What level am I?????

0range

0range

Hall of Fame
I want to eventually compete in 'real' tournaments but I'm having a hard time rating myself.

I'm sort of an lower-intermediate player (used to rate myself 2.5)... but a lower-intermediate player is inconsistent, and the level will fluctuates a lot. I could be 2.0 one day and 4.0 the other day... if I'm very consistent I wouldn't be a lower-intermediate....

anwyways here's the link to the Canadian rating system: http://www.tenniscanada.ca/tennis_c...6m7dC8JPZznFbc5re2OTgk7xL6HwqXFVCWmVEAy4xwg==

My groundstrokes: 2.0~3.0.
Return of serve: 3.0~4.0
Volleys: 2.5~3.0
Serve: hard to say; I use full service motion on both 1st and 2nd serve, I can hit flat, slice, or kick. Some day my serve is good (lots of pace, with high percentage), some day my serve is bad (tons of double faults).

Needless to say on bad days everything turns to cr@p.

I talked ot my coach, he says I should just try to compete in lower level first, get good results, and then slowly move up. Then I should slowly figure out where I am. I'm thinking of starting with 2.5 or 2.0 if there's any.

What do you guys think? I know my level is low, but I'd just like to get some real match experience as soon as possible.

[EDIT: I'm Canadian, I'm thinking of competing in tournaments in Canada. Things probably work a little differently here than in US, but we do have tournaments from 2.0 (2.5 is more common) on to 5.0/open.]
 
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Btw I play a lot of practice matches. 4 times a week. That's kinda a lot for a recreational player.
 
One more thing; I know a guy who's actually really good, but at tournaments he always play like cr@p and get early round exists (losing to opponents who doesn't seem to be all that impressive...). So I think instead of 5.0 he plays in 4.5 or 4.0 now :(
 
My suggestion is to play some players that are already rated and see how you stack up. The guy who is most even to your level of play is probably on or around your level. Or you can have a pro take a look at your game and give you an estimate of your rating.

Otherwise, you can take a good guess at your rating, maybe 2.5 and play a few 2.5 tourneys. If 2.5 is too easy, you can always play up (3.0, 3.5) if you want. Your results will give you a better guide and your rating will eventually move to meet your results at the end of the year.

As for your buddy who doesn't play up to level in tournaments, dealing with the presure of a tournament is a learned skill for most players. Additonal pressure can really have an effect on your game. Learning how to play to your fullest when you can be elimated can take time. That's why you see some people who crush the ball in practice (no presure) and then crumble in the middle of a game.
 
There are so many talks about "sandbagging" in this forum... I am also worried, that what if I'm just "on fire" that week and played really well in a tournament, will I get in trouble for "sandbagging"??

When my serve is on, I can beat some boys or girls in a teen's advanced class; but of course adults tournaments is probably a lot more different (and a lot more difficult), that's why I wanna join a tournament and find out.

I'm worried that if I played in the "wrong" level I'll get in trouble...

How well do women serve in a 2.5 tournaments?
 
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0range said:
There are so many talks about "sandbagging" in this forum... I am also worried, that what if I'm just "on fire" that week and played really well in a tournament, will I get in trouble for "sandbagging"??

When my serve is on, I can beat some of the teenagers (boys or girls) in the advanced class; but of course adults tournaments is probably a lot more different, that's why I wanna join a tournament and find out.

I'm worried that if I played in the "wrong" level I'll get in trouble...

How well do women serves in 2.5 tournaments?
Click to expand...

Don't worry about sandbagging.

If you are honest in self rating according to the guidelines, you will probably be pretty close to your level of play. I don't think there will be any penalty if you self-rate and do very well. But they might bump you up if your results are too good.

I don't know about womens serves on the 2.5 level, but I doubt most can hit kick, slice, and flat serves.

If you are really worried about it, call your tennis association and ask them about how to get rated or get a pro to do it.
 
U can't be just 2.5 if you play 4 times a week... it's unreal.
how long have you been playing ? give us some video.
 
I might be able to help you but I'll need you to explain a few things first. When you miss shots do they tend to go long or short? Do you play with a semi-western grip when returning ground-strokes? Do you use a continental grip when serving or volleying?
 
I wouldn't worry too much about sandbagging. The 'dirty' sandbagging is very evident in the 3.5-4.0's. If you're looking to improve quickly play up. I'd start at 3.0 and work your way up as 2.0-2.5 level is like 8yr old patty cake tennis.

-Jon
 
First of all, thanks for everyone's replies.

Satch:

I'd like to video tape myself too but I just never got a chance to do it. I'm not very athletically gifted and I've never played any sports growing up, that's why I'm progressing very slowly. I started learning tennis for the first time last summer; I had weekly lessons until this summer, which I had just started to play matches multiple times a week.

