Team & Player Registration Opens:              January 1, 2019
Last Day to Register a Team:                        February 5, 2019
Season Begins:                                             March 1, 2019
Some age groups/divisions will start later depending on number of teams.

2019 Adult Spring Tentative Schedules for League Play

Piedmont NC USTA Local League Regulations 2018  – 2019 Regulations Pending

2019 USTA Adult League State Championships

18 & Over        June 20-23, 2019                Lake Norman
40 & Over        June 27-30, 2019                Durham
55 & Over        May 31 – June 2, 2019        Asheville
65 & Over        May 17-19, 2019                Greenville

Guidelines
• NTRP based – Valid computer or self-rating required.
• Must have a current USTA membership throughout the league season.
• Register and report results through TennisLink

Team Requirements:
Teams must have the minimum # of players registered on the last day designated to add a team.

Team Formats for 4.5, 5.0, 5.5 Players
18 & Over:
5.0+ 18 & Over teams may have two 5.5 players on their roster. The 5.5 players have to play at #1 Singles or #1 Doubles. Only one 5.5 player may play in a match. There is not a 5.0 division in 40 & Over.

40 & Over:
4.5+ 40 & Over teams may have three 5.0 players on their roster. Only one 5.0 player may play in a match.
*This does not apply to 18 & Over 4.5 teams, only 40 & over.

55 & Over and 65 & Over:
There is no 4.5 level; it has been replaced by the 9.0 division, in which a roster may consist of 4.0’s, 4.5’s and 5.0’s. Just as in 9.0 Mixed, a 5.0 may pair with a 4.0, or two 4.5’s may play together. No pairs may be more than 1 pt apart in ratings, and their combined ratings may not exceed 9.0 on any court. The 5.0’s may play on any of the three courts. FYI – the other divisions in 55 & Over and 65 & Over remain as before and not combined ratings: ie 3.0, 3.5, 4.0.

FAQs…

Can players play in more than one age division?
Yes! For example a 3.5 male player age 55 may play in 3.5 Men 18 & Over, 3.5 Men 40 & Over and 3.5 Men 55 & Over divisions. If his teams all advanced to State Championships he would be able to play with all of these teams at States.

A player age 65 would be able to play in these divisions plus 65 & Over. The older the player the more playing options. See, there is an advantage of getting older!

Will there still be playoffs at the local level (Piedmont)?
Yes, in levels that are divided into flights. The top finishing team in each flight will advance to a local playoff at the end of the local season to determine the local league champion that will advance to State Championships.

Why just the top finishing team? Why not the top two teams from each flight?
Local playoffs have grown to the point of taking too many weeks, thus shortening the regular season. With continued league growth plus the addition of 40 & Over age divisions it has become necessary. This is also part of the effort to reduce extra weekend matches for teams.

How many matches will my team have?
USTA National rules require teams play full round robins (play every other team in their flight) so it depends on how many teams register in your division. Teams will have no less than 8 and no more than 10 matches (local playoff matches may be additional to this number). Levels may be divided into flights to ensure that teams have at least 8 matches and no more than 10.

Why is 10 the maximum number of regular season matches?
In order to reduce (and if possible eliminate) the need for extra weekend matches, which too often result in defaults and thus skewing of standings. For example in past years if a flight had 7 teams, that required a double round robin of 12 matches; with byes their schedule required 14 weeks to complete, requiring teams to play as many as 4 additional matches on weekends in addition to their regular day/nights of play. Add to this any rain makeups plus players already playing on multiple teams, and many captains will tell you this is quite challenging.

Is there a limit to how many 5.0 players a 9.0 team may have on their roster?
There is no limit, however teams must be able to field three courts with no partners’ combined ratings exceeding 9.0

Need more information or assistance:

Contact Susan Brodeur, Piedmont Local League Coordinator at susan@gretanc.com