How do you deal with people who don't call lines fairly

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DeathStrike

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What can you do, playing the game means you're at a disadvantage, calling them out well that would probably end the game....
 
Is this for league play? Politely question their calls. Might make them think twice before making another bad line call. If it gets really bad, then there's not much you can do besides intentionally not going for lines. If it's a league match, maybe you can agree to having someone else be a line judge.
 
Why u playing the guy even league matches are recreational tennis if you have been polite and had reoccurring bad calls u candi several things walk off and complain to their captain u report them to league officials challenge loudly the call and make reference to his disregard for the rules or laugh at him and continue to play for the last time ever
 
Bad line calls are very frustrating, but I don’t think it’s possible to lose a match just due to bad line calls. If you lose a match because you keep nicking the lines and not getting the calls, you probably deserve to lose for not playing smart anyway.
 
time_fly said:
Bad line calls are very frustrating, but I don’t think it’s possible to lose a match just due to bad line calls. If you lose a match because you keep nicking the lines and not getting the calls, you probably deserve to lose for not playing smart anyway.
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So if my team is striping the lines we "deserve to lose" because we're not playing smart, even through we're going all Bob Ross on the court???
 
I don't think I've lost due to bad line calls. I'm sure it might make a difference in a super tight match, but most matches I play in, one person is usually better that day and deserved to win despite a few errant calls.

I think the way you deal with it is to develop a thicker skin and learn to let it go.

If you are aiming for lines, you are a fool who deserves his fate. If you aren't aiming for lines but hit one, you are lucky and shouldn't get upset if your luck is not rewarded with call in your favor. Carry on.

That being said if I ever played a guy calling balls 6 inches inside the line as "out", I'd walk off the court and black ball him in a second. Life is too short to put up with intentional butt holes. Fortunately I've never seen someone be that egregious.
 
Those who intentional hook are usually combative anyway...honestly it’s best to to just pack your racquet and leave, not worth the aggravation...plenty of people out there to play.
 
zipplock said:
I have lost games on bad calls before, perfectly timed bad calls. If the timing is strategic, the calls definitely can help change the outcome of a match. Momentum is real.
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I'm sure I've lost games, don't think I've lost matches. Again if I hit a line i was only an inch away from legitimately losing that point so either I'm lucky for hitting the line or unlucky to get a bad call. I should accept my fate when I hang it in the balance like that.

I played dubs last night and had match point snatched away on a bad line call. Still won the match 7-5 instead of 6-3. But it was a poorly struck ball that hit the back of the baseline, they hummed and hawed for a minute before calling it out. We would be lucky to have gotten the call as it was a poor shot we all thought was headed out.
 
DeathStrike said:
What can you do, playing the game means you're at a disadvantage, calling them out well that would probably end the game....
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ds
it depends on the situation. if its a tournament or league play, ask for a linesperson.
if they hit a floater, smash it at them as hard as you can and ask them if it was out.
if its a friendly game, just mention that it was in and move on.
in our friendly doubles group, there is one guy who will make a bad call, even if the other 3 players saw the opposite.
since its a friendly game we just let it go as it doesnt affect the outcome of the match.
he is not intentionally cheating, just stubborn.
z
 
zipplock said:
I have lost games on bad calls before, perfectly timed bad calls. If the timing is strategic, the calls definitely can help change the outcome of a match. Momentum is real.
Click to expand...

I once lost a set from 4-1 up, the specific call was on a game winning shot to make it 5-1
 
Dartagnan64 said:
I'm sure I've lost games, don't think I've lost matches. Again if I hit a line i was only an inch away from legitimately losing that point so either I'm lucky for hitting the line or unlucky to get a bad call. I should accept my fate when I hang it in the balance like that.

