TENNIS
ASSOCIATION
2009
– 2010
Revised
May, 2009
OFFICERS
*
* * *
PRESIDENT
........... Debra
Blackman
VICE
PRESIDENT ...... Melanie Deal
SECRETARY
......... Valerie
Matejowsky
TREASURER
.......... Racquel Kaelberer
IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT....
Gloria Alvarez
Sue Boudreaux
De Hughes
Cindy Strickler
Amy Dewees
*
PAST
PRESIDENTS
BETTY EVERS
KAY McDONALD
CHARLENE TUBBS
DIANE GRAHAM
JoANN HOYER
DONNA UNDERWOOD
SUE ROBINSON
SHERRY AYCOCK - 1986-87
JOAN KNOX - 1988-89
KATHRYN VAN - 1990-91
GLORIA
ALVAREZ – 1996-97
NANCY WILLIAMS – 1998-99
JANIS BATTAGLIA – 2000-2001
CATHERINE HARDY - 2002
NANCY
WALLACE – 2003-2004
GLORIA ALVAREZ – 2007-2008
BY-
ARTICLE 1 - NAME
The name of the organization shall be
OUACHITA WOMEN'S TENNIS
ASSOCIATION.
ARTICLE 2 - OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this organization shall be to
promote tennis through clinics and other educational activities and to provide
opportunities for participation in organized league play.
ARTICLE 3 - MEMBERSHIP
The membership of this organization shall be comprised of any
woman interested in OWTA objectives that have paid league fees. League fees will be levied for each league
session. Substitutes (subs) do not pay
league fees.
ARTICLE 4 - OFFICERS
Section A.
The officers of this organization shall be a President, Vice
President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The
officers shall be active members that have participated in three (3) out of the
last six (6) leagues.
Section B.
The duties of the President, Vice President, Secretary and
Treasurer shall be those described in ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER NEWLY REVISED,
Chapter IV.
Section C.
The above-mentioned officers shall be elected by the general
membership of this organization. A
Nominating Committee appointed by the President and representing different
flight members in the organization, shall present at least one name for
office(s) to be filled. It is the
responsibility of each Flight Captain to canvas flight members/OWTA players and
to report the name of the person to the President at least one month prior to
the mail out (Summer Mail-Out). The
membership shall be advised of the nominees by way of the Summer Mail-Out. Members nominated must be notified of their
nomination prior to the mail-out and must have agreed to accept their
nomination. Nomination shall be allowed
from the general membership.
Section D.
Any member meeting qualifications shall be eligible for election
to any office. The term of office
for officers and board members will be two years, staggered such that the
President, Vice President and two members at large are elected in even-numbered
years and the Secretary, Treasurer, and two members at large are elected in
odd-numbered years. No person shall hold any office more than two
successive terms. After one year of
absence, the member may be elected to the office again. Where service involves less than one year,
more than six months' service shall be considered one term. The term of office begins January 1 and ends
December 31.
Section E.
All elections
shall be by plurality vote.
ARTICLE 5 – SPECIAL MEETINGS
Special meetings
of the membership may be called at any time by the President and must be called
by the President when petitioned, in writing.
Notice of such meetings shall be provided at least three days before the
meeting.
ARTICLE 6 - BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section A.
Subject to direction from the membership the control and
management of the Ouachita Women's Tennis Association shall be vested in the Board of
Directors.
Section B.
The Board of Directors shall consist of the four officers and four
board members, and the immediate past President. The four board members shall be elected in
the same manner as the officers (see Article 4, Section C). Board members, however, shall not be limited
to only two terms, but shall not exceed four consecutive terms.
Section C.
Members of the Board of Directors are exempt from fees during
their term of office.
ARTICLE 7 – LEAGUE OPERATIONS
Section A.
Members shall sign up
for play at their current USTA rating level or one level above. For example, a player who has a 3.0 USTA
rating may play at the 3.0 or 3.5 level in OWTA. Players who do not have USTA ratings shall
self-rate in accordance with the National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP)
guidelines. If doubles partners have
different USTA level ratings, the doubles team shall play at the higher
member’s level.
Section B.
Flights shall be
offered for each NTRP rating. No
qualified player shall be excluded from playing because her USTA level is too
high or too low. Therefore, the lowest
level flight will include “and below” and the highest level flight will include
“and above”. For example, levels should
be 2.5 and below, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and above.
Section C.
Flights that are too small (fewer than 6 entrants) may be combined
with higher and/or lower flights.
Flights with more than 11 entrants shall be subdivided into 2 divisions;
flights with more than 17 entrants shall be subdivided into 3 divisions,
etc. The distribution of entrants into
the divisions shall be by random distributions.
The names (or teams) shall be drawn from a hat.
Section D.
