Wanting to follow Northwest Washington (Seattle) 40 & Over playoffs? Don't use TennisLink!

The saga of the USTA's technology challenges as it relates to leagues and tournaments seems to be continuing.

Local playoffs for the 40 & Over league in Seattle are going on this weekend, and I went to TennisLink to see how some friends had done in the matches.  Let's ignore for now that TennisLink is terrible as trying to follow along with local playoffs like this as there is no central place to see the schedule or get to draws, you more or less have to find a player or team and then find their championships and navigate to the draw where you can see only that draw.  Want to see other draws or NTRP levels?  Prepare to search and navigate a bunch more.  But I said I'd ignore that for now, so moving on.

I found the draw I was after but no score had been recorded yet.  But my wife got a text from a spectator saying our friend's team won and I refreshed the draw and indeed I saw the match was now recorded ... except the draw said the other team won!

Confused, I clicked on the match, and court by court our friend's team had won 3 courts to 1, but going back to the draw, it showed the other team winning 3-1.

Thinking this was perhaps a TennisLink web-site issue, I went to the iPhone app but it too showed a draw with the other team winning and advancing.

Clearly something is amiss with TennisLink, perhaps the issues in the new Serve Tennis/Play Tennis site have found their way into TennisLink, and it turns out our League Coordinator knows, as she is using a Google Docs spreadsheet to keep track of playoffs and pointing folks to it!  And it is even linked to from the Northwest Washington page on USTA.com.

Kudos to Jill for recognizing the issue and coming up with a solution, but it is sad she has to do that.  She is effectively having to do double work to enter results in the spreadsheet and eventually go get them in TennisLink.

But going back to it being hard to follow events like this, it is doubly bad when TennisLink is messing up as I don't think it is well known that a Google Docs spreadsheet is being used so fans don't know to look there and may look at TennisLink and get incorrect information it appears.

So, if you are trying to follow playoffs this weekend, don't head to TennisLink, but instead go here and click on the 2021 A40 Playoffs sheet where you can see a much nicer than TennisLink schedule for the whole event in one place and all the results.

2021 NTRP Tournament Nationals is happening, ... but is using TennisLink?

A few years ago the USTA introduced a new "Nationals" event, one for NTRP tournament players.  Players qualify from their section based on tournament ranking lists and/or playing in a Sectionals tournament, and then the event is held in the Spring for those players that qualified from the prior year.

The 2020 event was not played due to the suspension of play due to COVID-19, and with few tournaments played in 2020 in many sections, qualifications for the 2021 event were a bit different, some player's who qualified for the 2020 event were given invitations to this year's event, but the 2021 event is on and in fact being played this weekend.

The 18 & Over singles event is being played in Arizona and the 50 & Over singles players are in Orlando.  Next weekend, the 18 & Over doubles are in Arizona and 50 & Over doubles will be in San Diego.

The links I gave above are to the new Serve Tennis (Play Tennis) site, which was launched for 2021, but interestingly the draws are not found there and instead are found on TennisLink.  The USTA appears to be continuing to have challenges with the new site, they even sent an e-mail out a month or two ago apologizing for all the snafus, and they still aren't out of the woods it appears.

I've heard rumblings about lots of issues and TennisLink having to be resuscitated, but elected not to pile on and write about them all, but it appears even NTRP Nationals, an event I would have thought would have been a key use case for the requirements for the new site, has had to resort to using TennisLink for draws.

Never the less, good luck to all the players competing the next two weekends!

Are 3-strike DQs up in 2021 USTA League? Interesting Tennis League Stats

As we slowly make our way through the (hopefully) downhill side of the COVID-19 pandemic, USTA League play is taking place in most sections.  Some areas have mask wearing or other restrictions, while others are just playing as normal.  Regardless, it is good to see play going on.  See my earlier analysis of where play was happening through January.

This also provides an opportunity to look at potential impacts of the pandemic, or decisions the USTA made as result.

First, we can look at matches played.  For this, I'll look at matches between January 1st and March 13th, as the latter date is when the USTA suspended play in 2020.  I will also only look at Adult 18/40/55 for consistency.

In 2020, there were nearly 34K team matches played which was up 4.5% from 2019 when there were just over 32K played.  During the same period in 2021, there have been just over 22K played, a drop of 34%.

This isn't a big surprise, a number of areas delayed starting league play so the match played count would be expected to be lower and I'd think is primarily due to the USTA adhering to local rules regarding competitive sports, especially in those areas where play early in the year is indoors.

Second, we can look at the number of players who have played in the same period.  The counts by year are 126K in 2019, 124K in 2020, and 86K in 2021.  Here there is a 31% drop from 2020 to 2021, basically mirroring the drop in team matches, so no surprise.

