Argument on court, first ever!

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
Okay, so I got into my first ever tennis court argument today. It was pretty heated. Although I didn't drop any curse words and at no point was there a chance of physical alteration.

Anyways, here's the deal. We're playing at 7:30 pm, so I got there early to get a court before they filled up. Public park with two courts. When I pull in, there's a car in the parking lot with people with tennis gear. I don't know if they're arriving or departing. But to be safe and make sure I got a court, I got out and walked up there and put my water bottles on one of the courts (both empty).

I go back to my car to get the rest of my stuff, and they go up there and CROSS the empty court to play on the court I chose. So I get my stuff and go back there to the open court, and when I grab my bottles I tell them they they took my court. The lady then gets super mad at me, telling me what I did is wrong, that I can't do that, they it was very bad, etc etc.

So it got heated and I basically said hey, not my fault you're slow getting out of your car. Pulling into the parking lot isn't enough to reserve a court. And regardless, she went out of her way to take my court by not taking the open one - so she brought on the dispute.

Thoughts?
 
We have rules at our courts. You can't have a court until there are 2 players. Sounds like a lame argument if there was an open court though.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
We have rules at our courts. You can't have a court until there are 2 players. Sounds like a lame argument if there was an open court though.

It was a public court, so no set rules.

But at your club, if someone shows up early to warm up they get kicked off by two people wanting to play?
 
At least it wasn't as bad as my scenario the other day.... There were 6 courts at the park, with only 1 open. I park, am walking towards open court. I'm about 10 feet away from the gate to get inside the court. Some lady and her daughter drive their SUV literally up to the gate (not where you are suppose to park), has her daughter jump out of the car and run onto the court without any gear as I reach the gate.... She turns to me and says "sorry."

After some casual swearing, I shook my head and walked off. People are unbelievable sometimes.
 

newpball

Legend
Putting empty water bottles on the court and then getting your other stuff, okay......
I suspect the other people thought you were trying to pull a fast one.

In retrospect were you?

:D
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
At least it wasn't as bad as my scenario the other day.... There were 6 courts at the park, with only 1 open. I park, am walking towards open court. I'm about 10 feet away from the gate to get inside the court. Some lady and her daughter drive their SUV literally up to the gate (not where you are suppose to park), has her daughter jump out of the car and run onto the court without any gear as I reach the gate.... She turns to me and says "sorry."

After some casual swearing, I shook my head and walked off. People are unbelievable sometimes.

Yeah, I think that is crossing the line.

In my case they were just at their car, I didn't even know if they were coming or going.

I would say the court is "taken" when a person is obviously walking to it.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
Why did you leave your stuff in your car? Why the rush if both courts were empty? Something seems 'off' about the scenario.

Gear was in trunk. Would add 30 seconds to the time.

There might have been other players coming to play that I didn't see.

Or do you think I made this up? lol
 

newpball

Legend
Gear was in trunk. Would add 30 seconds to the time.
So let me get this straight:

1. There are two courts free.
2. You rush out of your car with two empty water bottles to "mark" you court.
3. Then some players walk in and take "your" court.
4. Finally you come with your tennis equipment and claim that court is yours because you rushed and put two empty water bottles on it.

It sounds very silly to me.
Could be the basis of a funny and silly Seinfeld skit.

:D
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
So let me get this straight:

1. There are two courts free.
2. You rush out of your car with two empty water bottles to "mark" you court.
3. Then some players walk in and take "your" court.
4. Finally you come with your tennis equipment and claim that court is yours because you rushed and put two empty water bottles on it.

It sounds very silly to me.
Could be the basis of a funny and silly Seinfeld skit.

:D

Not empty bottles. But nice lie. Straight up lie. Pretty sad to be honest. What compels you to lie like that?

Actually disgusting now that I think about it.
 

newpball

Legend
Not empty bottles. But nice lie. Straight up lie. Pretty sad to be honest. What compels you to lie like that?

Actually disgusting now that I think about it. What compels you to lie like that? What do you have against me?
Whether the water bottles were empty or not is hardly relevant!

