Combo league
- Thread starter MRfStop
- Start date
Cindysphinx
G.O.A.T.
Yes, we have them in mid Atlantic, but they are non-advancing.
KamehamehaBackhand
Rookie
Allegheny Mountain District in the Middle States Section has Combo Mixed 7.5 and 8.5 for the first time this year (non-advancing).
MRfStop
Hall of Fame
Any idea why it is non advancing?
schmke
Legend
Because National doesn't hold a Nationals for Combo. Some sections may not even have a sectionals or states/districts.
Matthew ATX
Semi-Pro
We have it in Texas. Playing 7.5 in May, hoping to find an 8.5 as well. From what I've been told, it does advance to sectional level.
MRfStop
Hall of Fame
Do other districts have a district championship? My dad won the 55 & over 8.5 district tournament in Auburn a couple of weeks ago.
Matthew ATX
Semi-Pro
What I don't really get is calling it a "league" when the "season" is one weekend. It's more like a team tournament.
schmke
Legend
Some smaller areas even have the 18/40 and Over leagues as one or two weekend "tournaments" where there are very few teams.
Matthew ATX
Semi-Pro
Oh, woof... now I feel like a big city snobby a-hole. I was annoyed that our 18+ mens team only got 8 matches this winter season (not counting city playoffs that we may or may not make.)
schmke
Legend
It is possible, but is National ready to take on running another Nationals (scheduling, finding a site, weather headaches, etc.) for the several weekends it would likely take?
MRfStop
Hall of Fame
There are some leagues that only one team signs up...the LC has to find another town that only has one team that signed up and those two teams play each other. They play 3 team matches and whoever wins two team matches goes to state.
Cindysphinx
G.O.A.T.
Combo is awesome.
If you have combo available, you can use that as a stepping stone to being comfortable at the next level. Like, as 3.5 gets the chance to be on the court against a 4.0 on the other team and see how the play is different. I think it cuts down on people feeling like the only way to get a challenge is to play up -- before they are ready.
If you have combo available, you can use that as a stepping stone to being comfortable at the next level. Like, as 3.5 gets the chance to be on the court against a 4.0 on the other team and see how the play is different. I think it cuts down on people feeling like the only way to get a challenge is to play up -- before they are ready.
That, and it's a 'gap' league here in my district. Session runs 6-7 matches March/April...in between winter/summer flights, so it keeps folks engaged until the advancing men's/women's flights crank up again in May.
ncgator
Rookie
Combo doubles is a fun league in NC, starting in late summer after mixed is over with state championships at the beach (Wilmington) in early November. Good way to end the year, and then southern sectionals are in March the following year. Doesn’t matter for sectionals if you got bumped, you play at the level you were in the prior year when matches were played.
LOBALOT
Hall of Fame
I used to captain a combo team but after a while the team disbanded as combo tennis in our district is awful. As results don't count against player year end ratings the league is full of self-rated professional sandbaggers that are playing 2 levels beneath their true level. The guys don't play during the regular season so they never get bumped up. I used to captain a combo team but it was tough to motivate guys that were successful during the regular season to play as each match was just nuts. I wasn't really sure what the guys playing that far below their level got from it but they were there year after year.
Cindysphinx
G.O.A.T.
Also, combo advanced to a state championship here. It's a little wonky because the season is January through March, but the championship is in October. Not only that, championships are outdoors, and by then the days are short and you wind up taking the court when it is cold, windy and dark.
I'm not interested in a repeat of that, but lots of people like the chance to go to districts . I think there are better play opportunities in the fall -- mixed, fall combo, tri, ladies day, plus whatever they're doing in DC and VA.
I'm not interested in a repeat of that, but lots of people like the chance to go to districts . I think there are better play opportunities in the fall -- mixed, fall combo, tri, ladies day, plus whatever they're doing in DC and VA.
LOBALOT
Hall of Fame
I really enjoy mixed tennis and the after match festivities. Our mixed matches are on Friday nights and outdoors and usually players whether they are in the lineup or not show up for the fun.
As I get older, it is getting harder for me to play up to the opponent guy on the other side of the net as usually the teams we face are guy (Up a level)/Gal (Down a level). We still have success as my captain is wise and my partner is much younger than me and very athletic. My ego initially took a hit but I have learned to deal with it understanding I am not as young as I used to be and she is really a lot of fun so that is great too.
I would like to captain a tri-level team as I would like to test my managerial skills as I can imagine it is a nightmare having to juggle 3 teams worth of players all in one.
Yep. Just lost the Indiana combo last weekend
I believe Mid West is the weekend of 16th.
That's unfortunate. I will say the quality of the players I've faced outside of the local combo league is typically very high, but I think part of it is the fact that people have improved. Of the three "post-season" matches I've played in combo leagues, all three times I've been playing with a partner who had been bumped up at the end of year. Won a 3rd set tiebreaker, lost a 3rd set tiebreaker, and cruised in one. It's been fun tennis, but I'm the higher rated level and these opponents are nearly as good as the people I faced at my level's playoffs.
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LOBALOT
Hall of Fame
Yep. Just lost the Indiana combo last weekend
I believe Mid West is the weekend of 16th.
That's unfortunate. I will say the quality of the players I've faced outside of the local combo league is typically very high, but I think part of it is the fact that people have improved. Of the three "post-season" matches I've played in combo leagues, all three times I've been playing with a partner who had been bumped up at the end of year. Won a 3rd set tiebreaker, lost a 3rd set tiebreaker, and cruised in one. It's been fun tennis, but I'm the higher rated level and these opponents are nearly as good as the people I faced at my level's playoffs.
Thanks, it is OK because we still play the regular season and have had a lot of success with teams going to sectionals, states, minimally districts. Of course you know you are going to face good players and perhaps guys that are playing higher than the rating but not absurdly so like we saw in our flight in combo league. That made no sense to us after the success we had had.
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