Mo Money, Mo Problems

[Cindysphinx]

Our adult season has ended, and the captains of my various teams are trying to close the books on the season. Meaning they are trying to collect court fees.

In our league, it costs $17/match for singles, $34/match for doubles. The captain pays all of the season's fees up front and then has to collect from the players. This past season, I had to put $1632 on my credit card in March. I billed each player for six matches ($102), and I told them we would settle up at the end of the season for those who played more or fewer than six matches. The season was halfway over before I received the last check, which came after I sent four e-mail reminders and one awkward phone call.

I am in the process of dealing with the refunds and collections now. My players are generally pretty good about paying, but other captains are not so lucky. One captain told me she got stiffed for about $200 last year.

To avoid these financial risks, some captains declare that players can't be in the line-up until they have paid their fees. This doesn't work well because the players can just call the bluff -- is the captain really willing to default courts by not putting Deadbeat Players into the line-up, and if so, who is going to pay for those unused courts?

In an effort to relieve the financial burden on captains, the league is considering requiring players to pay for 3 matches as part of their Tennislink registration fees. Sounds like a good idea to me.

The current system is viewed as an improvement over the prior system. Back in the day, the players brought the money with them to the match and the captain paid the facility directly. It was a nightmare; someone always "forgot their wallet." Again, captains got stiffed.

I'm not sure how other leagues handle the money. Is there a better way?

 

[dizzlmcwizzl]

I cannot tell you how happy I am that our summer tennis is all at outdoor facilities that do not charge individuals.

In the winter captains just collect from the payers who are playing. It never really has been a problem as far as I know.

 

[origmarm]

The only league I played in was in upstate NY back in the 90s for one season. They required all players to pay upfront for the whole season as if they would play every game. The unused portion was either refunded at the end of the season, used for a end of season drink/meal (for those that could make it) or a credit towards the next season at the player's discretion.

Worked well but was oversubscribed which might be why people were willing to pay up front to "secure a slot".

Orig

 

[Topaz]

Our captains put in a deposit at the beginning of the season (I think the amount of one match).

Then, for each match, the captain collects from the players who are there. Then they write check for the team and put it in an envelope (that is already at the club with our tennis balls)...the opposing captain also puts her check in there as well. Envelopes get turned into the desk, and I imagine the coordinator does one bit pick-up at the end of the season.

Outdoor league, again, the captains collect at each match, and then send it to the coordinator on their own.

Nobody really ever 'forgets' their wallet...not an issue for my teams anyway.

 

[Xenakis]

This past season, I had to put $1632 on my credit card in March.

Ouch. That shouldn't have to happen. Agree with Orig about people paying upfront or whatever reduces the financial exposure.

One captain told me she got stiffed for about $200 last year.

Too much information/overshare.

 

[spot]

I think are jumping through hoops to make it fair. To me I'd just total up what the total fees would be for the season and divide by the number of players on your roster. Then you have a set cost that every person pays and you can just collect it at the start of the season. Once you are trying to make people pay more if they are in the lineup more or less if they don't play then you are just making your life far too difficult. Divide it up equally and if people don't like the new system then they can take on the responsibility of collecting money.

At least for our team- people badly want to be in the lineup and if they haven't paid me dues then its an easy excuse to sit them.

 

[blakesq]

Here in CT, the captain collects $30 from each player prior to the player going on the court. No problem. Why can't you guys do that? If you have some scumbag player who will "call their bluff", you do not want those players on the team. If someone "forgets" their wallet, that someone has to borrow the $ from someone, and it doesn't have to be the captain.

Our adult season has ended, and the captains of my various teams are trying to close the books on the season. Meaning they are trying to collect court fees.

In our league, it costs $17/match for singles, $34/match for doubles. The captain pays all of the season's fees up front and then has to collect from the players. This past season, I had to put $1632 on my credit card in March. I billed each player for six matches ($102), and I told them we would settle up at the end of the season for those who played more or fewer than six matches. The season was halfway over before I received the last check, which came after I sent four e-mail reminders and one awkward phone call.