You wrote:

"I got out and walked up there and put my water bottles on one of the courts (both empty)"

Both empty could refer to the water bottles, if it was not then it was not, but again it is hardly relevant.

Apparently you rushed out with two full (or were they half-full?) water bottles and put them on a court.
I think that's silly to say the least, or perhaps I misunderstand that you were going to play against those very full water bottles?

Out of curiosity, how long did it take till your fellow player(s) showed up?

:D
 

Booger

Hall of Fame
Don't even walk onto the court until both players are there. I would have chucked your bottles into the stratosphere.
 

Nacho

Hall of Fame
I would be annoyed if I was ready to play and someone placed some water bottles out there to take a court while their playing partner was strolling in at some point. Its like placing cones in a parking space.

Although, to your point not sure why she wouldn't just take the empty court?

Next time I would suggest literally taking your stuff out there and waiting physically on the court. Or find a way to reserve court time somewhere if this is a "hot" public area to play. Usually I have a back up place to go if a set of courts is taken.

Certainly no reason to get in a "heated" argument though. If someone else is ready to play, they get the court; thats the unwritten rule.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
Whether the water bottles were empty or not is hardly relevant!

You wrote:

"I got out and walked up there and put my water bottles on one of the courts (both empty)"

Both empty could refer to the water bottles, if it was not then it was not, but again it is hardly relevant.

Apparently you rushed out with two full (or were they half-full?) water bottles and put them on a court.
I think that's silly to say the least, or perhaps I misunderstand that you were going to play against those very full water bottles?

Out of curiosity, how long did it take till your fellow player(s) showed up?

:D

Okay so the sentence was a little ambiguous, but it should be obvious that I was referring to the courts being empty.

Unless you're just messing with me for the heck of it. Because otherwise I really question your reading comprehension skills.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
1. Why didn't you just play on the other court?

2. Putting your water bottles there doesn't reserve the court anyway, even under the unwritten public park code.

1. I did. Why didn't they?

2. I disagree. I got there first, too bad so sad for them. Parking =/= getting a court. You need to physically get there.
 

S&V-not_dead_yet

Talk Tennis Guru
So a solo player is not allowed to play tennis on a public court in your world?

This was discussed in another thread [maybe the one Cindy posted about the man asking for Cindy's group to swap courts so he could use a ball machine with his student]: most were of the opinion that holding a court required at least 2 people. I opined that if it's my court, I can use the time however I wish [ball machine, serving buckets of balls, drop feeding, etc.]. The other people are going to have to wait the same amount of time whether it's just me or me and x other people. I was in the minority.

Some peopled claimed park rules but I checked at a couple of places where I play and there is no mention about needing a minimum # to hold a court.

What you did was slightly different, IMO: you sort of "reserved" a court by putting your water bottles there. I can see some people getting miffed about that. If that behavior is OK, where do you draw the line? What if you didn't immediately get your stuff from the car? What if you instead stood in the parking lot talking on your phone? What if you went down the street to Starbucks to get a coffee? What if you threw your water bottles over the fence to claim the court?

I'm not saying you did these things but your actions raise the possibility that someone else might and then use your logic to justify themselves.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
This was discussed in another thread [maybe the one Cindy posted about the man asking for Cindy's group to swap courts so he could use a ball machine with his student]: most were of the opinion that holding a court required at least 2 people. I opined that if it's my court, I can use the time however I wish [ball machine, serving buckets of balls, drop feeding, etc.]. The other people are going to have to wait the same amount of time whether it's just me or me and x other people. I was in the minority.

Some peopled claimed park rules but I checked at a couple of places where I play and there is no mention about needing a minimum # to hold a court.

What you did was slightly different, IMO: you sort of "reserved" a court by putting your water bottles there. I can see some people getting miffed about that. If that behavior is OK, where do you draw the line? What if you didn't immediately get your stuff from the car? What if you instead stood in the parking lot talking on your phone? What if you went down the street to Starbucks to get a coffee? What if you threw your water bottles over the fence to claim the court?

I'm not saying you did these things but your actions raise the possibility that someone else might and then use your logic to justify themselves.

Well there are two separate issues:
1) Reserving a court by putting something on it.
2) If a person can play solo on a court.

