2008 - GSTL RULES
COMBO DOUBLES
(ADULT, SENIOR AND SUPER SENIOR)
THE USTA, THE USTA SOUTHERN SECTION, AND THE USTA SOUTH CAROLINA RULES AND REGULATIONS TAKE PRECEDENCE OVER ALL LOCAL LEAGUE RULES. IF A CONFLICT OCCURS, THE ABOVE WILL OVERRULE THE LOCAL LEAGUE RULES. LOCAL LEAGUE RULES MAY HAVE TO BE CHANGED ANNUALLY WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF LOCAL BOARDS IF STATE, SECTIONAL OR NATIONAL USTA REGULATIONS ARE CHANGED.
CAPTAINS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR KNOWING ALL THE USTA, SOUTHERN, SOUTH CAROLINA, AND GSTL RULES AND REGULATIONS, AND FOR ENCOURAGING TEAM MEMBERS TO FAMILIARIZE THEMSELVES WITH THESE RULES AND REGULATIONS. CAPTAINS SHOULD ENSURE THAT EACH TEAM MEMBER HAS HARD COPY OR INTERNET ACCESS TO THE RULES AND REGULATIONS.
A. FORMAT:
1. Three Combo Doubles Partnerships. Minimum of (6) Players (three positions).
2. The combined ratings of a partnership cannot exceed the level of play.
3. Adult League — 5.0, 5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 8.5, 9.5, and 10.5.
4. Senior League – 5.5, 6.5, 7.5, and 8.5.
5. Individual matches - best 2 of 3 sets with a ten-point match tiebreak in lieu of the third set.
6. TEAMS ARE RESTRICTED TO 12 PLAYERS. (EXCEPTIONS MAY BE APPROVED BY LOCAL LEAGUE COORDINATOR ONLY if all rostered players were members of the host club/facility and the team was not attempting to pull players from other club/facility teams.
Super Seniors Divisions combo team roster have no limits.
B. Eligibility
1. Players must have a current USTA membership through November 2008.
2. Players renewing memberships must do so before being placed on the roster.
3. Adult – Player must reach at least 19 years of age during 2008.
4. Senior – Player must reach at least 50 years of age during 2008.
5. A player may play on multiple Adult and multiple Senior teams in South Carolina as long as they are at different NTRP levels.
6. A player may play on both an Adult and Senior team at the same NTRP level.
7. NO SCHEDULING ACCOMMODATION WILL BE MADE FOR PLAYERS ON MULTIPLE TEAMS.
8. A player may not be dynamically disqualified based on match results
from Southern Combo Doubles and match results are not calculated in
year-end NTRP computer ratings.
9. A Player may not play out of his/her Local League area (as defined by
the player’s primary residence as listed in USTA records) without
approval from the player’s Local League Coordinator and the approval of the
Local League Coordinator in the area the player wishes to play. Each Local
League has the authority to accept or deny participation. The Local Leagues
also have the option of setting rules to govern their own approval process. A
player playing out of his/her Local League Area without obtaining prior
approval will be subject to sanctions, including, at a minimum, defaulting of all
matches played prior to receiving approval as well as possible disqualification
from the league.
10. A player from another state (as defined by the player’s primary residence as listed in USTA records) may not participate in South Carolina without approval by the Local League Coordinator (LLC) representing the area that is affected and the State Mixed Doubles League Coordinator. A player playing out of his/her home state without obtaining prior approval will be subject to sanctions, including, at a minimum, defaulting of all matches played prior to receiving approval. Sanctions may be applied to the team captain as well. A player from another state who previously received approval to play in South Carolina and who has played in South Carolina in every year since that approval was granted, need not reapply for approval to play in 2008 in the same local league and the same division (adult or senior) and same level as in 2007.
11. GSTL area players are not eligible to play in another SC league without GSTL LLC approval. GSTL area players may play in another state without GSTL LLC approval as pre-approval is granted to any GSTL player wishing to play out of state.
