Can you go to USTA League Nationals on two different teams?

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a player were to qualify for a given Nationals on two different teams?  Could they play on both?

The answer is no of course, the USTA specifically has language in the regulations that says a player that must declare which team they will play on and cannot play for two.  Sections and districts have similar language that preclude a player from playing at those championships on multiple teams.

But does this conundrum ever happen?  It actually has this year, at least once.  The teams that won the 18 & over 3.0 Sectionals in Eastern and Middle States have nine shared players.  What is a little odd is that it appears the National's rosters for each team include the shared players on each team.  Each team has a roster of 16 which means all 9 can't decide to play with the same team without causing the other team to not be able to field 8 players.  So the nine will have to be split, some on one team, some on another.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out and who plays on which team.

The teams are in different flights, so each would have to win their respective flights to happen to have to play each other.  But this is potentially good news for the other teams in each flight as it is likely that neither team will be as strong as they would be otherwise with players having to play on just one or the other.

2015 USTA League Nationals start this week!

USTA League Nationals for 2015 start this week with three levels of the 18 & over division taking place.

The 3.0 level will be in Tucson, AZ, the Women having the normal 17 teams and the Men 16 with Hawaii missing.  See the preview of the 3.0 Women here and 3.0 Men here.

The 4.0 level will be in Rancho Mirage, CA.  See the preview of the 4.0 Women here and 4.0 Men here.

Last, the 5.0+ level will be in Indian Wells, CA.  The preview of the 5.0+ Women is here, and 5.0+ Men here.

Play well everyone!

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 4.5 Men Preview

The second weekend of Nationals is October 9-11 and has the 18 & over 3.5 and 4.5 levels competing.  I've already previewed the 18 & over 3.0 Men and Women, 4.0 Men and Women, and 5.0+ Men and Women taking place October 2-4.  Here is a preview for the 4.5 Men.

The ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

There is another big range from the top to bottom with the top team having a top-8 average of a whopping 4.71, the lowest being just 4.35.

I'm sure the USTA flight assignments are somewhat random, but they have not been kind of the teams in flight 7.  Intermountain, Middle States, Midwest, and Northern Cal are in this flight and with the #3, #4, #5, and #11 rated teams, a very good team won't be making the semis.

Interestingly, flight 5 won't be a whole lot easier.  The sections here include Eastern, Florida, Mid-Atlantic, Missouri Valley, and Texas, and this flight has the #2, #6, #7, #8, and #16 rated teams.

I'll list flight 8 next simply because the highest rated team is here and it is one of Hawaii, Pacific Northwest, Southern, and Southwest, the other three teams rating #10, #12, and #15.

Flight 6 with Caribbean, New England, Northern, and Southern Cal has the #9, #13, #14, and #17 teams.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 3.5 Men Preview

The second weekend of Nationals is October 9-11 and has the 18 & over 3.5 and 4.5 levels competing.  I've already previewed the 18 & over 3.0 Men and Women, 4.0 Men and Women, and 5.0+ Men and Women taking place October 2-4.  Here is a preview for the 3.5 Men.

The ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

The 3.5 men have quite the range from 3.74 for the top-seed (yes, a top-8 average of a mid-level 4.0) down to 3.38 for the lowest rated team.

Flight 8 with Middle States, Northern Cal, Pacific Northwest, and Southern looks the toughest with the #1, #5, #9, and #11 teams.

Flight 6 has Hawaii, Missouri Valley, Southern Cal, and Southwest with the #2, #6, #10, and #15 teams.

Flight 7 looks very close to flight 6 with Florida, Intermountain, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest having the #4, #8, #12, and #14 teams.

Flight 5 appears to be the weakest flight on paper with five teams from Caribbean, Eastern, New England, Northern, and Texas with the #3, #7, #13, #16, and #17 teams.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 4.0 Men Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  Here is a preview of the 4.0 Men flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

The 4.0 men have a moderate range from a high of 4.23 for two teams down to 3.99.  All but that one are at 4.01 or higher which should make for a competitive Nationals.  But oddly there are just 16 teams listed presently, there is none from Hawaii.  If they get added, I'll update this preview.

Flight 5 with Florida, Middle States, Midwest, and Texas appears the toughest with the #1, #3, #6, and #10 rated teams.  Advancing from this flight will be a challenge.

Flight 8 has Mid-Atlantic, Northern, Northern Cal, and Southern and isn't much easier with the #4, #5, #8, and #9 rated teams.

I list flight 7 next with Eastern, Intermountain, Missouri Valley, and Southern Cal because the #2 team is in it, but it falls off quick with the others at #11, #12, and #13.  Looks like a breeze for the #2 seed.

