2009 ALABAMA MIXED DOUBLES REGULATIONS (Amended 3/2/2009)
STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS: SEPT. 10-13
DOTHAN, AL
SOUTHERN SECTIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: OCT. 16-18
NATIONAL EASTERN MIXED DOUBLES CHAMPIONSHIPS: NOV.
The USTA League Regulations can be found on USTA.com.
Southern Sectional Regulations can be found at Southerntennis.com. The
National (1.00 General, 2.00 Grievance Procedures and 5.00 Mixed Doubles League
Regulations) and Southern Regulations have full force and applicability at all
levels of play in the USTA League Tennis Program in Alabama and there is no
authorization to modify, amplify or change them by players, captains or Local
League Coordinators. The Alabama Tennis Association has appointed the Alabama
State League Coordinator to organize, coordinate and supervise all USTA League
activities on the state level and to interpret the Alabama USTA League
regulations.
1. REGULATIONS: All players, teams and local leagues
must abide by all applicable USTA League, Southern Tennis Association (STA) and
ATA rules and regulations.
2. MEMBERSHIP: All players must be current members of the
USTA through their local league season, and must register for a team via
TennisLink and in accordance with the roster deadlines established by each local
league. ATA dues are $5.00 per player, per team, per league season and are paid
through local league dues.
3. AGE: Each player must have reached the
age of nineteen (seniors age 50, super seniors age 60) prior to or during the
calendar year in which such players plays in his/her first local league match.
4. NTRP COMPUTER RATINGS AND APPEAL
PROCESS: All players that generate an NTRP rating from
their exclusive mixed doubles play may appeal their rating through TennisLink.
All
medical appealsl will be forwarded to the Section Medical Appeal Committee
through the Section League Coordinator. If Southern Medical Committee concurs
then appeal will be forwarded to the National Medical Appeal Committee for final
decision.
A year-old championship benchmark may be
appealed in accordance with the NTRP Computer Rating System Procedures.
APPEALS TO LOCAL YEAR END COMPUTER RATINGS: Local
players that wish to appeal their current 2006, 2007 or 2008 computer rating
must do so through TennisLink.
APPEALS TO LOCAL EARLY START LEAGUE COMPUTER RATINGS:
Local players (those who did not advance to championship competition) that wish
to appeal their early start league ratings should do so through Alabama Tennis
Association (www.alabamata.com).
APPEALS DUE TO DISABLING INJURY OR ILLNESS: A player may request a
reconsideration of his/her rating due to a permanent disabling injury or illness
by written request to the
state
league coordinator. Such written request on
physician’s letterhead must be accompanied by the attending physician’s
evaluation of the injury or illness and any other substantiating information.
This physician may not be related to the player or member of his/her team.
Medical appeals are accepted throughout the year.
5. PLAYERS PLAYING FALL LEAGUE: Local leagues having a USTA League
fall season will have early start league ratings generated after the USTA League
Sectional Championships (found at alabamata.com). These ratings are used only
in the fall season. Final ratings generated in November will be used for
winter, spring or summer seasons for 2009.
If a player begins the Mixed Doubles season with an early start rating and the
final rating is higher, the player may continue to play with the NTRP rating
submitted on the roster as long as the new rating is not at the Disqualification
level. If a player’s rating is lowered during the Mixed Doubles league season,
the player must continue to use the rating submitted on the roster for that
season.
6. LOCAL LEAGUES:
- Each local league will have a Local League Coordinator
with local league rules (including playoff structures if required and
grievance and grievance appeal committees) submitted and approved by
the State League Coordinator, prior to the start of the local league
season. The Local League Coordinator shall be appointed for a period
of one league year, subject to yearly renewal. The State Coordinator shall
have final authority in the selection and or retention of all local league
coordinators.
- A city may have a maximum of two league seasons.
- A team may have no more than 14 players on a roster.
- A league of two to three teams must play a minimum of
three matches.
- A team winning both seasons with identical rosters for
both seasons; the adult league committee will choose which season’s roster
will represent the local league at the state championships. If a team
chooses not to enter the state championships, the state coordinator must be
informed prior to dropping to the next available team.
- In the event that rain or inclement weather forces the
cancellation and rescheduling of a team match, unrestricted substitutions
from the team roster may be made in any individual matches that have not
begun. This includes moving a player from one position to another.
- All teams participating within a local league must
abide by all local league rules. A traveling team from outside a
metropolitan area but residing within the state of Alabama may be denied
from playing in a local league. (The State Coordinator must approve
denial).
