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1.
The Maryland District will enforce all National and
Sectional USTA League rules/regulations. The principal
responsibility for enforcement of the rules lies with local league
coordinators.
2.
Any rules proposed by local leagues (whether to reinforce
an existing rule, or establish a new one) must be in written form
and submitted annually for approval to the Maryland District Leagues
Administrator (DLA).
The deadline for filing such rules is
three
weeks before local league play begins.
3.
Local League Coordinators must transmit to the District Leagues
Administrator local league’s written rules
or written certification that no separate local league rules will be
issued and a USTA League Tennis Registration form at least three
weeks prior to the commencement of local league play.
Local League Coordinators must coordinate with the DLA the
commencement date of local league play. Without this information
Team Codes and Match Numbers cannot be assigned. One
cannot begin player registration via TennisLink without this
information.
4.
The Mixed Doubles Districts will be June 22, 23 & 24, Adult Districts July 13, 14 & 15, Senior Districts August 24, 25 & 26 and Combo
Districts October 13 & 14. Where the DLA has determined that
a full draw is appropriate but not available, a WILD CARD ENTRY may
be extended to a Local League with 10 or more teams or in the order
of descending size counting the number of teams at the affected
level of play until the draw is filled. No local league may receive
the benefit of more than one ‘wildcard entry’ per level. To be
eligible to advance to Sectional championship competition, a team
must have registered the minimum number of players required by Rule
3.01B and played the minimum number of matches required by Rule
3.01H(1) by June 10 for
Mixed Doubles League championship competition, July
8 for Adult League championship competition and August
19 or Senior League
championship competition as governed by Mid-Atlantic Rule 13. The
end date for league play is May 1st
for Mixed Doubles, July 9
for Adult League championship competition and August 20 for Senior League championship competition. The DLA will
distribute the full draw for the Mixed Doubles Districts no later
than May 15, Adult
Districts no later than June
15, August 1 for the Senior Districts and September
30 for the Combo Districts.
5.
Players without a computer rating are required to declare
a self-rating when first entering the Leagues program. In
making their self-rating decision, players should consider the NTRP
Guidelines posted on the TennisLink
website; their on-court performance against established league
players; relevant tennis history including frequency of play and
instruction; and general fitness. Penalties may be imposed for incorrect or incomplete
information, or failure to complete the form. Once made, the
self-rating declared by the player shall apply to all Divisions
until superceded by a computer-generated rating established
according to USTA-approved computer methodology. Players who have a computer rating from 2003
or before must self-rate. A computer rating is valid
for
three (3) years for those individuals 59 and under and two (2) years
for those individuals 60 years and over or until
another rating is generated.
6.
Team captains and coordinators are required
to review player rosters, league
standings, and other TennisLink administrative reports on a
regular basis. Coordinators are required to secure and retain Player
Deletion forms sufficient to demonstrate compliance with the
Maryland District's Rule, which limits roster size to no more than 20
players for Adult, Senior, Combo, Mixed League teams (12 - player
maximum on any 5.0 and 2.5 level team).
7.
A person is allowed to captain and/or co-captain only One
team in the same division, in the same level and in the same local
league.
8.
League players may be added to a TennisLink Team Roster at any time
throughout the local league season subject to a Local League rule
otherwise limiting roster additions. But remember, no player is
eligible to progress to Championship level competition unless he/she
has played on that same team in at
least two matches during its local league season
with no more
than ONE default.
A defaulted match shall
count as a match played for the player(s) receiving the default, but
not for the player(s) who defaulted. A retired match shall count for
all player (s) involved
Defaults cannot count towards the 3-match minimum needed to
establish eligibility to participate at National Championships.
9.
Match results must
be reported on TennisLink within 72 hours of the
completion of the team match. This
may be done by either the winning or losing team captain or their
designee.
Failure to do so shall cause
the local league coordinator to instruct that the match be scored as
a Double Default. The
non reporting captain or designee must log in to TennisLink and
confirm or dispute the reported scores within 48 hours after they
have been reported. After
that time, TennisLink automatically blocks any attempt to edit or
otherwise contest reported results, which are deemed final and
complete with no further right of challenge.
10.
As governed by Mid-Atlantic Rule #7, a
team match should not remain uncompleted for more than seven days
after its scheduled date or the deadline for completing local league
match play, whichever occurs first.
(This does not preclude a local coordinator from formally
rescheduling a match date/time where local circumstances require, so
long as established dates for completing local play are not violated.)
11.
Local league winners shall advance to a Maryland District
League Championship Tournament, the winners of which earn the right
to compete at the corresponding Mid-Atlantic Section League
Championship Tournament. Winners competing at the
corresponding Mid-Atlantic Section League Championship Tournament
must complete an INTENT TO PARTICIPATE form.
Teams entering the Maryland District Championship Tournament are
expected to compete through the entire tournament. No team may
withdraw from tournament play without the approval of tournament
officials. Such approval will not be given except for extraordinary
circumstances. Penalties will
be severe, up to and including suspension or other sanctions for the
following year.
12.
Each local league shall appoint a Local League Grievance
Committee consisting of no less than three persons, including a
chairman, responsible for adjudication of all grievances, the
members of the Committee to be first approved by the Mid-Atlantic
Section League Coordinator. Local League Grievance and Grievance Appeal
Committee members must be listed in the local league rules.
Per USTA League Tennis Regulations,
all complaints alleging a violation during
local league competition shall be filed in writing with the chairman
of the Local League Grievance Committee prior to the commencement of
the next team match in that flight involving such player or team, or
within twenty-four hours after the end of local league play
whichever occurs first. At the time a complaint is filed, a copy of
such complaint shall be sent to the party (ies) against whom the
complaint has been made. A copy of its decision shall be
promptly sent to the District Leagues Administrator.
13.
Each local league shall appoint a Local League Grievance
Appeal Committee consisting of no less than 3 persons, including a
chairman, to consider appeals from the Local Grievance Committee,
the members of which must first be approved by the Mid-Atlantic
Section League Coordinator. No member of a Grievance Appeal
Committee may be a member of a Grievance Committee. The Grievance
Appeal Committee shall have the power to affirm, modify or reject
the decision of the Grievance Committee. Per
USTA League Tennis Regulations,
the Grievance Appeal Committee's decisions are final and binding on
all parties. A copy of its decision shall be promptly sent to all
interested parties and to the District Leagues Administrator.
14.
If a grievance is filed against the administration of a local league,
that grievance is to be heard by the Grievance Committee at the
District level.
15.
Complaints alleging NTRP violations must be filed with
the Mid-Atlantic Section League Coordinator. Original complaints are
limited to a request for "Player Review" to confirm
whether a player has met the requirements for disqualification under
the Dynamic NTRP methodology. Appeals of any player
disqualifications are governed by USTA league Tennis Regulations Rule
3.04.
Grievance
Committee
Jill Taylor,
Chair
Liz Baker
Carol Cohen
John Wehner
Grievance
Appeal Committee
Peggy Sange
, Chair
Jim Lawson
Lynne Hauff
Bill Stevenson
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