Ford Tennis Club Rules and Regulations

1. Membership in the club shall be open to all Ford employees, their spouses and non-Ford referrals. You must be at least eighteen years or older to join. A non-refundable fee (determined by the board) will be charged annually and must be submitted with the application form when applying for membership.
2. Matches may be played on any night on any public court.
3. The method of play for all players shall be on a vertical ladder whereby a player may challenge any player up or down to twelve (12) positions from his/her current position as shown on the current standings. Both players will receive points according to the 20-Point Ranking System See at the end of Club Rules and Regulations). The ladder will be updated as matches are recorded and available for view on our website.
4. A match will consist of either a ten game pro set or the best two of three sets. No breaks will be allowed during a match except minor physical adjustments. In a ten game pro set, the first player to reach ten by at least a two game margin wins. Should a match reach a 9-9 tie, the pro tennis method of tie breaking will be employed. Players will play a tie breaker to the best of 12 points (the first player to reach 7 points with a margin of 2 points wins the tie breaker). The player receiving serve during the last game of 9-9 play will serve first during the tie-breaker. If sets are played, the same tie breaker rules apply when a set reaches a 6-6 tie. If both players agree, a 10-point tiebreak can be used in place of a third set. In that case, the third set results need to be recorded as 6-0.
5. Players will be listed in the ladder in the same order they finished in the previous year. A new member may challenge into any position above him/her. Results of that match will be recorded according to the 20-point ranking system. A forfeit is not acceptable for the initial match play. After that initial match, the 12 position rule applies.
6. Players unable to play for 3 or more weeks (injury, vacation, work, etc) must go into 'inactive status' to allow maximum play for all members. It is the player's responsibility to notify the club ladder director as soon as possible regarding pending 'inactive status'. The inactive player will maintain his/her points on the ladder and will have a designation of "Inactive".
7. Rule 7a:All challenges are to be single challenges (i.e. each challenge is to be sent to one player).

Rule 7b: Rules 7c and 7f shall not apply to any player that is challenged as part of a distribution list (i.e., they are listed as one of two or more persons on a challenge request).

Rule 7c: If any player doesn't reply by email or phone (either accept or reject) to each single challenge they receive within 2 weeks from the date of a challenge or if they reject 3 successive challenges within a 4 week time frame from the same player, Resolution #1 may be exercised by the challenger:

Rule 7d: If a challenge is received by a player that the challenged player has defeated, Rule 7c timing shall not begin until 4 weeks after the day the challenger was last defeated; also, Rule 7c shall be suspended during this 4 week period.

Rule 7e: Matches shall be scheduled at a public court in the city of Dearborn, Monday thru Friday at 5 P.M. unless mutually agreed upon by both players to play elsewhere, on a different day or at a different time.

Rule 7f: If a challenged player cannot accommodate at least one date within a 4-week timeframe with respect to Rule 7e starting from the time a challenge request is replied to, then the challenger may exercise Resolution #1.

Rule 7g: If a player shows up 20 minutes or later for a scheduled match or doesn't show up at all, the player that was there on time may exercise Resolution #1.

Resolution #1:

If a challenger notifies the ladder secretary with proof of either a Rule 7c, 7f or 7g violation, then the person being challenged will be notified by the ladder secretary that they will be moved below the challenging player in the ladder. Any problems a player may have with respect to being bumped can be taken to the Board and resolved fairly. The intent of this resolution is to encourage players to take their challenges seriously, make every effort to respond to all challenges (either accept or reject) and to accept as many challenges as possible.

8. A player will be given a forfeit if his or her opponent fails to appear for the match within 20 minutes of the agreed upon time.
9. Each player must supply one new can of 3 tennis balls for each match played. The winner then takes the unused can at the completion of the match. However, other arrangements can be made if agreed upon by both players.
10. It is the winner's duty to record the score of the match. Scores must be recorded using the online ladder system.
11. All club members are eligible to participate in the summer tournament.
12. The rules committee, which is comprised of the elected and appointed officers of the club, will make all club decisions.

For more information, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Ford Tennis Club 20-Point Ranking System

How it works:

� If the winner of a match is higher ranked he/she receives 20 points.

� If the winner is lower ranked his/her previous point value is replaced by the value of his/her opponent's points - plus 20 points.

� The loser receives 1 point for each game he/she wins.

When you win a match, your points would move you into a position above your opponent. The loser receives a point reward that is proportional to the match results. Conceivably, the loser may earn 19 points by losing a three set match in tiebreakers (7-6, 6-7, 7-6).

This scoring system is based on a best-of-three set match and is most accurate when that type of match is played to its completion.

A strong player can move to the top in one match but will be slowly passed by others if he/she does not keep active. This prevents stagnation in the ladder.

A losing effort gets some reward but not enough to allow a player to get to the high ranks only by playing a lot of losing matches. One gets to the high ranks only be beating the high ranked players. Winning is rewarded much more than losing.

For more information on 20-Point Ranking System, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Doubles League Rules

Rainout policy: Rainouts really can be a scheduling problem and to keep the league moving at a consistent pace, each Wednesday a decision will be made at 4:30pm if official league matches will take place. If the matches are cancelled, it will be played the following week. 

GENERAL RULES
1. The Doubles League is open to all Ford Tennis Club Members at no additional cost and will consist of 9 weeks of play. 
2. Court location may be wherever is agreed upon by the players scheduled for each match. Last year we had great luck playing at Edsel Ford High School courts. You can also find additional courts on the Ford Tennis Club link for an up-to-date list of available courts in Dearborn and adjacent communities. 
3. Suggested start time is 5:00PM unless agreed otherwise by participants but must be played Wednesday nights. 
4. It will be up to the scheduled participants to communicate with one another to agree on court location and start time if other than 5PM. Please be sure to keep a copy of contact information for all participants with you so you may inform your partners, on a timely basis, if you will be late, unable to play, or need to secure a sub at the “last minute”. It will be your responsibility to schedule a sub. 
5. Make sure to coordinate between the 4 players who will bring a can of balls. If you can't decide, flip a coin! 

SCORING RULES: 
1) Players will accumulate points on an individual basis. Each game won is 1 point. 
2) Play will consist of 3 sets. Each set is to be played with a different partner from the assigned foursome. 
3) Sets are played up to 6 games. Rather than playing to 7-5 or a tie break at 6-6, tie-breaks will be played at 5-5. This will be a best-of-12 tie break (the first team to reach 7 points with a margin of 2 points wins the tie breaker). 
4) A winning percentage calculation is created based on number of games played vs. number of games won. Here is an example: 
Week 1, Player Tom Otto. 
Tom played 3 sets, total of 28 games played. 
Tom's score for each set 6-2, 3-6, 5-6. 
Total games won: 14. 
Winning percentage: 50% 
5) Court assignments each week will be based on winning percentage, the top 4 winning percentage leaders will be paired together, next top 4 together, and so on. 
6) Score results from each set are to be reported via e-mail to Rob Bromley by the next day, usually by the winner. (Any player may send the results.) Please .cc the other 3 players. 
7) If a player cannot make the match, he must find a sub and notify the other players in his foursome. If the player does not show up or does not attempt to find a sub, he will be penalized with a 0% winning percentage for the week.

All club members are encouraged to run for office. Contact any of our officers for more information.