Waiver of Claims
Players participating in the CITA League Tennis Program acknowledge the risks associated with playing competitive tennis, accept those risks voluntarily, and in consideration of their acceptance in the League assume all risks for bodily injury, waive all claims for injury and property damage and release and hold harmless the CITA and the host facility, their officials, employees and agents with respect to any injury or loss caused by negligence or otherwise to the fullest extent permitted by law.
I. LEAGUE DIVISIONS
A. CITA Traveling Leagues consists of two Divisions: The North Central Division and the Northwest Division. Within each division there are several leagues which are played on various days of the week and contain several levels from a novice “3.0” level on up to advanced “Open” levels. When applicable flights (red and green) may be used to distinguish league levels.
B. The North Central (NC) Division and the Northwest Division (NW) are separate Divisions, regardless of the day of the week. A player may play for one club in the NC Division and a different club in the NW Division provided the player is a member of both clubs.
A Wed. NC 4.0 player can play on the Fri. NC 4.5 team but if she plays above court 3 on the Fri. 4.5 team (6 ct. league), she is no longer eligible for the Wed. NC 4.0 team. This also applies to NW division. See Player eligibility, Section III, pg. 3.
B.1. The NC Division Adult Doubles leagues:
|
Wednesday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 3.5 & under |
6 |
|
|
Women’s 4.0 & under |
6 |
|
Thursday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 3.0 & under |
4 |
|
|
||
|
Friday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 4.0 & under |
6 |
|
|
Women’s 4.5 & under |
6 |
|
|
Women’s Open |
6 |
|
Saturday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Men’s 3.5 & under |
4 |
|
|
Men’s 4.0 & under |
6 |
|
|
Men’s 4.5 & under |
4 |
|
|
Men’s Open |
4 |
B.2. The NC Division Adult Singles leagues are as follows:
|
Thursday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 3.0-3.5+ |
4 |
|
|
Women’s 4.0-4.5+ |
4 |
|
|
Women’s 4.5-Open |
N/A 2023-2024 |
|
|
||
|
Sunday League |
Level |
Flight |
|
|
Men’s 4.0 |
4 |
|
|
Men’s 4.5 |
4 |
B.3. The NW Adult Doubles leagues are as follows:
|
Wednesday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 3.5 & under |
4 |
|
|
Women’s 4.0 & under |
4 |
|
Friday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s 4.5 & under |
4 |
|
|
Women’s Open |
4 |
|
Saturday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Women’s Multi-level (3.5 – Open) |
N/A 2023-2024 |
B.4. Juniors – The NC Division Junior Doubles leagues are as follows:
|
Saturday League |
Level |
# of courts |
|
|
Boys High School |
4 |
|
|
Girls High School |
4 |
II. MEMBERSHIP AND SCHEDULES
A. All league fees, and membership dues must be sent to Michelle Granger at the address provided to guarantee the clubs’ participation in the traveling leagues.
Any payments received after December 1st of current season need to be addressed with Michelle Granger. Access to CITA administration site will be turned off until resolved.
B. A schedule of participating clubs includes the starting times for matches as well as where teams are scheduled to play. Please make sure to send the teams to the correct club. The club that sends the incorrect team positions will forfeit the total team points and may be subject to no show fees. The club winning by forfeit may fill out a “no show” report.
If there is a default by the club that had the correct team positions, those 3 points would be awarded to the club that had the incorrect team positions.
C. All matches must be played on the scheduled date and time.
Matches are not to be postponed or canceled unless there is inclement weather,
tragic situations or by mutual consent of the clubs involved. Player issues
(e.g., not available, cannot play at that time) should not be the basis for
rescheduling a match.
Note: if a
match is rescheduled the lineup begins anew. Any previously defaulted courts must
be played as it is a “new” match day and time.
D. A copy of the schedule can be accessed by going to www.citatennis.net and clicking on the league and next click on schedules. Score sheets, directions, help manual, and the Rules can also be accessed at this web site as well as UTR link and CITA link.