C. COMPUTER RATING:
1. A player with a valid computer rating as a result of playing in the Adult, Senior or Mixed USTA League Tennis Program must play at that rating level or higher.
2. Players may appeal their 2007 year-end ratings at any time during the 2008 league
year. USTA will allow one appeal. 2007 National benchmark players cannot
appeal their 2007 year-end ratings except for medical reasons. 2008 Area,
Sectional and National benchmark players cannot appeal their 2008 year end
ratings except for medical reasons. Medical Appeals and appeals to move
down from a self-rating must be submitted in writing, by fax, mail, or email, to
Mary Goins, State League Coordinator. Forms for appeals are available on
www.grandstrandtennis.net. Appeals must be done on an individual basis; no
group appeals will be accepted.
3. Combo season starts before the year-end computer ratings are published, but sectionals are after the ratings are published. A player may play the entire season at the level he/she was at the beginning of the season except as noted in Southern COMBO RULE #5 for players that are moved up 2 levels.
D. SELF-RATING:
1. Self-rate in accordance with the National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP)
Guidelines and complete the self-rating process on TennisLink when
registering for a team. Failure to do so or omission of information regarding
a player’s tennis history will subject the player, the captain and/or others
who condoned inaccurate self-rating to sanctions and disqualifications.
2. Players who submit an appeal to their self-rating through the Tennis Link
system before their local league deadline for registering players will be
permitted to register up to seven days after the notification of final self-
rating.
3. A player who does not have a computer rating, but does have a self-rating
on file in TennisLink, must play at that level and cannot self-rate lower for
COMBO Doubles.
4. Self-Rate Grievances must be filed by October 10, 2008 in order to be acted
on before the championships and any self-rate filed after this date will not be
acted on until after the championships.
E. ROSTERS and FEES:
1. TennisLink is the official system for team registration.
2. Deadline to register a team for Combo Doubles is August 10. Teams may
not be added after deadline. The last day to add additional
players to a roster is September 29, 2008.
3. Fees will be collected (Via credit card) when the captain/player registers on
TennisLink. The cost to play in the GSTL Combo Doubles League is $20.00.
This includes the TennisLink user fee.
4. Once a player is placed on a roster through TennisLink, TennisLink fee and SC Head Taxes will not be refunded.
F. LOCAL PLAY:
1. Each team will play a round robin competition with at least one other team in the same level. Each team in a round robin must play every other team in the round robin at least once and an equal number of times.
2. It may be necessary to divide a level into two or more sub-levels if there are too many teams for a single round robin group. In that case, there will be a local league play-off to determine the GSTL champion and the team(s) to advance to the State Championships.
3. Each team must play at least three matches in local league to qualify for championship play.
4. Winners will be determined based on team matches won or winning percentage of team matches. Procedures for playoffs may vary according to the flight and number of teams. In all cases, ties will be broken in the following order:
a. Winner of most individual matches
b. Loser of fewest sets.
c. Loser of fewest games.
d. Winner of head to head.
e. Toss of coin by the League Coordinator.
5. Home team is responsible for providing courts, paying court fees (if
applicable), and providing new balls.
6. Captains may not reschedule any match except in the event of inclement weather (RAIN, SNOW, and HURRICANE). In EXTREME CIRCUMSTANCES (Family Circle Cup, local tournaments, state or sectional League Championships) both captains may request LLC approval to change a scheduled match or individual positions to an earlier date… Such requests must be submitted via email at least two weeks in advance and the rescheduled match must be made up prior to the regularly scheduled match. Not having your strong players available is not a reason to have a match rescheduled.