I am in the process of dealing with the refunds and collections now. My players are generally pretty good about paying, but other captains are not so lucky. One captain told me she got stiffed for about $200 last year.

To avoid these financial risks, some captains declare that players can't be in the line-up until they have paid their fees. This doesn't work well because the players can just call the bluff -- is the captain really willing to default courts by not putting Deadbeat Players into the line-up, and if so, who is going to pay for those unused courts?

In an effort to relieve the financial burden on captains, the league is considering requiring players to pay for 3 matches as part of their Tennislink registration fees. Sounds like a good idea to me.

The current system is viewed as an improvement over the prior system. Back in the day, the players brought the money with them to the match and the captain paid the facility directly. It was a nightmare; someone always "forgot their wallet." Again, captains got stiffed.

I'm not sure how other leagues handle the money. Is there a better way?

 

[Cindysphinx]

I think are jumping through hoops to make it fair. To me I'd just total up what the total fees would be for the season and divide by the number of players on your roster. Then you have a set cost that every person pays and you can just collect it at the start of the season. Once you are trying to make people pay more if they are in the lineup more or less if they don't play then you are just making your life far too difficult. Divide it up equally and if people don't like the new system then they can take on the responsibility of collecting money.

At least for our team- people badly want to be in the lineup and if they haven't paid me dues then its an easy excuse to sit them.

You'll recall that I used to split court fees equally. I also used to split playing time.

I don't think I could get away with asking players to split court costs but playing some people more than others. Last season, my strongest player played eight matches. I also played eight (although some of this was just my being available when no one else was). Some of the weaker players played three. I think making everyone play the same amount would cause some back-biting.

One of my captains has a different method. She charges everyone by the match. In the case of a default, I have the player who caused the default pay the penalty ($17 or $34). One of my captains has the whole team cover the cost of a default, even if the reason was because so-and-so- showed up late or forgot she was playing.

So I have to send a check for $8 to cover defaults of other players. It's not a lot, but it is bothersome on principle. I will pay it, however, because the captain said upfront that this was her policy.

The only time I require everyone to cover a default is when we do not have eight available players. So far in sixteen seasons of captaining, this has not (yet) happened to me.

 

[goober]

Make a rule that if you have to chase after somebody for money because they forgot their wallet or "they called the captains' bluff" they won't be put in the lineup again until their debts are settled.

If you are consistently getting problems like this from grown adults, you should reconsider what kind of people you have on your team. Paying a small fee is a trivial matter and the fact that they would try to dodge it speaks to their character. If the fee is a lot of money to them, then they shouldn't be playing league tennis in the first place.

 

[J_R_B]

Really? People "forget their wallet" (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) when they are playing and KNOW they have to pay for court fees? You need better people on your teams.

 

[Cindysphinx]

Really? People "forget their wallet" (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) when they are playing and KNOW they have to pay for court fees? You need better people on your teams.

One of my pals owes me $11 right now. She forgot her purse for one of our daytime NOVA matches (on a team I don't captain). She is gone for the summer and will be back in September.

I'm sure she just forgot about the money. : ahem :

 

[MLtennis]

Hey Cindy - I think you're on the right track with charging at the match per player. In my leagues we get an e-mail/text from our captain when he decides who's playing and it comes with a reminder that we each will need to bring the money required. If we don't bring it we automatically don't play the next match. It does help that we have plenty of substitute players who would love a chance to play if someone forgets money. I'm one of the top players and play a lot of matches - and haven't forgotten to bring money (I keep a $20 in my bag just in case!) - but I've seen another top player sidelined a match for not bringing money and we lost that match due to it. He felt bad (of course) and hasn't forgotten to bring money ever since. It's a hard rule and is a bummer for the team but the captain has enough responsibility as it is without having to fork over extra money. Just my $.02 - that's a tough situation for sure.

 

[ChipNCharge]

One of my pals owes me $11 right now. She forgot her purse for one of our daytime NOVA matches (on a team I don't captain). She is gone for the summer and will be back in September.