Entrants who win
their flight two leagues in a row shall be designated as promoted and must
play up one level. Entrants who
finish with less than thirty-five percent (35%) of games won divided by the
total number of games played for two consecutive leagues are designated as restricted
and must play down one level for at least one league. Promotion and restriction rules do not apply
to summer league. Promotion and
restriction rules do not apply to combined leagues. When a doubles team is promoted or
restricted, the designation shall attach to each player. Players may not avoid promotion or
restriction by changing partners.
Section E.
Matches shall consist
of two sets and, if necessary a Deciding Match Tie-break in lieu of 3rd
set. The Deciding Match Tie-break shall be
played in accordance with USTA rule for Deciding Match Tie-break. The player (or team) who first wins ten
points shall win the match tie-break provided she/they lead(s) by a margin of
at least two points.
Section F.
Scoring procedures for the determination
of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places shall be determined by the percentage of matches
won divided by the total number of matches played. In the event of a tie,
the player or team that
has won when they played each other shall place higher. In the event of no head-to-head competition, percentage of games
won divided by games played shall determine the winner. In the event of a
three-or-more way tie, if head-to-head does not determine a winner, the higher
percentage of games won shall determine
the winner.
USTA rules will govern all situations unless otherwise
specified in OWTA Rules or board decisions.
1. SCORING
All
games will be played using Ad (advantage) scoring and results will be recorded
on an individual pair basis. Whenever the
score reaches six-all (6-6), a Tiebreak (first to 7 by a margin
of 2), as specified by
USTA Rules will be in effect. All scores must be reported to the Flight
Captain immediately following each match.
2. QUALIFICATION STANDARDS
If a league is combined, any team or person
qualifying for promotion may have the option to move up, but may not be moved
down if not obtaining 35%.
3. TIME LIMIT
Scheduled matches
are to begin on time. A fifteen-minute
default rule will be enforced.
4. WARM-UP
Warm-up will be accomplished prior
to starting time for the first match of the day. All warm-ups will be limited to five (5)
minutes.
5. BREAKS
No rest will be taken between first and second sets, nor between the second set and the
Match Deciding Tiebreak in lieu of 3rd set.
6. COURT ACCESS
Scheduled matches in progress will
be allowed to complete play on courts in use. Successive matches scheduled for the same court
must wait until the players on their court have completed their match, or use
other unreserved courts as they become available. Players/teams
are not to be disturbed or interrupted, to determine how their match is
progressing, while a match is in progress.
7. TENNIS BALLS
Players will take turns providing a new can of unopened hard court tennis balls for
designated matches. These assignments
are included in schedule handouts.
8. ATTIRE
A.
Players
will wear proper tennis attire on the courts during all OWTA matches.
B.
Sport
Bras are to be worn under tank/tee
shirts/tops, and are not to be worn without a cover-up at any time.
C.
Leggings
shall be worn UNDER shorts/skirts and are not to be sole outer apparel.
D.
Players
shall wear proper court shoes at all times.
Other shoes may wear out quickly, hurt your feet, or damage the
courts.
E.
Skirts/shorts
shall remain ON for the duration of a match.
F.
NO
drinking, smoking or food shall be permitted ON THE COURT while play is in progress.
G.
Spectators,
including parents, friends, pets, coaches, etc. are welcome to watch and enjoy
matches OUTSIDE the fenced playing area(s).
Their role, however, is clearly restricted to that of a passive observer
with NO INVOLVEMENT OF ANY
H.
Show
consideration to all players by keeping noise level (volume) down. Loud talking should be kept to a minimum on,
near or around tennis courts that are in use.
I.
Wait
until players on another court have completed a point before walking across to
another court, leaving the courts, retrieving/ returning a ball or asking for
one of your balls to be returned.
J.
To
avoid controversy over the score, the Server should announce the set score (e.g., 5-4) before starting a game and the game
score (e.g., 30-40) prior to serving
each point. This is important.
K.
In
returning a loose ball to another court don’t hit it
aimlessly just to get it off your court.
Instead, pick up the ball and hit it so that it goes directly to one of
the players on another court, preferably the server between points.
L.
Collect
the match balls that are on your side of the net and either give them to the next server or place them on his baseline.
M.
If
the ball touches any part of the line,
it is good. Call the ball out only
if you can clearly see a space between where the ball hits and the line.
N.
Other
rules of tennis are explained and covered in the United States Tennis
Association’s (USTA) publication THE
CODE.
9. SUBSTITUTES
A. Substitutes may play at their USTA rated
level or above.
B. Substitutes may NOT be drawn from the same flight if there
is only one division in that flight. If there is more than one division
in the flight, then substitutes may NOT be drawn from the same division.
For flights with more than one division, players with a bye in one division
C. Collegiate and professional players are not allowed as substitutes
(subs).
10. SUBSTITUTIONS
A.
Each
team may use up to three (3) substitutes and still be eligible for a prize. A team may have two (2) subs for the same match. A team is allowed three (3) subs (total)
without penalty but on the fourth
(4) and on each subsequent sub, the team will be penalized three (3) games.
B.
Subs,
playing in a match that will need to be rescheduled, do not have to complete
the rescheduled match. The original team
member shall complete the rescheduled match.