- A maximum of four (4) players
residing outside the state of Alabama is allowed on a roster.
- Players may participate in more than one NTRP level
within a division in the same local league during the same season. No
scheduling considerations will be made. A player may play on more than one
team within a division in the same season provided it is in separate local
leagues. For the purposes of local flight playoffs, a player can play
for only one team in that local flight playoff. The local league has
the authority to accept or deny participation.
J.
Levels of Play: The levels offered will be
straight 2.5 and combined 6.0, 7.0, 8.0,
9.0 10.0 Adults and straight 2.5 and combined
6.0, 7.0, 8.0, 9.0 Seniors where each individual player’s ratings may be no
more than 1.0 apart (i.e. a 3.0 player and a 4.0 player may play 7.0).
The 2.5 level is a straight level and players may not
combine levels (i.e. a 2.0 player and a 3.0 player may not play together).
K.
Mixed doubles players must have
participated in 2 matches at the local level (1 default will count) in order to
advance to Section Championships and below. Mixed doubles players must have
participated in 3 matches through Section Championships (no default will count)
in order to advance to National Championships.
Senior players may advance to the
championships with one match instead of two matches.
L.
Senior players may play on both adult and
senior mixed doubles teams locally.
M. If only one
senior team registers at a specific
level, then that senior team can
qualify by playing in the adult league at that same level.
When a senior team is included in the adult schedule, matches played will not
count in standings. Initial team roster deadlines will be no later than
June 30, 2009 with all local league
play ending no later than August 15, 2009.
The state league coordinator may amend these dates as needed.
STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS:
- Local leagues with the following number of teams per
season may qualify to advance to the state championships: 2-10 equals one
team, 11 + teams equals two teams. The state league coordinator may
issue wildcards as necessary to fill the draw.
- Any local league having daytime, nighttime, and or
weekend leagues being played within the same season must have a playoff,
structured and approved by the State Coordinator (within two weeks of
schedule being published).
- Players who qualify for State or Sectional
Championships may advance on (one) adult and (one) senior team but may not
advance on two adult or two senior teams. Players may advance to more than
one State’s Championships provided each state has allowed local league
qualification. If eligible players do not participate at the State
Championships, they may participate in the Sectional and/or National
Championships.
- Players on teams entered in the State Championships
that withdraw after the schedule has been published will be subject to
a fine of $75. per person payable to ATA. Said players will be ineligible
to compete on any USTA league (including Tri Level and Southern Combo
Doubles) until the fine is paid. An appeal may be submitted to the
Adult League Committee Chairman within two weeks after the end of said championship.
All entry fees will be forfeited.
- At the State Championships all matches will be the
best of two sets and the set tiebreak shall be used at 6-all in each set.
In lieu of a third set, a match tiebreak shall be played. There will be no
rest period or coaching. The match tiebreak shall be scored as one set and
one game for tiebreak procedures in the event of a tie. The scoring in the
event of a default or forfeit shall be 6-0, 6-0.
- A minimum of 6 team players (3 men, 3 women) that were
on the final roster of their local league team at the conclusion of local
league play must be available and eligible to compete at the State or
Sectional Championships. The Championships
Tournament Committee, by majority vote, can reduce that number to not less
than four.
- Leagues playing their local league at the state
championships must use their year end rating even if they registered in the
fall season.
7. SELF-RATE ELIGIBILITY
GRIEVANCE COMPLAINT: The USTA Southern Section will administer Self-Rate
Eligibility Grievance Complaints. These complaints should be first delivered to
the Local League Coordinator who will forward to the State League Coordinator
who will forward to the Section League Coordinator who will forward to the
Southern Self-Rate Eligibility Grievance Committee Chairman.
These committees will have jurisdiction over grievances filed against any
player and/and or captain who commits or condones entering at one level when
their actual skill level is at the top of the next NTRP level or higher. (USTA
Interpretation, May 2004). Self-Rate Eligibility Grievances filed
within two weeks of the start date of the players and/or captain’s State or
Sectional Championships will be administered after the event unless the
section authorizes the administration of the grievance prior to that
time. If the grievance is not administered until after the event, points won by
players will stand. Disqualified players and/or captains that are suspended
will not be eligible to advance to the next level of championship play.
ALABAMA
GRIEVANCE & GRIEVANCE APPEAL COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Jeff Burns
Emily Baker
Lynn Lamere
Jeannie Harrell
Jerrie Ciza
Perry Baker
Martie McEnerney
Don Bryan
Judy Stalcup
W. Red Wilder
Ken Vines
Christine Slaughter