Last is flight 6 comprised of Caribbean, New England, Pacific Northwest, and Southwest with teams rated just #7, #14, #15, and #16.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

USTA League Sectionals Playoffs Continue - Final Weekend

I believe we have entered the final weekend of Sectionals leading to 40 & over Nationals.  Nationals actually begin in two weeks with three levels of 18 & over starting October 2nd, but Intermountain and Texas are finishing up their 40 & over this weekend.

As a reminder, you can see the full Nationals schedule here and you can see all of my Nationals related blog posts including several previews I've already written here.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 4.0 Women Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  Here is a preview of the 4.0 Women flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

The 4.0 women have one of the tighter groupings with the highest average at 4.13 and the lowest at 3.90.  In fact, all but #17 have a top-8 average of 3.98 or higher.  This should make for a very competitive Nationals.

Flight 1 is the 5-team flight with Caribbean, Intermountain, Middle States, Northern Cal, and Texas has the highest and lowest rated teams, but also #4, #7, and #9 so will not be a walk in the park for the top-seed due to the other teams and having to play 4 matches.

Flight 3 with Eastern, Florida, Missouri Valley, and Southern Cal has the #2, #6, #11, and #14 teams and is probably the second toughest flight.

Flight 4 has Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Northern, and Southern with the #5, #8, #10, and #16 teams.

Flight 2 has Hawaii, New England, Pacific Northwest, and Southwest and has the #3 team, but then drops off with #12, #13, and #15.  That #3 team seems to be a pretty big favorite, but again, the spread is not that large from #1 to #16.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 5.0+ Men Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  Here is a preview of the 5.0+ Men flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

Not every section is sending a 5.0+ team to Nationals meaning there are just 15 teams in 3 flights.  I'm guessing that means there will be a wildcard that makes the semis, so a little extra incentive and a second chance for the teams that lose early.

Unlike the 5.0+ women, there is a team that has an average over 5.0 at 5.04, but the lower end is lower at just 4.58.

Flight 6 has Middle States, Midwest, New England, Northern Cal, and Pacific Northwest with the #1, #3, #10, #12, and #14 teams.  It looks like there is a good chance the wildcard comes from this flight.

Flight 5 with Caribbean, Eastern, Intermountain, Mid-Atlantic, and Southern has the #2, #5, #8, #9, and #15 teams.  This flight probably has the next best chance of having the wildcard.

Flight 4 with Florida, Missouri Valley, Southern Cal, Southwest, and Texas has the #4, #6, #7, #11, and #13 teams.  This flight could be very competitive, perhaps no team goes undefeated.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 5.0+ Women Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  Here is a preview of the 5.0+ Women flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

Not every section is sending a 5.0+ team to Nationals meaning there are just 14 teams in 3 flights.  I'm guessing that means there will be a wildcard that makes the semis, so a little extra incentive and a second chance for the teams that lose early.

As was the case with the 3.0 previews, there is a range averages from 4.91 at the top (twice) down to 4.64 (three times).  So at higher levels, even being a plus league, the averages don't exceed the top of the range.

Flight 1 has 5 teams from Eastern, Florida, Mid-Atlantic, Northern Cal, and Southwest and has the #1, #2, #6, #7, and #13 teams, so several good teams won't be advancing to the semis, but with the wildcard it is possible the #1 and #2 rated teams make it through.

Flight 3 with Intermountain, Midwest, Southern, and Texas is probably the next toughest with the #4, #5, #8, and #12 teams.  This flight could be competitive and if they beat up on each other may be unlikely to get the wildcard.

Flight 2 with Middle States, Missouri Valley, New England, Pacific Northwest, and Southern Cal has the #3, #9, #10, #11, and #14 teams so appears to be in the #3 team's hands and unlikely to get the wildcard.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 3.0 Men Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  In the second of what is hopefully a number of previews, I take a look at the Men's 3.0 flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

The 3.0 level appears to only have 16 teams with Hawaii not sending one.

There is quite a range of average ratings from 3.26 down to 2.93, so a similar range to that for the 3.0 women.  For the men, 7 of the 16 teams are at 3.12 or higher.

Flight 6 has Eastern, Midwest, Pacific Northwest, and Southern, and has the #2, #3, #5, and #14 teams so is the toughest flight and arguably has three teams that perhaps have the players to make the semis, but only one will make it.

Flight 5 with Intermountain, Mid-Atlantic, Missouri Valley, and Northern Cal, is perhaps the next strongest with the #6, #8, #9, and #15 teams so this one could be very close at the top.

But flight 7 comprising Caribbean, Florida, Southern, and Texas may have an argument for being as deep as flight 5 with the #4, #7, #11, and #16 teams.

Flight 8 with Middle States, New England, Northern, and Southwest is likely the weakest, but does have the #1, rated team but then drops off to #10, #12, and #13 teams.  You'd think the #1 team should breeze into the semis.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

2015 USTA League Nationals 18 & over 3.0 Women Preview

USTA Nationals start in just two weeks, on October 2nd, for the 18 & over 3.0, 4.0, and 5.0+ levels.  In the first of what is hopefully a number of previews, I take a look at the Women's 3.0 flights.

