JCCA ADULT MEN’S' TENNIS LEAGUE

RULES AND REGULATIONS
CAPTAINS: Competition Committee Proposed Changes of 12/03/02 (below in Blue) are necessitated by the Electronic Scoring System.
Changes would  would be implemented EFFECTIVE with ROUND 3 of the 2002 Season, before VOTE in the 5/04/03 Captains Meeting.
Changes enacted by Tennis Committee vote 5/06/01 @  Captains Meeting Changes remain incorporated herein, as amended 08/06/02.
 (Rule 15 Amendment adopted 8/10/99 was REPEALED in 08/06/02 Captains Meeting.)   Pryor: The Changes shown above in Blue italics were not put to a vote in the 5/4/03 Captains Meeting; deferred to be voted on in the 8/5/03 Captains Meeting.  Following the 8/5/03 vote, text shown in Blue italics to be removed.  Incorporation of each change implemented will be identified by placing the date "8/05/03" adjacent to the revised text, in addition to the notes appended in the "Summary of Changes" at the end of this document.  Additional proposal:  Make the "Summary of Changes" an Amendment to this document, and place those changes AFTER the authorizing signature of the JCCA Tennis Chairman, since each change will be identified by date, at the text being changed.   (6/23/03)

Guess - 2nd Comment:  The requirements listed in “Captains Duties and Responsibilities”  should become part of the J.C.C.A. Rules and Regulations and be subject to discussion and approval by the entire “tennis” committee.

Pryor - on 2nd Guess Comment:  I agree that the "Captains Duties and Responsibilities" should become a part of the JCCA Rules and Regulations and, to a point, subject to discussion and approval of the entire "tennis" committee.  However, this very necessary set of instructions became vital to the operation of the league as a result of adopting 100% on-line score reporting.  These instructions were therefore necessarily generated "on the fly," and were published on an emergency basis, to minimize the confusion that accompanied the electronic scoring system.  Let's not forget that a certain expertise was required to make that scoring system work, and we are light-years ahead of the previous system.  Had we not published those secondary directives, the electronic scoring system would have become bogged down with every individual Captain wanting to operate to suit himself.  We simply sought to bring about order, and make the system work - and these goals were achieved.

Pryor  proposal: Make the REVISED version of the "Captains Duties and Responsibilities" a part of the JCCA Rules and Regulations, as Guess suggests, but make these requirements an Appendix, which may be changed as necessary, with the changes either approved or voted down in the next Captains Meeting.  The scorekeeping staff needs some latitude during the upcoming season, with yet another change in the Scorekeeping System (TennisScoreboard) planned for the coming season.   (6/29/03)

1.  The TENNIS COMMITTEE shall consist of the CAPTAINS from each team. Captains will be required to attend all committee meetings held and distribute all league information to his club and team members as received. There will be two meetings each year; one prior to commencement of the season and one after the regular season but prior to the playoffs.  No Proposed Changes apply to this paragraph.

Only the TENNIS COMMITTEE may change a rule or amend a rule for a particular season. Any and all changes must receive a majority vote by the TENNIS COMMITTEE. Neither the TENNIS CHAIRMAN nor the COMPETITION COMMITTEE may change or amend a rule without the approval from the TENNIS COMMITTEE.  Special circumstances may allow the Competition Committee to call for early implementation of a given rule but that Rule requires official adoption at the next Captains’ Meeting.   Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

2.  A COMPETITION COMMITTEE of three four plus the TENNIS CHAIRMAN will be available in the event of a problem or protest to enforce the League Rules and Regulations.  Members are elected by vote of the Tennis Committee at the May Captains’ Meetings, to two-year terms.   Guess/Pryor: Make Change shown in in Red, and in Blue italics, permanent (6/17/03).