IN THE EVENT OF INCLEMENT WEATHER, THE CAPTAIN SHOULD CALL THE CLUB TO ASK ABOUT THE COURTS AND ONLY THE CAPTAIN CAN TELL THEIR PLAYERS THAT A MATCH HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
7. Captains should encourage all players to show up at least 30 minutes prior to the scheduled match time. Captains must exchange lineups not later than 15 minutes prior to the scheduled match time. The 15-minute default rule will apply – unless prior arrangements have been made between captains. Direct substitutions may be made for any player injured or becoming ill during warm-up. A direct substitution may also be made for a no-show. However, the no-show substitution must be made prior to expiration of the 15-minute default period. Captains and players are encouraged to begin the 10-minute warm up at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled match time. If court(s) are not available at the scheduled time, each position will complete the 10-minute warm-up and commence the match as soon as a court(s) become available. Matches/Positions that do not start within 15 minutes of the scheduled start time or within 15 minutes of the time of court availability will be forfeited to the team whose player(s) is at the court ready to begin play. The home team captain and the visiting captain should confer to insure both are in agreement as to the “official” time for beginning the 15-minute default period. Team captains should report any violations of this policy to the Local League Coordinator. Repeat offenders will be reported to the LOCAL LEAGUE COORDINATOR. THE LOCAL LEAGUE COORDINATOR will determine the appropriateness of disciplinary sanctions on the Captain or the team.
8. If a home team has access to more than one court surface, the home captain must call the opposing team to let them know at least 4 days before the scheduled match that they will be using multiple surfaces for their match. Within 2 days of this notice, the visiting team captain must notify the home team of the visitor’s choice of which positions will play on hard surfaces and clay surfaces.
G. SCORECARDS AND LINEUPS:
All scores MUST be recorded on TennisLink by the WINNING team captain, within 24 hours after the last position of each match is finished. The LOSING team captain MUST confirm the match score within 48 Hours after the final position scores are recorded. If the captain fails to confirm the scores, TennisLink will confirm them automatically. ONCE TENNISLINK HAS CONFIRMED THE SCORES, CHANGES MAY NOT BE MADE.
1. LOSING TEAM CAPTAIN MUST CONFIRM THE MATCH NAMES AND SCORES WITHIN 48 HOURS.
2. Line-up/scorecards will be used to exchange line-ups only. Each captain will provide their own line-up scorecard, or portion thereof. Each Captain should keep a copy of final scores to assist in posting or confirming scores on TennisLink. (SUGGESTION: HAVE THE OTHER CAPTAIN CHECK THE SCORES ON YOUR SCORECARD AND SIGN IT SHOWING THEIR AGREEMENT. THIS WILL AVOID WRONG SCORES AND WRONG NAMES BEING PUT IN TENNISLINK.
3. Captains are to exchange line-ups simultaneously. NO CHANGES may be
made after the line-up has been exchanged, except as allowed in the substitution rule. NOTE that after scorecards have been exchanged, if a team receives a forfeit, the receiving team DOES NOT HAVE THE OPTION TO CHANGE THEIR LINE-UP!!
H. FORFEITS:
Forfeits are used for Defaults or for Disqualifications. These two different
forms of forfeit are defined as follows:
1. Forfeit by DEFAULT- when a player fails to appear on time,
2. Forfeit by DISQUALIFICATION- Disqualification occurs when a player is
ineligible to participate for any reason [i.e. under age, not a USTA member,
NTRP disqualification, etc.]
3. SCORING OF FORFEITS: Scores for forfeits are not entered in TennisLInk—the word Default is selected for “status” of match and the team receiving the default shall be awarded the win for the individual match that was forfeited. In the event of forfeit by both teams (double default), neither team will receive credit for the win.
4. Team Forfeits/Default from League:
If a Team forfeits an entire team match (2 positions) THEN THAT TEAM WILL BE DEFAULTED FROM THE LEAGUE. ALL REMAINING MATCHES SCHEDULED FOR THE DEFAULTED TEAM SHALL BE VOIDED AND WILL NOT BE PLAYED! HOWEVER, ALL TEAM POINTS AWARDED TO OPPONENTS FROM PREVIOUS MATCHES PLAYED WILL REMAIN VALID. In this case, the team that has the highest percentage of team Match VICTORIES will be deemed the league winner AT THE end of the season.
5. For a forfeit to count as a win, the player[s] receiving the forfeit must be
present at the match site except in specific cases as stated elsewhere. Players receiving the forfeit must be listed on the line-up and entered in TennisLink. Players giving the forfeit must not be entered in TennisLink.