I'm sure she just forgot about the money. : ahem :

She probably did. Do you really think she would intentionally withhold payment of $11 that's owed to a friend?

 

[Cindysphinx]

She probably did. Do you really think she would intentionally withhold payment of $11 that's owed to a friend?

I never said she was intentionally withholding payment of $11.

I mention this because there are some Unfortunate Unintended Consequences of having a pay-as-you-go system.

I guess it all comes down to who should bear the burden of financing another person's tennis, even temporarily. In my league, the captain bears the burden (because she has to pay all the money up front). In NOVA (where I lent my friend money), the burden falls on whoever has an extra $20 in her bag.

You all have given me an idea, though. Maybe I will start a new policy for the upcoming season.

The chronology in our league is that team codes come out, then players register, then the season starts, then court fees are due, then the captain collects. Maybe I won't give players the team code until I have received a check for six matches. If folks don't cut the check by the time we play our first match, my roster will be too small and I will have to give their spot away to someone else to avoid defaults.

Hmmm. That could work. Then I'd have $$$ by the time court fees are due and wouldn't be floating money like I'm Bank of America. It's a shame to have to do that, but I always seem to have 17 people who pay me immediately and 1-2 people who are crazy slow with their check.

 

[Cruzer]

The simplest solution is if a player has not paid up then they don't play. There shouldn't be any griping about a policy like that either as long as everyone knows before the season starts that is how it is going to work.

There is no way I would put $1,600+ dollars on my credit card unless I had collected at least 75% of it beforehand. Many years ago before individual registration fees came into effect there was a $75.00 fee to register a team which the captain usually paid. I know from experience that trying to collect each player's portion of $75.00 can be a real chore with some people.

I get the "I left my wallet in the car" or "I forgot my wallet" routine all the time when I bring someone's racquet that I have just strung for them to the club. Whenever I hear that I think to myself "who the hell leaves their wallet in their car?" My wallet is either in my pocket or in my tennis bag which is always with me or on the court I am playing on.

 

[ohplease]

Hey Cindy - I think you're on the right track with charging at the match per player. In my leagues we get an e-mail/text from our captain when he decides who's playing and it comes with a reminder that we each will need to bring the money required. If we don't bring it we automatically don't play the next match. It does help that we have plenty of substitute players who would love a chance to play if someone forgets money. I'm one of the top players and play a lot of matches - and haven't forgotten to bring money (I keep a $20 in my bag just in case!) - but I've seen another top player sidelined a match for not bringing money and we lost that match due to it. He felt bad (of course) and hasn't forgotten to bring money ever since. It's a hard rule and is a bummer for the team but the captain has enough responsibility as it is without having to fork over extra money. Just my $.02 - that's a tough situation for sure.

This. Extend everyone a line of credit equal to exactly one match. You don't have to pay before getting in the lineup, but as long as you're in debt, you don't get put in any more lineups. Easy.

 

[Cindysphinx]

The simplest solution is if a player has not paid up then they don't play. There shouldn't be any griping about a policy like that either as long as everyone knows before the season starts that is how it is going to work.

There is no way I would put $1,600+ dollars on my credit card unless I had collected at least 75% of it beforehand. Many years ago before individual registration fees came into effect there was a $75.00 fee to register a team which the captain usually paid. I know from experience that trying to collect each player's portion of $75.00 can be a real chore with some people.

I get the "I left my wallet in the car" or "I forgot my wallet" routine all the time when I bring someone's racquet that I have just strung for them to the club. Whenever I hear that I think to myself "who the hell leaves their wallet in their car?" My wallet is either in my pocket or in my tennis bag which is always with me or on the court I am playing on.

I guess there are two types of people in the world -- those who hate owing money to others, and those who don't mind it at all.

I've never owed my tennis pro a dime. I always have the money I'm supposed to have for him, and I take steps to make sure of it (extra cash tucked away in the car and tennis bag, blank checks in the glove box). It would make me sick to know I owed someone money and had forgotten.

 

[spot]

Cindy- I'll also recommend google checkout to collect money. At least for my guys they have no clue where their checkbooks are but they can fill out a google checkout form no problem. It has made collecting money dramatically easier for me. There really are no excuses then.