3.  To participate in ADULT JCCA tennis competition a PLAYER is an adult who is no longer eligible to participate in junior competition as per USTA rules and is a dues paying and/or stock holding member of their club.

a)  Any player with multiple memberships must make a decision before the start of the season as to which club they will represent in JCCA league play.

b)  Any player who DROPS a membership and joins another club during the season IS eligible to play with his new club and the matches played will count toward post season eligibility.

In the event an ineligible player is used in a regularly scheduled, rescheduled or play-off match, the offending team will forfeit the entire match and the CLUB will be put on probation for the rest of the season. If the club violates the probation the offending club must forfeit all matches by all its teams in all divisions at the time of the infraction.

c)  Proof of membership/eligibility will be required for each player participating in JCCA Tennis competition.

If proof of eligibility is REQUESTED AND IS not available at the time a match is to begin, said match will be played as to not delay the match and it will be the responsibility of the questioning captain to report any alleged infraction to the COMPETITION COMMITTEE within three (3) days of the match.   Pryor - Comment: With the current Player Registration routine, there should never be cause for question as to a Player's eligibility.  Also, there is nothing in Rule 3 that says HOW player eligibility is established. (6/23/03)

Guess Comment 1:    Rule # 3, sections a thru c provide requirements for player eligibility.  In the nutshell, club/team captains are responsible; therefore “ the additional requirement for a player to register online and provide information such as email address, etc. are not needed to play tennis.  I propose we drop this “player” required registration and follow Rule # 3.

Pryor - Observation on the Guess Comment:    Rule # 3, sections a thru c may provide player eligibility requirement statements, but do not address how the player is placed on the roster.  Agreed that club/team captains are responsible, but do not agree that this responsibility goes any farther than a responsibility - i.e., no mechanism exists for them to take action on this responsibility.  Also agree that “ the additional requirement for a player to register online and provide information such as email address, etc. are not needed to play tennis."  However, what IS required is that each player be unique, and any player must be able to access his records on JCCA.net.  The general public is not allowed to see player contact information records.  Only registered users may access these records.  Christopher Cosentino, in "Advanced PHP for Web Professionals," page 209, cites our method as the most logical way to accomplish our aim.  We went to a lot of effort and expense to develop this method, and if we drop this “player” required registration all of that is wasted effort and money.  Further, there is really nothing for the individual player to follow in Rule # 3.  The main aspect of the current requirement for players to register, is to assure the "uniqueness" of each player.  We have two Ed Vollenweiders - in the SAME club, and we had a "Frank Giardina" in the old CCHR, and a "Francis Giardina" in Colonial Club.  We also had the same player registered as "Henry Snyder," and as "Hermann LeBeouf,"  Rule #3 notwithstanding.   (6/29/03)

4.  The league will be divided into five DIVISIONS. They will be called RED(A), WHITE(B), GOLD (C), BLUE(D), and GREEN(E).

5.  Each club must submit a ROSTER listing all known players and the division they will participate in to the scorekeeper prior to the commencement of league play.    Pryor: Captains must register their teams, and their players need to be on the team roster before playing.  (roster must be built using TennisScoreboard)  (Players must be Registered and his contact information be available in the event the JCCA Scorekeeper needs to contact the player regarding disputes, and in the event of Scorekeeping audits.)   (6/22/03)

a)  Any additions to a team's roster during the season must be given to the scorekeeper no later than 6 PM on the Monday prior to the next match date in which the new player is to participate. The player is not eligible and cannot participate unless the scorekeeper has been contacted.  (Captains voted 05/06/01 to strictly enforce.)  Pryor: Changes to the TennisScoreboard rosters must be submitted prior to 6:00 PM on the TUESDAY of the match.  Those changes do not become effective until approved by the JCCA Scorekeeper.   (6/22/03)

Guess - Rule # 5 (roster) I believe Rule # 3 a thru c provides the safe guard needed to ensure appropriate player eligibility; therefore we remove this rule or at least change it to allow a “new” player to be added at the time the score is input.   (6/22/03)