Third, we can look at DQs during this same period.  The counts by year are 63 in 2019, 59 in 2020, and 64 in 2021.  This is pretty consistent, so you'd think nothing to be alarmed at, except the 64 in 2021 has been achieved in 34% fewer team matches.  If you look at the rate per team match, DQs are actually up 65%, and the rate per player is up 59%.  This, at least to me, is alarming.

Why the significant increase?  Has something gone haywire with the self-rate guidelines or questionnaire or how TennisLink spits out the minimum self-rate level?  Are more players lying when answering the questionnaire and self-rating too low?  Are players not managing their rating effectively anymore?  Has the USTA tightened up the strike thresholds?

While any of the above could contribute, I don't think any of those are a significant factor, or a factor at all.  Instead, I'd offer that what I wrote about last Fall was likely to happen simply is happening.

Last Fall, the USTA made the decision to not publish 2020 year-end ratings.  I saw a number of potential issues with this decision, one of those being there would be a lot more self-rated players, and many of those would be out of level.  It would appear that some of those that are way out of level are simply having this recognized via 3-strike DQ, specifically a rate 59% higher than the prior year.

You might say, 64 DQs is a small number and not a big deal, but for there to be this large an increase in the DQ rate, there is likely a similar increase in the number of self-rated players that are out of level and just not DQ'd yet.  These players get to continue to play at too low a level which isn't terribly fair to the at-level players that are required to play them.  And this doesn't even count all the C-rated players who should have been bumped up (or down) and are playing at the wrong level in 2021 and aren't subject to DQ.  My earlier estimates of put the number of players playing at too low a level at 15K, which is not insignificant and to me at least, is a big deal.

The solution was obviously to publish 2020 year-end ratings, at least for self-rates that had played enough, but the USTA didn't do that and so we are stuck with what we have.

Note that through the end of March, the number of DQs has already gone up from 64 to 120, so the rate increase was not a early blip and is continuing.  Stay tuned as I continue to monitor this.

But these are all just numbers.  What are you observing in your area?  Are you seeing more DQs than normal?  Is there a disparity in the ability within levels regardless of S-rated or C-rated?  Is the lack of 2020 year-end ratings having a detrimental effect on USTA League play?

2021 USTA League Nationals is on! (Fingers crossed)

COVID-19 wreaked havoc with our lives in 2020 and USTA League tennis was not spared with league play canceled or postponed in all areas and USTA League Nationals canceled and not held for 2020.

The new year has brought some hope that we can return to something closer than normal, and USTA League play has begun or is set to begin in many, but not all, sections and that gives hope that league play can happen, and those that qualify can advance on through playoffs including to Sectionals and Nationals.

Adding fuel to the hope is the USTA publishing information about 2021 USTA League Nationals including the schedule as of 2/11 and updated FAQ regarding COVID-19.

This is great news, that Nationals is at least being planned for as without the plans, and certainly wouldn't happen.  And with encouraging news about vaccines and declining hospitalization rates in most areas, hopefully the events can be played as planned.  And coupled with Tri-Level Invitational being run by the USTA this year and occurring shows sone positive momentum.

So what are the plans?

Nationals will be held as usual in October and November, and the host sites for Nationals will be:

• Phoenix, AZ - Phoenix Tennis Center
• Scottsdale, AZ - Scottsdale Ranch Park
• Surprise, AZ - Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex
• Oklahoma City, OK - Oklahoma Tennis Center
• Orlando, FL - USTA National Campus

This is very similar to what had been planned for 2020 Nationals with the exception that Las Vegas was to be used for three events last year but appears to have been replaced by Phoenix/Scottsdale.  Here is the week by week schedule with locations.

October 1-3

• OKC - 18 & Over 3.0
• Surprise - 18 & Over 3.5
• Phoenix - 18 & Over 5.0

October 8-10

• Scottsdale - 18 & Over 2.5W
• Surprise - 18 & Over 4.5
• OKC - 40 & Over 4.0

October 15-17

• Surprise - 18 & Over 4.0
• OKC - 40 & Over 3.5
• Scottdale - 40 & Over 4.5
• Orlando - 55 & Over 7.0 (clay)

October 22-24

• Surprise - 40 & Over 3.0
• Orlando - 55 & Over 8.0 (clay)

October 29-31

• Orlando - 55 & Over 6.0/9.0 (clay)
• Surprise - 18 & Over Mixed 6.0/8.0/10.0

November 5-7

• Surprise - 18 & Over Mixed 7.0/9.0

November 12-14

• Surprise - 40 & Over Mixed 7.0/8.0
• Orlando - 40 & Over Mixed 6.0/9.0

Obviously the Phoenix area is the focal point for Nationals with at least one event being held there every weekend and more than half of the events in that area.