I played dubs last night and had match point snatched away on a bad line call. Still won the match 7-5 instead of 6-3. But it was a poorly struck ball that hit the back of the baseline, they hummed and hawed for a minute before calling it out. We would be lucky to have gotten the call as it was a poor shot we all thought was headed out.
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What!? The Code calls for an instantaneous call! Also, any doubt must go to your opponent. If it took them that long to make the 'out' call, they certainly weren't sure. Didn't you reply with, "Nice late call."?
 
zaskar1 said:
ds
it depends on the situation. if its a tournament or league play, ask for a linesperson.
if they hit a floater, smash it at them as hard as you can and ask them if it was out.
if its a friendly game, just mention that it was in and move on.
in our friendly doubles group, there is one guy who will make a bad call, even if the other 3 players saw the opposite.
since its a friendly game we just let it go as it doesnt affect the outcome of the match.
he is not intentionally cheating, just stubborn.
z
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If he doesn't see well, then the bad calls will go against him as for him. But if they are consistently for him, ....he's cheating.
 
DeathStrike said:
Suppose you are good enough to hit lines on a decently consistent basis? I certainly was in my previous iteration, on serves, groundstrokes
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We all have a margin of error on our strokes. And that margin varies based on the nature of the incoming ball. I can hit within a foot of the lines on a short slow paced ball to my forehand. On a return of hard serve I'm happy to just get it back CC beyond the service line but before the baseline. If you are hitting lines consistently, you are playing weak competition who aren't forcing the issue with you.

And if you can hit lines consistently, you can most certainly hit 6 inches inside the line consistently. Why tempt fate?
 
Steady Eddy said:
What!? The Code calls for an instantaneous call! Also, any doubt must go to your opponent. If it took them that long to make the 'out' call, they certainly weren't sure. Didn't you reply with, "Nice late call."?
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I agree it was a late call and should have been in our favor. But in a social dubs match I was fine with playing on since we still had 15 minutes left of court time.
Didn't feel like going all "The Tennis Codes says this..." on the guy. If you start being one of those guys, the invites to play dry up.
 
DeathStrike said:
I once lost a set from 4-1 up, the specific call was on a game winning shot to make it 5-1
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Well maybe you shouldn't have let the call get to you so that you imploded. Thick skin. You still were likely at deuce up 4-1 after that call. No reason to lose that game and 4 more right after.
 
Dartagnan64 said:
We all have a margin of error on our strokes. And that margin varies based on the nature of the incoming ball. I can hit within a foot of the lines on a short slow paced ball to my forehand. On a return of hard serve I'm happy to just get it back CC beyond the service line but before the baseline. If you are hitting lines consistently, you are playing weak competition who aren't forcing the issue with you.

And if you can hit lines consistently, you can most certainly hit 6 inches inside the line consistently. Why tempt fate?
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Why would I want to consistently hit 6 inches inside when I know in a given situation I can cut it way finer? I think your making assumptions based on your own ability level which is fine, but telling people not to go for lines so the cheating mofo at the other end don't get a shot at pulling a fast one.... don't agree :whistle:
 
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Dartagnan64 said:
Well maybe you shouldn't have let the call get to you so that you imploded. Thick skin. You still were likely at deuce up 4-1 after that call. No reason to lose that game and 4 more right after.
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Without a doubt it's still on me, but it threw me that time as it a) got him back in the game and b) made me question if I should play my natural game.
 
bcart1991 said:
If they're doing it intentionally, the only recourse is to hook them back. They might stop, they might not. If it's unintentional, you just gotta deal with it.

I've called a ball that landed in the middle of No Man's Land out to send a message. It worked.
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sylvester-stallone-cobra-sunglasses.png
 
DeathStrike said:
Why would I want to consistently hit 6 inches inside when I know in a given situation I can cut it way finer? I think your making assumptions based on your own ability level which is fine, but telling people not to go for lines so the cheating mofo at the other end don't get a shot at pulling a fast one.... don't agree :whistle:
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Once in a hacker tournament, I angled away an overhead. It was in by several feet, but got called out. I inadvertently yelled, "What?", and he immediately reversed the call. All I could think was, "He must be so used to any ball he cannot get close to is out, that he just assumed it was out."

Years later, a guy who I completely trust to be honest also called out an angled OH. So now I worry that if I take the angle on an OH, even if it is well in, certain opponents will call it out because it's so far out of reach, and they're not used to playing anyone with a reliable overhead. So now I hit them straight down the middle, because I'll usually still win the point, and I don't risk a crazy "out" call.
 