Pryor - General Observation - The Captains voted on 05/06/01 to strictly enforce the requirement of Rule 5.a.  Other than that vote, rule 5.a) had not been changed since the original rules were written.  A change to the scorekeeping routine for the 2002/2003 season, made enforcement of this rule very easy, and made it the responsibility of the Captains to adhere to this rule, and for the first time since the Captains who had upheld it in May of 2001, its administration became a matter of public knowledge.  However, the Competition Committee is willing to accept the Guess comment - to a point.  "TennisScoreboard" will be the software in use for the next season, and that software requires a player to be on the roster before playing.  Any additions to the roster are approved by the JCCA Scorekeeper, and if the addition is requested and can be approved by 6:00 PM on the day of the match, the player will be on the Roster.  All new players must register, after which they are added to the Roster by the Scorekeeper.  The deadline for additions is moved to 6:00 PM on the Tuesday of the match.   (6/29/03)

NOTE: The revision of the deadline to 6:00 PM Tuesday of the match does NOT mean the Scorekeeper is going to be sitting by the computer just waiting to add players to Rosters.  Captains are cautioned that it is not the Scorekeeper's crisis - a little advance planning could prevent such crises. (6/26/03)

NOTE 2: Further discussion with John Guess on this subject raised the issue that all captains have experienced - the 4:00 PM phone call from that player who was to show up at 6:30 PM, saying he can't play due to some situation that said player has known about for weeks - but just hadn't mentioned it until just now - he thought the captain needed a little adrenaline charge.  This situation is not anything the captain could do any amount of advance planning to alleviate.  One school of thought is to grant the captain some leeway - the other is to have the captain ensure that the team is made aware that said player caused a forfeit (not that such knowledge is going to have any effect at all).

Pryor Proposal: Allow the use of new players - at the captain's risk - provided the player is added to the roster BEFORE the scores are input.  The risk that accompanies this is that if the opposing captain inputs the scores before that player is added to the roster, the match is a forfeit.  Two items of importance here:  The player must go through the same registration process as usual, and that means APPROVAL by the "Competition Committee," AND that approval MUST be accomplished before score entry.  If the opposing captain enters scores before this, the match in which that player participated, is a Forfeit.  (We can wordsmith this after the Vote of the Captains.) (7/15/03)  

b)  There will be a 23-player limit of eligible players per team. Any team wishing to add a player beyond the limit must replace a current player listed in order for the player to be eligible. Deleted as of the 2002 Season.  Pryor - Permanently Delete this (6/17/03).

6.  The regular season will consist of each team playing four (4) rounds on a home/away rotation with inter-division play* and will play all regularly scheduled matches on consecutive Tuesday nights starting on the first Tuesday in the month of September with breaks in play for holidays and holiday seasons.

(*Interdivision Play consists of: Red Bye team plays White Bye team; Gold Bye team playing Blue Bye team – for the 2002 season.) designated adjacent Divisions playing each other.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

7.  Each divisional team must field a minimum of four(4) teams courts without risk of a forfeit but may field five (5) teams courts if mutually agreed upon by the opposing captains. When four matches are played and end in a split of matches won, (i.e., 2-2) the match is won by the team with the fewest number of games lost. If a tie still exists a twelve (12) point tie break will be played by the last two teams to finish their match to declare a winner.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

8.  Matches will be the best two of three sets. In the case of a tie, at six(6) games each, a twelve(12) point tie break will determine the winner of a set.

9.  Host teams shall furnish an unopened can of USTA approved optic yellow tennis balls for each match. Furthermore, the Host team is responsible for furnishing one drink refreshment per person during each match played.

10. Team captains will be responsible for prearranging scheduled matches and times. The host captain must contact the visiting team captain no later than two (2) days before the match to specify playing times (i.e., Sunday before 5:00 PM). The visiting team gives their line-up first.

