1. What is the Competitive Ladder?
The idea of a ladder is to allow us all to play against other players of similar caliber around us in the ladder. The last few years we started the ladder by randomly placing everyone in the ladder which caused a lot of lopsided matches. We want everyone to have fun and not feel over or under matched. But also give players the opportunity to move up as they improve.
MRTC is currently using www.tennisrungs.com software for this service.
Please download the free Tennisrungs app from the App store (iOS) or Google Play (Android).
Make sure that the time zone is set to Pacific Time (US & Canada) so you will not miss your matches.
Please check the links below for more information:
2. How does the Ladder work?
You have the option to join the ladder registration as an add on to your yearly membership dues. Your contact email and phone number will then be added to the app. (If you’ve already paid for the basic membership but would like to join the ladder later on, please reach out to executive@mapleridgetennis.com for instructions on how to proceed.)
It is expected that both parties bring a set of new balls to each match and you can decide between you who opens their balls. It should not be the same individual always supplying the balls.
You will call your own matches so please be fair and honest when calling balls in or out. If you are unsure, then give the opponent the call.
3. What are the Ladder rules?
The ladder will start April 1, 2024
Both men and women are welcome to join the ladder. If we get enough women to join the ladder we can start a women’s ladder, which would be awesome. Ladies, please sign-up for the ladder so we can have more women playing!
The beginning rankings will be the rankings as they ended last year. New players will start at the bottom but can quickly move by playing matches and using wild cards.
You may issue 2 challenge(s) at a time.
You can only be challenged by one player at any given time. This prevents outstanding challenges from accumulating against you.
You may challenge up to 5 spots above or below you.
If the person who is lower in the current ranking wins the match, they will take the spot of the person they challenged, and the opponent will be bumped down 1 spot.
After playing 4 matches (whether you win or lose), you will earn a wildcard. If you hold a wildcard, you may challenge anyone above you below you in the ladder at any ranking.
If challenged, you will have 2 days (48 hours) to “Accept” or “Deny” the challenge or the challenge will be considered a “forfeit” and the challenger will be granted the win.
By accepting a challenge, you agree to play the challenge within 4 days after the date of acceptance. If you cannot play within 4 days, simply “Deny” the challenge and the challenger will be rewarded the win and can move on.
If a challenge is accepted and not played within 4 days, it will expire, and the challenge will be deleted from the system and will have to be re-issued. Of course, since rankings continually change, a re-challenge may not be possible.
To be eligible for the club championship at the end of the year, you must have played a minimum of 3 matches in the ladder.
The rankings from this ladder will determine your seed in the club championship tournament for both the men’s and women’s club championship. Even if we have just two women who are in the ladder, we will still have a women’s club championship.
The ladder rankings will be frozen on August 21, 2024, at midnight. We are starting the club championship a week earlier this year to hopefully avoid bad weather and be able to schedule a hard date and time for the final so people can come watch.
The first round of the club championship tournament will be played beginning Friday August 23 to Monday, August 26. The second round will have an 8-day window due to the Labour Day long weekend. The remaining rounds will have a 4-day window to complete a round.
DOUBLES LADDER
We are going to experiment with a doubles ladder this year. Since this is new, please understand the format may not be perfect to begin with but we will tweak it as the season progresses.
The rules for the doubles adder this year that differ from the singles ladder are as follows:
Ladder will be based on teams and not individuals. Pick your partner for the season.
Teams will be entered into the ladder at random at the beginning of the season as we don’t have a ladder from last year. New teams who want in after April 1, 2024 will start at the bottom.
Men’s/Women’s/Mixed teams are all welcome to join. If we have enough women’s teams, we can create a women’s ladder.
You will have 4 days to accept a challenge and 8 days to play a match. This is longer than the singles as it’s harder to organize doubles matches with 4 players involved.
The ladder teams will not be used for the doubles club championship. If there is enough demand, we can organize a playoff at the end of the season.
I am only a text or email away if you have any questions about how to set things up or about the app – Cary Blackburn-Director Competitive Ladder; cary@hvacgrow.com or 760-238-0288