Is this USTA rule change for real?

[Bartelby]

I don't have a great investment in the issue, but I do dislike it when rules become less uniform so I'd prefer the current let rule to stand.

It seems to me that new management types love to change things needlessly to show the riff-raff they've innovated.

The thing with cheating is to not let in rile you and not to give into the blackmail it exerts, including the blackmail of rule changes.

Originally Posted by jonnythan

You will continue to be disappointed, forever, because that will never happen.

[McLovin]

Originally Posted by cknobman

Wait a minute, there is no-ad scoring??????

I have never played a single USTA match with no ad scoring (except in tournaments that have encountered severe rain delays).

Even when I have gone all the way to sectional playoff I have not played no-ad scoring.

My 4.5 team has made it to Districts the past 3 years. The 1st year we played regular scoring, 3rd set 10-point tiebreak. Last year & this year, no-ad scoring the whole weekend.

This past January we went to Sectionals for our tri-level team. No-ad scoring the whole weekend.

This is for Virginia Districts & Mid-Atlantic Sectionals.

[jgrushing]

Originally Posted by mmk

Division I implemented this because even serves that had cleared by a foot were being called lets. Your solution just exacerbates the problem of cheating.

And it's only Division I mens tennis that plays the let serve. The ladies still play the standard rule. I've watched lots of NCAA tennis and am still a bit freaked out when the players play a let serve. Usually works out to the advantage of the receiver but I'd sure hate to see a big match tiebreaker determined by a serve dribbling over the net for an ace.

[jswinf]

Originally Posted by OrangePower

But I would be in favor. Yes, it introduces a bit more luck into things, but it would go both ways - server might get a lucky ace that hits the net cord and dribbles over, but would also get more faults on serves that hit the tape and take a large hop out.

Can't see how that would produce more faults, that's already a fault.

Still, I'd be mildly in favor of this perhaps imaginary proposed rule change. The "dribble over" serves would be annoying, but there are at least as many or more "whack the tape and bounce up high and become a sitter" lets.

A few people have said they've never experienced many "phantom" let calls. I have. Might be more common with older players (not talking about myself, you understand.) They hear something around the time the serve is crossing the net, maybe their jaw popping or a small blood vessel bursting in their head, and they call a let when the serve seemed to have plenty of clearance.

[Mongolmike]

Originally Posted by Bartelby

I'm not attempting to solve the problem of cheating, but merely trying to speed up the game.

I understand your feeling about maintaining the tradition and the lack of consistency from college to pro to rec, but as you state a desire to speed up the game, playing a let DOES speed up a game.

Calling service lets slows the game down in at least 3 ways (even if they are minor delays, they are none-the-less delays):

-the discussion if there was or wasn't a let

-the retrieval of the ball (if it landed in and has to be replayed)

-a potential 3rd or 4rth serve for a single point (if it/they landed in and have to be replayed)

[tennis_ocd]

Originally Posted by Bartelby

I'm not attempting to solve the problem of cheating, but merely trying to speed up the game.

Playing lets speeds up the game. World team tennis uses it just fine. Amusing to see lets played... and even a returner's partner can play it in doubles. It's really not a big deal but it requires *change*

[OrangePower]

Originally Posted by jswinf

Can't see how that would produce more faults, that's already a fault.

Ya don't know what I was thinking saying that!

Still, I'd be mildly in favor of this perhaps imaginary proposed rule change. The "dribble over" serves would be annoying, but there are at least as many or more "whack the tape and bounce up high and become a sitter" lets.

That's what I was thinking

[Jack the Hack]

Originally Posted by jswinf

A few people have said they've never experienced many "phantom" let calls. I have. Might be more common with older players (not talking about myself, you understand.) They hear something around the time the serve is crossing the net, maybe their jaw popping or a small blood vessel bursting in their head, and they call a let when the serve seemed to have plenty of clearance.

I have a weird story involving a let from a 40 and over tournament this year.

I was playing the #1 seed in the semi-finals. He had a very nice game and was beating me pretty handily, and I was just happy to have made it that far. 60 minutes into the match, I was down 0-6, 1-5, and he was serving at 40-15 (double match point). He hit a big first serve that clipped the top of the net very hard and popped up about 6 to 8 feet in the air and landed softly in the middle of the service box for a let. Just the exact opposite of the "phantom let" that you mentioned. Therefore, I just bunted the ball back to him so he could re-serve, but he proceeded to smash it into the court. At that point, he stood there at the net to shake hands, and I told him that his serve was "obviously a let, take a first serve." At that point, he went absolutely ballistic - cussing, stamping his foot, and calling me a cheater!

I couldn't believe it, especially since I had never met this guy before, there hadn't been any animosity in the match up to that point, and I was resigned to getting my butt kicked. He told me that the serve was "way over the net", and not close to a let, but I stood my ground. It's like he had a temporary aneuryism and blacked out at the part where his serve smashed into the netcord, popping almost straight up... completely weird. To top it off, when he finally went back to re-serve, he proceeded to double fault the next 4 points. I held serve and broke again to make it 4-5, before he finally calmed down and broke me at love to win the match.

In the end, he apologized and I asked him why he gotten so worked up over the let, especially when he was winning so easily. He said that he still thought the serve had cleared the net, and he was tired of getting cheated all the time by players in tournaments. I told him that he certainly missed the let call, and wished him luck in the finals... but walked away thinking "what a psycho!"

As an epilogue, a couple months later, I happened to be looking through the USTA site and came upon a list of players that were banned from USTA sanctioned tournaments for sportsmanship grievances. Sure enough, this guy was on the list with a 6 month suspension, which started after the tournament we played in. I can only assume that he must have done something else crazy in the match before mine, or possibly in the final, since I never filed anything. Maybe he had a case of temporary insanity that weekend? Kind of scary to think it starts at 40...

[Roforot]

Still no source but Volleygirl's BFF? Come on people!

[jonnythan]

This is not a rule the USTA is instituting.

[Taxvictim]

Originally Posted by Jack the Hack

I have a weird story involving a let from a 40 and over tournament this year.

Neat story. I first thought he was going to abuse you on the point because you did not call "let" out loud before the return.