Some people in this thread are getting on me about #2, which I think is crazy. I agree with you. If I want to practice serves on a court, then that's my right. There is no rule that says you must have at least two people.

#1 is really the issue of the thread.

And as to your point, I agree there is a line. You can't just put stuff on a court and leave for an hour. But there is definitely a huge gray area in between. Clearly, someone can put stuff on the court and then go to their car to get something they forgot or to use the restroom.
 

beltsman

G.O.A.T.
uh....putting two empty water bottles on a court is not "playing tennis on a public court".

The quote was "Don't even walk onto the court until both players are there." Which implies, quite clearly, that solo tennis play is not allowed.
 

Big_Dangerous

Talk Tennis Guru
We have rules at our courts. You can't have a court until there are 2 players. Sounds like a lame argument if there was an open court though.

What if you reserved a court, like you paid fees to reserve a court for an hour or 90 minutes, but maybe your partner is stuck in traffic, and is running like 10 minutes late? You get kicked off the court because two blokes want to play? Doesn't seem right.

Also, what do you do in situation where someone has a ball machine they want to setup and hit that way, because they don't have anyone else to play with?
 

Big_Dangerous

Talk Tennis Guru
The quote was "Don't even walk onto the court until both players are there." Which implies, quite clearly, that solo tennis play is not allowed.

Which is total horse ****, because I do it all the time. You have to, when you are relegated to using public courts. You're almost never going to arrive at the exact same time as your buddy/friends... So the rule is, whoever gets there first, and if there is an empty court, go grab it and start serving or something until the other person shows up. Anyone else who claims this is poor sportsmanship or against some sort of unwritten rules has obviously never played on public courts, and is possibly some sort of elitist snob that only plays at country clubs decked out in his or her all white apparel.

Also, I'm still not understanding why their was any kind of altercation to begin with. There were at least two empty courts, and you wanted to use one, so you ran out and put some gear on the courts in an attempt to save one. Why couldn't they just use the other empty court? Makes no sense at all. It's not like you ran out and grabbed the only open courts. Then I could see how they might perceive that as being a dick move. Although, what the **** were they doing just lollygagging around in their car? If you're there to play tennis, someone needs to get out of that car with a decent sense of urgency and go grab a court. If you take your sweet time doing god only knows what in your car before you walk onto to grab a court, then you have only yourself to blame if someone nabs a court that you really wanted.
 
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beltsman

G.O.A.T.
Which is total horse ****, because I do it all the time. You have to, when you are relegated to using public courts. You're almost never going to arrive at the exact same time as your buddy/friends... So the rule is, whoever gets there first, and if there is an empty court, go grab it and start serving or something until the other person shows up. Anyone else who claims this is poor sportsmanship or against some sort of unwritten rules has either never played on public courts and/or possibly some sort of elitist snob that only plays at country clubs decked out in his or her all white apparel.

Exactly. It's such an absurd position, I don't know how anyone could even believe it. Never in my life did it cross my mind that it would be an issue, until I read it here.
 

newpball

Legend
What you did was slightly different, IMO: you sort of "reserved" a court by putting your water bottles there. I can see some people getting miffed about that. If that behavior is OK, where do you draw the line? What if you didn't immediately get your stuff from the car? What if you instead stood in the parking lot talking on your phone? What if you went down the street to Starbucks to get a coffee? What if you threw your water bottles over the fence to claim the court?
Exactly it looks so silly.

:D
 
D

Deleted member 23235

Guest
Lol, i think if someone "reserved" a court with 2 water bottles... I'd hand them back to them.
Maybe I'd be nice and "re-reserve" the other court by moving the water bottles (guessing the other open court had something less desirable about it,.. like no water bottles, or a bench to put them on).
Seemed like you were trying to pull a fast one (like the mother daughter story).
Who goes to a court, only to go back and get their gear.... no one.
I call BS.
 
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Big_Dangerous

Talk Tennis Guru
Exactly it looks so silly.

