Adults Singles Ladder

1. The Ladder officially begins when announced by e-mail in the Spring. There is no membership fee of any kind. We use a “tiered” structure with numbered positions.
   1. 1. Player being challenged must play the challenge match within five days. If upper Player’s schedule does not allow a match within five days, he forfeits the match and loses his position to Challenger. [Challenger, it’s not fair to abuse this. Don’t challenge when you can play only one of the next five days, yourself….] Upper Player, if you know you cannot play the match within five days, please simply forfeit right away and avoid the headaches of dispute.After the Fast Start period, any player may challenge players above them on their own tier … and any player on the tier above.
      2. Take a 5-minute warm-up and play an ten game pro set (first to 10, set tiebreaker at 9-9), or to the end of the court time, whichever comes first. If the set is not completed by the end of the court time, whoever is ahead in games at that point wins.
      3. If court time is not an issue, players may agree in advance to play one full 10-game “Pro Set” (same format as above).
      4. Each player brings a new can of balls to the match. The winner gets the new can. (This way we have more incentive to get to #1. That player never pays for balls … if he stays there.)
      5. If Challenger wins they take that position on the ladder; everybody else moves down one position. If Challenger loses, nothing changes.
      6. WINNER is responsible for sending ALL PLAYERS and HUNTER a broadcast e-mail of match date, score and the new lineup (if changed by your match) within 24 hours. (Winner, please confirm match score with Loser to avoid e-mail bickering or bruised feelings.) The date is needed to avoid confusion: It is possible for 6 to play 2 … 10 to play 5 … and 3 to play 1 all the same weekend. See how confusing all those changes could be…?
2. With the official start of the season’s ladder (May 15), we will scramble the lineup and have a three week “free challenge” period where anyone can challenge anyone else on the ladder. This should encourage everyone to try to be a “fast starter.” During this initial Free Challenge period, there is no handicapped scoring. This is an unlimited Free Challenge period. You may challenge as many players — anywhere above you — as many times as you are able in the Fast Start, three week period. (But you still may not repeatedly challenge the same player, and you may not set a second challenge match until the first has been completed .) So, with the official start, challenge away…!After the three week period (Technically, June 10), the ladder will be divided into three “tiers”, denoted by color on the ladder: #1-#5 (red) will be the top tier, #6-#10 (blue) will be the middle tier, and #11 and below will be the bottom tier. From June 4 onward, you may challenge anyone in your tier, or anyone in the tier directly above you–but there is a twist! If you challenge the player in the tier above you, the lower tiered player gets a one-point handicap each game (starting 0-15 or 15-0). This should help level out the disparity in NTRP ratings some.
3. After the Fast Start period ends, any New Player’s first challenge is a “free” challenge — any position on the ladder is able to be challenged. If New Player loses, they stay on the bottom, based on the order they elected to join the ladder. If New Player wins, they take that position on the
   ladder; everybody else moves down one number. (If New Player wants to “tune up” his game before his first free challenge, fine. Call someone to hit with … and be sure they know it is not a “challenge”, but a “friendly practice.”)
4. A match played may not be re-challenged immediately. (If #18 challenges and plays #17, regardless of the outcome, these two players may not re-challenge one another without at least one of them playing a challenge match with a different player … or a week’s time has passed.) This will prevent one player from “hounding” another … and promote match variety.

Where to play….anywhere you want: TTC, indoor, outdoor, OSU, CHS, parking lot, as long as you both agree!