How many matches - Three team league (3 lines of doubles)

[atatu]

My 55 and over 9.0 league has three teams and we play three lines of doubles. Last year we played 8 matches total (play every team 4 times) but this year they are only scheduling 6 matches which makes it very tough to get everyone enough playing time. Just curious how many matches other people are playing, I've got guys complaining about paying the USTA fee and only getting a few matches.

 

[S&V-not_dead_yet]

My 55 and over 9.0 league has three teams and we play three lines of doubles. Last year we played 8 matches total (play every team 4 times) but this year they are only scheduling 6 matches which makes it very tough to get everyone enough playing time. Just curious how many matches other people are playing, I've got guys complaining about paying the USTA fee and only getting a few matches.

Here's a subversive idea: schedule another round or two of matches with the other two teams outside of the USTA.

 

[winchestervatennis]

My 55 and over 9.0 league has three teams and we play three lines of doubles. Last year we played 8 matches total (play every team 4 times) but this year they are only scheduling 6 matches which makes it very tough to get everyone enough playing time. Just curious how many matches other people are playing, I've got guys complaining about paying the USTA fee and only getting a few matches.

Im in two different 3 team leagues with standard 2s 3d. We play each team thrice for 6 matches. Kinda a bummer it goes by so quickly. In the past one was a two team league and they only scheduled 5, but captains asked the LLC to make it 7 and she did. Not all LLCs are evil, uncaring people... but I’ve seen a few that are.

 

[Matthew ATX]

9 teams in our division - play each team once, giving us 8 matches.

Play time varies on the team though, since it's an advancing season. Some people are getting 6-8 matches, others only 1-2. I for one, would definitely not be willing to pay the league dues if I was only getting one or two matches.

 

[schmke]

In my area, our LC always works to make sure teams play at least 8 matches. Typically flights have 9-10 teams so play each team once and have an 8 or 9 match season. When a flight does have fewer than 9 teams, an unbalanced round-robin is done where a given team will play one or more other teams twice to get 8 matches in.

8 team matches is a reasonable number that usually allows for everyone to get several matches in, unless you have a really big roster. My 40+ 4.5+ team had 14 rostered and a number of 4.0s playing up, and all our 4.5s got no less than 4 matches in and all but one of the 4.0s had 2-4 played.

 

[SavvyStringer]

My 55 and over 9.0 league has three teams and we play three lines of doubles. Last year we played 8 matches total (play every team 4 times) but this year they are only scheduling 6 matches which makes it very tough to get everyone enough playing time. Just curious how many matches other people are playing, I've got guys complaining about paying the USTA fee and only getting a few matches.

We had 4 teams and ended up with 9 matches. Seems odd that you would have so few. I agree with your players sometimes USTA logic doesn't make sense financially.

 

[brettatk]

In 40+ we rarely have more than 6 matches. 18+ we usually have 7-8 matches. We try to make sure everyone plays at least twice preferably 3 times during a season.

 

[catfish]

Scheduling leagues seems easy.......that is, until you've done it. Advancing leagues have deadlines (set backwards from the National, Sectional and District Calendars). Schedules have to be planned around other leagues (USTA and non-USTA), holidays, facility court availability, number of teams, and a variety of other issues.

 

[DBH]

If you're in a league that plays once a week on a specific day, then the problem with having an odd number of teams in the league is the forced bye weeks. With 3 teams, every week one of the teams must have a bye. So it takes 9 weeks to get through 6 matches per team, and it takes 12 weeks to get through 8 matches per team. If there is a deadline to finish the league in time to declare a champion to advance to the next round of championships or whatever, then it causes a problem and there may not be enough weeks in the calendar to get in a decent number of matches.

I do agree that it stinks to pay the same league fee, same court fees, etc. and to only get to play a few team matches.