What I did not highlight is that just because National changes the format, it doesn't mean every section or area will follow suit. Individual sections have always had the ability to run their local leagues using a different format than will be used at USTA League Nationals, and some did it in the past when the National format was 2S/3D and some used an alternate format when Nationals changed to 1S/3D. This was typically done at a district or area level and not across an entire section, but it still happened.
Some would use a 3-court format if rosters were small to promote more teams, some stuck with 5-courts when National went to four, and some used a 1S/4D format in the past when National used 2S/3D.
Well, it appears some areas are planning to not adopt the 5-court format for 2024 and stick with the same 4-court format in use for the last few years nationally.
One of those is my section (Pacific Northwest) or at least my area (Seattle/Northwest Washington) as our 2024 schedule shows 40 & Over still being 1S/3D. I've also heard that other areas are sticking with 4-courts.
I'm guessing court availability is the driver in some areas for staying with 4-courts. Particularly in areas where 40 & Over is played early in the year and it is still cold/wet and it is played indoors, courts can be at a premium, and now that facilities had several years of 40 & Over only using 4-courts, they don't want to go back. This is perhaps an unintended consequence of trying out the 4-court format for several years.
Most 40 & Over leagues for 2024 haven't started yet, many won't for 6 months, so all this could change I imagine. But these things are usually planned well in advance and some may stick with 4-courts to see how it goes in 2024.
What are you hearing will be done in your area?
I really wish they'd just go to an all doubles format.
ReplyDeletethat would be terrible. plenty of 40+ players are still able and enjoy playing singles.
DeleteThey already have. It’s called 55+.
DeleteI agree doing away with singles in 40+ would be bad. I see nothing wrong with having a court, even two, of singles in 40+. If a team doesn't have strong singles players, there is nothing wrong with that, the team can still play and some players get the opportunity to play singles. They may not win and advance in playoffs, but that should be looked at as a bonus.
DeleteNo word from NORCAL on any changes for 2024 yet. As a captain, not sure I like it as it's not always easy to have 9 players each match, and the roster size would need to increase. I do like the current 1/3 format with standings based on total points and D1 counting for 2 points (vs. 1 for all other lines).
ReplyDeleteThe problem with that is that matches aren't decided at Nationals based on total points. D1 also shouldn't be weighted stronger. Every court should be equal. Increasing from the initial lineup size of 8 that 40+ adult leagues used to be to the proposed lineup size of 9 with 1S/4D, is only 1 additional player in the lineup. Most rosters would already be fine, or would just have to be increased by 1-2 people, which is a minimal change.
DeleteThat's what happens when USTA Nationals lets each section decide. Perhaps different, but as long as everyone is aware of what the rules are for Nationals, I don't have a problem, even if your area played under a different set of rules. For NORCAL, they changed the format for Sectionals, which I don't think made sense; why not determine the Sectional winner based on the same rules as the regular NORCAL season?
DeleteOn the line differences, I actually think all leagues (3,4 and 5 lines) should play under a format where D1 is weighted higher than D2, D2 higher than D3, S1 higher than S2, etc. Sets up each match for a more competitive experience for all involved. Never cared for 'flipping' your lines as a strategy, play your lines in the order of strength and don't 'sacrifice' players. Just my opinion, of course!
I understand National lets each section decide certain things, though not everything. But it makes the most sense overall to have the same format as you'd be playing at Nationals. This only will happen each section better prepare for Nationals, unless there's issues with court availability and/or lots of travel during the regular season, etc.
DeleteI see your point about wanting a more competitive experience, but there's no guarantee that will happen according to your example. In fact, it could make it even less competitive often by your example. But again, USTA in most places and Nationals isn't setup like that by weighting each court differently. If Nationals was like that, then I'd be up for it more, but since it isn't, it doesn't make much sense to me to weight courts. Court positioning for USTA is arbitrary, #1 doesn't mean that's supposed to be the best court necessarily. Plus, who's to say who's better between Player A and Player B, etc?
Using points-per-position (PPP) vs traditional wins/losses is an interesting one. Some sections use PPP and like it a lot, it, perceived at least, gets rid of some of the incentive to stack and avoids standings tie-breakers that are often debated. But PPP does reduce the ability for a captain to "steal" a win vs a tougher team by getting the right line-up. That strategy is what appeals to some captains. PPP tends to reward stronger teams or those with more depth, so if making it easier for those teams to advance makes sense, PPP may be the right thing.
DeleteI've never used PPP, so naturally I'm not for it. But also, Nationals also doesn't use it so why do something so different in preparation for Nationals if unnecessary? Once everyone understands that the numbers for court positioning are just arbitrary, don't mean anything about abilities, and treat each court the same worth, then the perceived notion of stacking isn't actually stacking anymore. And there's still ways around PPP to 'steal' wins. Also, players aren't playing singles AND doubles like in HS/college, but just one or the other. So you have to choose correctly where to put each player. For example, a team's best singles player might only be the 5th or 6th best doubles player at best.
DeleteWe’ve had 1S/4D in our section since 2022. It allows for way too much stacking in the doubles line up in my opinion. And having to put together 4 sensible doubles pairings each week can be challenging if you want to avoid throwing random doubles teams out there.
ReplyDeleteIn Texas, we will use 4 lines of doubles and one line of singles in this fall. Also, in San Antonio, the fall season matches will not be considered into NTRP rating to prevent players from tanking their rating. Will any of states do the same? So, our ratings for the 2023 year end is locked in at this moment.
ReplyDelete