More teams advance in USTA League playoffs - Maryland, Colorado, Utah, New Jersey, Delaware, New England, and more hold Flight or District playoffs

The path to Nationals goes through many stages for most teams, from local/flight playoffs, to Regionals/Districts/States, to Sectionals, and finally Nationals.  July and August are when playoffs really heat up and this weekend was no exception.

Maryland held their 18 & over Regionals, Colorado and Utah held 18 & over Districts, New Jersey held some 18 & over Regionals, and more areas had flight playoffs or Districts.

I was pleased to see several teams that have gotten team or flight reports advance.  In some cases they were favorites so expected to win, but the reports still helped them prepare and get their line-ups right to make sure there wasn't an upset.

Southern held some Sectionals a week ago, but August really gets going with most sections having Sectionals of some sort.

Whether you are headed to Sectionals or you are still going through earlier rounds of playoffs, team or flight reports are a great way to help scout your playoff matches.  Contact me for more information.

What USTA League playoffs are you playing in this month?

This is a busy time of year for USTA League playoffs as teams strive to make it to Nationals.  In some sections, notably in the southern states where they started play earlier in the year, Sectionals have already been or will be played in the next week or so.  Others are just playing local playoffs or Districts with Sectionals to be played later in August or even September.

Here are a few I'm aware of:

• 7/29-31 - Northern Oregon Adult 40+ local playoffs
• 7/29-31 - Northwest Washington Mixed 40+ local playoffs
• 7/29-31 - Colorado 18+ Districts
• 7/29-31 - New Jersey 18+ Regionals
• 8/5-7 - NorCal Adult 18+ Districts
• 8/5-7 - Texas Adult 18+ Sectionals (4.0 & up)
• 8/12-14 - Pacific Northwest Adult 18+ Sectionals
• 8/12-14 - SoCal Adult 18+ Sectionals
• 8/12-14 - Texas Adult 18+ Sectionals (3.5 & below)
• 8/19-21 - Eastern 18+ Sectionals
• 8/19-21 - Southern Adult 40+ Sectionals
• 8/26-28 - NorCal Adult 18+ Sectionals
• 8/26-28 - Pacific Northwest Adult 40+ Sectionals
• 8/26-28 - SoCal Adult 40+ Sectionals
• 9/16-18 - Texas Adult 40+ Sectionals
• 9/17-19 - Pacific Northwest Mixed 40+ Sectionals

What playoffs am I missing that you are following or playing at?

2016 USTA Southern 18+ Sectionals complete - Who is going to Nationals?

The 2016 Southern 18 & over Sectionals was this past weekend and with the completion, more teams are headed to Nationals.

In what I review below, I'm comparing teams using their top-8 average which is one of the tables provided in my sub-flight reports that are a great way to scout opponents.

The 2.5 Women found the favorite going in, Tennessee/Huffman, playing South Carolina/Strenck who had pulled a few upsets to get there.  Tennessee got the 2-1 win and is headed to Nationals.

The 2.5 Men just had a round-robin flight and the #3 and #4 seeds in Louisiana/Kingsley and Alabama/Sims both went 3-1 with Louisiana/Kingsley getting the nod for the title.

The 3.0 Women saw Arkansas/Boen, the narrow #4 seed in their flight winning over Alabama(B)/Jones, the #3 seed in their flight.

The 3.0 Men had Georgia/Rauber, the #1 overall seed, winning over Mississippi/Lawrence, the #1 seed in their flight.

The 3.5 Women had the top-2 overall seeds in the final with whopping 3.67 and 3.66 top-8 averages with #2 seed Alabama/Raggio coming out on top over Tennessee/Cooper.

The 3.5 Men saw Mississippi/Craig, the narrow #2 seed in their flight take the title over Arkansas/Terrell, the #3 seed in theirs.

The 4.0 Women had Arkansas/Coleman the last seed in their flight complete the upsets with a win over North Carolina/Lantry, the #3 seed in their flight.

The 4.0 Men saw Mississippi/Hardin, the last seed in their flight also complete the upsets win over Southern/South Carolina/Edwards, the #2 seed in their flight.

The 4.5 Women saw Mississippi/Foil, the top seed in their flight win over another last seed in Arkansas/Palecek.

The 4.5 Men had Georgia/DeWolf taking the title over Mississippi/Haddox, both #2 seeds in their flights.

The 5.0+ Women had a single flight with North Carolina/Vandemore going 4-0 as the #2 seed.

Last, the 5.0+ Men had North Carolina/May win it all beating North Carolina/Beecher, each the #1 seed in their flights.

Congratulations to all!

Hypothetical USTA Eastern Long Island 2017 Early Start List

I've written about the USTA doing away with Early Start Lists and as a service have decided to publish some hypothetical Early Start Lists of my own.  I already published a list for Seattle, Southern Oregon, and Eastern Washington, and I already branched outside the Pacific Northwest the with Metropolitan Region district in the Eastern section, now here is the Long Island district.

But before you take a look at the list, the same comments and caveats as before still apply.

1. The list is based on my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  This is not a list from the USTA and is not to be used for registering for Early Start Leagues.  It is only hypothetical.
2. While my ratings are very accurate for the vast majority of players, they are not perfect and may be a few hundredths off in which case I could have a player at 3.52 and an early start 4.0 while their real rating is 3.49 which would be a 3.5.
3. Early Start Ratings do not necessarily tell you what your year-end rating will be, even if you don't play any more matches.  Year-end calculations factoring in playoffs and how your area/district/section did in playoffs can move player's ratings up or down from the Early Start level.
4. If you don't see your name and you expected a bump up/down, or you see your name and are surprised and want to know why, contact me at ratings@teravation.net and I can give you details on how to get an Estimated Dynamic NTRP Rating Report that will give all the background on why your estimated rating is where it is.
5. Note that I'm publishing this list a bit early.  I think the Early Start List for this area was published in August last year, but folks were interested so I'm doing it now.

With that said, on to the list!  The below shows only those players that I estimate would be bumped up or down on the Early Start List and I simply show a name, city, and the hypothetical Early Start level.  If your name isn't shown, I estimate your rating to be unchanged.