:D

I've seen so much worse, and from players who are total mugs too. It's a major reason why I like to hit during off hours, particularly when nobody is around. I spend a lot of late nights just hitting the backboard and/or serving, because sometimes it's much easier to get a nice workout in that way, than to deal with people There are just a lot of people who have no sense of tennis etiquette or any kind of decency/sportsmanship whatsoever.
 

newpball

Legend
I got there first, too bad so sad for them. Parking =/= getting a court. You need to physically get there.
Yes, your water bottles, full ones of course as if empty ones would make a big difference, were there however you were not there when the other group entered the tennis court.

Dogs mark their territory with peeing I suppose some tennis players use (full) water bottles.

Peeing+Dog.jpg


:D
 

Big_Dangerous

Talk Tennis Guru
Lol, i think if someone "reserved" a court with 2 water bottles... I'd hand them back to them.
Maybe I'd be nice and "re-reserve" the other court by moving the water bottles (guessing the other open court had something less desirable about it,.. like no water bottles, or a bench to put them on).
Seemed like you were trying to pull a fast one (like the mother daughter story), who goes to a court, only to go back and get their gear.... no one.
I call BS.

I'll admit, the OP probably should have just grabbed his bag and walked onto the courts. I don't know about other people, but typically that's where everything I need is anyway. Water, towels, extra shirts for really hot/humid nights, balls, wristbands, racquets, even a spare pair of shoes just in case.
 

SoCalJay

Semi-Pro
Look OP, you're not representing yourself very well in this thread. You kinda sound like a guy who did something shady and, when you got called out on it, you took to the internet seeking validation of your position. Instead, most of the people here seem to be saying that you pulled a fast one and now you're getting defensive.

The bottom line is that If you had just taken the extra 30 seconds to grab your gear and head over to an empty court then there wouldn't have been a problem. You caused the problem. Act like an adult and just admit it to yourself.
 

Startzel

Hall of Fame
Lol, i think if someone "reserved" a court with 2 water bottles... I'd hand them back to them.
Maybe I'd be nice and "re-reserve" the other court by moving the water bottles (guessing the other open court had something less desirable about it,.. like no water bottles, or a bench to put them on).
Seemed like you were trying to pull a fast one (like the mother daughter story).
Who goes to a court, only to go back and get their gear.... no one.
I call BS.

My first thought was there has to be something better about the court he chose. Otherwise why the rush if there were two open courts?

But if the courts were the same the other people were the jerks.
 

newpball

Legend
The bottom line is that If you had just taken the extra 30 seconds to grab your gear and head over to an empty court then there wouldn't have been a problem.
I suspect he knew he was not going to be there first if he would have gotten his bag! So indeed it seems he pulled a fast one, he took two water bottles, full bottles by the way, not empty ones, which were probably next to him on his car seat. Then he rushed out, with the full bottles, ran towards the court, placed the bottles to "mark" his territory. Then rushed back to the car to get his tennis gear and during that oparation the other party simply came on court and saw the whole silly act of this one guy.

It is like people who want to be first in line but are not quite ready, they rush out, leave some thing, and thus while having "marked" their territory to return later and "claim" their position in line.

larger.jpg


:D
 

SoCalJay

Semi-Pro
I suspect he knew he was not going to be there first if he would have gotten his bag! So indeed it seems he pulled a fast one, he took two water bottles, full bottles by the way, not empty ones, which were probably next to him on his car seat. Then he rushed out, with the full bottles, ran towards the court, placed the bottles to "mark" his territory. Then rushed back to the car to get his tennis gear and during that oparation the other party simply came on court and saw the whole silly act of this one guy.

It is like people who want to be first in line but are not quite ready, they rush out, leave some thing, and thus while having "marked" their territory to return later and "claim" their position in line.

larger.jpg


:D

Exactly.
 

OrangePower

Legend
At my local public courts, there is often stuff just lying on the court that previous players forgot to take when they left (or just were too lazy and didn't care if they left litter behind). Balls, drink bottles, sweaters, socks (yes I said socks), you name it I've probably found it on a court at some time or another.

If there is nobody on the court, I assume it is empty and available for me. Any odds and ends on the court are generally assumed to have just been left behind by the previous players.
 