Dartagnan64 said:
I agree it was a late call and should have been in our favor. But in a social dubs match I was fine with playing on since we still had 15 minutes left of court time.
Didn't feel like going all "The Tennis Codes says this..." on the guy. If you start being one of those guys, the invites to play dry up.
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Still most people know it's bad form to take a long time to figure out a ball is out. Here's a way to get around it that I've noticed some people like to do.

It can only work if you're serving. Once you realize that you want to call it out, but that time has passed, don't say anything. But when you announce the score, add the point in. If your opponents say, "So my shot was out." Say, "That shot? Oh yeah, that shot was out."
 
I am pretty fair overall and probably call more out balls in than I should, just to be safe.

That said, if it is a match that counts in league I have asked a teammate to stand on their side and I loudly ask them about calls if they are questionable. After a while, with eyes watching, there seems to be less shenanigans.

I have lost it once though and basically called someone a lying POS and questioned their manhood...once.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I will make and give them a blueberry pie.
BUT, little do they know, I will throw in a few elderberries too.... because, you know, the whole Monty Python thing....

then I will secretly chuckle everytime I see them.
 
DeathStrike said:
Why would I want to consistently hit 6 inches inside when I know in a given situation I can cut it way finer? I think your making assumptions based on your own ability level which is fine, but telling people not to go for lines so the cheating mofo at the other end don't get a shot at pulling a fast one.... don't agree :whistle:
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Because hitting 6 inches inside is safer and just as likely to win you the point. Why the need to cut things as fine as possible? The guys on the other end may not even be cheating mofos. They just may make visual errors if you tempt fate. Trying to call a ball accurately when you are on the move can be difficult and not everyone is aware of the "give the benefit of doubt to the opponent" code. Most people I know just call lines as they see them, If it looks out, it's out and if it looks in, it's in. If they aren't sure they tend to go with their gut.

I just try not to make it easy for opponents to make an out call. I see no value in pushing the limits of their visual apparatus and moral fiber. If I can't win on a 6 inch narrower court, I'm not the better player.
 
If someone intentionally makes bad calls against me, I laugh, because I find it incredibly funny that someone can be that desperate to win recreational tennis matches.

At the same time, the bad calls motivate me to play harder. Even if I’m winning easily, bad calls will motivate me to not lighten up. Basically, it makes me want to prove that my opponents can’t beat me even if they cheat.
 
Several years ago I had a guy call a ball out that was very clearly in (ball was an inside out fh winner about a foot inside the line).

I came to the net and matter of factly said "No that was in. 30-15" (called it in my favor). He knew I was right and didnt argue. I feel like this is the right thing to do if you KNOW your ball was in. Also the person who is hooking you will probably be spineless enough to not question your corrected call.

To me this beats getting into a game of hooking them back but that's always an option to send a message.

Luckily I've never had to play many bad line callers.
 
I had a doubles match and we were getting robbed. I've never seen anything like it. Balls that were two feet in, were being called out and not just out, with a resounding NO! We did all the polite stuff. "are you sure?" then "Really?, are you sure?". Finally my partner had enough. They were serving and he called it out as soon as the server hit the ball. This was well before the ball landed. They blew their tops. My partner said "If you are going to continue to make terrible calls, so am I." Things were much better after that.
 
pfrischmann said:
I had a doubles match and we were getting robbed. I've never seen anything like it. Balls that were two feet in, were being called out and not just out, with a resounding NO! We did all the polite stuff. "are you sure?" then "Really?, are you sure?". Finally my partner had enough. They were serving and he called it out as soon as the server hit the ball. This was well before the ball landed. They blew their tops. My partner said "If you are going to continue to make terrible calls, so am I." Things were much better after that.
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And then what's funny on top of that, your opponents are probably the kind that AFTER the match, they loudly complained how un-sporting or what cheaters YOU and your partner are! I've seen it happen. Cheaters who get called out will always retaliate.
 
