Tournament Director: Marty Engle

Tournament Referee: Denise Forest Loveless

Tournament Chairman: Lesley Halphen

 

All captains and players should familiarize themselves with the USTA Louisiana Championship Procedures which can be found in the menu bar above.

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CHAMPIONSHIP DATES:

• All championships are scheduled for 4 days. Once draws are determined, the end date may be adjusted to 3-day event.Very seldom are Mondays are used for larger NTRP levels finals.

• All teams should be prepared and committed to playing the entire weekend starting Friday morning – conclusion of the championship.

• Schedules will be published once all teams are committed with deposit holds and alternate spots filled if necessary. Usually 1 week prior to the championship.

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TEAM DEPOSIT:

• Captains are required to submit a team deposit authorization of $300.00 within 72 hours of team committing to attend the state championship. Teams committing within 14 days of the championship shall make deposit hold within 24 hours. Deposit authorizations will be made on the championship website.  No checks  will be accepted.  Click Make Deposit Hold

• Only registered team captains can make deposit hold authorization. One per deposit hold per team.

• See Team deposit procedure in the 2024 USTA Louisiana State Championship Procedures (In menu bar above).

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PLAYER ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

• All players must possess current USTA memberships through the conclusion of the USTA Louisiana State Championship.

• Match Requirement for advancing to State/Sectional Championships for 18 & Over Adult, 40 & Over Adult; 55 & Over Adult; 18 & Over Mixed Doubles and 40 & Over Mixed Doubles players must have played in two team matches on advancing team, one default received shall count towards the two match requirement.

• Match Requirement for advancing to State/Sectional Championships 55 & Over Mixed Doubles, TrI Level and Combo players must have played in one team match on advancing team, one default received shall count towards the one match requirement.

• Players who qualify may advance on more than one team within an age group only if they are different NTRP levels.

• No accommodations for scheduling will be made at the USTA Louisiana Championships for teams with players that may be competing on two or more teams during a state championship.

• Players that are participating on more than (1) one team must register for each team that they are participating.

• Players do not need to participate at the State Championship to be eligible to participate at the Sectional Championship but must meet the match requirements.

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PLAYER REGISTRATION:

• Information on player registration fees, deadline dates and refunds, please see Player Registration Page on championship website. Click Here

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​​CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM CHECK IN:

• ​Team captains or designee are required to check in their team at the state championship headquarters prior to playing their first match. The championship headquarters location and times will be listed on the championship website. Click Here

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CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM MATCHES:

• The captain is responsible for checking his/her team in at the site of the match and picking up match scorecard. 

• Captains or acting captain should turn in lineups 30 minutes prior to match time but no later than match time.

NOTE: All players should be ready to go to court when captains turn in line ups.  This includes, having water and ice prepared, bathroom break and all equipment with them (including shoes on).

• Players may only be listed on a scorecard once per scheduled match time. If a player is submitted on two line-ups per scheduled match time, the priority scorecard for player will be the first submitted in MTTA. (For example, Player A is listed on a 7.5 Combo Doubles scorecard (submitted at 7:42 AM) and 8.5 Combo Doubles scorecard (submitted at 7:52 AM), with both matches scheduled for Friday at 8:00 AM. The 7.5 Combo Doubles scorecard will be deemed priority, and Player A will be disqualified from the 8.5 Combo Doubles Scorecard. Please see below on eligible substitution rules.)Names must be same as on official roster in TennisLink.

• We must be able to read your scorecard, as it will be used to enter results into TennisLink.

• Captains should check to make sure players have arrived at the facility prior to turning in lineups prior to match time.

• If a team has a known default, the opposing team will have the opportunity to revise their scorecard once both scorecards are turned in and the default has been announced by the site director.

•  Once both line ups are received, site directors will call teams up. All players in the lineup should be present and ready to head to the court.  Site directors will introduced to opponents – players should greet opponents to ensure correct opponents. Then site director will assign courts.

