 3rd win against an opponent
and not allow it to be recorded. We still want players to meet up with as many
new partners as they possibly can during the regular season.
Old rule:The league allows players to play a rematch per
opponent per season. We will be checking for a 3rd score and not
allowing it to be recorded. The philosophy is that the regular
season is all about playing and the playoffs are where champions are
determined. This will hopefully make getting to 5 wins a little
easier for some players. We still want players to meet up with as many
new partners as they possibly can during the regular season.
9) Qualifying for the Playoffs
A player who gets X wins or the win criteria defined by the league during the season will qualify
for the playoffs. With X being the win total on the division report. It is usually 5 wins for Male Divisions and 4 wins for Female Divisions.
No-show wins will count towards the 5 wins to qualify
for the playoffs. Qualifiers will be bracketed against the other
qualifiers in the from the same level.
Players need to be around for the first 2 weeks of the playoffs to qualify for the playoffs.
10)
Playoff Positioning, Tie-Breakers
Regular season ties are broken by this order:
1) Overall Record, based on
matches over .500. So 6-1 is 5 matches, 8-2 is 6 matches and would be
better.
2) In Season Head-to-Head record for
players tied at #1
3) We want to promote players
playing matches, so 6-1 would be better than 5-0.
4) Percentage of games won
11) Home Court for Playoff matches
Higher seeded player gets home
court during playoffs. But, just like the regular season we want players to chose a location that works for both participants
12) Player Disqualification
Based on complaints to the organization,
reserves the right to:
1) Place any player who has violated the standards of good conduct,
abuse of tennis club cancellation policy, abuse of league
administrators, fair play and/or good
sportsmanship on probation for an indefinite period. League fee will
not be reimbursement in such player disqualifications.
2) Ban any player from the league indefinitely.
13) Canceling a scheduled tennis match
A participant is required to make phone calls and send emails to cancel a tennis match. The league is not responsible to cancel matches for players. If the player doesn't try all forms of communication to cancel a match a strike will be applied to the offending player.
14) Withdrawals from league
A participant who withdraws from the league due to injury or
time constraints is required to make the administrator aware of the
withdrawal. This player will either be removed from the website or receive the '**' Out for the Season flag. The player will not be reimbursed the league fee.
15)
Guidelines
TennisRichmond needs to set up guidelines to get matches in.
This will make sure players aren't over-whelming other players in
the divisions with requests to play.
16) Lack of Payment rule
No player shall receive the
contact information of other opponents in his/her projected league
until they have made payment to the administrator.
If a player has started in a league w/o payment, TennisRichmond reserves the right to replace that player at anytime with
a player who has paid League fees.
17) Match Play Official Defaults
An opponent subject to any of these violations must be found in
default.
1) 30-Minute Late Rule without notification: Failure to appear on
the court within 30 minutes of the starting time without
notification.
2) Injury or Walk-off: Matches not completed due to an opponent's injury
or quitting before match completion shall award the
win to the remaining or non-injured player. Final score will be the
final score before the injury or walk-off.
The league does not give default wins for a match where two players just couldn't get on the courts and play.
18) Non-playing rule
TennisRichmond reserves the right to remove a player if they haven't played a match by the first deadline date in the season's schedule.
If a player hasn't played 3 matches by the 2nd deadline date, the league reserves the right to remove the player from the contact list.
The finals match needs to be played within 1 month of the last semi-finals match for the free season to be awarded.
If a player defaults after 1 month the free season will not be rewarded.
19) No-shows and Late cancellations, 3-strike policy, updated 8/18/09
Late cancellations within 1 to 4 hrs: If a player cancels a match within 1 to 4 hours of when it is suppose to be play, 1 strike will be recorded against this player.
Only exempt reason is rain/wet playing surface.
Late cancellation within 1 hour of the match: Players now get a 0-0 win for the non-offending player and 1 strike will be recorded to the player canceling within the 1 hour time period.
No-show: If a player doesn't show up to a match without trying to call and send an email,
2 strikes will be recorded against the offending player. If the player contests the 2 strikes,
they can appeal and potentially have it decrease to 1 strike. The match will be recorded as a 0-0 win for the non-offending player
and the league suggests the players not reschedule the match.
The player who did not show up for the match needs to reimburse any court fees or parking fees before they will be allowed to continue playing.
A player may receive strikes for poor sportsmanship.
If a player attains 3 strikes in a season, they will be removed from the current season. This player's league fee will not be reimbursed.
20) Court Fees need to be reimbursed upon No-show.
If a player no-shows to a match and a court fee was paid for the court, the player who no-shows needs will be retired from the season until the court cost is reimbursed.
21) Your registration fee does not include the right to play in the playoffs.
The entry fee is for the regular season. The playoffs are for players that qualify and will be around to participate within the deadlines established by the league.
22) To get credit for a
Referral bonus
The proper method to getting
a referral bonus is to have the NEW member go to the join page and
put the referred player in the "How did you find out about
Referral" field. If this doesn't happen upon initially
signing up then a referral bonus can't be credited to the member.
The referred player needs to play a full season without dropping out
due to injury or by the Lack of Participation rule. Doubles
partner don't count towards the referral bonus. No Double discounts are given.
23) 1/3 credit for Season referral, 1/4 credit for Tennis Partner referral
Anybody that refers a friend that joins a league season will get 1/3 off their next season. If they refer a friend
that joins the tennis partner program, they will get a 1/4 off their next season.
24) Gift Card Expirations
Gift Cards issued by Tennis League Network has a 1 year expiration date set.
25)
Purity of Competition Rule
TennisRichmond reserves the right to move a player up or down a
division based on how they performed in the previous season or
during the current season. A player can get promoted to a higher
division by making the finals of their division's playoffs. A player
can also be moved up or down during the season based on how they
have performed after three matches. If a player has averaged a score
of 12-3 for their first 3 matches they will be a candidate for
moving up a division. Inverse is true for a player that has lost
their first 3 matches by an average score of 12-3.
26) League record stays with player throughout the season
If a player is promoted or moved down during the season their record will not be reset. This gives the player the chance to qualify for the new skill levels playoffs.
27) New players and players who haven't played in 3 more years
In the larger cities, new players or players who haven't played in 3 years
ratings will be adjusted down a rating. This
adjustment has proven essential to maintain the proper rating
categories. The league will manage the rating after
several matches and move players up or down based upon the submitted
results.
28)
Money Back Guarantee
The league will offer a "no questions asked" money back guarantee for up to 7 days after the league's start date.
If you signed up for the tennis partner program it would be 1-week from your payment day or start of the program.
If we can't get you at least 6 tennis partners we will also reimburse your money. We
reserve the right to deduct up to $1 to cover transaction reversal fee.
29) 10 for $5 Rule, play 20 and your next season is free Updated 4/29/11
The league is all about players getting out there and playing during the regular season.
So if a player plays 10 matches in a season not including the playoffs, they will get $5 off their next season.
If a player can play 20 matches in a season, once again not including the playoffs, their next season is free. We will now allow for a double discount for players who reached this discount. Updated 4/29/11 No-shows don't count as a match played for this discount.
This discount is reimbursed after purchase of a new season. Players need to send us a reminder email to make sure the discount is applied. This offer is only valid on seasons where players have paid for the season. Only the most recent season is valid for the discount.
30) First 50 Refer a Friend Promotion
Restarted 1/17/11 end 3/30/11, ends when we get 50 qualifiers
Go here for more details.