First the women:

Name	City	Level
Ada Luz Coonerty	Garden City	3.0
Adele Mancuso	Brooklyn	4.5
Aina Erickson	Sea Cliff	4.5
alison brooks wallace	Lloyd Harbor	3.5
Alison Sannella Galloway	Baldwin	2.5
Alison Seipp	Glen Head	3.5
Alistaire Bambach	Garden City	3.5
Allison Greenberg	Delmar	5.0
Alyssa Sepe	Rockville Centre	3.5
amy chiang	Syosset	3.0
Amy Damelio	Cold Spring Harbor	3.0
Anastassia Schlussel	Lawrence	3.5
andrea dunbar	Greenlawn	3.5
Andrea Nugent	Port Jefferson Station	3.5
Angela Castillo	Closter	4.5
Angela M. Scarnato	Wantagh	2.5
Anique Lee	Long Beach	3.0
Annabelle Rosenzweig	Merrick	2.5
Anne McConville	Fort Salonga	3.5
Antonella Karlin	East Rockaway	5.0
Aphrodite Vorillas	Manhasset	4.0
Arlene P Northcote	Halesite	3.0
Armi Viti	Babylon	2.5
Barbara A. Borden	Hewlett	3.5
Barbara Perri	Floral Park	3.5
Barbara T Schmidt	Rockville Centre	2.5
Barbara Yusko	Sayville	3.0
Belle Tia	Levittown	2.5
Beth Costa	West Babylon	4.0
Beth L. Mercante	Lido Beach	4.0
Bonnie Liebman	Commack	3.5
Brenda P. Rosenberg	Melville	4.0
Bridget Reynolds	East Northport	2.5
Carol Diamond	Rockville Ctr	3.0
Caroline Austin	Stony Brook	3.5
Carolyn Faith Schechner	Bellmore	2.5
Carolyn Kris	Old Bethpage	3.0
Caryn Gallitto	Merrick	3.0
Catherine M. Crifasi	Malverne	3.0
Catherine Wang	Bayside	3.0
Cathy Caldwell	Copiague	3.0
Cheryl M. Segall	Syosset	4.5
Christine Kara Pullian	Merrick	3.5
Christine R. Klouda	Port Jefferson Station	3.5
Cindy L Couluris	Patchogue	3.0
Connie Insignares	E Northport	3.5
Cori Forster	Dix Hills	2.5
Corinne Moschetti	Sayville	3.5
Dale Elgort	Melville	4.0
Dana Slackman	Commack	4.0
danielle paulus	Port Jefferson	3.0
Dawn H. Young	Sayville	3.5
Debbie Franks	Selden	4.5
Debbie Groark	Long Beach	2.5
Debbie Hung	Setauket	3.5
Deborah A. Trimboli	Massapequa Park	3.0
Deborah Gage	Merrick	2.5
Deborah Sarah Gallin	Setauket	2.5
deborah T defelice	Cold Spring Harbor	3.0
Devon Carroll	Cold Spring Harbor	4.0
Diane Meyers	Long Beach	2.5
diane noto	Merrick	3.5
Donna Hallas	Levittown	3.0
Doreen Lynn Cook	Smithtown	4.0
Doris Ann Duignan	Lynbrook	3.0
Elizabeth Levit	Bellmore	4.0
Elizabeth M. Keely	Oakdale	4.0
Elizabeth Murray	Garden City	3.5
Elizabeth Signore	Glen Head	3.0
Ellen Huang	Farmingdale	3.5
Ellen Huhulea	Rockville Centre	4.5
Ellie Wang	Syosset	3.5
Emma Julie Brandt	Huntington	4.0
Faith Reiss	Merrick	3.5
Francine Zinerco	Seaford	4.0
Gaetana Smith	Lloyd Harbor	3.0
Georgina Merrihew	Islip	3.5
Geri Verola	Glen Head	3.5
Ginny McGowan	Hempstead	3.5
Hali Rachel Katz	Woodbury	5.0
Heather Moskowitz	Woodbury	3.0
Heidi Esposito	Port Washington	4.5
Helen Rubin	Woodbury	3.5
Helene G. Messilaty	Hewlett	3.5
Ilene Glatman	Commack	2.5
Iveta Scioscia	East Setauket	3.0
Jaclyn L. Morrison	Merrick	2.5
Jacqueline Peiffer	Bethpage	2.5
Jane Brown	Huntington	4.0
Jane D Thaler	Oyster Bay	3.5
Janine Debellis	Cold Spg Hbr	4.0
Jayne H Golub	Woodbury	3.0
Jean M Skolnick	Sayville	3.0
Jean Tanklowitz	East Meadow	3.0
Jeanette Romano	East Setauket	4.0
Jeanne-Marie Buccellato	Garden City	4.0
Jeannie Luna	Smithtown	3.0
Jemmifer Fridman	Huntington Station	5.0
Jen Kelly	Manhasset	3.5
Jenna Levin	East Meadow	3.5
Jennifer Marshak	East Setauket	4.0
Jennifer Rose Schonhoff	Saint James	3.5
Jennifer Suh-McCormack	Bayport	4.0
Jenny Bencardino	Jericho	2.5
Jerilyn Jud	Glen Head	4.5
Jill Marie Rector	Long Beach	3.0
Joann Esposito	Huntington	3.0
Josefina M. Essex	Sayville	3.0
Joy Borrero	Bayport	3.5
Joy martinsen	Fort Salonga	3.5
Judy Damore	Setauket	4.0
julie mischo	Bayport	3.5
Karen Calace	West Palm Beach	3.0
Karen Dunbar	Lake Grove	3.5
Karen E Groeger	Rockville Centre	3.5
Karen Levine	Bellmore	4.5
Kate Kincaid	Huntington	4.0
Katherine VandeBerghe	Commack	4.5
Kelly Ann Mason	Setauket	3.5
Kendall Kutner	Rockville Centre	4.0
Kiki Sandra Haas	Cedarhurst	3.5
Kim Oricoli	Northport	3.5
kim scanlon	Commack	3.5
Kirstin Stickney	Brightwaters	3.5
kris adams	Port Jefferson	3.5
LaDonna Yousha	Wantagh	3.5
Laura Greenfield	Smithtown	3.5
Laureen Carapellucci	Amityville	2.5
Lauren Castellano	Long Beach	4.0
Lauren Siegel	Deer Park	3.0
Laurie Schoenfeld	Dix Hills	4.0
Leah Carroll	East Meadow	3.0
leslie ann levchuck	Greenlawn	3.0
Lily Tang	Brooklyn	3.5
Linda Goldstein	Oceanside	3.0
Linda Krauthamer	Commack	4.0
Linda Sarfati	Bellmore	3.5
Lisa Landau	Bellmore	4.0
Lorelei McGlynn	Northport	2.5
Lori Bader	Oceanside	3.5
Luzan Moore	Long Beach	4.0
Marci J. Last	Hewlett	3.5
Marcie M. Zeitlin	Great Neck	4.0
Margaret McNamara	Hauppauge	3.0
Maria J. Mineo	Mount Sinai	2.5
Marian B. Morris	Long Beach	2.5
Marilena F DiScala	Syosset	3.5
Marilyn M. Durso	Massapequa	3.5
Marisa Ruta	Garden City	2.5
Marlaina Teich	Merrick	4.0
Mary Ann Ferguson	Rockville Ctr	3.0
Mary Margaret Mohrman	Southampton	3.0
Mary McLean	East Islip	3.0
Mary N. O'Grady	East Northport	3.0
Maryclair Leistman	Garden City	3.0
Marylou McCabe	White Plains	3.0
Maxine Sharon Oresky	Syosset	3.5
mehves sucato	Astoria	4.0
melissa reichbach	Roslyn	3.0
Melissa Schneider	Oceanside	2.5
Micheline Laurent	East Northport	3.5
michelle nuccio	Merrick	3.5
Milta R. Maryles	East Northport	3.5
Mina Fournaris	Setauket	2.5
MINA MANDELBAUM	Roslyn Hts	3.5
Mindy D. Ehrlich	Commack	3.0
Misha Monticciolo	Coram	4.0
Nancy DAmato	Commack	3.5
Nancy Lefkowitz	Manhasset	4.0
Naomi glazer	Woodbury	2.5
Nikki Ullman	Huntington Station	3.5
Nina Litvinenko	Mount Sinai	3.5
Ninoska Malik	Melville	4.0
Pamela Charles	Great Neck	4.0
Patricia Calire	Lake Grove	3.0
Peggy L Maslow	Port Washington	3.5
Penny Zagalis	Douglaston	3.5
Ramona Adriana Weinstein	Rockville Centre	4.0
Rekha Gupta	Glen Head	3.5
Robin Baren	Commack	3.0
ROKSOLANA SHYYKA	south setauket	2.5
Rosalynn Steele	Long Beach	3.0
Salpi Cooperstone	Merrick	3.5
Shari Brown	Merrick	3.5
Shelley Van Blerkom	Bayside	3.5
Sloane A Barrie	Jericho	3.0
Sondra Glueck	Great Neck	4.0
Staci D. Gura	Bellmore	4.0
Stephanie Fein	Merrick	4.5
Susan A. Bacey	Dix Hills	4.5
Susan Barry	Rockville Centre	3.5
Susan May	Huntington	3.0
Susan Merola	Merrick	3.0
Susan Spagnoli	Stony Brook	2.5
Suzanne M. Sullivan	Rockville Ctr	4.0
Suzanne Prezorski	Deer Park	3.0
Sydney Betts Voros	Setauket	3.0
Tara Kelly	Rockville Centre	3.5
tatiana frekhtman	Woodmere	3.0
Terri Ciaramello	East Rockaway	3.5
Terry Reich	Valley Stream	2.5
Theoni Anagnostou	Merrick	3.5
Therese Direnzo	Oyster Bay	3.5
Tracey Reyhani	Woodbury	2.5
Tracy Kleinberg	Dix Hills	3.5
Tricia Y Kaplan	Mount Sinai	2.5
Troy Holt	Setauket	4.0
Virginia Ross	Oyster Bay	3.5
wendy funk	Bellmore	4.5
Wendy Lee Janny	Stony Brook	4.5
Wendy Stechman	Seaford	3.5
Wendy Streigold	Valley Stream	4.5
Yvonne Evelyn	Huntington	3.5
Zebo Sokolskiy	Hewlett	2.5
Zsuzsa Price	Bay Shore	3.5