 

[sumari]

Maybe I shouldn't bring this up but we do not have to pay any court time. The only cost to each player is the $35 to join the league which they pay when they sign up for the team. We, meaning I, buy a case of balls and everyone on the team splits the cost of the case for practice. I think this year it cost about $6 per player for practise balls. I usually have no problem collecting the $6.

 

[Cindysphinx]

Cindy- I'll also recommend google checkout to collect money. At least for my guys they have no clue where their checkbooks are but they can fill out a google checkout form no problem. It has made collecting money dramatically easier for me. There really are no excuses then.

How does this work, Spot?

All of my players already have GoogleDocs accounts, but I imagine this is something different?

 

[tennislefty]

hey cin..i've never been out a dime for captaining in over 7years. Im good at putting guilt on a team at the end of the season in a public E-mail to the whole team,,if you let them know you paid over a thousand bucks for a season and you have kids in college and all your asking for is their personal court fees it usually works. I still have outstanding balances for the spring, but one key thing is to send out your balances right after the last match while its still fresh in their minds..i even got a gift certificate from someone..you may also want to consider carefully who you have taken on your teams too..i always charge the defaulted court to the player who did it..btw..i have never had a no show only a a few late players over the years..i have charged the default doulbes court 1 time to the entire team due to lack of avaiabilty of so many teammates..most of my team is repeat customers..the biggest complaint i get from new team mates ive added to my team about their former teams is captains taking weak players, unorganized captaining, putting lineups out too late, too may different partners in a competative season, and teams with not enough depth..i have heard so may players say "i just want a fun team" no way..as the season moves along, no matter the circumstances, players want to win, after all team tennis in all its various formats is all about winning, if people want fun,,,get a pickup game..when teams are winning the better players keep winning and the whole team ends up winning. all you need is 1 high maintennece player to bring negativiity to a team. yes, ive had plenty of disapointed players on my many teams, but never good players , you have a choice to roll out the red carpet for better players and make them happy throughout the season, or to please your weaker players..its a clear choice...pre-season on the competative teams, ive told the weaker players it their choice to stay but no guarantee of play time, its then their choice to practice and stay with a stronger team or bail and go to a team they will actuallly play alot for and in then end be a better player. on another note, im usually the weaker player on my own team.

 

[FloridaAG]

I think are jumping through hoops to make it fair. To me I'd just total up what the total fees would be for the season and divide by the number of players on your roster. Then you have a set cost that every person pays and you can just collect it at the start of the season. Once you are trying to make people pay more if they are in the lineup more or less if they don't play then you are just making your life far too difficult. Divide it up equally and if people don't like the new system then they can take on the responsibility of collecting money.

At least for our team- people badly want to be in the lineup and if they haven't paid me dues then its an easy excuse to sit them.

That works for teams that are run at least moderately fairly in terms of playing time. I have read about teams where the weaker players never get in the line-up. If you try to charge them the same as people who actually play every match when the issue is court time charges, I think you will have trouble filling out your roster and collecting - If I was on a team and only ended up playing in 1 or 2 matches and the captain tried charing me the same amount as someone who played in every match, I'd be pretty peeved and would never play on that team again

 

[Topaz]

Really, I'm amazed to hear of these problems. There hasn't been one person on my team this season who did not pay before taking the court. We all understand that paying the match fee is part of playing. It sounds like a very simple thing is being made much more complicated.

 

[Cindysphinx]

Really, I'm amazed to hear of these problems. There hasn't been one person on my team this season who did not pay before taking the court. We all understand that paying the match fee is part of playing. It sounds like a very simple thing is being made much more complicated.

On a roster of 18, it only takes 1-2 people who are slow payers to gum up the works. As I said, most of my players put a check in the mail the instant they get the e-mail asking them to do so. It just bugs me to have to stay on top of this element of captaining, on top of all else I have to do.

It would be even worse if our league still handled finances by making players pay when they show up for a match. Then I had to deputize someone to collect the money and send it to me, and I had to follow up with anyone who forgot their wallet. Hated hated hated it.