E. CITA Schedule Generator does not cross read schedules for the NC and NW Divisions therefore you may play the same team back to back. Players in two different leagues on different days may also play the same Club back to back.
III. PLAYER ELIGIBILITY
A. All players must be current members of the club for which they are playing.
A.1. Players will be allowed to play for another club if their original team drops out of the division. Membership is still required. See D. One Match Exception below.
B. All players in the adult traveling leagues must be at least 19 years old.
Exception: NCM Open and Men’s 4.5 will allow (2) High School Junior or Senior players to play in the Men’s Open and 4.5 leagues. The Junior and Senior players may not play together on a court. All other high school players may play in the High School leagues.
B.1. A player can only play one position per match.
Top/Higher courts are defined as courts 1 and 2 in six (6) court leagues and court 1 in four (4) court leagues.
Bottom/Lower courts are defined as courts 3,4,5 and 6 in six (6) court leagues and courts 2,3,4 in four (4) court leagues.
C. A player may play up an unlimited number of times in the next available higher level league at their club for leagues played on a particular day (see examples below for clarification). Players who are rostered on the top courts of the lower level league may play on the bottom courts of the higher level league. If a player in a lower level league plays on the upper courts of the higher level league, that player will no longer be eligible to play in the lower level for the rest of the season and the playoffs.
D. One Match Exception: If it is determined that a player is better served playing for a different team at the same club or for a different club, that player may be allowed a one (1) match exception, i.e., they can make the switch if they have only played 1 match for the original team. This can only be applied once for the player and club. The points played will remain in effect. Notify Michelle Granger prior to the match but if notification is not given, the points will be forfeited to the opposing team.
E. A one match exception rule does not allow players who have subbed for one team to sub for the other team in the same league.
Example: if Player A from Club X plays on the Men’s 3.5 team and subs for the Men’s 4.0 (1) team, they will not be allowed to use the one match exception rule to sub for the Men’s 4.0 (2) team. Loss of points will result. This scenario is for a club with two teams at the same level.
F. Subbing Up a level e.g. From 3.0 to 3.5 or 4.0 to 4.5 etc.
BE CAREFUL when doing lineups. If you “accidentally” sub a player up in a TOP/higher** court position, it may keep them from playing in more than one level.
F.1. Players may sub up an unlimited number of times.
F.2. Once a player plays on court 1and 2 (6 ct. league) or court 1 (4 ct. league) at any level, they are no longer eligible to play in the lower level form the match played going forward.
Exception: Any player on court 1 of the Men’s Open team is not eligible to play in the 4.5 league.
Example 1: If a club has a 3.0 Team and a 3.5 Team, regardless of the day, the 3.0 player may play on the bottom courts of the 3.5 team. Likewise for a player on a 4.0 Team playing on the bottom courts of the 4.5 Team etc.
Example 2: If a club has a 3.0 team and a 4.0 team but not a 3.5 team, regardless of the day, a player can play on the bottom courts*** of the 4.0 team.
Example 3: If a club has a Men’s 4.5 team and a Men’s Open team, the men’s 4.5 player may play on top courts on the Men’s Open team. If the 4.5 player plays on court 1 of the Men’s Open team, he is no longer able to play in the Men’s 4.5 League.
Example 4: If a club has a 4.0 team but not a 4.5 or Open team and a player is clearly a 4.5+/Open level player, he/she must play with weaker partner on court 1 of the 4.0 team. Such that the 5.0 is paired with a 3.0 hence they play a 4.0 plus a 4.0 combination in the 4.0 level.
Players results will be addressed individually to determine if that player should not be playing in a lower level at all. Contact your Club Coordinator to address the player in question. List of club coordinators on last page.
G. Adding or Dropping a Team is permissible, and the points played against a team that subsequently drops out of the league will not be counted.
Teams may drop out of the league at any point in time if defaults are the primary reason for dropping out. If a team wants to drop down a level contact Michelle Granger. Depending on the timing of the request or how many teams there are in the league, adding a team can be disruptive and may not be possible.
