Everybody in my league is a sandbagger

[travlerajm]

Seems like I run into a lot of guys who use the ‘I got beaten by a sandbagger’ excuse every time they lose.
I even have found myself tempted to do it.

If you think half the players in your league are sandbagging, it’s probably not them, it’s you.

 

[ChrisJR3264]

The leagues I play in my city don't allow sandbagging. If you're constantly winning and such - they move players up. The 2 4.5 leagues i;m in (one being a tennis ladder) - quality is ultimately competitive even if the scores don't always reflect that. The one league i used to play in didn't care what your rating was - they made you start at a 3.0 level and worked your way up which i thought was stupid bc he had many complaints when they put 4.0 and 4.5 level players in that section for 2-3 matches stating it wasn't exactly fair lol .

 

[JW10S]

I've rarely met an adult league player who says they lost to anyone other than a sandbagger or a pusher. The 2 terms have been so badly overused, and often wrongly used, that they have become almost meaningless.

 

[naylor73]

Lol I watched a great 4.5 doubles match today in our 4.0 league. Only issue here is one of the guys somehow got bumped from 4.0 to 3.5 last year despite winning all of his 4.0 league matches as a 4s and having the highest tennisrecord rating on the team.

 

[Creighton]

Lol I watched a great 4.5 doubles match today in our 4.0 league. Only issue here is one of the guys somehow got bumped from 4.0 to 3.5 last year despite winning all of his 4.0 league matches as a 4s and having the highest tennisrecord rating on the team.

Where is this?

 

[naylor73]

San Antonio

 

[TennisOTM]

By the original definition, losing to a "sandbagger" meant that you got beat badly by someone who did not previously exhibit the level of skill they showed against you. It could be that they were purposely hiding their skill before playing you (hence the devious / hustler / cheating connotation), but in reality this could also happen simply because your opponent has natural variance in their play and you happened to play them on one of their especially good days.

It's like when you get crushed by someone, and then look up them up expecting to see that they have a stellar W/L record, only to find that they have lost a lot of matches, maybe even lost to players who you have beaten. Of course this is annoying and you find yourself temped to accuse them of tanking those other losses. It's maybe more comforting to think that way, rather than the alternative explanation that your opponent was feeling great against you, or that you played badly.

 

[ChrisJR3264]

By the original definition, losing to a "sandbagger" meant that you got beat badly by someone who did not previously exhibit the level of skill they showed against you. It could be that they were purposely hiding their skill before playing you (hence the devious / hustler / cheating connotation), but in reality this could also happen simply because your opponent has natural variance in their play and you happened to play them on one of their especially good days.

It's like when you get crushed by someone, and then look up them up expecting to see that they have a stellar W/L record, only to find that they have lost a lot of matches, maybe even lost to players who you have beaten. Of course this is annoying and you find yourself temped to accuse them of tanking those other losses. It's maybe more comforting to think that way, rather than the alternative explanation that your opponent was feeling great against you, or that you played badly.

Lot of variables. I agree with some of the ones you posted.
One league I played in - despite being 4.0 or 4.5 or even a 5.0, the guy running the league still makes you work from the bottom so there’s that factor. And if you don’t play enough matches - you can be stuck in the wrong division of play which can irritate some 3.5 level players.

At this stage in the game - it’s fair to say you can easily slip. Us in our mid 30s who work a lot aren’t always at the top of our games in the evenings lol. Especially if you don’t get enough sleep.

 

[Dartagnan64]

Don't worry. if you are losing to all these sandbaggers, you'll get relegated down and have an opportunity to be the sandbagger at that level.

 

[Purestriker]

Don't worry. if you are losing to all these sandbaggers, you'll get relegated down and have an opportunity to be the sandbagger at that level.

Exactly. Don't let pride get you.

 

[ichaseballs]

sandbagging is losing on purpose to maintain a lower ranking... (even it be a few games in each set)
not everyone is sandbagging. but some are, and even straight up admit it.

i tell people competitive usta is generally half a rank down.
if you have not played usta and think you are 4.0, go ahead and sign up for 3.5 (i'm positive you will not be the best player at that rank)