I used to have a co-captain whose sole responsibility was to handle the money. I finally stopped having a co-captain when it got to the point where I had to start sending nagging e-mails to a particular player because she wasn't paying the co-captain. The player lost her job, lost her house in foreclosure and went to bankruptcy, so I kind of understand why she was having trouble coming up with the money . . . .

 

[Topaz]

I just this morning got an email from one of my combo captains, someone I know well but have never played for before.

We have send 15 in advance to keep in the team 'kitty'...to cover defaults that may happen if nobody is available to play (different from when one person doesn't show)...I thought that was pretty reasonable and a sound plan.

 

[Topaz]

It would be even worse if our league still handled finances by making players pay when they show up for a match. Then I had to deputize someone to collect the money and send it to me, and I had to follow up with anyone who forgot their wallet. Hated hated hated it.

We 'deputize' a person (if captain is not there) and *they* send the check in and are responsible for collecting money and sending it in. Again, never really had a problem with it.

Now, my indoor team has two captains, and one of them is usually at every match, so they are there to collect. Maybe that is why we have no problems...captain is always there.

 

[Cindysphinx]

hey cin..i've never been out a dime for captaining in over 7years. Im good at putting guilt on a team at the end of the season in a public E-mail to the whole team,,if you let them know you paid over a thousand bucks for a season and you have kids in college and all your asking for is their personal court fees it usually works. I still have outstanding balances for the spring, but one key thing is to send out your balances right after the last match while its still fresh in their minds..i even got a gift certificate from someone..you may also want to consider carefully who you have taken on your teams too..i always charge the defaulted court to the player who did it..btw..i have never had a no show only a a few late players over the years..i have charged the default doulbes court 1 time to the entire team due to lack of avaiabilty of so many teammates..most of my team is repeat customers..the biggest complaint i get from new team mates ive added to my team about their former teams is captains taking weak players, unorganized captaining, putting lineups out too late, too may different partners in a competative season, and teams with not enough depth..i have heard so may players say "i just want a fun team" no way..as the season moves along, no matter the circumstances, players want to win, after all team tennis in all its various formats is all about winning, if people want fun,,,get a pickup game..when teams are winning the better players keep winning and the whole team ends up winning. all you need is 1 high maintennece player to bring negativiity to a team. yes, ive had plenty of disapointed players on my many teams, but never good players , you have a choice to roll out the red carpet for better players and make them happy throughout the season, or to please your weaker players..its a clear choice...pre-season on the competative teams, ive told the weaker players it their choice to stay but no guarantee of play time, its then their choice to practice and stay with a stronger team or bail and go to a team they will actuallly play alot for and in then end be a better player. on another note, im usually the weaker player on my own team.

This is an interesting post. It probably deserves its own thread, but I'll comment here for now.

TennisLefty, I'm pretty sure I know who you are. If I'm right, I hope you'll keep posting because you have a *lot* of experience and insight into league tennis that many here will find fascinating.

The bold bit I highlighted caught my eye. I don't dispute any of it. Captains and players do have to make a choice about how important winning is to them.

I don't think I agree that competitive tennis at our level is "all about winning," though. Your team went undefeated and finished first. My team lost two matches and finished second. This means my team did plenty of winning, and I think everyone was happy to have challenging matches but come out on top most of the time.

Now, what would it take to get to the next level -- districts, sectionals, nationals. I think you nailed it. You have to throw your weaker players under the bus and only worry about pleasing the stronger ones. From where I sit, it just isn't worth it. There's no guarantee that even the strongest team will make it to nationals, let alone win there. Is it more fun and rewarding to go deep in the playoffs than to simply do well at the local level and then move along to the next season once you've been eliminated? I don't know, but I doubt it. I do have to say that our team was eliminated on July 1, and I'd be surprised if anyone has given the matter a second thought. Me, I'm looking forward to mixed combo and ladies NOVA day.