11. PERMANENT
If a person is injured, or has a major illness, major surgery, or
change in employment, the partner is allowed to get a permanent sub for the
remainder of the play. However, once a
permanent sub is obtained the sub rule still remains in effect from the
beginning of league. Flight Captain MUST be notified and MUST approve a permanent sub before a
match is played.
12. NOTIFICATION
A player using a substitute must
notify her flight captain before
arriving at the court and give her sub's name whether or not the
sub is on the sub list. Teams
failing to comply with this rule will be penalized
two (2) games for
each infraction. A list of subs will be
provided. If a substitute from the names
provided is not available, the player may obtain a sub elsewhere as long as she
receives her Flight Captain's approval before
the match.
13. RESCHEDULING
A. No
matches may be rescheduled with the exception of those affected by inclement
weather. To do so will count as an
automatic default for both teams. Postponed matches must be played by the end of the flights league season. In the event of last/final week “rain-out”,
team will have seven (7) days to
complete play or both teams will default.
B. Players MUST
call their Flight Captain if there is a question regarding playing
conditions at their assigned courts.
Your Flight Captain is
responsible for calling matches due to rain. THE FLIGHT CAPTAINS
C. Exception: Teams
or persons that live out of Ouachita Parish shall be allowed to contact their
opponents during inclement weather two (2) hours prior to their match to
determine if match can be played or should be rescheduled. The decisions made at that time between
those four (4) or two (2) players should stand.
Flight Captain can be notified at a later time.
D. If a match needs to be rescheduled, and all four
(4) players can't get together, then a sub must be obtained. If a problem does exist, please notify the
Flight Captain.
E. SINGLES PLAYERS ONLY will be allowed the week of their scheduled match and the week following to play their match unless weather does not permit. Those having trouble scheduling their matches due to lack of cooperation from other players should contact their Flight Captain.
F. Players who are competing in USTA tournaments at state level or above are allowed to reschedule that week’s OWTA match.
14. WITHDRAWALS
A. If any player/team drops out for any reason at
any point in league play, all of the teams/persons who have played them and all
persons scheduled to play them will receive a Bye. The person/team, who
drops out, except for injury or serious illness, will not be allowed to play singles OR doubles in the next
league.
B. If a team or person drops out with below 35%
they must move down in the next league they play, but may not play in the league
immediately following the league they dropped.
15. DEFAULTS/FORFEITS
A.
In
the event of a default, the defaulting team will receive a 0 -6, 0-6
score. The opposing team will receive a
single 6-0 score. Any team
defaulting/forfeiting twice (2 times) in a single league will not be allowed to
play SINGLES/DOUBLES in the
following league nor will they be eligible for a prize.
B.
A
team must have two eligible players available for play in each match or the
entire match shall be forfeited.
16. INTERRUPTION OF PLAY
If play should be halted during a match because of injury, illness
or emergency (work, family, etc.), the score will be calculated as if match
play were completed. Singles/Doubles
will be given credit for any games won before the match was interrupted.
EXAMPLE: Team X wins the
first set 7-6 over team Z in a tiebreaker.
The second set is tied 5 games all when play is discontinued due to
injury or illness of a player on team X.
The score is calculated based on a completed match as follows:
SET NO. 1: Team X - 7 games; Team
Z - 6 games
SET NO. 2: Team X - 5 games; Team
Z - 7 games
(Team X member injured - team Z must win by two games.
SET NO. 3: Team X - 0 games; Team
Z - 1 game
(a match is defined as the best of two of
three sets between two teams and the third set is a match tie-break).
17.
After two (2) years
of non-participation in OWTA, a person who does not have a current USTA rating
must self-rate in accordance with the National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP)
guidelines.
18. FLIGHT CAPTAINS
One
person in each flight shall be designated the Flight Captain. The Flight Captain shall serve as liaison
between OWTA players and the board.
Flight Captain responsibilities
and duties shall include:
1.
Contact
each team with necessary information concerning league play. A short meeting of Flight Captain members prior to each league is recommended whenever
possible.
2.
Obtain
a good selection of qualified substitutes.
3.
Recording
and tabulating scores to determine player/team percentages.
4.
Promote
courtesy and cooperation among flight members.
5.
Promote factual
understanding between players and board members for the purpose of equitable
management to player problems and requests.
6.
Explain
and enforce OWTA rules.
7.
Prevent
infractions when possible.
8.
Notify
players when infractions occur and penalties are levied.
9.
Report
all scores to the President as soon as possible after league is completed.
19. PROTESTS - APPEALS
A.
Protests
must be made in writing within two (2) days after a match and turned in to the
President.
B.
Appeals must be made by players and presented
in writing to the President for approval by the Board of Directors.
20. RULE CHANGES
The Board may enact any rule changes.
21. MINIMUM
Following USTA Adult Guidelines – minimum age is 19 years old - a
player playing in an adult league must reach the age of 19 years old in the
year played.