11. Match starting times will be 6:30 P.M. and 7:45 P.M. with a five(5) minute warm-up allowed before each match.  Captains shall exchange lineups in writing before match play begins.  A captain may call a forfeit if the opposing team captain if a team is not prepared to start play fifteen(15) minutes after the scheduled match time. If a team arrives at 6:45 P.M. for a regularly scheduled 6:30 P.M. match, that team’s warm-up is forfeited and play must commence. The same rule applies to the 7:45 P.M. match, as clarified in Rule 12.d below. Any player may call for play to commence after this warm-up period. Any team declining to begin play may be defaulted. All match schedules are firm. There shall be no deviation in time schedules unless mutually agreed upon by the opposing captains in advance.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

12. Forfeits

a.  No team may forfeit more than two (2) positions in a single match. Initial violation of this rule will put the offending team on probation. A second violation of this rule will result in ineligibility for all members of the offending team in the playoffs.

b.  If a team is forfeiting before any matches are on the court, that team must forfeit at the #5 #4 position and then the #4 #3 position.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).  Breaux: This is fine if playing four courts; however, if playing five courts, the 5 position must be forfeit first.

c.  Prior to forfeiting at match time the offending team will be allowed fifteen (15) minutes beyond scheduled match time to obtain sufficient players.  Breaux: Delete e., as it appears redundant - combine with d., below and list as "c." (6/26/03).

d.  Players must be ready to commence the match before the end of this fifteen minute period or within five (5) minutes from the end of the previous match.  Breaux: wordsmith & combine with c, above. (6/26/03)  Pryor Comment: No additional wordsmithing required.  Just change sub-paragraph to "c."   (6/29/03)

13. If a team forfeits a position, that point is lost and no credit is given for its member's qualification for post-season play. The team receiving the forfeit will receive credit for a win and receive credit for post-season play qualification. A forfeited match is scored 6-0,6-0 against the forfeiting team.

14. Once a match is in progress it cannot be delayed or postponed for any reason other than unplayable weather. Except for weather if a match is not completed the participating players should decide between themselves who must default. If they cannot come to a decision the captains should decide. If a decision is still not reached the COMPETITION COMMITTEE will decide the outcome.

a)  Rained out matches will only be made-up at the discretion of the competing captains. No credit for post-season eligibility will be given to the players listed on the scoresheets for rained out matches.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

b)  What constitutes a rainout match - versus a "match played - to be counted"? If 50% of the matches played, have been completed, those results will be tallied by the score-keeper. Otherwise, the match is listed as a rainout.

15. A player may not play down more than one division but may play up.  Also a player may only play in one match per night.  Pryor: A player MUST be on a team (i.e., on a ROSTER) in order to play.  Breaux: A player should play at a level consistent with their true level of play, if possible or practicable.  Captains must understand that they have the responsibility for scheduling players to play at appropriate levels.  Failure to comply with this directive could result in forfeiture of the court in question.  The competition committee will resolve any issues of player eligibility, with full committee vote, majority rule.   (6/24/03)

NOTE: Any issue related to a Committee Member's players, will be cause for that committee member to recuse himself from the vote.

(Rule amended in the 8/10/99 Captains meeting at Green Acres as follows: "Special exemption is extended to Paradise Manor Country Club and Lakeside Country Club as these clubs have only two tennis courts, limited tennis member-ship, and JCCA Men's Tennis teams two divisions apart. These teams may use substitutes between the two teams of their own club."  This Rule Amendment ratified by the JCCA Board of Directors 9/27/99 with the caveat, "This Rule Amendment is for the duration of the 1999-2000 JCCA Men's Tennis Season, and is null and void after said Season."  (Captains extended the Amendment in the 8/08/00 Captains meeting - although never ratified.)  Pryor: Remove the Strike-through from the above text, but leave "Paradise Manor Country Club and Lakeside Country Club as these." Change "substitutes" to "SUBSTITUTES."  Add "Changes Made permanent in 8/5/03 Captains Meeting." (6/18/03)

16. A player must play in 33% of the scheduled matches played by his team to qualify to play in the post-season playoffs and in the post-season tournament. All matches played in all divisions will count toward the 33%. If qualified, the player must play in the division in which he played the most matches. If the number of matches is equal in two divisions he may play in one or the other but not both.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

17. Standings will be decided by divisional team won-loss record.  Six teams from each division with the best won-loss percentage (%)record will be eligible for the post-season playoffs.  Gelpi: Do away with Percentage and make it strictly won-loss to eliminate any advantage gained by rain-outs. (7/21/03).

