CHALLENGE LADDER RULES
The challenge ladder was designed to determine ranking for tournament play. It is an excellent method of inter-club competition. You may sign up for singles or doubles ladders, or both, but signing up for both could involve as many as 4 matches per week. Be certain that you have the time to accept and make challenges.
1. To help determine in which division you belong, there will be a four-week OPEN CHALLENGE from May 1 to May 31. Players may challenge ANYONE during that time. On June 1, the ladders will be established. After June 1, you may challenge any of the 5 names above your own. If you win the match, your name goes in your opponent's place and they move down the ladder one position. During the month of May, call the May Open Challenge chairperson within 24 hours of a match to keep the ladder up-to-date and to earn one MIGS point for each played. Starting June 1, call your ladder chairperson within 24 hours of a match with match results. Updated ladders will be posted on the website and in the display case at Hinkley Park.
2. You may not play on the doubles challenge ladder or play in any tournament with the same partner two years in a row.
3. Partners for ladder and tournament play must be in the same division. For new members who join after June 1, a two-week open challenge shall begin when their first challenge is played. New doubles partnerships will be treated as new members and will be allowed two weeks of open challenge.
4. All singles ladder matches will consist of a 10-game pro-set, with a tiebreaker to be played at 10 all. If both singles players agrees ahead of time, they can play an 8-game pro-set instead, with a tiebreaker to be played at 8 all. Doubles matches will consist of best 2 out of 3 sets. A 12-point tiebreaker will be played when necessary.
5. Ladder matches may be played at any Park Ridge Park District court or other court mutually agreed upon by the players.
7. When PRWTA holds tournaments, the winners will not automatically move up to the next ladder, but will have the right to challenge one to five places from the bottom of the higher-ranking ladder.
8. The top 4 positions on the ladder are eligible to challenge onto the next highest ladder, up to a maximum of 5 positions above their own. For example, if you are the top position of the B ladder, you may challenge as high as the 5th position from the bottom of the A ladder.
9. You must respond to a challenge from someone behind you on the ladder within 24 hours and play the match within 7 days of the time it was made. If challenged, the person challenged must give the challenger at least 3 different reasonable days and times to play the match, including at least one evening or weekend time. Otherwise, the challenged player must offer a forfeit. Similarly, the challenger must respond back to the challenged player within 24 hours to say which date and time are best to schedule the match. Otherwise, the challenged player may move on and make or accept another challenge. You can turn down a challenge only if you have already accepted a challenge from behind. Challenges should be made at least 7 days prior to the end of the season. Challenges made with fewer than 7 days left in the season are not subject to forfeits due to unavailability. Once a match is officially scheduled with a mutually agreed upon date and time, if either team finds out later that they cannot play, then that team must offer a forfeit. Points will be awarded to the non-defaulting team, and ladder changes will be made if necessary.
10. You must play the first round of a tournament to get your MIGS tournament point. If, after that, you must forfeit, it is up to the chairperson's discretion whether or not to award this tournament point.
11. You must notify a ladder chairperson if you are going to be unavailable for five days or more. In such cases, your name will be "turned over" and others can challenge above you. Failure to notify a chairperson of your absence requires the player to offer a forfeit to the challenging player/team. If any player or team in the top three positions is turned over and team or player just below any of the top five positions is challenged and loses, the challenger will move up above the team(s) turned over. When the player/team who has turned over returns, and if she has/they have dropped below position number six, then she is/they are allowed a free challenge to resume their previous position to be taken within 2 weeks of their return. If the number one team/player is turned over, and the number two team/player is challenged, whichever team/player wins the challenge will automatically be moved to the number one spot.
12. If you are both a singles and doubles ladder and you choose to "turn over", you must "turn over" on both the singles and the doubles ladder. However, the other team member is still available (not "turned over") for singles challenge matches.
13. If you are "turned over", you may not participate in any PRWTA tournaments. However, if you are not the member of the doubles team which needs to be "turned over", you may still participate in the tournament.
14. If a doubles partners disagree on a call, the point is awarded to the opponents. Don't replay the point.
15. If the person challenged does not show up, then the challenger of the match moves up the ladder and gets a point. This is treated as a forfeit. If the challenger of a match does not show up, then the person challenged gets the point.
16. Only one forfeit per week will be awarded a point. (The purpose of accepting a forfeit is to improve your position on the ladder). Remember, you are challenging the position, not the person.
17. Players cannot challenge the same person again until both have played another match or one week has elapsed.
18. You may make only one challenge match up, per ladder, at a time. You must play that match before making another challenge.
19. You may challenge the 6th person above if all 5 people above you already have a challenge from behind.
20. Official tennis regulations should be observed in all matches, with the exception of foot faults, which may be pointed out but not called. If you are not sure whether a ball was clearly out, you must call it good.
21. The challenger always supplies a new can of USTA-approved tennis balls. PRWTA will furnish balls for the tournaments, round robins, mixed doubles events, and salad bar luncheon.
22. If a disagreement arises during a play in a tournament match and a solution cannot be agreed upon by the players involved, the match should be suspended at the point of the disagreement. The problem should be relayed to tournament chairs immediately, and the chairs will then rule on the dispute.
23. Remember, even though matches are competitive, tennis etiquette should always be practiced on the court!