You know, I took two teams to combo districts, which was my only significant taste of the playoff atmosphere. It was OK. I don't consider it a major event in my life, or even in my tennis life. It happened. Had it not happened, I honestly can't say anything about my life or my tennis would be any different. It was enough to have had a satisfying season.

I have to say, however, that the philosophy you mention about winning is something I am toying with for 2011. I'll be eligible to play seniors, and I expect to remain a 3.5. A few friends have suggested I join their senior's teams, and I seem to know a few people on every team in the league. Which team should I join? Maybe this would be a good time to join the very strongest team and try to get to nationals. Would that be more fun? Hard to say, but I doubt it. I need to think on it a bit more.

 

[tennislefty]

great comments cin..the only thing i can honestly say is once you have a taste of winning dsitrics, and playing section and you're team is literally 2 tiebeak points of winning to head to Nationals and represnt over 350,000 players at your level, it becomes addicting. USTA is a whole differnt ball game then many other leagues.. advacing is (in my humble opinion) a way a rec player can get ahead and exoeorence a national event.

 

[tennislefty]

me too..i can play seniors ion 2011..

 

[Topaz]

great comments cin..the only thing i can honestly say is once you have a taste of winning dsitrics, and playing section and you're team is literally 2 tiebeak points of winning to head to Nationals and represnt over 350,000 players at your level, it becomes addicting. USTA is a whole differnt ball game then many other leagues.. advacing is (in my humble opinion) a way a rec player can get ahead and exoeorence a national event.

Hmm, now I'm wondering if I know you as well!

 

[Cindysphinx]

me too..i can play seniors ion 2011..

Heh, heh.

Maybe we can finally partner and really put a hurt on some folks?

 

[tennis4josh]

On a roster of 18, it only takes 1-2 people who are slow payers to gum up the works. As I said, most of my players put a check in the mail the instant they get the e-mail asking them to do so. It just bugs me to have to stay on top of this element of captaining, on top of all else I have to do.

It would be even worse if our league still handled finances by making players pay when they show up for a match. Then I had to deputize someone to collect the money and send it to me, and I had to follow up with anyone who forgot their wallet. Hated hated hated it.

I used to have a co-captain whose sole responsibility was to handle the money. I finally stopped having a co-captain when it got to the point where I had to start sending nagging e-mails to a particular player because she wasn't paying the co-captain. The player lost her job, lost her house in foreclosure and went to bankruptcy, so I kind of understand why she was having trouble coming up with the money . . . .

In my league experience as captain, I have never "lost" any money. I have had to deal with people who are "slow" with paying. But they will eventually pay up. To avoid this now I prepare an aggressive estimate at the beginning of season which includes court time, refreshments, balls etc. I divide it equally between the number of people on the roster. I always have a pre-season team meeting and ask everyone to bring their dues to the meeting. I also use paypal and encourage people to send money electronically. Before the season starts about 80% of my team members would have already paid.

Once the season starts, I typically get couple of more players, who have to pay the same amount as their peers. So by end of the season my team kitty is always surplus.

Generally the folks who pay late are my closest friends, while the new guys are very prompt with money part. I don't mind it because I know my friends "will" pay me.

 

[AR15]

There's no way in hell that I'd ever cover those cost up front for a team. I think Spot was spot-on with his suggestion of everyone paying up front.

And (IMO) part of the problem is your large team size. 18 is simply too many and doesn't give much playing time. Individuals, on a team that large, don't have much a personal stake in the team, and therefor aren't as motivated to follow team rules for payment etc.

 

[tennislefty]

my thoughts exactly!!!!! i was waiting for you to say it first!
do you know who i am?

 

[tennislefty]

AR15..dont know where you play but our league fees are paid all up
front, we dont have a choice in a huge league like ours. payment on line up front is mandatory. So all this diiffernet way of payment makes leagues all veery diifferent.

 

[Cindysphinx]

my thoughts exactly!!!!! i was waiting for you to say it first!
do you know who i am?

Well, I think so. And I trust you know who I am? We've played against each other a few times over the years, right?

 

[bodieq]

You guys have it all wrong.

