The NCW4.0-4.5 Singles Playoff matches took place on 4/30 with RC Lake Bluff playing against Northbrook 1 and Midtown-Bannockburn’s two teams playing against each other. The outcome, for both playoff matches, was a 2-2 tie to be broken by counting sets. RCLB was able to secure a win with a 5 sets to 4 sets win over NRC 1. And MTB 2 won a set in each of the 3 set matches and won 6 sets to 4 sets over MTB1. The Finals, between RCLB and MTB 2, will occur at Midtown-Bannockburn on Thursday, May 7th at 11:30 A.M.

The NC Women’s 3.0 Doubles Playoffs took place on 4/30/15. North Shore played against Midtown-Palatine winning 3-1 with a 3 set match going North Shore’s way. Between Lakeshore and College Park East, LSSF won 3-1 winning 2 of the 3 set matches. North Shore and Lakeshore advance to the Finals. The playoffs will be held at The Libertyville Club on May 7th at 12pm. For more details on the results of the playoff matches, go to www.facebook.com/chicagolandindoortennis. Don’t forget to “like” our Facebook page!

This year’s NC Women’s 4.0 Wednesday Doubles Finals will once again be between Lakeshore and Midtown-Chicago. Last year Midtown-Chicago prevailed. Will it be Lakeshore’s turn this year? Or will Midtown-Chicago take back the trophy for the 2nd year? Stay tuned. In order to get to the Finals, Lakeshore won all but one court (court2) against Midtown-Palatine. LSSF won 5-1. In the other playoff match NSRC had to default one court which put them in a slight hole against Midtown-Chicago. But it was the 3rd set win on court 4 which put MTC into the Finals. For more details on these playoff matches, go to www.facebook.com/chicagolandindoortennis.

The NC Women’s 3.5 Doubles Playoffs took place on April 29th. Midtown-Palatine faced off against Lincolnshire and Midtown-Chicago faced off against RC Lake Bluff. Lincolnshire prevailed over Midtown-Palatine, but just barely, by winning a set on court 2 which gave them an extra set win over MTP. LINC won 3 (7 sets) – 3 (6 sets). In the other playoff match, RC Lake Bluff prevailed over Midtown-Chicago 4 matches to 2. It could have gone either way though. All of their matches were close with 4 of the 6 courts going to tie-breakers! Unbelievable! Go to www.facebook.com/Chicagolandindoortennis for more details. The Finals take place at Glenbrook Racquet Club on May 6th at 10am

The NC Women’s 3.0-3.5 Singles Playoffs took place on April 28th between Midtown-Palatine and Glenbrook and between RC Lake Bluff and North Shore. The results for both match ups were 3-1. For more details, go to www.facebook.com/Chicagolandindoortennis. The Finals will take place on May 5th between Midtown-Palatine and RC Lake Bluff at The Racquet Club of Lake Bluff at 12 PM.

On Sunday, April 26th, the singles players for The Racquet Club of Lake Bluff won all four courts against Glenbrook Racquet Club’s players. As I said in my previous post regarding this league, RCLB is looking to win this league for the 3rd time in a row. RCLB will face The Libertyville Club 1 team in the finals. LIB 1 won 3 of the 4 matches against North Shore with the only loss, a 3rd set match tie-breaker between LIB 1’s captain Matt Deans and NSRC’s Nick Schoewe. The Finals will occur at The Lincolnshire Club on May 3rd at 7:30 A.M.

The Men’s 3.5 league started a few years back with two clubs talking to each other about having some competitive matches at the 3.5 level. Their guys needed another level where they could feel competitive. The conversation grew to include a couple more clubs and then a couple more. There are currently 7 teams in this league. The difference with this league is that there are only 4 courts to manage rather than 6 courts as in the other Men’s leagues. This translates into “only” needing to schedule 8 players vs. 12 players for the lineup. Last year’s finalists are currently in 1st and 2nd place. This year North Shore is in the #1 spot. Last year, River Trails was #1. RTTC ended up winning the trophy last year. Midtown-Palatine finished the regular season in 3rd place only 3.5 points behind RTTC. They play against each other in the playoffs (each team has had a win against the other team in the regular season). #4 RC Lake Bluff will play against #1 NSRC. Playoffs are on Saturday, May 2nd. Good luck everyone.

The Men’s 4.5 league is a very competitive league. Of the 4 teams in the Playoffs, two of the teams also have an Open level team. Years ago there were complaints that the Men’s leagues were not that competitive; but I haven’t been hearing those complaints lately. A couple of teams who used to be in the Open league have dropped down to the Men’s 4.5 level. Are all the guys in this league “4.5”? On court 1 you’ll probably see some guys who deserve to be in the Open league except they don’t have enough players to form a team and still be viable in the Men’s 4.5. Those players help fill in the gaps in level from court to court. This year, #1 RC Lake Bluff, looks to have beefed up their eligibility roster. Last year, RCLB made it to the finals only to have to default 2 courts because they didn’t have extra eligible players on their roster and a couple of their eligible players had other commitments. I don’t think they’ll have that problem this year. They will go up against #4 Libertyville who just missed the playoff cut last year and is looking to have a good showing this year. The other two playoff teams are between #2 River Trails 1 and #3 College Park East. CPAC-E fell off the Playoff grid last year but looks like they regrouped and are back in form. RTTC 1 last hoisted the trophy in 2012. I’m sure both teams will have a strong lineup of players for the Playoffs. Playoffs are on May 2nd. Good luck everyone!!

In my post under NC Women’s 4.5 Green – Final Four, I wrote a bit about the difference between the 4.5 Green and the 4.5 Red. In the 4.5 Red league, the captains have to figure out the best balance of players if they also have an Open team. If they lose a couple of their players to the Open team, the shift in players may make the difference in being in the Playoffs or not being in the Playoffs. Most captains, though, want to give players the opportunity to challenge themselves. What’s sometimes hard is the converse…getting some players who have played on the Open team to shift down to the 4.5 Red league. It’s not always an easy conversation for the captains/pros to have. Along these lines, #1 Midtown-Chicago and #2 Lakeshore do not have Open teams. This gives them a bit of a leg up in this league as they have a larger pool of strong players to choose from. But even though they are #1 and #2, they still have to get past #3 River Trails and #4 Midtown-Bannockburn 2. #1 MTC will play against #4 MTB 2 and #2 LSSF will play against #3 RTTC. Playoffs are on May 1st. Good luck everyone!

What’s the difference between the 4.5 Green and the 4.5 Red? The levels are slightly different. The 4.5 Red is the stronger of the 2 leagues. While a team may have a strong showing in the 4.5 Green, they may be in for a surprise in the 4.5 Red. Some of the teams who are in the 4.5 Red league may find themselves in a more competitive sphere if they were in the 4.5 Green league. I’m just saying! #1 RC Lake Bluff made it to the playoffs last year but lost to the eventual winner Midtown Palatine. RCLB will go up against #4 North Shore. #2 College Park East reevaluated their teams to be more competitive and it looks like their decision to do so was the right thing to do. They will play against #3 Midtown-Bannockburn. Playoffs are on May 1st. Good luck everyone!!