Josh:

My groundstrokes are very inconsistent. When hitting with a ball machine I can often hit (forehand) with pace, spin, and depth, and most of the time on target, when rallying (casually, not during game paly) against another player, extremely inconsistent (usually my rallies don't last more than 3 or 4 balls!!) shots that I missed are long, short, AND wide. If I must say there are slightly more balls netted.

I have western forehand, somewhere between eastern and extream eastern for backhand, and the same continental grip for everything else.

Baek:

Even though practice match play makes me more comfortable in game situations, I unfortunately don't get a lot of practice with my groundstrokes. Maybe 2.0~3.5? I'm just guessing..
 
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MomentumGT said:
I wouldn't worry too much about sandbagging. The 'dirty' sandbagging is very evident in the 3.5-4.0's. If you're looking to improve quickly play up. I'd start at 3.0 and work your way up as 2.0-2.5 level is like 8yr old patty cake tennis.

-Jon
Click to expand...

How do they serve though? the 2.0~2.5 levels? Do they hit with a lot of pace? Do they serve a lot of double faults? How do they return? I think these are the keys in lower level tournaments...

I should probably go and watch some of those 2.5 tournaments but I think most are finished; I'm thinking of competing in the ones next summer.
 
Ok, here's my advice. First of all I'm a 4.0-4.5 level player. I have aspects of both levels in my game so my opinion of a 2.0-2.5 level player's shot making ability naturally isn't very high. I have played against a few 2.0-2.5 level players (when I was about 3.0-3.5) and found them to be awful. They have terrible serves and tend to double fault 2 out of 4 or 3 out of 4 times. It's not uncommon for them to hand you their service games. If they do hit a serve in it will most likely bounce high and has virtually no pace on it. Most don't volley well and can only maintain a slow pace from the baseline. It depends on their athletic ability, some are better than others.

I would not recommend playing against a player rated this low in your case. Take a few private lessons if you can and work on your ground strokes. Also, if you miss a lot of your shots in the net try to hit with more topspin by brushing up more when you are hitting the ball.

Hope this helps.
 
0range said:
How do they serve though? the 2.0~2.5 levels? Do they hit with a lot of pace? Do they serve a lot of double faults? How do they return? I think these are the keys in lower level tournaments...

I should probably go and watch some of those 2.5 tournaments but I think most are finished; I'm thinking of competing in the ones next summer.
Click to expand...

Very few players can serve CONSISTENTLY with pace below the 4.0 level. At 3.5 you may have a few tall players with heavy serves or a guy who hits a smoking ace once every 20 serves.

At 2.0 or 2.5, you will have either a lot of double faults or consitent servers who get it in with no depth or pace. At 2.5, return of serve will be inconsistent.

IMHO - stop worrying and get a pro to rate you or play some players that have a 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 rating and pick the one that is closest to your level of play.
 
0range said:
How do they serve though? the 2.0~2.5 levels? Do they hit with a lot of pace? Do they serve a lot of double faults? How do they return? I think these are the keys in lower level tournaments...

I should probably go and watch some of those 2.5 tournaments but I think most are finished; I'm thinking of competing in the ones next summer.
Click to expand...

2.5 serves are like, some spinny... high net clearance.. with a little pace and don't double fault much. Returns are usually really high net clearance with relatively no spin ( I guess they are afraid to net it and are developing some top to keep it in ). It's very similar to 3.0 in terms of stroke mechanics, just they play smarter.
But then again, many players tend to avoid 2.5 because of these high net clearace with light paced balls. At least this is very true in the men's league.

PS. dont worry too much about the stroke mechanic rating... as you may have 6.0 forehand and 3.0 backhand lol... and yet lose to someone whos a 3.5 pusher. Nothing can replace match results... so definately ( as someone said ), play with people who are 3.0, 2.5, 2.0 and see how you hang with them.
 
Am I correct to assume that a self-rated 2.5 recreational player and players who competes in 2.5 tournaments are very different? As their stroke mechanic may be at a similar level but a 2.5 player who playa tournaments have smarter game plan (court position, movement, anticipation..etc) thus more difficult to beat?
 
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0range said:
Am I correct to assume that a self-rated 2.5 recreational player and players who competes in 2.5 tournaments are very different? As their stroke mechanic may be at a similar level but a 2.5 player who playa tournaments have smarter game plan (court position, movement, anticipation..etc) thus more difficult to beat?
Click to expand...

Assuming you are both 2.5 a more experinced player MAY have a slight edge since they have played a tournament before and MAY have slightly more experince. The people who play alot are generally the better player, but there are exceptions.

It's just depends. I self rated and played my first tournament and beat the first guy I played. I ran into a better player in the second round and lost in a close match.

This year, I lost most of my USTA league matches, but I won the only tournament I entered this year and beat my friend who plays alot of tournaments.

I wouldn't worry about it. Just go out and play and enjoy. You'll learn something and hopefully have fun.
 