It appears the USTA is paying attention to weather patterns and past lessons with weather related fiascos and trying to reduce the chances of weather delays.  Oklahoma City is used early before the weather perhaps gets colder/worse, and Orlando is used later to avoid the increased chances of Hurricanes in September/October.  Weather can always be unpredictable, but at least it appears the plan tries to avoid problems as much as possible.

Let's hope USTA League remains on schedule and gets played and the above schedule can happen.  Good luck to all those teams with aspirations of making it to Nationals!

What effect has COVID had on PNW Seattle area USTA League?

I wrote a few weeks ago about some initial statistics and observations about how much USTA League play is taking place in 2021 compared to 2020 and by and large, play was down in nearly every section.

With the Seattle area 40 & Over league getting going, albeit a bit late, in a couple weeks, we can now take a look at some specifics from the same league in 2020 and 2021, giving us a good idea of the impact of COVID-19 on league play in a specific league.

In 2020, league play began before we had any idea there would be a pandemic and so the number of teams should have been fully indicative of a normal season.  2021 has the same league and so in theory should be the same, and even arguably show growth given the recent trends in the area, so what the numbers show can logically be attributed to the pandemic and player's willingness to come back and play league.

Here are the team counts by gender/level.  While play has not started yet, the teams are set so these number will not be changing.

• 2.5 Men - New for 2021, 2 teams so a change of +2
• 2.5 Women - 16 in 2020 to 14 in 2021, change of -2
• 3.0 Men - 37 to 23, change of -14
• 3.0 Women - 46 to 38, change of -8
• 3.5 Men - 43 to 26, change of -17
• 3.5 Women - 39 to 34, change of -5
• 4.0 Men - 33 to 17, change of -16
• 4.0 Women - 30 to 22, change of -8
• 4.5 Men - 17 to 11, change of -6
• 4.5 Women - 13 to 9, change of -4
• 5.0 Men - New for 2021, 3 teams, change of +3
• 5.0 Women - 3 teams for both 2020 and 2021

Note, in 2020, the 4.5 levels were plus leagues so this isn't a perfect one-to-one comparison, but it is close.

In general we see a significant drop, with the women going from 147 teams to 120, an 18% drop, and the men from 130 to 82, a whopping 37% drop.

For the men, the 2.5 and 5.0 levels are new and bring a change of 5 new teams, but some huge losses at the 3.0-4.5 levels completely offsets that.

The women have more modest drops across the board.

Note, I have not looked at player counts as players may still sign-up so comparing this stat would be a little preliminary.

Why might this be?  Clearly, COVID is the big factor, with

• some players perhaps not coming back and playing at all yet
• some perhaps playing but just not ready for league play, and
• others willing and able to play, but wanting to do so only within their own "bubble" of players and not with outsiders from other clubs
• some refuse to play in a mask (which is required at least at the start of the season)

I know that at least one team at my club couldn't get enough players to sign up, I think primarily for the 1st and 3rd reasons.  But the 4.0 level having just over half the teams as last year, and 3.5s having around 60% of the teams, are remarkable drops.

I don't think anyone is surprised by there being a drop, but does the size of the drop surprise you?  And why is the drop more severe for the men?

USTA League Tri-Level Invitational is on for 2021!

I did not see an announcement or e-mail from the USTA on this, and I otherwise missed seeing it, but I learned today that the Tri-Level Invitational, that has typically been held in March at Indian Wells Tennis Garden, is scheduled to be played in March 2021 in Surprise, AZ!  The event is officially called the Tri-Level National Invitational and will be held March 5-7.

This is good news in general, it is good to see events being held and a little bit of "life as normal" reappearing, but especially for those players and teams that have qualified.

The location change is due to a few factors I think, namely restrictions in California likely precluded holding the event there, but I also understand the Tournament Director who championed the event in the past is no longer at IWTG so even if it could have been held, it may not have been a priority.

So what else has changed other than the location?

First, selection of invitees likely has to be a little creative this time around.  With the 2020 shutdown of league play for several months, many sections likely didn't have Tri-Level leagues, or if they did may not have made it through to Sectionals, so who gets to go?  My guess, and what I believe PNW is doing, is to offer spots to the teams that qualified from 2019 and did not get to play at the event in 2020.  But check with your Section Coordinator for specifics.

Second, with no ATP/WTA event going on immediately before/after the Invitational, is there a perk?  It appears tentative plans are in place to have complementary tickets to a Spring Training baseball game as Surprise is the Spring Training home to the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals.  That of course is dependent on MLB not delaying Spring Training and a variety of other factors I'm sure.

Third, the event is being run by the USTA.  In prior years, it was an invitational run by IWTG and just happened to invite Tri-Level winners from each section, but the event was not a USTA sanctioned event and results did not show up on a player's record.  As a USTA run event, I understand TennisLink will be used to manage the event much like Nationals, meaning results will show up on a player's record, and there is a chance the matches may count towards a player's rating.