IV. PLAYOFFS & FINALS ELIGIBILITY
A. The North Central Division leagues will have playoffs at the end of the season. The 1st place team will play the 4th place team and the 2nd place team will play the 3rd place team in the playoffs. The winners of each playoff match will play each other in the Finals. Players must have played 3 times on a team during the regular season to be eligible to play on that team for the playoffs and finals.
B. The Northwest Division will have a mini playoff in the last week of the regular season for that league. To vie for first place, the 1st and 2nd place teams will play against each other. To vie for third place, the 3rd and 4th place teams will play against each other, etc. If there are an odd number of teams, the last place team will receive a Bye. Players must have played 3 times in singles and doubles (6 ct. league; 2 times 4 ct. league) on a team during the regular season to be eligible to play on that team for the playoffs/finals. A player can only use one default as a match to qualify to be eligible for playoffs and finals.
C. To be eligible to play in the playoffs/finals, if a player plays on a team in two (2) different leagues, the player must have played three (3 or 2) [see above in section IV. B.] times on each of those teams.
D. A player will be eligible to play in the higher level league playoffs/finals and the lower level league playoffs/finals if that player has only played on the bottom courts of the higher level league.
V. LINEUPS
A. Full lineups with first and last names of all teams of travelling leagues must be made available to the host club by 8:00 am on the day of the match. Penalty fees will apply after three late lineups for a Club.
Note: Full lineup for the Men’s Singles match must be made available to the host club by 5pm on the Saturday prior to the match.
B. Teams must be placed in order of strength (example: court #1 team is the strongest in team strength; court #6 team is the lowest in team strength). If there is an infraction, there is a possibility of losing all three sets. Use 2 Spot Rule as guideline. Top courts (1 and 2 in 6 ct. league; 1 in 4 ct. league) should not be used in bottom courts for place holder to qualify for playoffs.
Exception 1: Stronger players pushing others down more than 2 spots.
Exception 2: Stronger players pairing with lower court players.
C. The only change that can be made after the scheduled start time is to insert a last minute substitute(s) for a no-show. A substitute should have no impact on the lineup for the other positions and if an equal match sub cannot be found but a player is available to play, choose to play for fun. Default points may apply however “ineligible” player rules will not impact other position see Example 2 below. This can be applied once during the season as to not abuse it.
Note: “Last minute” substitute is one hour prior to start of match.
D. Falsifying lineups will result in an all-points defaulted at the site along with the attendant default No Show fees. Falsifying lineups may result in up to an all-points penalty. Examples of falsification of lineups:
Example 1: Two teams who play in the same league are supposed to play against each other. Instead of playing the match, a false lineup and scores are inputted. In this case, the penalty will be 18 points if it is a 6 court league or 12 points if it is a 4 court league. If the two teams who were supposed to play each other are from the same club, an 18 point penalty will be assessed against each team.
Example 2: In order to avoid a default, an ineligible player is placed in the lineup. The ineligible player may be a player who has played the top courts in a higher league. If the ineligible player is a higher level player playing down, all points from the court/line no. the player played as well as the points from the matches below will be awarded to the opponent.
VI. DEFAULT RULES
A. NOTICE for Match Defaults: If you must default a match, notify the opposing club no later than 7:00pm the day before the match so they can notify their players/teams. Early notification gives the non-defaulting club the ability to get their defaulted players an inhouse match or different league match. You must default to the lowest position at that site and move all the remaining teams up. If players are not available for court 2, you must default court 3. In other words, players move up one spot. If players are not available for court 4, you must default court 6.
A.1. In the Men’s and Women’s NC/NW divisions, all levels, at the discretion and agreement of the two coordinators, the two teams may agree to Default Court 1 due to strength in lineup for that match.
The team defaulting Court 1 will lose 3 points and the opposing team will receive their 3 points. Courts 2-6 and/or Courts 2-4 will then be played at their original positions/strength of lineup.