And the men:

Name	City	Level
adam jagoda	Oakdale	4.0
Alan G. Schoenberg	Oceanside	3.5
Andreas Berner	New York	4.0
Anthony J Leggio	Centereach	3.5
Arkady Frekhtman	Woodmere	3.5
asher abitbol	West Hempstead	3.5
Benjamin L Mazza	Bellmore	3.5
brian ketover	Woodbury	4.0
Cameron Daniels	Oakland Gardens	5.0
Cecil M. Hollins	Laurelton	4.0
Charles Zadoff	Lynbrook	3.0
Chris A Morales	Astoria	5.0
Dane Phillips	Plainview	4.5
Danny Kresh	Commack	4.0
Darren Senzon	Stamford	4.0
David Berman	Merrick	3.5
David J. Brent	Woodmere	4.0
David Ng	East Williston	3.5
Devang Madhu Parmar	auburndale	5.0
dilip s nair	Islip	3.5
Ernesto Puteri	Seaford	3.5
Gary J McNulty	Smithtown	4.5
gary kittredge	Miller Place	3.5
George H Brooks	Northport	4.0
Gregg DiNino	East Meadow	4.0
Gregory Ciuffo	Merrick	4.0
Horst Steinsdoerfer	Levittown	4.0
HSIAOPIN LIU	Farmingdale	4.0
Ivor Chan	Rosedale	3.5
Jason Pessel	Rockville Centre	4.0
Jayson Blau	Forest Hills	4.5
Jeffrey M. De Weever	Farmingdale	4.5
Jerry Chang	Sands Point	4.5
Jim Walther	Copiague	3.5
john cissel	Saint James	4.0
John K Yoo	Setauket	4.0
John Thomas James	East Patchogue	4.0
Jonathan Klein	Carle Place	5.0
Jonathan P Nelson	Setauket	4.0
Joseph Polestino	Greenlawn	5.0
Joseph Tabak	Valley Stream	4.0
Joshua Slifkin	Forest Hills	5.0
Julian Dickson	Wyandanch	3.5
Kenneth Gaudio	Miller Place	4.5
Kevin Droutman	Lake Grove	4.0
Kevin Kim	Rocky Point	4.5
Kevin Peters	Manorville	4.0
Lawrence Ham	Freeport	3.5
Marc Spencer Werner	New York	4.5
Mario Montoya	East Setauket	3.5
Mariusz Jaskowski	Malverne	3.5
Mark E Daly	Forest Hills	4.0
Mark Fischl	Huntington	5.0
Mark Freeley	East Setauket	3.5
Mark H Goldman	Port Washington	4.0
Mark Julian Baker	North Baldwin	5.0
Matthew Spindler	Roslyn	4.5
Michael Cohen	Merrick	3.0
Michael Joseph Casamassima	Smithtown	4.5
Michael Slutsky	Stony Brook	3.0
Michael Yeamans	Farmingville	3.5
mike solow	Rockville Centre	4.0
Patrick M. Ruddick	Massapequa Park	4.0
Peter Hsieh	Great Neck	3.5
Peter Morgis	Armonk	4.0
Phil Monticciolo	Coram	3.0
Ralph P Habib	Northport	4.0
Rick Y. Chen	Fresh Meadows	4.0
Robert Kaiserman	Setauket	3.5
Robert M Morgillo	Plainview	4.0
Robert S. Chesney	Malverne	4.5
Robert Thomas Lynch	Mount Sinai	3.5
Ross Binder	Merrick	4.0
Ryan T. Musalo	Massapequa Park	5.0
Shane Lefebvre	Deer Park	4.0
Shashikanth Sevanan	Kings Park	3.5
Stan Yurynets	Rockville Centre	3.5
steve geller	East Quogue	4.5
Stuart Kamelhar	Bellmore	3.5
Talbert A Isaacs	Jamaica	4.0
Timothy Shelley	Long Beach	3.5
Vikram Gupta	Bayside	4.5
Wayne Freeman	Port Jefferson Station	3.5

USTA Southern 2016 18 & over Sectionals Day 1 Review

Day 1 is complete at the Southern 18+ sectionals and here is how things stand for a few select flights.

The 3.0 Men Flight II saw the favorite in the flight, Louisiana-Potter/Richardson, race out to a 2-0 record while form held behind them with the two lowest rated teams going winless and the two mid-pack teams both picking up a win.