It was a public court, so no set rules.

But at your club, if someone shows up early to warm up they get kicked off by two people wanting to play?
Technically, yes you can kick the one person off. The reason is you can have someone out there for 30-60 minutes "warming up" and their partner will "be here in 5 minutes". We generally have very few issues, but sometimes this comes up during league nights.

IMHO at public courts, if you're the first one there you should get the court. Meaning you're physically on the court, not just the water bottles. Sounds to me the other people were just being difficult for some reason. Kind of a weird thing for them to complain about with an open court available.
 
"I got out and walked up there and put my water bottles on one of the courts (both empty)"

My thought also was that he was referring to the water bottles being empty. I was thinking that empty water bottles could blow away no longer constituting a claim on the court. In rereading, I now see that he was referring to the courts being empty--but that would seem obvious, why would he put water bottles on a court that was occupied? The internet is badly in need of editors.
 
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beltsman

G.O.A.T.
Yes, your water bottles, full ones of course as if empty ones would make a big difference, were there however you were not there when the other group entered the tennis court.

Dogs mark their territory with peeing I suppose some tennis players use (full) water bottles.

Peeing+Dog.jpg


:D

What is with your obsession with full/empty water bottles? What are you even talking about? Does this make sense in your head before you type it?
 
When I pull in, there's a car in the parking lot with people with tennis gear. I don't know if they're arriving or departing.

Their car was there first, to avoid the ensuing argument it may have been prudent and friendlier to walk up to their car and ask them if they were coming or going and if they had a preference for which court they preferred. By running out there and staking your claim with water bottles, it was kind of a shot across their bow--"I beat you to the court, although you were first into the parking lot". Not taking the time to get your equipment out of the car showed that the race was on.

If I have to leave my court empty to go to the bathroom, go to the bar for a pitcher of margaritas, back to my car for shades, etc., I'll leave my bag in the middle of the court and scatter a few balls on the court signifying the court is in active use--this even though I'm at my club, and the court is reserved for me for a solo practice. If someone comes around and looks like they want to play, I'll ask them to share my court and they can return my serves.
 
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beltsman

G.O.A.T.
I suspect he knew he was not going to be there first if he would have gotten his bag! So indeed it seems he pulled a fast one, he took two water bottles, full bottles by the way, not empty ones, which were probably next to him on his car seat. Then he rushed out, with the full bottles, ran towards the court, placed the bottles to "mark" his territory. Then rushed back to the car to get his tennis gear and during that oparation the other party simply came on court and saw the whole silly act of this one guy.

It is like people who want to be first in line but are not quite ready, they rush out, leave some thing, and thus while having "marked" their territory to return later and "claim" their position in line.

:D

Congrats genius, you described exactly what I explained in the OP.

Once again, trolling with the full/empty water bottles.

I'm starting to think you're a child. It's the only way to explain your trolling.
 

sundaypunch

Hall of Fame
Well there are two separate issues:
1) Reserving a court by putting something on it.
2) If a person can play solo on a court.

Some people in this thread are getting on me about #2, which I think is crazy. I agree with you. If I want to practice serves on a court, then that's my right. There is no rule that says you must have at least two people.

#1 is really the issue of the thread.

And as to your point, I agree there is a line. You can't just put stuff on a court and leave for an hour. But there is definitely a huge gray area in between. Clearly, someone can put stuff on the court and then go to their car to get something they forgot or to use the restroom.


There is also no rule that says putting bottles on a court and leaving holds the court. If you stayed on the court it would have been yours. Since there are no rules as you say, they took it when you left so you lose.
 

Dartagnan64

G.O.A.T.
maybe its just a Canadian thing but public courts tend to have rules attached so arguments like this don't happen:
1) Singles and Doubles players have priority over solo players (so you can and will be kicked off a court if you are by yourself)
2) If people are waiting you must relinquish the court in 30 min for singles and 45 min for doubles (from the time both waiting players arrive)

I'm shocked that all public courts don't post simple rules like this as it would certainly stop some drama.

In my world, OP is wrong and should be booted to the other court as he would be in violation of the posted rules (solo player holding a court over singles players)
 
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