Golden Gate Tennis Club Ladder Rules (Singles, Doubles, and Mixed Doubles)
1. PURPOSE OF THE LADDER. GGTC sponsors various tennis ladders to encourage friendly competitions between club members via a structured environment. Ladder matches are also used as criteria for club ratings and for selecting club teams. The ladder captains are responsible for keeping the ladders current.
2. JOINING THE LADDER. Any person wishing to participate on a ladder must be current member of the GGTC and should first contact the ladder captain to receive a list of phone numbers and the GGTC ladder rules. A player or team is allowed up to three open challenges to "challenge on". Should all three efforts be unsuccessful, the player or team is then placed at the bottom of the ladder.
3. CHALLENGE PROCEDURE. A challenger may challenge up to six positions on the ladder at any time and once a month may challenge up to 10 positions. The ladder captain will establish the challenge policy for small-sized ladders of less than 11 players or teams (e.g. open challenge at any time). The challenger contacts the challengee (player or team being challenged). The challengee is obligated to propose some reasonable time and date when available within the next 14 days (subject to Rule 4). The challenger provides two new USTA-approved tennis balls and arranges the court reservation, if applicable. Any court fees actually paid are split equally. The ladder positions are computed as of the day challenge is made and the match shall be played even if the challengee has in the meantime moved higher on the ladder.
4. FREQUENCY OF CHALLENGES. A player or team is not required to play the same player or team more than once per month or to play more than one match per week. The same two players or teams may not play each other twice within a period of seven days or less.
5. MATCH FORMAT. A standard match shall be two out of three 12-point tiebreaker sets, regular scoring, and played at Golden Gate Park. USTA Code of Conduct and On-Court Rules apply. Players should arrive 15 minutes before scheduled time of play. Alternate formats and/or location are permitted if both parties agree. Possible alternate formats include pro set, no-ad scoring or tiebreaker in lieu of a third set.
6. MATCH RESULTS. A successful challenger takes the challengee's position on the ladder as of the day the match is played and the challenges moves down one position. All scores must be reported within three days to be valid. The ladder captains are responsible for forwarding the results of matches played each month to the Brevity editor or, alternately, posting the monthly results on the clubhouse bulletin board.
7. DEFAULTS AND FORFEITS. A challengee who refuses to accept a challenge within a period of 14 days (subject to Rule 4) or fails to appear for match without explanation acceptable to the challenger default, and forfeits the match with the challengee dropping one position below the challenger. A challengee who starts a match but fails to complete it for personal reasons or because of a USTA Code of Conduct and On-Court Rules violation(s) defaults and forfeits the match with the challenger taking the challengee's position and challengee moving down one position.
8. DISPUTES OVER A MATCH. Any player or team may protest to the ladder captain regarding a match that was unable to be scheduled, scheduled but not played, or played. The captain will arbitrate the dispute and make a decision such as ordering a match or rematch, voiding a match, or awarding a default. Any appeal of the captain's decision is made to the Standing Ladder Committee which can only reverse the decision by a majority vote of a quorum of at least three committees' members.
9. DISCIPLINING A PLAYER OR TEAM. As a result of single or series of match incidents, a ladder captain or any member may petition the Standing Ladder Committee to investigate any player or team whose conduct is considered detrimental to the welfare of the ladder and in flagrant violation of the USTA Code of Conduct and On-Court Rules. Standing Ladder Committee may submit a recommendation, approved by majority of a quorum of at least five committee members, to the Executive Committee for possible disciplinary action such as suspension from the ladder or Club. Any appeal of the Executive Committee's action is made to a general membership meeting. A player or team that is reinstated after having been suspended starts at the bottom of the ladder.
10. INACTIVE PLAYERS OR TEAMS. Players or teams who know they will be unable to accept future challenges for personal reasons such as injury, illness, work, or vacation should notify the ladder captain of their inactive status. Their name(s) will be placed upside down on the ladder and will not count for determining places up for challenges. Any inactive player or team in the top five would automatically drop to number six in order to allow others to advance. Inactive players or teams must notify the captain before resuming active status. All players or teams must play at least one match over two months or the captain may remove them from the ladder. A player or team that is reinstated after having been removed will start at the bottom of the ladder.
11. CHANGING THE RULES. Any changes to the ladder rules must first be proposed to Standing Ladder Committee which then makes a draft available to the ladder members for review. A final draft is then presented to a general membership meeting for approval.
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