PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING CAREFULLY
Players must be 60 years of age or older by 31st March of the current year.
- Matches are marked “H” for HOME and “A” for AWAY and must be adhered to unless it is mutually agreed otherwise with your opponents. Court playing surface to be chosen by the home team.
- Please arrange Matches as early as possible, try not to change the dates and note that although responsibility for arranging the match lies with the HOME team, it does not preclude the AWAY team making enquiries.
- Each Match is 2 short sets, (i.e. tie-break at 6 all). A third set is only played in the event of each pair winning 1 set. The third set is played as a championship tie break i.e. the first pair to score 10 points with a lead of at least 2 points. E.g. 10 – 8 or 13-11. This counts as a set. See scoring below.
- The “HOME” team is responsible for providing new tennis balls.
- Wherever possible matches should be played outdoors. However, if you need to use indoor facilities or floodlights, opponents must be given advance warning of any potential costs which should be shared.
- If you are only able to play at weekends, then you need to be available on both Saturdays & Sundays and please try to be as flexible as possible by offering several dates to your opponents.
- ALL MATCHES HAVE TO BE PLAYED AND COMPLETED BEFORE THE CLOSING DATE (1 point will be deducted for late return of results).
- “WALKOVERS” AND CONCEDED SETS AND GAMES ARE NOT PERMISSABLE AND CANNOT BE INCUDED IN YOUR SCORE so if a Match is unfinished for any reason, it must be completed at a later date and should be restarted at the score (Sets & Games) when play stopped.
Please also note that a Match, or part of it, cannot be decided by “tossing rackets” or any such means.
- Scoring:-
1 point FOR EACH SET WON + 1 point FOR WINNING THE MATCH = 3 Points for the winning pair.
If a championship tie break is played it counts as a set and you score 1 point for winning it.
The winning pair score 1 point for wining a set + 1 point for winning the 3rd set championship tie break + 1 point for winning =3 points
The losing pair would score 1 point for winning a set.
Your opponent’s scores must also be entered.
Using the HORIZONTAL line with YOUR name enter the number of sets you have won in the column under your opponents’ name plus 1 point if you won the match.
Using the HORIZONTAL line with YOUR Opponent’s name enter the number of sets they have won in the column under your name plus 1 point if they won the match.
In the event of a tie in the division then the result of the matches between the couples involved shall decide the winner.
- In general the only circumstances in which you can change your partner after the tournament start date is if you have not played any fixtures and it has been agreed by the Tournament Organiser Please note that any replacement partner must be of a similar standard to your retiring partner.
- If a couple withdraw from a division before completing all of their matches in a season, all their accumulated points are void and are to be deleted from all score sheets in their division.
- As a general rule the winners of each division at the end of the Tournament (except Premier) will be promoted to the next highest division and the last placed couple in each Division (2 in Premier) will go down a division. If a couple had withdrawn from the previous years’ tournament it is not guaranteed that they will be placed in the same division the following year.
- The Committee will at their discretion promote or demote more than one couple depending on the volume and playing standard of the entrants in the following year’s Tournament and may also move couples across divisions to provide a variety of opponents for the new Tournament year.
ANY OTHER QUERY NOT COVERED BY THE RULES PLEASE REFER TO Alison Trafford