B. SAME DAY Defaults: You are allowed 2 same day defaults by your team within a league. If you incur a 3rd same day default, a financial penalty of $100 will be assessed in addition to the no show fees incurred by the default. Extenuating circumstances will be taken into consideration by the CITA Board of Directors upon verification of the players involved.
B.1. 7:01 pm and later prior to the match is considered “same day default.” This is to avoid any change in lineups and defaults on the day of the match. Applies to singles and doubles for men’s and women’s leagues.
B.2. Same day defaults are a per league default.
B.3. Lineup switches due to same day defaults are not allowed two hours prior to match time. Player switching after lineup is printed and viewed cannot be altered.
Do not send players home until issue is resolved completely amongst Captains. Be patient as many Captains/Coordinators may not be immediately available. Contact Club and Captain/Coordinator. Contact Michelle Granger if neither can assist.
While resolving any lineup changes/disputes, warm-up time is in progress.
Example 1: Team arrives to opposing club at wrong time and is not able to make it to the scheduled time. If court 5 is the team that arrived at the wrong time, courts 4 and 6 play their match as scheduled. Defaulted court 5 incurs fees and loss pf points.
Example 2: Player calls in sick day of match 2+ hours prior to match, Coordinator can substitute a player and based on the subs level, a lineup can be adjusted with the agreement of opposing team Coordinator. Teams may also agree to play for fun.
C. The defaulting club is responsible for their portion of the fees. The club receiving the default must fill out a No Show report.
D. Sanctioned Double Defaults (SDD) are agreed upon by the CITA Board at the beginning of season but may be added if needed. SDDs are for the purpose of playing fewer courts without loss of points typically during Holidays or COVID or Tripledemic peaks, for examples.
Please give a 2 day notice with opposing Captain/Coordinators.
In a 4 court league, 3 courts are played and in a 6 Court league, 4 courts are played without loss of points or fees. Please contact Michelle Granger to adjust points to reflect your club’s SDD for scoring purposes.
E. Double Default: A double default is when both clubs fail to field a team at the same position. This is considered an “unexcused” default and each team is assessed 0 of the 3 available points. (3 points are added in the Standings points as lost for each Double Default.)
VII. MATCH SCORING AND RULES for Doubles and Singles
DOUBLES
A. Scoring: Each match will consist of 3 sets with 1 team point awarded for each set won. With 6 teams playing (3 home/3 away), a total of 18 points is possible. With 4 teams playing (2 home/2 away) a total of 12 points is possible. Use a 7-point set tiebreak when the game count is tied 6-6. Players start the tiebreak and the first team to score 7 points wins the tiebreak and the set, with a 2-point margin. If tiebreak is tied or a 1- point margin at buzzer, the set point is split.
B. Warm-up Time: is limited to 15 minutes after the scheduled starting time. No practice serves after the 15-minute warm-up. Returning a serve indicates your practice serves are done and match starts when opponent finishes serve warmups.
C. Tardiness to Match is being on the court 16-30 minutes late-5 minute warm-up and loss of 1st set; 31 minutes late-loss of match.
If players from each team are 16-30 minutes late, no penalty will be assessed. If both players from each team are 16-30 minutes late, but one player is 31 minutes late, the player/team who was only 16-30 minutes will receive 3 points. If both players from each team are 31 minutes late, the match will be considered a double default.
D. Time Limit Scoring – play is limited to two hours with no exceptions.
If a set is tied, the point is split. If a team is ahead by one game, the point is split. If the set hasn’t started, the point is split. If a team is ahead by two games, that team wins the point. Any game point in progress (“in progress” is defined as “an attempt” at first service) at the time limit (i.e., the sound of the buzzer or timed alarm used to indicate the end of the timed match) must be played. If a point is in progress and a player should stop play mid-point at the sound of the buzzer, the point in progress will be awarded to the opponent. If the game or the set/match tiebreak is not completed, the point is split.