Fourth, in the past, I understand that self-rated players were not eligible to play at the Invitational.  The USTA's rules however appear to allow for up to 3 self-rates, appeals, mixed-exclusive, or tournament-exclusive rated players per team to appeal to be allowed to play.  The appeal will be reviewed by the tournament. committee, but the player must also have played four matches in an advancing league during calendar year 2020.

I actually liked self-rates not being eligible for this event in the past, but can see the USTA's desire to be a little flexible.  Let's hope they are very strict with the appeal review and only allow players to play if their match results really do indicate they are at the right level.

Fifth, I don't know if this is a change or not, but the format will use the un-flighted round-robin used at recent Nationals where a team will play four matches against random opponents, with the top-4 teams in the standings using standard TennisLink tie-breakers, will advance to the semis.  Yes, this means the broken tie-breakers of sets lost and games lost continue to be used and may result in the wrong team advancing, or an undefeated team not advancing.

There is a long list of COVID related rules and guidelines in the tournament handbook, but it does not list players as having to wear masks, but spectators will be required to wear them.

It is great to see the event being held for 2021, good luck to all the teams headed there!

How much USTA League play is taking place in 2021? Is participation up in some areas?

As January 2021 comes to an end, we are far enough into the new year to take a look at how much USTA League is actually being played as various areas of the country deal with the coronavirus pandemic in different ways.

For reference, I'll be using last year, play was not suspended at all in January, and looking at league matches in the 18 & Over, 40 & Over, and 55 & Over divisions, as those schedules year to year are generally the same when there is no pandemic affecting schedules.

Using this criteria, in January 2020, there were 11,461 team matches scheduled and 10,554 played.  The difference of around 900, or about 8%, is likely due to matches needing to be rescheduled due to weather or various other reasons and is not to be unexpected in January.

In January 2021, there were 6,389 team matches scheduled, down 44%, and 5,486 played, down 48%.  Let's take a look at why these numbers are down.

The obvious answer on the scheduled matches being down is the pandemic and some leagues simply not being played.  This is certainly true, play in PNW is postponed until at least March, league play has not started in either California section, and Northern has not started play.  But there has been league play in other sections, somewhat to significantly lower than last year in Eastern, Hawaii, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and New England, and near or normal match counts for January in other sections, with a few are even up slightly including Florida, Intermountain, and Texas.

Florida and Texas are both warm weather areas that generally are able to play outdoors in the winter and haven't had the restrictions other states have had, so the play being slightly up in these sections would seem to indicate strong interest in league play, perhaps even a slight bump from folks getting back into tennis last year as it was an allowed activity.

Intermountain is interesting as the main leagues are played outdoors and don't start until Spring in much of the section, but Nevada can play outdoors in January so the modest bump would seem to be attributed to that district and again, may be to be due to increased interest in tennis.

Southern is also a warmer weather area, but much broader area and population so more subject to restrictions or delays in some states and is down about 17%.

But Southern is likely an indicator of another factor in the decreased play, that being areas where leagues are able to play at normal levels, some players are choosing not to play.  This may be because they didn't play much last year and feel they are rusty and don't want to spend league fees to play yet, or they may be cautious and don't want to play until the COVID numbers drop more or the vaccinations are more widely available and administered.  The long term question for USTA League is if these players will come back or not.

A good way to look at this factor is to look at the number of teams and players registered for a league.  An area that started later than normal in January will still have teams and players registered even if matches scheduled/played are down.  And teams/players in a league isn't affected by leagues not being played.

Here is a chart by section showing the percent increase/decrease in the teams per league and players per league.  Note, just 12 of the sections have played in January so that is why only they are shown.  I've also included the percentage increase/decrease in scheduled team matches and leagues as well.

Here we can see some pretty dramatic changes between 2020 and 2021.

Just four sections have shown any growth in the teams/players registered in a league, just Southwest and Intermountain showing significant growth, and Intermountain is represented by a single league in Las Vegas where play is up.

However, there are a full eight sections showing a significant decrease in the teams and players per league.  The greatest decrease is in Mid-Atlantic where participation is down over 75% for each metric, and Middle States, Eastern, and Texas are also significantly down.

Middle States is also interesting in that the number of leagues is up a bit, but matches and teams/players per league are down.

I should note that while comparing the same month from 2020 to 2021 does mean that generally the same leagues are being compared, but they aren't necessarily exactly the same, and that can be seen in the chart above with the leagues played in January increasing or decreasing so some differences can be attributed to differences in the leagues being played in January.

Does this mean USTA League play in several sections is dying, while a few sections are growing?  One certainly shouldn't make that leap based on comparing a single month from 2020 to 2021, but it reveals some trends that it is worthwhile following the remainder of the year.

What are you observing in your are?