6. In case of a forfeit, the # 3 doubles positions must be forfeited first.
Forfeits must always be from the bottom up. Please check your USTA regulations for further examples of how to forfeit.
7. In the event line-ups have already been exchanged and a player listed fails to show, that position in which the player was to play, is the position that is forfeited (defaulted). Once exchanged, line-ups may not be rearranged.
8. Two players will play together in the higher position when both of their partners do not show in order to avoid two defaults (as long as combined ratings do not exceed the designated level of play.
9. Points awarded for forfeits during original line-up exchange will stand. All players involved in such forfeit CANNOT participate in the rescheduled match.
DO NOT PUT SOMEONE , IN THE NUMBER ONE OR TWO POSITIONS THAT YOU KNOW IS GOING TO BE LATE OR YOU KNOW WILL NOT SHOW. REPEAT OFFENCES WILL BE GROUNDS FOR A GRIEVANCE TO BE FILED AGAINST THE CAPTAIN BY THE LOCAL LEAGUE COORDINATOR.
I. RETIREMENTS:
A retirement occurs when an individual match has started and a player is
unable to continue due to injury, loss of condition, or emergency. SCORING OF RETIREMENTS: In case of retirement after commencement of match, the non-retiring player[s] shall be credited with such number of additional games as would have been won if the match was completed and the non- retiring player[s] won every subsequent game. Note: for NTRP computer data entry, actual scores are required, (i.e. the winner of the retirement if the match ended at 6-4, 4-3, should be recorded as a retirement at that score.)
J. REPORTING SCORES
All scores must be entered into TennisLink within 24 hours of the match. The WINNING team captain is responsible for entering the scores, and the losing team captain must confirm or dispute the scores within 48 hours. After 48 hours, the scores are automatically confirmed by TennisLink and cannot be disputed later. If a captain disputes the scores in TennisLink, the captain must also notify the League Coordinator right away that there is a disputed score.
K. PROGRESSION TO STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
1. When a Local League does not have the required number of teams (two teams) the state league coordinator, after consultation with affected Local League Coordinators, shall either:
A. Assign the singleton team to another Local League, in which case,
(1) the assigned team will register on TennisLink in the Local (host) League to which it is assigned and pay the fees and abide by the rules of the host league AND
(2) the host league will make the rule regarding travel for matches.
Or
B. Group the singleton team with other singleton teams in the state and schedule a playoff among those teams to determine advancement to the State Championships. The State COMBO Doubles League Coordinator will decide on the date(s), playoff structure, and designate the site and Local (host) League.
C. SHARING OF TRAVEL WILL BE LEFT UP TO THE INDIVIDUAL HOST
TEAMS.
2. A player must play at least one match locally to or receive one default locally to advance to the state championships. A default RECEIVED will qualify for advancement to the championships; A default GIVEN will not qualify. A default will count as a qualifying match for Adult and Senior State Championship, Sectional Championships, and National Championships. Forfeits do not count towards computer ratings.
3. If a player plays on more than one team locally and both qualify for the State Championships, the player may participate in the State Championships on BOTH TEAMS. However, no scheduling accommodation will be made.
4. If a player plays on an Adult team and a Senior team, and both teams qualify for the State Championships, the player may play on both teams during the State Championships; but no scheduling accommodation will be made
5. Teams that withdraw from the USTA SC Championships after the entry fees have been paid by GSTL will be required to reimburse the GSTL if a replacement GSTL team cannot be found. If GSTL has to forfeit entry fees for the withdrawing team, members of the withdrawing team will not be eligible to participate in future league play until the reimbursement to GSTL has been received.
L. COURT PROCEDURES:
1. Players are not allowed a rest period between the first and second game of each set. They must change sides and continue play. Players do not have the option of taking a ten minute break between the second set and the 10-point Match Tiebreak used in lieu of the third set. A two-minute (or 120 second) break may be taken between the second set and the 10-point match tiebreak, the same as between the first and second sets.
