Friday, April 19, 2019

It is April, time to think about Georgia States and 2020 Leagues!

Tennis is big in Georgia.  How big is it?

Georgia usually has the 2nd most participants in USTA League of all states, second only to California.  And California is two sections while Georgia is just one of 9 states in the Southern Section!

But USTA League is not the only game in town, ALTA is huge in the greater Atlanta area, so big that USTA League has to schedule their leagues around the ALTA season leading to a number of early start leagues that start as early as May.  Yes, teams are now forming in Georgia for the 2020 championship year while most areas are just getting going for 2019.

But this packed schedule doesn't keep the USTA from scheduling multiple seasons for some leagues, which leads to a lot of teams qualifying for States.  And that is pertinent right now as 18 & Over Georgia States are coming up in a few weeks.

I've done a number of reports on teams, flights, and simulating results, and there are a few observations.

First, winning Georgia States is a tough job.  In some cases there are three flights of six teams each meaning a team must potentially win seven straight matches (5 in flight, a semi and final) to just win States and get to go to Sectionals.  And some of these teams already had to win local playoffs to make it to States.

Second, due to the early start leagues and Southern's rule allowing bumped up players to keep playing on their teams, there are some loaded teams with bumped up players still playing at their lower level.

Third, despite some loaded teams, some flights are going to be very competitive.  One flight had 4 of 6 teams all tied with the same full roster average rating, and another had the top 5 of 6 all with full roster averages within 0.04 of each other.  There are going to be some competitive matches and flight winners may not be decided until the last point is played.

Good luck to all the teams playing at Georgia States!


Tuesday, April 9, 2019

Get out and play a tournament! Doubles tournament at my club in two weeks

Playing USTA League is popular with a lot of players.  Playing generally one match per week over 2-3 months works for a lot of people's schedules, and it usually results in matches between player's of similar abilities.  Quite a few folks also like the idea of playing on a team where the camaraderie and team result is the focus, and everyone works towards a season long goal.

For those that prefer to have their matches more condensed and/or are working on individual goals, there is tournament play.  Tournaments are usually played over 3-4 days and on weekends, with anywhere from 2-5 matches played depending on the size of the draw or tournament format.  The USTA sanctions both age division and NTRP tournaments, and other organizations sanction tournament play as well that may be ratings based or even gender neutral.  Some players play exclusively in tournaments and don't play in league, so playing in tournaments also offers the opportunity to play new players if you grow tired of facing the same players in league year after year.

NTRP Nationals for tournament players was just held the past few weekends and these players qualified to go based on playing NTRP tournaments in the area.  Different sections use different criteria for determining who will advance, but all involve qualifying by playing in NTRP tournaments during the year to accumulate points or advancing to a Sectionals tournament to identify the top players.

If you are interested in going to NTRP Nationals next year, now is the time to start playing NTRP tournaments.  The club I play at, Columbia Athletic Club Silver Lake, is hosting a few tournaments in the next month, a doubles event starting April 25th, and a singles event starting May 16th.

If you are wanting to get to NTRP Nationals, or just want to give tournament play a try, find a tournament near you!