The 3.5 Women Flight II has the favorite, Alabama-Raggio with a 2-0 record, while North Carolina-Sheeler was expected to vie for 2nd in the flight but is 0-2.

The 4.0 Men Flight I saw the favorite, Alabama-Fusaiotti go 2-0, but the upstart in the flight is Mississippi-Harden who had the lowest top-8 rating in the flight but had a nice 4-1 win today.

Last, the 4.5 Women Flight I has the favorite, North Carolina-Morris a surprising 0-1 after a close 3-2 loss, while the lowest rated team, Arkansas-Palacek is 1-0.

A lot of tennis still to be played.  Stay tuned for more updates or if you'd like to get a flight report and see who the favorites are or who their strong competition is, contact me.

USTA Southern 2016 18 & over Sectionals this weekend in Mobile

The Southern section is holding their 18+ sectionals this weekend in Mobile, AL.  Southern routinely does well at Nationals, so the teams that make it through this weekend could be favorites to win it all in the few months.

I'll check in over the weekend on progress and if things are going as the numbers say.

No more Early Start Ratings, how will captains recruit and form their rosters? New info from the PNW section

If you are a regular reader of this blog, this is not news to you, I've written before that Early Start Ratings are gone for 2017 leagues and the PNW section elected to not allow bumped up players to play at their early start level at Sectionals.  Southern on the other hand is allowing players to play through Sectionals at their early start level even though they can't play at Nationals at that level.

What is new is that in another PNW newsletter today, they provided a link to a page saying more about the subject and going so far as to suggest teams think about the implications of bump ups and make sure they have players of appropriate levels to accommodate potential bumps.

For example, an 8.0 Mixed team may have a roster full of 4.0 men and women.  If any of those players were to be bumped up to 4.5, they would be ineligible to play at Sectionals as they would have to play with a 3.5.  So the suggestion is to have a 3.5 or two on the roster so the bumped up 4.5 can still play.  Now the 3.5 still has to have played their two matches to be eligible for Sectionals, so they may have to play as a "7.5" pair or the team needs to have a corresponding 4.5 for them to play with.  Note that if a 4.5 were to be bumped up, they could not play at all going forward as a 5.0/3.0 combination is not valid for 8.0 Mixed.

This can lead to some interesting recruiting and team formation.  Do you get strong players for their level and risk them being bumped up at year-end and wreaking havoc on the roster?  Do you avoid having just just players at one level to give some flexibility?  Or do you avoid having only the "best" players to try to ensure you don't have problems?

To try to help players with this, I've been publishing some hypothetical early start lists for several different areas, and will likely publish more, and folks can use these to see if I project players to be bumped up at this point.  You probably wouldn't want to get a complete roster of players projected to be bumped up!

But the early start lists I publish don't show the players that may be just a hundredth or so away and could be bumped up at year-end, nor can you tell how close a player is that is going to Sectionals and could have their rating go up.  So if you'd like more information on a player or list of players, contact me and I can help with recruiting, player lists, team reports, or just regular individual reports to help you see where players are likely to be rated and their risk of being bumped up at year-end.

How are you going to form your early start team?

Earlier 2017 Manhattan Early Start List now for entire Metropolitan Region

I just updated the Early Start List I created for the Manhattan area in the Metro Region of the Eastern section to be for the whole Metro Region.  So many players cross over that adding the other three areas only made the list a little longer.

Enjoy!

Hypothetical USTA Eastern Metropolitan Region 2017 Early Start List

I've written about the USTA doing away with Early Start Lists and as a service have decided to publish some hypothetical Early Start Lists of my own.  I already published a list for Seattle, Southern Oregon, and Eastern Washington, and I thought I'd branch outside the Pacific Northwest so here is the Metropolitan Region district in the Eastern section.

Update: This was originally just the Manhattan area in the district, but I went ahead and made it the whole district given how many players cross-over to play in multiple areas.

But before you take a look at the list, the same comments and caveats as before still apply.

1. The list is based on my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  This is not a list from the USTA and is not to be used for registering for Early Start Leagues.  It is only hypothetical.
2. While my ratings are very accurate for the vast majority of players, they are not perfect and may be a few hundredths off in which case I could have a player at 3.52 and an early start 4.0 while their real rating is 3.49 which would be a 3.5.
3. Early Start Ratings do not necessarily tell you what your year-end rating will be, even if you don't play any more matches.  Year-end calculations factoring in playoffs and how your area/district/section did in playoffs can move player's ratings up or down from the Early Start level.
4. If you don't see your name and you expected a bump up/down, or you see your name and are surprised and want to know why, contact me at ratings@teravation.net and I can give you details on how to get an Estimated Dynamic NTRP Rating Report that will give all the background on why your estimated rating is where it is.
5. Note that I'm publishing this list a bit early.  I think the Early Start List for this area was published in August last year, but folks were interested so I'm doing it now.

With that said, on to the list!  The below shows only those players that I estimate would be bumped up or down on the Early Start List and I simply show a name, city, and the hypothetical Early Start level.  If your name isn't shown, I estimate your rating to be unchanged.

First the women:

Name	City	Level
Alma Weinstein	Bardonia	3.5
Amanda Meyer	Baltimore	3.5
andrea hamar	Bronx	4.0
Ann Marie Collins	New York	3.0
Anne Kelly	New York	3.5
Annette C Borst	New York	3.5
Antonella Karlin	East Rockaway	5.0
Ayako Minatodani	New York	4.5
Beth L. Mercante	Lido Beach	4.0
Blair Brzeski	New York	4.0
Cari Harewood	Forest Hills	2.5
Carol Ann Myers	Armonk	3.5
Catherine Donovan	New York	3.0
Catherine Jackson	New York	3.5
Catherine Tharin	New York	3.5
Charlotte Ganberg	Bronx	3.5
Chelsea Maeda	New York	3.0
Cindy Lacqua	Staten Island	3.5
Daisy Siemon	New York	4.0
Debra R. Bricker	New York	3.5
Denise A. Fiallo	New York	3.0
Denise K. Cohen	Ossining	4.0
Denise McDonald	Manasquan	3.0
Devon Carroll	Cold Spring Harbor	4.0
Donna Healy	Freeport	3.5
Dorsey W. Montenecourt	New York	3.0
Edna T Diolata	Brooklyn	3.0
Eileen Pollack	New York	3.0
Elaine Philis	New York	3.5
Elena Apostolides	New York	4.0
Elisabeth deBourbon	New York	3.5
Elizabeth Roesch	Brooklyn	3.0
Ellie Wang	Syosset	3.5
Esther Hong	New York	3.0
Evadne E. Bennia	New York	3.5
Evelyn Lamb	Brooklyn	4.0
Halina T. Pavels	New York	4.0
Heide Marie Bliss	Yonkers	4.0
Helene G. Messilaty	Hewlett	3.5
Hilary Finn	Brooklyn	2.5
Hyungran Lee	Fresh meadows	4.0
Inaya Assal	Bronx	4.0
Iris Shih	New York	3.0
Jane Beal	New York	4.0
jill deborah seelig	New York	3.0
Joy E. Tegtmeyer	New York	4.0
Julia Kates	New York	3.0
Justine Cooper	Brooklyn	3.5
Katarzyna Skalska	Middle Village	3.0
Katherine Hamilton	Long Island City	3.5
katie Leanne Walker	Forest Hills	3.5
Kayoko Ito	Eastchester	4.0
Kei Imanishi	Pennington	4.5
Kelly Henson	New York	3.5
Kimberly Pang	New York	3.5
Laura Parcell	Brooklyn	3.5
lauren savoy	New York	3.0
Leonila Jewell	Jamaica	3.0
Lily Tang	Brooklyn	3.5
Linda Eichenbaum	New York	4.0
Lorena Salgado	Ozone Park	3.5
lori grunsfeld	Staten Island	3.0
Luzan Moore	Long Beach	4.0
Margaret Gorman	Brooklyn	4.0
MARIJA CUTURIC	New York	3.0
Marina E. Galeano	Pleasantville	4.0
Mary Jane Reisinger	New York	3.5
Mary Keough	WHITE PLAINS	3.5
mehves sucato	Astoria	4.0
Melissa A. Murphy	New York	3.0
Michele D. Miller	Dobbs Ferry	4.5
Misha Monticciolo	Coram	4.0
Monika Granata	New York	3.5
Nancy Aranow	Hartsdale	3.5
Nesta George	Brooklyn	4.0
Nicola Chiba	New York	3.5
Patricia McNamara	New York	3.5
Rachael S Ellenbogen	Slingerlands	3.5
Randi Ann Coppola	Harrison	4.0
Rebecca L. Danchik	New York	3.5
Rebecca Wehrle	Haledon	3.5
Rezan C. Graf	Pound Ridge	4.0
Robin Brady	Bronx	3.5
Robin L. Breuer	Hackensack	3.0
Salpi Cooperstone	Merrick	3.5
Sara C Willett	New York	3.5
Sarah Ann Mannion	New York	4.5
Sarah Liddle	White Plains	4.5
Sondra Glueck	Great Neck	4.0
Stephanie Vogt	New York	3.5
Susan A. Bacey	Dix Hills	4.5
Susan A. Robichek	Haworth	3.5
Susan M. Peck	New York	3.5
Susan Smey	Putnam Valley	4.5
Susie Choi	New York	3.5
Suzanne Prezorski	Deer Park	3.0
Suzanne R. Shapiro	Long Is City	3.5
Tammy Caress	New York	3.5
Venus Jones	Bronx	4.0
Wanda P. Nadal	Glen Rock	3.5
Wendy Johnson	New York	3.0
Yelena Korolikova	Staten Island	2.5
Yimei He	Forest Hills	4.0

And the men:

Name	City	Level
Adam Gerber	New York	4.5
Adam J. Finkelstein	Greenwich	4.5
Alan M Friedman	New York	3.0
Albert Cousins	Long Island City	2.5
Amit Bafna	Englewood Cliffs	4.0
Andreas Berner	New York	4.0
Arthur Kell	Brooklyn	4.5
Bartosz Sikora	Ramsey	4.0
Blake Spahn	New York	4.5
Brad Dunn	Saugerties	3.0
Brady Bartlett	North Bergen	5.0
Brendan Alan Moser	Kew Gardens	3.5
Brett Cornell	Astoria	3.5
Cesar Gonzalez	Yonkers	3.5
Chau Khuong	Forest Hills	4.5
Chris McGee	Brooklyn	4.5
Christopher Daniels	New York	4.0
Christopher Walther	New York	4.5
Cidric Trinidad	Forest Hills	4.5
Dan Jones	North Merrick	4.5
Daniel Bindler	Merrick	3.5
Darcy Mitchell	New York	4.5
David Schwartz	Lyndhurst	5.0
David Seidner	Roslyn Heights	4.5
Devang Madhu Parmar	auburndale	5.0
Douglas Brian Savino	Chappaqua	4.0
eric shvartser	Brooklyn	3.0
Eric Yong Jin	Staten Island	4.5
Fungseng Mui	Brooklyn	3.0
Georgio A Dano	Staten Island	4.5
GowriShankar Vembu	Scotch Plains	4.0
H Steve Kim	New York	4.5
Han Bo	Middle Village	3.0
Horst Steinsdoerfer	Levittown	4.0
HSIAOPIN LIU	Farmingdale	4.0
Ian Katz	New York	4.5
Isaac Halpern	New York	3.5
Ivor Chan	Rosedale	3.5
Jason T Willinger	Beverly Hills	4.0
Jaspreet Singh	Hicksville	4.0
Javinne McCoy	Briarwood	3.5
Jeff R. Cunningham	New York	4.0
Jeremy Mindich	New York	4.0
Jodi Nainggolan	Levittown	4.5
Julien Morel	Astoria	5.0
JUNG HOON PARK	Little Neck	4.0
Ken wong	Brooklyn	4.0
Kevin carlyle Robinson	New York	3.5
Kevine Masuka	Hempstead	3.5
Koray Yilmaz	Brooklyn	3.5
Kuo Hung Wu	Bronx	4.0
Laurent Nguyen Ngoc	New York	4.0
Luc M Demortier	New York	3.5
Marc Spencer Werner	New York	4.5
Marcel Heinrichs	New York	3.5
Mariusz Jaskowski	Malverne	3.5
Mark E Daly	Forest Hills	4.0
Mark H Goldman	Port Washington	4.0
Matthew Spindler	Roslyn	4.5
Michael Joseph Casamassima	Smithtown	4.5
Michael T. Peterson	Brooklyn	3.5
Michael Tarlow	New York	3.0
Mikel Maurolagoitia	New York	4.5
Neil Torpey	New York	4.0
Nick Bridoy	New York	4.5
Nickola Ristic	New York	5.0
Ninad Shah	Whitestone	2.5
Nishad Deshpande	Astoria	3.5
omar stanley bailey	Brooklyn	3.0
Patrick Smollen	New York	4.5
Paul Zuffa	New York	4.0
Paulo Guilherme de Souza	Astoria	4.0
Randall Smalley	New York	5.5
Rick Y. Chen	Fresh Meadows	4.0
Roger S. Freed	Brooklyn	3.5
Rusty Wright	Pelham	4.5
Sadik Sendich	Staten Island	4.5
Scott Dainton	Forest Hills	3.0
Scott Rader	New York	4.0
Sean Hartley	New York	3.0
Seth Nelson	Kansas City	4.5
Seth Sarelson	New York	4.0
Stephane Aknin	New York	4.0
Stephen Reich	New York	4.0
Thibault Ducarme	New York	5.5
Thomas B. Bishop	Piscataway	3.5
Tim Shan	New York	4.0
Tongkun Liu	Forest Hills	3.5
Victor M. Mercado	Floral Park	4.5
Waihong Ho	Brooklyn	4.0
walter baker	New York	3.5
Wayne Freeman	Port Jefferson Station	3.5
Xavier Poutas	New York	4.0
Yixuan Ma	Long Island City	4.0
Yoshi Kobari	Brooklyn	4.5

Hypothetical USTA Pacific Northwest Eastern Washington 2017 Early Start List

I've written about the USTA doing away with Early Start Lists and as a service have decided to publish some hypothetical Early Start Lists of my own.  I already published a list for Seattle and Southern Oregon, here is another for Eastern Washington.