DeathStrike said:
Why would I want to consistently hit 6 inches inside when I know in a given situation I can cut it way finer? I think your making assumptions based on your own ability level which is fine, but telling people not to go for lines so the cheating mofo at the other end don't get a shot at pulling a fast one.... don't agree :whistle:
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6 inches is for beginners. I always aim for 6 millimeters inside the line. I ahve a +/- 1mm margin of error.
I'm much less accurate with typing.
 
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6mm INSIDE the line? What are you, some kinda pusher/moonball/play it safe 12 year old girl?

serve and come in as fast as you can, immediately take a BIG swing at the volley and paste it on the outside 1/2 of the line (so it will leave a half in half out mark in case they mess up the call), walk over to the bench (where you have placed you bag AND water bottle), take a quick swig, grab his wife/girlfriend for a quick kiss, and walk over to the ad court and instead of announcing the score, you say "Ready for the next one?".
 
About 20 years ago I was playing a guy in a casual weekly round robin tournament at an indoor facility and due to time constraints the thing had to end in a sudden death point. I hit a volley that was well inside in every direction, and he called it out. Karma rears it's nasty head and about 6 months ago his family brings him to my office with behavior issues related to his Alzheimer's Disease. I don't think he remembers the point, who I am, or much of anything else.
 
I call people out if it is mixed doubles. I have some serious lefty spin and ability to paint the lines and too often, honestly, the women call it out because they can't believe that it goes in, often the out sound comes out of their mouth before the ball hits the ground. I found it best to emphatically tell them it was in. It might not change that one point, but I've seen that if you don't challenge them they will keep doing it. I don't make bad calls in return, for me being overly generous on line calls in the favor of my opponent usually gives me more of an advantage in return because more of my balls are going to be close. Usually, if you call well, opponents return the favor.

As a junior, like pre-10 years old, I used to bring candy to a match, if my opponent made bad line calls I would give him some candy or offer it on a changeover. That usually ended the bad line calls, believe it or not.
 
It doesn't matter. I use the opportunity to better my game and push myself if their calls are going to be arbitrary anyways. You don't get better by playing it safe. Avoid them in the future if it bothers you, and try to enjoy your future games more.
 
I'm about 6'3" and I like to play right up on the baseline. It just so happens that I'm the perfect height that the net cord is right in my line of sight of the baseline. Often during a match I hit a ball thinking it's going in right on the baseline and it's called out. Obviously I don't have a view of the line so I'm sort of at their mercy. But I'd say just as often the opposite happens where I think it might be out but can't tell and they play it anyway.
 
People will do what they can get away with. Maybe I'll let the 1st bad call go but after the 2nd bad call I will for sure say something. 'Are you sure that was out?', 'that didn't look out to me', or something of that nature. I will let them know early that I think they're not being honest and often that is enough to let them know I am on to them. But if it does persist I will reciprocate with bad call saying 'your ball was exactly as far out as the last one of mine you called out.' Everyone knows the players who cheat, it's a reputation that never leaves you. So I will say something like 'everyone warned me you'd make bad calls.' Usually that shuts them up. But if it doesn't and if I'm playing a tournament and this persists I will go to the tournament desk for assistance. If it's a so called 'fun' match I will just collect my gear and leave, not worth my time.
 
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On the flipside, how do handle someone who thinks you are hooking them when your not or try to make you second guess your calls? This guy I was playing has a first serve dependent game. I have the better vision angle because I am closer to the line receiving serve. He rips the first serve and it is close but out. And I call it as it is. He gets mad and thinks I’m hooking him when he’s clearly wrong. Then he intentionally hooked me to me to stop calling his first serves out. I flipped out and called him out..eventually won the match. Its just unfortunate and ugly when the game turns into something like that. My point is that sometimes players will try to intimidate an opponent into calling out balls in when it is close in singles matches where there is no one watching.
 
I think the proper reaction is dependent on variables already spelled out here. I have no time for drama. There is literally no situation where cheating is warranted, yet it persists...even socially. So, what to do? I prefer to manage my reaction as that is all I can control. Move on to the next point, draw in shots, focus on my breathing...or think about something nice. I try to remember how lucky I am to get to play a great game, with mostly great people. Mistakes happen on both sides of the net. It is important to let go and rip the next one.
 
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