For CITA purposes, an attempt at first service is defined as the motion of tossing the ball with the intention of serving. Bouncing the ball before serving does not count as an attempt at first service. If the bell rings in between first and second serve, the point must be played out. If the bell rings after a first serve fault, the player is still allowed their second serve and the point is played out. This applies to Doubles and Singles.
Please note: if there should be a buzzer malfunction and the attending captain calls time, play the point out as if the buzzer sounded.
SINGLES
E. Scoring: Each match will consist of 2 out of 3 sets with a match tiebreak played in lieu of a 3rd set. With 4 teams playing (2 home/2 away), a total of 12 points is possible. Use a 7-point set tiebreak when the game count is tied 6-6. Players start the tiebreak and the first player to score 7 points wins the tiebreak and the set. If players tie at 6-points-to-6, the first one with a 2-point margin wins. If the tiebreak is tied or a player is up by 1- point at buzzer, the point is split.
The procedure of the 10-point match tiebreak is the same as in the 7-point set tiebreak, but the winning player must reach 10 points by a margin of 2 points to win the final set 1-0 and therefore the match.
F. Warm up Time is limited to 10 minutes after the scheduled starting time. No practice serves after the 10-minute warm-up.
G. Tardiness to Match: 11-20 minutes late – 5 minute warm-up and loss of 1st set; 21
H. Time Limit Scoring - play is limited to one hour and 30 min with no exceptions.
If a player wins 2 out of 3 sets, the player will be awarded 2 points plus 1 bonus point for a total of 3 points. If the players split sets and were not able to play or complete the match tiebreak, each player will receive 1.5 points for a total of 3 points. If the players split sets, and a match tiebreaker was played and completed, the player who won the match tiebreaker will receive 2 points and the other player will receive 1 point for a total of 3 points. If the 2nd set is not completed, the remaining 2 points will be calculated as follows: if one player has won the 1st set and is ahead by 2 games s/he will receive a total of 2.5 points (1 pt. for the 1st set, 1 pt. for the 2nd set and .5 pt. for the unplayed 3rd set.) The other player will only receive .5 pt. for the unplayed 3rd set. If one player has won the 1st set and the 2nd set is tied, that player will receive 2 points (.5 pt. for tied 2nd set and .5 pt. for an unplayed 3rd set). The other player will receive 1 point (.5 pt. for tied 2nd set and .5 for unplayed 3rd set).
For CITA purposes, an attempt at first service is defined as the motion of tossing the ball with the intention of serving. Bouncing the ball before serving does not count as an attempt at first service. If the bell rings in between first and second serve, the point must be played out. If the bell rings after a first serve fault, the player is still allowed their second serve and the point is played out. This applies to Doubles and Singles.
COMPLETED MATCHES
A. Entering Scores for matches: Upon completion of matches the players will record their match scores on the score sheets. Scores and players names should be verified by both teams to avoid any mix-ups or errors. The league Coordinator/Captain will record the scores from their matches into the website database (Login to www.citatennis.net; login and click on Scores).
Input scores within 6 hours of match results; MUST click “Final Scores” to transfer. Any scores missing after five days of play, will be recorded as defaults.
B. End of Regular Season Ties: In the event of a tie in percentage standings, the tie shall be broken by the first of the following procedures that does so:
· Winner of the Head-to-Head matches.
· Winner of greatest number of sets won.
· Winner of greatest number of games won.
· CITA Board will define last criteria and announce winner e.g., flip of a coin.
C. End of Season: If a team’s win-loss percentage is below 30% or above 70% at the end of the season, a review will be conducted. Appropriate action may include placing a low percentage team in a lower level league, placing a high percentage team in a higher level league or requesting the movement of players to a lower or higher level.
VIII. PROTESTS OF LINEUPS AND PLAYERS
A. Protests: Any protests regarding a match will be resolved between the affected league coordinators. If no resolution is reached, a protest can be filed with the CITA League Protest Committee. Protests to the CITA League Protest Committee must be made within 48 hours of the match in question. Protests must be in the form of a written communication to Michelle Granger who will then contact the CITA League Protest Committee.