But before you take a look at the list, the same comments and caveats as before still apply.

1. The list is based on my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  This is not a list from the USTA and is not to be used for registering for Early Start Leagues.  It is only hypothetical.
2. While my ratings are very accurate for the vast majority of players, they are not perfect and may be a few hundredths off in which case I could have a player at 3.52 and an early start 4.0 while their real rating is 3.49 which would be a 3.5.
3. Early Start Ratings do not necessarily tell you what your year-end rating will be, even if you don't play any more matches.  Year-end calculations factoring in playoffs and how your area/district/section did in playoffs can move player's ratings up or down from the Early Start level.  And in the PNW section, our One Doubles league does count towards year-end ratings so those results can change a player's rating.
4. If you don't see your name and you expected a bump up/down, or you see your name and are surprised and want to know why, contact me at ratings@teravation.net and I can give you details on how to get an Estimated Dynamic NTRP Rating Report that will give all the background on why your estimated rating is where it is.

With that said, on to the list!  The below shows only those players that I estimate would be bumped up or down on the Early Start List and I simply show a name, city, and the hypothetical Early Start level.  If your name isn't shown, I estimate your rating to be unchanged.

First the women:

Name	City	Level
Angela Gibbar	Coeur D Alene	3.5
April Denike	Spokane	4.0
Ashley Michelle Macias	Yakima	4.0
Barbara J Seatter	Hood River	3.5
Barbara J. Umbdenstock	Spokane	3.0
Beth Orgain	Hood River	3.0
Bonnie J Osborne	Depoe Bay	3.0
Brenda Windsor	Hood River	4.0
Bridget Horner	Athol	4.0
Candace Kay Wing	Goldendale	3.5
Carol Ann Furman	Hayden	2.5
Carrie Engle	Portland	4.0
Cathi A. Lannon	Hood River	4.0
Charity Dawn Rose	Spokane	3.5
Chris Reitz	Hood River	3.0
Claire Griffin	Hood River	3.5
Courtenay Dey	Hood River	4.0
Crystal Eddy	Fairchild Air Force Base	3.0
Cyndie Lempesis	Post Falls	3.5
Dawn Marie Degrasse	Yakima	3.5
Debbie Lynne Fuller	Hood River	3.5
Diane L. Carey	Yakima	4.0
Gina Joleen Bryan	Spokane	3.5
Ginny Mahl	Otis Orchards	3.5
Iris Harrison	Sandpoint	3.5
Jackie Maryann Andrewjeski	Wenatchee	4.0
Jaime Morrison	Spokane Valley	4.0
Jaime Nicole Borton	Yakima	3.5
Jan L. Hodgson	Wenatchee	3.5
Jenessa Reid	West Richland	3.0
Jenifer M Christensen	Coeur D Alene	3.5
JENNIFER BELOY	White Salmon	3.5
Jennifer Joyce Senske	Spokane	3.0
Jeralyn Snellgrove	Mosier	3.0
Joani Roller	Wenatchee	3.0
Joanne Heyamoto	Spokane	3.0
Jody lee Davey	Richland	3.5
Judi M. Brown	Yakima	3.5
Julie Lubbe	Spokane	3.5
Karen Belzer	Kennewick	4.0
Katherine Bechtel Karlson	White Salmon	4.0
Kathleen E. Burns	Spokane	5.0
Kathryn Carlsen	Spokane	3.5
kathy pauline dinwiddie	East Wenatchee	3.0
Katie Laura Kinsfogel	Hood River	4.5
Kellee Ann Bates	Chattaroy	4.0
Kelley Aagesen	Dalton Gardens	3.5
Kiersten Shelby	Spokane Valley	3.5
Kimberley A Pierret	Pasco	3.5
Kimberly A. Bayley	Spokane	3.5
Kristina M P. Fager	Spokane	4.0
Kristina Van Breda Kolff	Spokane	3.5
Laura Stewart	Selah	3.0
Laurie Stanley	Spokane Valley	3.0
Lea Williams	Coeur D Alene	4.5
Leanne McEachern	Newport	3.0
Leslie Jones	Hood River	3.0
Liberty C. Andis	Yakima	3.0
Lindy Bentley	Kennewick	3.5
Lisa Ann Hagen	Spokane	3.5
Lisa Jane Dumais	Veradale	3.5
Lisa K Volle	Portland	4.0
Lorena Mayuga	Kennewick	3.5
loretta k gohd	Kennewick	4.0
Maria Alexandrovna Kostina	Hayden Lake	4.0
Maria Martin	Yakima	3.5
Marian L Menke	Spokane	3.0
Marjorie Byrne	Mt Hood Prkdl	4.0
Mary Pierce	The Dalles	2.5
Mary Robbins-Wenker	Yakima	3.0
Michele Yvette Ladd	Yakima	4.0
Minou Anh Thu Chau	Camas	4.5
Nancy Foley	Hood River	4.0
Nancy Lauck	Hermiston	3.0
Rachelle Janna Kershaw	Yakima	3.5
Rathini Woodworth	Richland	3.5
ReNae Michelle Sevigny	Yakima	3.5
Renee Goodman	Yakima	2.5
Sally J. Anderson	Hood River	4.0
Sandra Andrews	Newport Beach	4.0
Sarah Hamilton	Liberty Lake	3.5
Sharon Pataky	Liberty Lake	2.5
Stephanie Butler	Spokane	3.0
Susan C. Morrison	Zillah	4.0
Susan K. Servick	Coeur D Alene	4.0
tamey phillips	Dalton Gardens	3.0
Tammy Hutchison	Kennewick	3.5
Tracy Lea vanHalderen	Spokane	3.5
tracy lynn carlsen	Coeur d Alene	4.0
Valerie Whitman	Spokane	3.0
Xia Suter	West Richland	4.5

And the men:

Name	City	Level
andrew mesler	Wenatchee	3.5
Ariana Soroush Entezari	Spokane	4.0
Bart Keller Munson	Kennewick	3.5
Brad Teeter	Mount Vernon	4.0
Brett Alan Kaiser	Spokane	4.5
Bruce R. Johnson	Liberty Lake	3.0
Bryan G Osborn	Spokane Valley	3.5
Carlos Olivares	Yakima	3.0
Chris D. Andrus	Richland	3.5
Chris Dupont	Spokane	3.5
Christopher Osborn	Spokane Valley	4.0
Daniel Foster	Yakima	5.0
Daniel Higgins	Juliaetta	4.0
David A. Roth	Newman Lake	3.5
David Wallace Donaldson	Zillah	3.5
Dean M Stuart	Hayden	3.5
Derek John Peacock	Richland	4.0
Dillon Delabarre	Seattle	4.5
Duane Wilson	Liberty Lake	3.5
Duke D. Dixon	Coeur D Alene	5.0
eors markos	Twisp	3.0
Erle Furbeyre	Spokane	3.5
Gary Lackey	Yakima	3.0
James L. Degrasse	Yakima	3.5
Jason Ladum	Spokane	4.0
Jason Martin	Spokane	4.0
Jason Rubright	Yakima	3.5
Jeff Barker	Rathdrum	4.0
Jeong Lee	Auburn	4.5
Jepson West	White Salmon	4.0
Jesus Bravo	Richland	3.5
John Hooper Landefeld	Kennewick	2.5
John L Smoot	Kennewick	2.5
John Williams	Coeur D Alene	4.5
Jonathan Peacock	Richland	3.5
Joshua C Shoemaker	Richland	3.0
Keith D. Koch	Leavenworth	4.0
Keith M Metully	Spokane	4.0
Ken F. Burgess	Spokane	2.5
Kristofer Ramos	Tieton	3.5
Kristofer Wright	Spokane	4.0
Kyle Smithgall	Spokane Valley	4.5
Landon Martin	Cashmere	3.5
Mark Norman	Cheney	3.0
Mark Robitaille	Coeur D Alene	3.5
Marty Munson	Spokane Valley	3.0
Matthew Crusselle	Richland	4.0
Michael Rudick	Yakima	3.5
Mike Dean West	Spokane Valley	3.5
Mike L Christianson	Selah	2.5
Mike V. Aagesen	Dalton Gardens	3.5
Mitchell J Roach	Kennewick	2.5
Nathan Lipton	Richland	3.5
Nicholas Almeida	Frederick	3.5
Owen B. Suagee	Chelan	4.5
Patrick D DeMars	Spokane	3.5
Paul Bernard	Hayden	4.0
Paul Trotter	Yakima	4.0
Peter David Rayner	Spokane	4.0
Rahul Sharma	Greenacres	4.0
Richard Splichal	Spokane	4.0
Robert Kransberger	Yakima	2.5
Robert P. Cox	Selah	4.0
Ruben Garcia	Coeur D Alene	3.5
Scott D. Anderson	Spokane	4.5
Scott Dowson	West Richland	3.5
Scott Jacky	Yakima	3.5
Shaun Michael Whitney	Hayden	4.5
Terry A. Marden	Prosser	4.5
Terry J. McHugh	Post Falls	3.5
Tim Kast	Coeur D Alene	3.5
Timothy Miller	Ellensburg	4.0
Tyler Charles Van Horn	Yakima	4.5
Vincent Daniel Lopes	Snohomish	3.5
Vincent Paul Hood	Yakima	2.5
Wes Haynes	The Dalles	3.5

Hypothetical USTA Pacific Northwest Southern Oregon 2017 Early Start List

I've written about the USTA doing away with Early Start Lists and as a service have decided to publish some hypothetical Early Start Lists of my own.  I already published a list for Seattle, and had a request for Southern Oregon, so here that is.

But before you take a look at the list, the same comments and caveats as before still apply.

1. The list is based on my Estimated Dynamic NTRP Ratings.  This is not a list from the USTA and is not to be used for registering for Early Start Leagues.  It is only hypothetical.
2. While my ratings are very accurate for the vast majority of players, they are not perfect and may be a few hundredths off in which case I could have a player at 3.52 and an early start 4.0 while their real rating is 3.49 which would be a 3.5.
3. Early Start Ratings do not necessarily tell you what your year-end rating will be, even if you don't play any more matches.  Year-end calculations factoring in playoffs and how your area/district/section did in playoffs can move player's ratings up or down from the Early Start level.  And in the PNW section, our One Doubles league does count towards year-end ratings so those results can change a player's rating.
4. If you don't see your name and you expected a bump up/down, or you see your name and are surprised and want to know why, contact me at ratings@teravation.net and I can give you details on how to get an Estimated Dynamic NTRP Rating Report that will give all the background on why your estimated rating is where it is.

With that said, on to the list!  The below shows only those players that I estimate would be bumped up or down on the Early Start List and I simply show a name, city, and the hypothetical Early Start level.  If your name isn't shown, I estimate your rating to be unchanged.

First the women:

Name	City	Level
Alejandra Clemens	Woodburn	4.0
Amanda Marie Ahern	Bend	3.5
Amy Kirk Eklund	Eugene	2.5
Amy Patton	Ashland	3.5
Angela Mischelle Hamilton	Eugene	3.0
Ann B. Yost	Albany	3.5
Ann M. Frischkorn	Bend	3.0
Ann Martin	Salem	3.0
Anne Dean	Eugene	3.5
Annette Hatley	Keizer	3.0
Annette R. Henderson	Bend	3.5
Annette Thompson	Bend	4.5
Ashley Fear	Salem	4.0
Ayako Y James	Chicago	3.5
BARBARA GABRIELA GHIO	Salem	3.0
Barbara Vasquez	Ashland	3.0
Blanche P. Sabo	Canby	3.5
Bonnie J Osborne	Depoe Bay	3.0
Brigitte Doris Hamilton	Salem	2.5
Cara Cain	Salem	3.5
Catherine Frischmann	Corvallis	4.0
Catherine L. Muensterman	Bend	3.5
Charlotte A. Rieder	Salem	3.0
Cheryl B. Hunt	Eugene	3.0
Cheryl Yoder	Winchester	2.5
Christin Hinds	Salem	3.0
Christina Michelle Chapman	Salem	2.5
Dana Leigh Richardson	Salem	3.5
Diane Guthrie	North Bend	2.5
Edith Moerschell	Eugene	3.0
Elise Crum	Eugene	4.0
Elizabeth Harn	Eugene	3.0
Esther Celis	Eugene	3.0
Evangeline Laurie	Eugene	3.5
Gale Peterson	Sutherlin	3.5
Hildur Ragnarsson Schmidt	Bend	3.0
ILIMA ANN AIU	Bend	2.5
Jane Brass Barth	Corvallis	3.5
Jane Ingle	Eugene	3.5
Janet D. Wells	Central Point	3.5
Jeanne K. Haskell	Carmichael	4.5
Jennifer Ablow	Eugene	3.0
Jennifer Snelling	Eugene	3.0
Jerita Osmin	Bend	3.0
Judy Conroy	Corvallis	3.0
Judy Rowan	Redmond	3.0
Julie Flager	Aumsville	4.0
Julie S Duvall	Eugene	3.0
Karen S. Osuna	Eugene	4.5
Karin Hamm	Salem	3.5
Karin Main	Corvallis	2.5
Kathleen H. Lee	Philomath	2.5
Kay Riedl	Salem	2.5
kelli von maur	Eugene	3.0
kelly j morales	Salem	3.0
Kerry Moyer	Salem	3.5
Kim M Herber	Salem	3.0
Kimberly A. Quach	Portland	4.5
Kirsten Collins	Salem	2.5
krissi martes	Jasper	3.0
Kristen B. Wehrman	Bend	3.5
Kristin Lynn Nelson-Sick	Eugene	3.5
Kristina Ann Parker	Eugene	3.5
Laura Irene Steinwand	Roseburg	3.5
Laurel P Ewing	Bend	3.0
Laurie Hammill	Grants Pass	3.5
Leanne McEachern	Newport	3.0
Leslie A. Hofferd	Bend	4.0
Linda Campbell	Salem	3.5
Linh-Phuong Nguyen Nguyen	Salem	3.0
LISA VILSTRUP WITNAUER	Ashland	3.0
Liz O'Donnell	Corvallis	4.5
Lucy Skjegstad	Roseburg	3.0
Lynn R. Goeke	Salem	3.5
Lynne Lenker	Gleneden Beach	3.0
Margaret Swadener	Keizer	3.0
Marianne P Bradshaw	Salem	3.5
Marlene G. Enos	Eugene	3.5
Mary Anderson	Lake Oswego	4.5
Mary J. Hummel	Lincoln City	3.0
Maryclaire Collis	Bend	3.5
Nancy Walz	Ashland	3.5
Olivia Steele	Bend	4.0
Pam Tice Smith	Bend	3.0
raquel eleanor hecht	Eugene	4.0
Renee Elizabeth LaFrance	Eugene	3.0
Rhonda Caroline Lawson	Eugene	3.5
Robin Beckwith	Newport	3.0
Robyn Roark Morley	Salem	2.5
Ruby Marine	Bend	4.0
Saeko Kasai	Springfield	4.0
Sammi Lehmann	Corvallis	2.5
Sandra Berge	Bend	3.0
Sarah Medary	Eugene	3.5
Shelby Kristine Roth	Roseburg	4.5
Sheri L. Ambrose	Lincoln City	3.0
stacey clouse	Medford	3.0
Stacey Nyman	Bend	3.0
Stacia Hammond	Salem	3.5
Stephanie Rene Foreman	Salem	3.0
Susan A. Manganaro	Sunriver	3.5
Susan G. Massey	Bend	4.5
Susan J Wilson	Albany	3.0
Susan Shafroth Macomson	DuPont	3.0
Susanna R. Ross	Bend	3.0
Suzanne Algara	Eugene	3.0
Taylor Brook Root	Roseburg	4.0
Tracy Victoria L'Etoile	Bend	4.0