Here's the key: you recruit the big-time sandbaggers by telling them that they don't need to pay anything (the captain and/or club will cover their league-fees and court-fees)...and all they have to do is join our team and kick-@ss in their matches.

Districts/Sectionals...here we come!!

 

[goober]

You guys have it all wrong.

Here's the key: you recruit the big-time sandbaggers by telling them that they don't need to pay anything (the captain and/or club will cover their league-fees and court-fees)...and all they have to do is join our team and kick-@ss in their matches.

Districts/Sectionals...here we come!!

Hmm so you will be out a lot of money, and most of the "regular" team will be watching on the sidelines as your ringers play. But you can wear your National T-shirts with pride. 8)Sounds like a plan!

 

[NoSkillzAndy]

Hmm so you will be out a lot of money, and most of the "regular" team will be watching on the sidelines as your ringers play. But you can wear your National T-shirts with pride. 8)Sounds like a plan!

Or, when you calculate the league fees for each player, you factor in that the sadderbagger(s) won't be paying. The sandbagger(s)'s loyalty will be bought and and the rest of the team pays a few extra bucks to have a shot at being one of the top teams.

 

[Grover Sparkman]

Wow. No way I would front $1600 for my team. No way. $100 or so, maybe. But over $1500, no way in the world.

Anyway, our league doesn't require us to put that money up front. We all have to pay $12/person/match, but not up front.

 

[beststringer]

Our adult season has ended, and the captains of my various teams are trying to close the books on the season. Meaning they are trying to collect court fees.

In our league, it costs $17/match for singles, $34/match for doubles. The captain pays all of the season's fees up front and then has to collect from the players. This past season, I had to put $1632 on my credit card in March. I billed each player for six matches ($102), and I told them we would settle up at the end of the season for those who played more or fewer than six matches. The season was halfway over before I received the last check, which came after I sent four e-mail reminders and one awkward phone call.

I am in the process of dealing with the refunds and collections now. My players are generally pretty good about paying, but other captains are not so lucky. One captain told me she got stiffed for about $200 last year.

To avoid these financial risks, some captains declare that players can't be in the line-up until they have paid their fees. This doesn't work well because the players can just call the bluff -- is the captain really willing to default courts by not putting Deadbeat Players into the line-up, and if so, who is going to pay for those unused courts?

In an effort to relieve the financial burden on captains, the league is considering requiring players to pay for 3 matches as part of their Tennislink registration fees. Sounds like a good idea to me.

The current system is viewed as an improvement over the prior system. Back in the day, the players brought the money with them to the match and the captain paid the facility directly. It was a nightmare; someone always "forgot their wallet." Again, captains got stiffed.

I'm not sure how other leagues handle the money. Is there a better way?

1600!!!! wow, i thought 120 for 16 players was bad

 

[Tarboro]

Our captain has fronted the rest of the team in the past. In return, we pay him a bit more than the pro rata cost of the league fee and court fees. We generally have 14 paying players on the roster, and league and court fees come to $700. We pay the captain $55 for the season, leaving a surplus of $70, which could serve three purposes:

1. Covers his costs for the inevitable time that he fronts the rest of the team.
2. Is enough to cover a paying member in the event of a real hardship.
3. Gives us a head start on the end of season party fund.

Generally it serves 1 & 3, but we have in the past waived fees for an otherwise-paying member who was going through a tough divorce.

Substitutes and part-time players pay nothing but are guaranteed no playing time.

Some captains in our league use the winnings to cover what they are short (our league pays small prizes to the winners of the regular season and playoffs). The rest goes to fund a party or to reduce next year's fees.

 

[Angle Queen]

:shock:

Wow. I'm can't imagine trying to play/captain where such money is involved. We are so fortunate that (a) we don't pay court fees of any kind...our membership fees include all that and (b) all league fees -- national, state and local -- are collected via tennislink. Only thing we have to remember to do is bring a fresh can of balls if we're the "home" team.

Gosh...what a nightmare.

 

[sureshs]

This past season, I had to put $1632 on my credit card in March.

Wow that sucks