Ties will be broken first by head-to-head competition.  If a tie still exists the tie shall be broken by each team's record against common opponents, and should a tie still exist. there will be a playoff between the teams involved.  Awards will be given to the playoff division winners in each division.  Gelpi: This change is intended to make eligibility for playoffs more competitive. (7/21/03).

18. At the conclusion of the regular season the top two(2) teams from the White, Gold, Blue and Green divisions shall advance to the Red, White and Blue divisions respectively. Conversely, the bottom two (2) teams from the Red, White, Gold and Blue divisions will move down to the White, Blue and Green divisions. This movement is based on the won-loss percentage of the teams during the regular season. and shall be mandatory.  (The Competition Committee was given discretion on team movement by acclamation in JCCA Captains' Meeting 8/08/00.)   Pryor: Strike the requirement for mandatory movement, if the next statement identifies movement at the discretion of the Competition Committee.   (6/22/03)

NOTE: A Vote on this change will necessarily affirm the discretion of the Competition Committee in moving teams (6/18/03).

19. Scores are to be reported no later than 6:00 PM the first Friday following the scheduled match.   All matches, INCLUDING RAINOUTS must be reported.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent.

a.  The JCCA Scoreboard will be used exclusively to report scores.   Pryor: Change "JCCA Scoreboard" to "TennisScoreboard," as JCCA Scoring is moving to an "over-the web" system (6/17/03).

b.  HOME  BOTH TEAM Captains is are responsible for reporting scores.  Failure to report scores will result in Forfeits for HOME team.  WINNING  team captain should take the initiative to report the scores, since the Winning team has the most motivation for accurate reporting, and the most to lose for failure to comply with this rule.  EITHER Captain may Enter Scores; the other Captain must Concur or Dispute the match within the allotted 48 hours.  After the 48 hour deadline passes, the record becomes LOCKED against further input, and the match neither counts for, nor penalizes either team.  However, 1) it is to the advantage of the WINNING team to enter the scores, and 2) such matches count toward total matches played in calculating Win percentage.   Pryor: Strike out text as shown in Blue italic strikeout.  This Change would emphasize that the responsibility for  getting scores entered rests with the Team Captains rather than the Scorekeeper (6/18/03).

c.  Score inputs are to be completed accurately.  Misrepresentation of players or scores will result in a forfeit of the offending team in that match.   Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent - even though mechanisms for identifying any such misrepresentations are not identified herein.  Add "Mechanisms for identifying such misrepresentations include match result audit by the Scorekeeper or other individuals/bodies, or eyewitness accounts.  Regardless of the source of the conflicting information, it is the purview of the full Competition Committee to decide such matters." (6/18/03)

d.  Match records are electronically stored in the JCCA web  database.  The database will be backed up and stored at 2 other locations following the 6:00 PM Friday deadline for reporting scores, and STATISTICS will be updated weekly.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

e.  The Competition Committee will review any team having multiple forfeits for the. Multiple forfeits could impact the team's playoff eligibility.  Pryor: Make Change shown in Blue italics permanent (6/17/03).