And the men:

Name	City	Level
Alan Karam	Salem	4.0
Anthony Losco	Eugene	3.0
Brian Whalen	Eugene	4.0
Bruce J. Brubeck	Eugene	3.0
bruce mckay	Eugene	4.0
Cole Eibel	Roseburg	4.5
Cory Frazer	Springfield	4.5
David Clark	Salem	3.5
Duy Nguyen	Salem	3.0
Erik Fernandez	Bend	4.5
George Owens	Jefferson	3.0
Hoang Nguyen	Portland	4.0
Jason Bradford	Corvallis	4.0
jerry a trapp	Junction City	3.5
Joaquin Peralta	Salem	3.5
John Bartell	Eugene	3.5
John Follett	Eugene	3.5
Kenneth Pierce	Grapevine	4.0
Michael L. Hughes	Klamath Falls	4.0
Rick S. Yurk	Salem	4.0
Robert Stevens	Salem	4.0
Ron P. Saunders	Bend	4.5
Stacy Chance	Eugene	4.0
Stan K. Ihori	Sherwood	3.0
Stephen Victor Robinson	Eugene	3.0
Steve Smith	Eugene	3.5
Travis Holz	Eugene	4.0
Warren Sablosky	Eugene	3.5
Will Calkin	Eugene	3.5
Zachary Leininger	Klamath Falls	4.5

USTA Pacific Northwest publishes rule for handling bumped up players playing on Early Start League teams

I received my latest newsletter from the Pacific Northwest section today and the decision on how to handle players playing on an Early Start League team that are bumped up at year-end seems to have been made.

As you may recall, the USTA is not publishing Early Start Ratings this year.  Since there will still be Early Start Leagues, players will simply register for these teams using their current year-end rating.  The question then becomes, do these players remain eligible to play at that level if they are bumped up at year-end?

From the newsletter, the PNW has decided no, bumped up players will not be able to continue playing at their lower level, specifically, they will not be able to play at their lower level at Sectionals.  Here is the specific language:

Players and captains need to be very mindful when a player is suspected of being very strong at the current rating. If the player bumps up in rating at year-end, s/he is not eligible to continue to Sectionals at that rating. The player may play on the team if there is a partner available at the appropriate rating.

What does this mean?  Say a 4.0 lady is playing on an 8.0 Mixed team (league starts in August/September) and is bumped up to 4.5 at year-end.  Should her team qualify to go to Sectionals, she would not be eligible to play as a 4.0 but could play as a 4.5, meaning she could continue to play but only if she now played with a 3.5 man instead of the 4.0 men she could play with during the regular season.

Why does the restriction to play at the new year-end level only kick in at Sectionals?  What about earlier rounds of playoffs or league play?  I think the reason is that most, perhaps all, Early Start Leagues in the PNW will complete their regular season during 2016, and those that have local playoffs will have those in November or early December.  Since year-end ratings are usually published after Thanksgiving, all or the majority of league play is complete before someone knows they are bumped up so that is a moot point.  And while local playoffs may be a week or two after ratings come out, I believe the logistics of informing teams who is/isn't eligible was considered difficult to do in the short period of time.

While I'd personally like to see the bumped up players have to play at their new level immediately, that is what is fair to the competing teams in my opinion, this approach seems reasonable.  It at least keeps players that would not be eligible at the lower level at Nationals from playing at that lower level at Sectionals.

Note that this approach is different, and in my opinion far better, than what the Southern section decided to do, which is to allow players to play at their lower level through Sectionals.  That means a team could win Sectionals and not be able to field a team at Nationals.  That is not fair to their competition at Sectionals that in effect had to play against an ineligible team and perhaps missed out on their chance at Nationals because of it.

What do you think?

The USTA is changing the rule regarding players 65+ being bumped up - No more discrimination!

A few years ago, the USTA instituted a rule saying that players age 65+ would not be bumped up an NTRP level at year-end, even if their rating indicated they should be.  I wrote about this in describing the appeal rules at the time and how such a player could appeal if they wanted to be bumped up, but also wrote how this was arguably discriminating against 65+ players as they couldn't be recognized for improving by being bumped up with the "A".

Well, enough of you complained that the USTA heard you, and apparently the rule is changing for 2016 year-end.  I was just learned that the language is changing to indicate that these players will be bumped up normally but can automatically appeal down should they not want to be bumped up.  This is exactly how I suggested the rule be changed as this would allow players to be recognized with their bump up, but those that felt they'd be overmatched at their age at the higher level could appeal down.

Thank you USTA for listening!