SAWTA Standing Rules
12-16-2009
I. General
A. SAWTA shall abide by all USTA regulations and TTA rules.
B. Two general meetings will be held, one prior to the start of league play and one at the conclusion. The
meeting held at the end of the league will be considered the Annual meeting. The exact times and dates of the two
general meetings will be announced.
II. Teams
A. Each tennis facility participating may select its teams by any method it chooses, limited only by its own
rules and by the regulations stated in these Standing Rules.
B. Each team must select a captain an acting captain, one of whom must be present at all matches, Captains’
meetings, and Captains’ Council meetings.
C. Rosters
1. Teams will consist of eight to 18 players.
2. During the spring league, teams will be allowed to add players to their rosters as long as there are two
matches remaining to be played, prior to any local level playoffs. During the fall league, teams will be allowed to
add players until the year-end USTA ratings are published.
3. Teams will be allowed to delete players who incur prolonged injuries, move out of the San Antonio area or
are rated out of their NTRP level in accordance with the USTA dynamic rating system.
D. Players
1. Each individual must have an NTRP rating in accordance with the USTA dynamic NTRP Rating system.
2. All players must play two matches prior to local level playoffs in order to advance to any playoffs or
championship rounds. One of these two matches may be a default..
2. Rule Covering Players Who Register for Multiple Teams in Different Leagues and /or Different Levels During
the Same League Season
a) Players who play in two different leagues and/or play on different levels within the same league are required
to complete the online Primary Team Declaration Form, available at www.satennis.com. The form must be
submitted no later than midnight October 1st for the fall league or midnight March 1st for the spring season.
Exception: If SAWSTT is the only ladies league competing for participation in the USPTA tournament, a Primary
Team Declaration form will not be required for the fall season.
b) Players who are added to a team's roster after October 1 or March 1 will be required to complete the
Primary Team Declaration Form prior to playing their first match with additional teams.
c) It is the Captain’s responsibility to see that their players understand and comply with this rule.
d) If a player plays on multiple teams that reach the San Antonio Area USTA League City playoffs and has not
completed the Primary Team Declaration form as specified by the guidelines above, that player will be considered
committed to the team for which they played their first match of the league season.
E. Forfeiture Policy
1. If a team forfeits three lines of any match, no more than three players will be able to compete on the same
team for one year (the following spring/fall leagues).
2. The League parliamentarian will be responsible to initially enforce and subsequently track the team and
individuals. Counting the matches will be in accordance with USTA guidelines, dependent upon whether these
matches determine the league outcome.
III. League Competition
A. Facilities
1. Participating clubs and facilities shall provide at least three courts per team playing at home. (Minimum of
five (5) courts for every two (2) teams at each time slot)
2. The decision to play matches outside of the San Antonio area will be made by the captains of the level
affected.
3. The home captain must write court assignments on the cards before play begins, with the following
exception: if a team must play one or more individual matches on a clay surface, the visiting captain will select
which individual matches will be played on clay prior to the exchange of the line-up. The lineups may not be
changed after court selection is made by the visiting captain.
B. League play
1. League play will be on Monday at 9:30 a.m. or 11:00 a.m. for levels 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, and 4.5. The 2.5 levels will
play on Fridays at 9:30 a.m. A 10-minute warm-up will be allowed at the beginning of the match, although courts
should be made available earlier for warm-up. A 15-minute default rule will be enforced from the beginning of the
match, or if playing the 11:00 a.m. match, from the time the court becomes available.
C. Weather
1. In case of bad weather (rain, temperature below 40 degrees, wind chill factor of 32 degrees or below, snow)
the home captain decides whether the courts are playable. Calls to the visiting captain should be made by one
and a half (1 ½) hours prior to match time, if the conditions are questionable.
2. If courts are wet at 9:30, with a possibility of drying, players must wait until 10:00 a.m. unless both captains
consent to leave earlier. When rain causes a delay during a match that begins at 9:30, players will wait 30
minutes, if there is a possibility of drying. If play cannot be resumed during this time, the completion of the match
will be rescheduled, unless BOTH PLAYERS agree to wait. If rain causes a delay during a match that was started
at 10:00 a.m. or after (due to weather or court staggering), the completion of the match will be rescheduled unless
BOTH PLAYERS agree to wait. (Not applicable when fall matches are not made up). Wind is not considered a
factor in determining whether the courts are playable and matches cannot be postponed or canceled because of
wind.
3. When a rainout occurs, both teams must reschedule all lines of that match within one week of the unplayed
match to play prior to the end of the league season. The Home Captain is responsible for reporting the mutually
agreed date to their level scheduler. The Scheduler will track rescheduled matches. Once a rainout date has
been reported to the level scheduler, it may be changed once if both captains agree and the scheduler is notified.
USTA rules state that if a match is interrupted by rain and can no longer be continued, the makeup match should
start exactly where the rain interrupted, so all parties involved in such a situation should record an agreed-to-
score.
D. Formats
1. Team match format for levels 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, and 4.5 will be two singles and three doubles; the format for the
2.5 level is one singles and two doubles. Scoring will be best of three sets, regular scoring, with a twelve-point
tiebreak at 6-6 in any set.
2. The team winning the match will be awarded one team point. At the end of the league, the team with the
most points wins. Ties will be broken by counting (1st) the most individual matches won, (2nd) the fewest sets
lost, (3rd) the fewest games lost, (4th) winner of head-to-head match and (5th) by coin toss.
3. If the number of teams in a level exceeds the number of Monday dates available for play, the level will divide
into flights and will seed eight (8) teams. The win/loss record of the previous spring season, number of returning
players, and team changes must be considered. Teams moving down a level retaining 60% of their players will be
automatically seeded at the top. The flights will be divided with the seeded teams evenly split between them, and
the rest of the teams drawn. As in keeping with USTA, tournament seeding must be public (as in a captains'
meeting). The seeding will be done by the captains' council or a committee appointed by the captains. For the
SPRING season the flights shall participate in a playoff format to be determined by that level's captains PRIOR to
ANY league play. If the format is determined to be a second, championship round robin with a consolation round
robin, Flight A will be designated Championship; Flight B will be designated Consolation. All matches in Flight A
must be completed; matches in Flight B may remain unplayed if rained out.
E. Line ups and defaults
1. Lineups must be exchanged simultaneously before the match begins. No substitutions may be made in an
individual match after the lineup has been exchanged, except for injury to, illness of, or disqualification prior to the
start of the match.
2. Lineup cards for matches must be exchanged simultaneously before the match starts. Players involved in
late matches will not default until 15 minutes after their scheduled time or the time at which the court becomes
available. A player is allowed a 5-minute warm-up, even if she arrives right before default time.
3. Defaults must be announced prior to the exchange of line-up cards. When a default occurs, doubles and
singles will be defaulted from the bottom position first.
4. Activated cell phones are not allowed on court during match play. If a player or doubles team does not
comply, and the phone rings, the opposing team wins the point. If the phone is not turned off, and disturbs play
again, the offending team must retire and the opponents wins the match.
F. Complaints
1. All complaints alleging a violation that cannot be resolved by the parliamentarian shall be filed in writing
prior to the start of the next team match or within 24 hours after the end of the local league which includes city
area playoffs whichever occurs first.
2. The protesting captain should send letters to the Parliamentarian as the Chairman of the Captains' Council,
the USTA League Coordinator, the opposing team’s captain, and all the players involved. The Captains' Council
will take action. Refer to USTA. League Regulation 2.02A(5) and 2.02C(2).
3. All non-violation (conflict) complaints shall be directed to the parliamentarian. Any actions shall be approved
by the captains' council.