Singles League

The Saanich Tennis Club Mixed Singles League provides an opportunity for tennis enthusiasts to play fun and competitive matches against a variety of women and men who are at a similar skill level. Please read the information below for more details.  If you have questions or comments, please contact the Singles League Coordinator.

THE SINGLES LEAGUE WILL RESUME IN APRIL FOR THE 2024 SEASON

STC Singles League Website
Join / Register

Singles League Coordinator: Petr Havlik

How to join – Joining the league is a simple process.

  • If you are an STC member, just register online at http://league.saanichtennisclub.org/user/register or contact Petr Havlik.
  • If you are not a member you have two options. You can become a member of the Club and then contact Petr to join the singles league. Or, you can take advantage of our one month “free trial”. No need to join the club while you try out the mixed singles league. In that case, simply contact Petr. We, of course, hope that you decide to join our Club to take advantage of our sheltered courts, expanded coaching sessions, free ball machine and other Club activities and events.

Who may play – The Singles League invites both men and women (in one combined league) of all ages and all skill levels.

Format and Rules of Play

BALLS

  • Both players are expected to bring a new can of tennis balls to the match.
  • The winner of the match keeps the unopened can

SCHEDULING

  • Participants co-ordinate their own matches
  • Refer to our membership phone / email list or, to contact everyone in your group at once, click “email group” on the league score board

MATCH FORMAT

  • Players may choose to play any type of match format
  • Match format must be agreed upon by both players at the start of the match.
  • Please include a plan to resolve a tie if time runs out. This may include completing the match at a future time or playing a tiebreaker when 5 minutes remains.
  • If both players are forced to stop play, cannot continue at a different place or time, AND no resolution plan was agreed upon prior to commencing the match: a coin toss or equivalent should be used.
  • If one player must stop prior to the completion of the match and a resolution plan was not agreed upon prior to commencing the match: the player stopping the match must take a loss.
EXAMPLE MATCH FORMATS INCLUDE:
  1. Play 2 sets and in case of 1-1 tie play 10-point tie-break. This is the default format when players can not agree.
  2. Best two of three sets
  3. A pro-set with a tie-breaker at 8-all.
  4. Best 3-of 5 tiebreakers (for those who are really limited by time)

LOCATION

  • Matches can be played at any location agreed upon by both players
  • Matches do not need to be played at STC

Recording Your Results

  • Results are recorded on the STC website under the Mixed Singles League  webpage (under construction).
  • Instructions for entering results can be found in the FAQ link (top left corner of the screen) on the Singles League Score Board webpage.
  • Either player may enter the result. It is the responsibility of both players to ensure the results are correct before the end of the month.
  • If a player has attempted to set up a match twice but his or her opponent has not attempted to reschedule, the player may declare a win by default at the end of the month.
  • Points system: 3 points for a win (by default or not), 1 point for a loss and no points for a default.
  • Should players choose to have a rematch or change a recorded default prior to the end of the month, both players must agree on the determination of the final results on the website prior to the match. The result posted on the website may be changed at any time throughout the month if both players agree to do so.

League Groups

  • At the start of each month, the league groups will be posted on the STC website.
  • The groups will have 5 players. The maximum number of players in each group may be increased to 6 based on the number of participants in the league and the addition of new participants within the first 7 days of the month.
  • Additional players will not be added to a group beyond the first 7 days of the month without agreement from all participants in the group.
  • A linear ranking system is used for the entire league and the groups are built based on these rankings. At the end of the month, new groups are formed using the following general rules:
  1. In groups of five or six, the top two players move up and the bottom two players move down at the end of the month. In groups of four, only the top player moves up and the bottom player moves down at the end of the month.
  2. In the event of a three-way tie that cannot be solved with a head-to-head record, the top two ranked players in the group (defined by the order of players listed in the group) will move up or the bottom two ranked players in the group will move down.
  3. Players added to the league are placed in an appropriate group based on NTRP self-rating and other reports of the new player’s ability. These players are placed at the bottom ranking of that assigned group. The league organizer notes the challenge in determining the appropriate group for a new participant and requests flexibility from all participants with this process.
  4. Players returning to the league will retain their previous ranking (based on position relative to other players) but may enter the league in a new group based on the number of new or unavailable participants at the time. Players returning to the league will also be placed in the bottom position of the group they are placed in.
  5. Once the new ranking order is established for the start of the month, groups will be formed from the top-down.
  6. If there are an uneven number of participants to form a full group at the bottom, the lower ranked groups will be built with 6 players.
  7. There will be a maximum of 6 players per group throughout the month unless agreed upon by all participants in that specific group.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. How do I remove myself for a month or more?

Players can remove themselves for the next month by following the instructions listed in the FAQ link (top left corner of the screen) on the Singles League Score Board webpage.

If the new groups have been posted and a participant then later declares himself unavailable for that month, the points for that month count for the next change but then this new position will be held for that individual.  So for example, if a player indicates on June 29th that he is going on vacation throughout July but he won group 2 in June, his ranking will still go up for the August groups.  If he indicates on July 2nd (i.e. after the new groups are posted) that he is not available for July and he has 0 points, his ranking will be dropped before his position is held.

  1. I can only schedule in 1-2 matches this month due to a lack of availability, but others of course want to get their matches in.  This makes me feel pressured to play more matches than I can.

While most people will likely want to play all of their matches, we also must respect an opponent’s desire to not play a full schedule.  Everyone will get too busy / fatigued / injured at some point along the way and we don’t want people to feel pressured to play all of their matches.  However, not being able to play should not impede an opponents’ ability to move up the league neither.  In such cases, only play the matches you can handle but provide your opponents with the default win if you cannot play these matches. This is how it works on the professional tour and this is the only fair way to approach it in our social-competitive league (that I’m aware of)!

  1. I think I should be able to take a default win but I feel bad doing it! When is it appropriate to take a default win?

Ideally both players would have a conversation and agree on how to document the result. With that said, here are some situation where it is appropriate to take a default win:

  • An attempt to schedule a match with an opponent was done by both email and by a telephone call with at least 3 days left in the month but the opponent could not play or did not respond. Note: it’s preferable to make at least two attempts to contact an opponent before declaring a default win. If your opponent is not available to play in the last three days of the month, it is his responsibility to contact you prior to this point in time.

A regular win should be assigned in the following circumstances:

  • An opponent could not complete the match due to time limitations or injury, he did not declare this time limitation at the start of the match and we could not agree on a next step. The opponent must take a regular loss.
  • If a match was stopped prematurely because of a lack of court time or other situation (i.e. both players had to stop due to the same reason) and an agreement could not be made with the opponent refusing to use a coin toss to decide the match, the opponent must take a regular loss. Ideally both players will simply move to another court, reschedule the completion of the match or accept a coin toss for the result.
  • If a player is injured and cannot continue the match, he shall accept a regular loss.

No result should be entered on the website if:

  • Neither player made reasonable attempts to organize a match with an opponent prior to 3 days before the end of the month.
  • Both players made equal attempts to schedule a match but a suitable time could not be scheduled throughout the month.