End of Season Playoff/Finals filing a protest also requires a non-refundable payment of $100. Fee will be returned if protest is justified. The CITA League Protest Committee has final judgment on all participants, and problems that may arise. The 2023 – 2024 CITA League Protest Committee consists of Manny Valesco, Chris Sheldon and Donna Marks.
IX. ALL OTHER CLUB AND COURT RULES
A. Wilson U.S. Open balls will be used for all CITA Traveling League matches as Wilson is the official sponsor of CITA Leagues. The first time Wilson U.S. Open balls are not used, a warning letter will be sent. Thereafter, the team will lose their matches by default (9-0).
B. USTA Rules: In situations not addressed by CITA rules, USTA Rules and “The Code” will apply.
C. Babysitting: Clubs are not required to have babysitting available to players. Players are responsible for childcare services outside of the Club unless membership includes childcare.
D. Power Outages and other similar short term issues: If the match has started, but the 1st set was not completed, the first set’s points will be calculated by the 2 game rule. If the score is tied, the first set point will be split. If one team is up by 2 games, that team will get 1 point. The rest of the set points (sets 2 and 3) will be split. If the match is into the second set and the power goes out, the 2 game rule will apply. And the third set will be split.
Players should remain at the club for 30 minutes after the power goes out. Once the power comes back on, there may be a slight delay before the court lights are fully operational. This delay will not count toward the 30 minutes.
E. Severe Weather Warning: In the event of a severe weather warning, the league Captains are responsible for calling the clubs to determine whether matches should be played or canceled, and points will not be counted. Each team receives 0 of 0 points available.
F. Refreshments: The league prefers light snacks and water bottles be served following matches to encourage social activity amongst players.
G. Electronic Devices: Players must turn off all cell phones, pagers and other electronic devices when on the courts.
H. Court Curtains: Each hosting club make their own determination as to whether the court curtains should remain open or closed during match play.
I. A club representative or Coordinator must be present during all matches. If the home club does not have a person present and there is a dispute, the home club will automatically lose the dispute.
J. Audible Devices: All clubs must provide an audible device (buzzer, timed alarm) to indicate the end of the 2 hour time limit. The players must be notified of the device being used to signify the end of the match.
K. Coaching: At no time is coaching allowed amongst Captains/Coordinators and Players. Line calls are expected to be fair and accurate of which no one viewing the match should interject their opinions or comments.
L. Stalling: As the match approaches the last 10 minutes, bathroom and long water breaks are unnecessary at this time. Play should continue at a steady pace and deliberating keeping an opponent from serving, clearing a missed first serve that doesn’t need to be cleared, taking longer than the time needed during a rest period such as between games are constituted as stalling.
M. Court placement/Distractions: When booking matches court placement should be considered. If possible, please keep Pickleball lessons/matches or kickboxing or distracting cardio activities away from tennis matches. Cardio music should be off or not near matches.
N. Misconduct/Poor sportsmanship: Loud outbursts, throwing racquets and name calling are all constituted as poor sportsmanship and is subject to penalty point loss or worse case scenario, not permitted to continue playing in CITA League matches.
O. Injury Time Out: If a player stops after the match has begun due to an injury and cannot continue after 10 minutes, the player(s) is (are) defaulted.
CLUB COORDINATORS
Jim Doessel* Northbrook Racquet Club
Stacy Brown Midtown Chicago
Mike Insko* Midtown Chicago
Cathi Cappas Midtown Palatine
Mike Haber* Midtown Palatine
Scott Johnson Lakeshore Sports & Fitness
Dan Kiernan Lincolnshire/Libertyville
Peter Krizman* Racquet Club of Lake Bluff
Jerry Morse-Karzen* Northshore Racquet Club
Mark Roberts* College Park Athletic East/West
Chris Sheldon* Midtown Bannockburn
Christi Turdo* Glenbrook Racquet Club
Manny Valesco* River Trails Tennis Center
*Indicates CITA Board of Directors member