2. Spectators may not aid players in making a line call or in determining the score. Spectators may not participate in the match in any fashion, and must refrain from doing so even if asked by the player [s]. Coaching of any player at any time is prohibited.
3. Spectators may quietly watch a match in progress. They should not sit or stand at the end of the court immediately behind the servers or receivers or at the side fence because it is a distraction to the players. It is the responsibility of each team to control the noise and behavior of its spectators, if not, a protest may be filed against the offending team.
4. No line judge or umpire will be provided for matches. Players are urged to call the score after each point to avoid confusion. Total disagreement concerning the score in the game will result in a spin of the racquet if players are unable to go back to a score they both agree on. If a conflict occurs during match play over line calls, the players involved may request that the captain of each team appoint a lines person for the remainder of match.
5. FOOT FAULTS are illegal. Constant and blatant foot faulting gives the server a definite advantage, and should be politely brought to the attention of the server during the match. If it continues, the players involved may request that captains of both teams appoint a line person for the remainder of that match.
6. DISPUTES ON COURT:
A) In matches where there is no umpire, as in GSTL matches, players themselves act as umpires and must see that obvious violations of the rules do not occur. It is imperative that players know the USTA, STA, South Carolina AND GSTL Rule regulations which govern play?
B) Coaches or club pros must refrain from intrusion in discussions between players or captains. it is the responsibility of the two captains, not the pro/coach, to decide on the resolution of the Incident.
C) Disputes should be settled between players before the match is finished. Remember, all points played in good faith stand. It is hoped that the players involved can resolve the dispute by them. If that is not possible, the procedure to follow is:
1) A player should inform the opponent of the problem and his/her intent to leave the court to obtain the assistance of his/her captain. The player should leave their racquet on the court when going for the captain. The captain should contact the opponent’s captain and they should try to resolve the dispute. If the captains are involved in playing a match, the players may have to postpone their play until the captains are available to assist them.
2) If the captains and players cannot agree on a resolution to the conflict, the offended player[s] may:
a) Notify the opponent that due to his/her opinion that a violation of the rules occurred, he/she is going to continue to play but that he/she is playing under protest and intends to file a grievance with GSTL after the match is completed. His /her captain would then record the protest on the line-up/scorecard.
b) Stop play—telling his/her opponent why, and have her captain indicate on the scorecard that the match was stopped in protest. The exact place and score of the match when play stopped must be recorded and signed by both captains.
c) The captain or designated captain at the match has 24 hours in which to register a complaint with the COMBO LLC, Marilyn Grigas, or the LLC, Susie Honeycutt. This initial report may be done by phone but must be followed up within one week with a written grievance. Failure to comply with the 24-hour rule renders the grievance invalid. If the team captain chooses to file a formal grievance, the captain must submit the grievance to the LLC on the USTA SC grievance form (available on grandstrandtennis.net) and to the captain of the opposing team. The LLC will forward the grievance form to the GSTL Grievance Committee for action
3) The grievance committee will exercise the following options:
a) Rule in the complaining player’s favor
b) Rule that the match be completed at a later time—starting at the
exact point when protested or when play ended.
c) Rule in favor of the complainant’s opponent.
d) Other actions that may be determined by the Grievance Committee.
The Local League Coordinator has the right to file a grievance against any team or player regarding sense of fair play, sportsmanship, default and forfeits or rules violations!
M. GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE:
Questions, problems or concerns should be directed to the COMBO Coordinator for assistance. Official grievance forms should be submitted to Tonya Barr – Grievance Committee Chair.
Grievance Committee –
Tonya Barr – Chairman – 238-8261
Don Dobbins - Member – 651-0337
John Semmens - Member – 293-2952
Grievance Appeals Committee –
Debbie Jones – Chairman – 995-1847
Jan Dieter – Member - 248-6092
Mary Page Singleton – Member – 444-0001
COMBO LEAGUE COORDINATOR
Marilyn Grigas – 843-855-2816