19. Each team (host & visitor) must turn in a correctly completed score sheet with the results for each scheduled match, INCLUDING RAINOUTS, using the standard issued score sheet for that season. Pryor: Delete the Strikethrough, and amend to, "Each team (host & visitor" is RESPONSIBLE to input results for each scheduled match, INCLUDING RAINOUTS, using the current Score Input methodology."  (7/8/03).

a.) Score sheets must LEGIBLY list both the first & last name for each player from each team. The score sheet must list the host and visitor team name and number  (USE THE SCHEDULE AS A GUIDE - i.e., "2 BC#3"), the date of the match, the match number and list scores of all matches played including forfeits.

b.) Failure to follow this rule in any part will result in a forfeit by the offending team in that match including loss of eligibility for the players toward post-season play.

c.) Score sheets may be turned in by mail or in person at the location specified by the scorekeeper, no later than the next Monday following the scheduled match date.  (Scorekeeper NOTE: No team will receive credit from scoresheets turned by the opposing captain.)  .     Pryor: Make deletions permanent (6/17/03).

d.) A The record is kept of all matches played and the players participating. by the Electronic Scoring Methodology shall be the sole determining factor for Match Statistics and player eligibility to participate in the Playoffs.  Pryor: Also make this item (19.d.), item 19.a.). (7/8/03). 

20. USTA POINT PENALTY SYSTEM is to be used for unsportsmanlike conduct and enforced by the host captain. If the captain(s) is not present then the players are responsible. Furthermore, “THE CODE", which is a set of written regulations for non-officiated matches should be followed.

CODE VIOLATIONS: Sportsmanship must be strictly adhered to. Racquet abuse, foul language, disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. Captains will address the other Captain during the match in order to bring attention to a violation.

POINT PENALTY PROCEDURE: 1st offense- Warning

2nd offense- Point penalty

3rd offense- Game penalty

4th offense- Match penalty

Note added 6/9/02: These Point Penalties are described in USTA Regulations, under Tournaments, for ready reference.

21. Clubs renting courts should rent Laykold type courts, well in advance, to assure play on a familiar surface. If Laykold type courts are not available, try to rent hard surface courts. Rent Rubico only if nothing else is available.  Pryor Comment: Do we still need this rule?  Suggest deleting. (6/26/03).

These RULES, and the Changes as shown herein, have been RATIFIED by the JCCA BOARD of DIRECTORS, and are now the OFFICIAL RULES OF JCCA MEN’S TENNIS:

Original Signed by                                                                   .

                             Gay Fourroux                        Date
                             JCCA Tennis Chairman

Appendix I

Summary of Changes:

Rules 1, 5.b, 6, 7, 11, 12.b (editorial ONLY), 14.a, 19 (complete), are CHANGES PROPOSED by the Competition Committee in a meeting 11/26/02, and while these take effect as of Round 3 of the 2002 season, MUST be voted on in the 5/4/03 Captains Meeting.  NOTE: these changes agree with the information given to Captains in the 8/6/02 Captains Meeting at Green Acres.

Rules 3, 5, 11, 14, and 19 were changed following the May 5, 1998 Captains’ Meeting at Bissonet (last MAJOR revision.)  The May 6, 2001 Captains' Meeting at Bissonet changed the following:

Page 2, Changed Rules 4 and 6, and Rule 19 on Page 5, to include references to the new GOLD Division.

Page 3, Rule 10 Changed to Require Home Captains to contact Guests no later than Sunday before match.

Page 3, Rule11 Reworded to prohibit a forfeit if courts are not available.

Page 3, Rule12, Deleted the option of an additional forfeit if one player doesn't show up.

Additional Changes from the August 8, 2000 Captains' Meeting at Green Acres (not previously incorporated into the Rules):

Page 1, NOTE at beginning, and elsewhere, Modified the Rule 15 Amendment to apply to all similar situations without remanding to vote.

Page 4, Rule 18, Incorporated the vote by acclamation to allow Competition Committee discretion on team movement.

Additional Change, stating a long-established requirement for all captains to submit score sheets:

Page 4, Rule 19, Added Scorekeeper Note that each team's score and post-season player eligibility is derived solely from that team's score sheets.

Appendix II

08/05/2003 09:30 PM
 

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