As always, the ratings used in preparing these previews are my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  And for the purposes of comparing teams, I'm calculating the average of the top-8 players on each National's roster.

There is quite a range of average ratings from 3.27 down to 2.98.  Yes, there is a 3.0 team that has 8 players with an average rating of 3.27.  In fact, 9 of the 17 teams are at 3.10 or higher.  This is somewhat common at the lower levels, and while some may say it means all the players sandbagged or cheated, this usually isn't the case and especially at lower levels, the teams that advance have simply improved a lot during the year.

Flight 1 is the 5-team flight with Florida, Hawaii, Midwest, Middle States, and Southern, and has the highest and lowest rated teams, but it also has the #2, #10, and #13 teams so getting out of that flight will be some work with 4 matches being played and the top-2 rated teams to go through.

Flight 4 with traditional strong sections in Northern Cal, Pacific Northwest, Southern Cal, and Texas is probably the next toughest flight with the #3, #7, #9, and #11 teams so there is no pushover there.

Flight 2 comprising Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic, Missouri Valley, and New England is balanced with #5, #6, #8, and #14 so could be very close at the top and come down to a tie-breaker.

Last, flight 3 with Eastern, Intermountain, Northern, and Southwest is perhaps the weakest with #4, #12, #15, and #16, so you'd think the #4 team would have an easy time into the semis.

If you'd like more details on any of the flights, I can generate a flight report for any of the them that will show the average rating for the roster and the top-8 average.

Or if you want to see details about a team including each player's rating and a summary of their record and courts played on the team through each phase of the season, a team report is a great resource for your team or any opponent as a tool to scout them.

Contact me if you are interested in any reports.

Note: As always, average ratings for a team does not win a team match.  Who plays in the match, the line-ups and how they match-up, and how a given player plays on that day are what determine who wins.  So the highest rated teams using top-8 average may or may not win, but it is interesting to look at.

The first 2015 USTA League Nationals are just over 2 weeks away! 18 & over starts October 2

With all the playoffs and Sectionals going on last month and this month, you knew it was coming, but I just glanced at the schedule for Nationals again and realized the first weekend of Nationals is only 16 days away!

The 18 & over division kicks things off October 2-4 with the 5.0+, 3.0, and 4.0 levels playing.  The flights are all set, so look for some previews soon that will identify which flights look the strongest and perhaps who the favorite appears to be.

But if you are on a team that is going and want more detail to scout opponents than will be in a preview, such as a detailed look at each flight or a full team report to scout a team and plan your line-ups, contact me about the reports I can generate.

I'm an early start 4.5, but I can still play 4.0 in USTA League and Tournaments?

Early start lists for 2016 USTA League play are out in many sections and districts.  I've written before about what early start ratings are and why they are used, but it can still be confusing, especially when your NTRP rating on TennisLink still shows your old level, you can still play in tournaments at your old level, and you can continue playing on existing or even new teams at your old level.

Let me address each of these one by one to hopefully help clear things up.  And remember, the definition of an early start rating is that it is one intended for use in a "next year", e.g. 2016 right now, league that is starting early.

First, for whatever reason, when looking at a player, whether searching for their league play or actually looking up their rating, TennisLink only shows your current (e.g. 2014 right now) year-end rating, unless you were subject to being DQ'd and promoted in which case it will show that rating.  The system does have record of your early start rating as when you sign up for an early start league it does validate your are at the proper level, and when you use the special team numbers to appeal, it also knows your early start rating, but it is not generally published or viewable anywhere on the site that I can tell.

So while it is a pain, you have to accept your early start rating won't be displayed normally on TennisLink and refer to your section, district, or area early start list that is published on the respective Web-site, often as a PDF.  I have a page with links to the lists that I've seen but let me know if you see any missing.

Second, players are generally allowed to continue playing tournaments at their old level even if they have been bumped up.  Now, I believe tournament directors have discretion here so could elect to not allow players to play at their old level, but I don't know of any that do so.  The reason here is that because the early start rating is for next year's leagues that start early, a tournament does not fit that criteria so your current year-end rating, e.g. what continues to show on TennisLink is still in effect.

So if you've been early start bumped, relish the fact that the USTA lets you continue to play at your old level and go try to win the tournament while you still can.  Of course, you can elect to play up at your early start level and challenge yourself.

Third, remember that the early start rating is for 2016 leagues that are starting early.  This typically means those 18 & over, 40 & over, or 55 & over Adult or Mixed leagues that a section or district elects to start early as I've described before.  It does not apply to leagues that are already in progress or that are still part of 2015.  So if your league name has "2015" in it, you can still play or register at your current (2014 year-end) level, but if it has "2016" in it, you have to use your early start level, or when year-end ratings come out, the level you are at then.

Hopefully that helps clear things up!