0range said:
Baek:

Even though practice match play makes me more comfortable in game situations, I unfortunately don't get a lot of practice with my groundstrokes. Maybe 2.0~3.5? I'm just guessing..
Click to expand...

half a rating is more accurate. more like 2.5~3.0
 
If you self-rate as a 2.5 around here, you'll be playing by yourself. There's pretty much no such thing as a male 2.5. The bottom is 3.0.

If I were you and couldn't find some computer rated players to play against, I'd just go with 3.5 and see what happens. If you should be 3.0 instead, you'll know soon enough.
 
JRstriker12 said:
Very few players can serve CONSISTENTLY with pace below the 4.0 level. At 3.5 you may have a few tall players with heavy serves or a guy who hits a smoking ace once every 20 serves.

At 2.0 or 2.5, you will have either a lot of double faults or consitent servers who get it in with no depth or pace. At 2.5, return of serve will be inconsistent.

IMHO - stop worrying and get a pro to rate you or play some players that have a 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 rating and pick the one that is closest to your level of play.
Click to expand...

Understand your point, but believe your levels are slightly exagerated. In Atlanta, whether you play ALTA, T2, Kswiss, or Peach, it is not uncommon to play 3.5 players with solid consistent serves with pace, depth and placement.

To the original poster, you should not worry about sandbagging until you progress, at the lower levels, there is a great diversity of skill.
 
Wilson6-1 said:
Understand your point, but believe your levels are slightly exagerated. In Atlanta, whether you play ALTA, T2, Kswiss, or Peach, it is not uncommon to play 3.5 players with solid consistent serves with pace, depth and placement.

To the original poster, you should not worry about sandbagging until you progress, at the lower levels, there is a great diversity of skill.
Click to expand...

I'm not exaggerating.

Check the USTA definitions......
http://www.usta.com/?sc_itemid={A9EAE203-D273-4CB1-9038-5A293C5ED642}


3.5
You have achieved improved stroke dependability with directional control on moderate shots, but need to develop depth and variety. You exhibit more aggressive net play, have improved court coverage and are developing teamwork in doubles.

4.0
You have dependable strokes, including directional control and depth on both forehand and backhand sides on moderate-paced shots. You can use lobs, overheads, approach shots and volleys with some success and occasionally force errors when serving. Rallies may be lost due to impatience. Teamwork in doubles is evident.

4.5
You have developed your use of power and spin and can handle pace. You have sound footwork, can control depth of shots, and attempt to vary game plan according to your opponents. You can hit first serves with power and accuracy and place the second serve. You tend to overhit on difficult shots. Aggressive net play is common in doubles.

Most 3.5s can place their serve and hit with decent spin, but most 3.5 can't hit with CONSISTENTLY with pace. In played 3.5 league this year, I only ran into three guys who consistently hit aces and service winners and two were 6'2"+ and the other has an incredibly strong throwing arm. We clocked one of his serves that landed in at 120.

In comparison to the guys I play with that play open tournaments or are ranked at 4.0 or higher - on average, the 3.5 guys don't serve with pace consistently (greater than 50% of the time).
 
You're totally overthinking this. Enter a tourney in the lowest category possible and work your way up. Even if you end up in too low of a category, winning will give you confidence for the next tourney. Also, even if you think you're 3.0 based on ability, your level of play will likely drop in a tournament due to nerves, inexperience etc.
 
JRstriker12 said:
I'm not exaggerating.

Check the USTA definitions......
http://www.usta.com/?sc_itemid={A9EAE203-D273-4CB1-9038-5A293C5ED642}


3.5
You have achieved improved stroke dependability with directional control on moderate shots, but need to develop depth and variety. You exhibit more aggressive net play, have improved court coverage and are developing teamwork in doubles.

4.0
You have dependable strokes, including directional control and depth on both forehand and backhand sides on moderate-paced shots. You can use lobs, overheads, approach shots and volleys with some success and occasionally force errors when serving. Rallies may be lost due to impatience. Teamwork in doubles is evident.

4.5
You have developed your use of power and spin and can handle pace. You have sound footwork, can control depth of shots, and attempt to vary game plan according to your opponents. You can hit first serves with power and accuracy and place the second serve. You tend to overhit on difficult shots. Aggressive net play is common in doubles.

Most 3.5s can place their serve and hit with decent spin, but most 3.5 can't hit with CONSISTENTLY with pace. In played 3.5 league this year, I only ran into three guys who consistently hit aces and service winners and two were 6'2"+ and the other has an incredibly strong throwing arm. We clocked one of his serves that landed in at 120.

In comparison to the guys I play with that play open tournaments or are ranked at 4.0 or higher - on average, the 3.5 guys don't serve with pace consistently (greater than 50% of the time).
Click to expand...


The definitions are general guidelines, not definitive levels. By definition, and based on my serve, I would be a 5.0 or higher, which is not accurate.

Also, if you faced 3 guys in one season, that is more than occasional, IMO.

This is really off subject and don't want to takeover this thread.
 
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