• Staying on schedule is contingent on getting players on and off the court as quickly as possible. Therefore, one player from each team is to report scores and return the balls to the site desk immediately after each individual match.

• Captains are expected to sign each scorecard after each scheduled match is completed before leaving the tennis facility. Failure to sign the scorecard 15 minutes after the last individual line is completed may result in scores posted online only confirmed by opposing captain (and not future score updates).

• Scoring Format: All matches will be the best 2-out-of 3 sets with a 10-point match tiebreak in lieu of a full 3rd set. The Coman Tiebreak Procedure will be used for all tiebreaks (including the 10-point match tiebreak).

• Changeovers: The rest time for all changeovers is 90 seconds, except between sets which is limited to 2 minutes.

• Warm-Ups: Players are limited to a 10-minute warm-up prior to match play. If players exceed the 10 minutes, the players may be told to start play regardless of where they are in warm-up, so  it’s important to stay within time on your warm-up.

• Court Surface: Teams should expect to play on any USTA approved surfaces at the state championships. The Championship Committee may use available courts of any type in order to complete the championship.

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Court/Team Defaults:Teams are expected to complete all individual courts/matches scheduled. For full details please refer to the championship procedures.

• If a team defaults an individual court/line during the championship, an administrative fee of $50.00 per individual court will be deducted up to the full amount of the deposit. 

• If a team does not successfully complete the USTA Louisiana championship, the entire deposit will be forfeited and grievance filed against the team.

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Rain Procedures: If there is a rain delay, players are not permitted to leave the tennis center unless otherwise released by the Tournament Director and/or Tournament Referee. If pulled from the courts due to rain, players must report their match scores in progress to the site coordinator.

• Match Postponement: If a team match is postponed following the exchange of line-ups, the original line-up will stand for the make-up match UNLESS teams are released from the tournament site by the Tournament Director and/or Referee. If teams are released, the line-up would stand only for those positions that have already started (first service attempt) and all other positions (even those that were in warm-up) may be changed including defaulted courts.

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REMINDERS FROM THE REFEREE:

•  Cell Phone/Pager warning: This is your official warning. Please make sure all players have their cell phone and pager off or on vibrate. If a cell phone or pager goes off in the middle of   point, the opponent may claim the point.  Smartwatches must be removed during  championship matches.

• Note: All issues should be resolved on the court by the players involved. The Championship Referee should only be requested if all players on court cannot resolve the problem on their own and if requested by the players on court. Spectators are not permitted to request a Referee unless the players on court request it. Tournament Referees will not be used to make line calls or call foot faults.

 

LATENESS:

• The Point Penalty System, which includes the 15-minute default time rule, will be strictly enforced.

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BATHROOM BREAKS:

• Bathroom breaks are for emergencies and players encouraged to take breaks during changeovers or between sets. Player will be given reasonable time to get restrooms and back, extended time could result in time penalties/default. No coaching during bathroom breaks.

 

MEDICAL TIME OUT:

•  Request for a medical time-out may only be made by a player on the court and should be made immediately.  The player in need of the medical time-out should not leave the court. All medical time-outs will be addressed in compliance with “Friend at Court.”

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PRACTICE COURTS:

• Players are permitted to practice on hard courts, if available, till 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start of each championship day.

• Once the championship begins for the day, players are not permitted to practice on courts used for the championship.Failure to comply may result in the assessment of suspension points by the Referee for failure to comply with Championship Procedures.

• If the championship is on soft courts, players may not warm up at any time on the soft courts.

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COMMUNICATIONS DURING THE CHAMPIONSHIP

• Players/captains may be notified via text through Match Tennis Team app portal that weather page on championship website has been updated.

• The full USTA Louisiana Championship Procedures can be found by clicking the Championship Procedure button located above.

 

Please be nice to the site workers and other volunteers.

They are giving up their time to provide you with an outstanding championship experience.

Players who display inappropriate behavior to any of the site coordinators, volunteers and/or tournament staff will be subject to a sportsmanship grievance.