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How USTA Leagues Work
Most members of the Palo Alto Tennis Club are also members of the United States Tennis Association (USTA). Being part of the USTA has its own set of benefits, including the opportunity to play in USA League Tennis, a seasonal competition where teams of men and/or women of the same ability level are matched against other teams in their local area. Each league season lasts three to four months, and matches are scheduled in a round-robin format.
Any group of players can form a USTA team, but there are advantages to organizing your team through the club. PATC-sponsored teams are allowed to reserve Palo Alto public courts for their home matches at a discount of 50% off the city's normal reservation rates. All players on a PATC team must be PATC members (see below), but the club has decided to allow non-residents who are still on the membership waiting list to play on PATC USTA teams as long as they have already submitted their membership dues.
All League players are required to have a valid NTRP rating (read more about how the NTRP system works). All players are also required to pay a $15 registration fee per team per season to USTA Norcal, which is payable by credit card on their web site.
Ten different leagues take place throughout the year:
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Adult League - Men
Team requirements: All males with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, and 5.0 Leagues.
Minimum age: 19
Format: Two singles matches and three doubles matches
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Adult League - Women
Team requirements: All females with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 3.0, 3.5, and 4.0 Leagues.
Minimum age: 19
Format: Two singles matches and three doubles matches
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Combo League - Men's Doubles*
Team requirements: Male players who can form doubles teams whose combined NTRP rating requires that the two players have different individual ratings. For example, a 6.5 league means a 3.0 player is matched up with a 3.5 player.
Minimum age: 19
Format: Three doubles matches
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Combo League - Women's Doubles*
Team requirements: Female players who can form doubles teams whose combined NTRP rating requires that the two players have different individual ratings. For example, a 6.5 league means a 3.0 player is matched up with a 3.5 player.
Minimum age: 19
Format: Three doubles matches
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Fifty Mixed League (aka Mixed Doubles for Seniors)
Team requirements: Men and women are partnered to form doubles teams whose combined NTRP rating does not exceed the league's rating. For example, a 7.0 league usually means that two 3.5 players are matched up.
Minimum Age: 50
Format: Three doubles matches
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Mixed Doubles League
Team requirements: Men and women are partnered to form doubles teams whose combined NTRP rating does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 7.0 and 8.0 Leagues.
Minimum Age: 19
Format: Three doubles matches
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Senior League - Men
Team requirements: All males with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 3.5 and 4.0 Leagues.
Minimum Age: 50
Format: Three doubles matches
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Senior League - Women
Team requirements: All females with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 3.5 League.
Minimum Age: 50
Format: Three doubles matches
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Super Senior League - Men
Team requirements: All males with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating. The club typically sponsors teams in the 3.0 and 3.5 Leagues.
Minimum Age: 65
Format: Three doubles matches
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Super Senior League - Women
Team requirements: All females with an NTRP rating that does not exceed the league's rating.
Minimum Age: 65
Format: Three doubles matches
*Starting in Summer 2004, PATC opted not to field Combo League teams in response to USTA Norcal's requirement that member clubs with Combo teams take part in Norcal's TPI pilot program.
League competition is a lot of fun, as it is a chance to meet and play against many people from outside the Club. With this popularity, however, comes the annual problem of not having enough teams to accomodate everyone who wants to participate. Most of the current PATC teams consist of people who have already played together in previous years, with only a few openings becoming available every year. Members who are new to the Club who can't find an existing team to join are encouraged to start new teams, particularly in the ability levels where the Club is not well represented.
For new teams, the main requirement is for someone to volunteer as a captain, the person who will handle many of the administrative tasks involved in running a team. For anyone interested, the Club's USTA Coordinator is available to help new teams and new captains get themselves established. Refer to the Leagues Calendar for important dates.
If you want to join an existing team, look for the seasonal notices in Net Notes from the USTA Coordinator. Follow the instructions, and the coordinator will attempt to match you with a team captain. You can also use USTA Norcal's site to search for PATC's teams for the current season(s). Norcal allows players to join teams even after the league's season has started, but please be aware that some team captains prefer to limit the number of players on their roster.
E-mail the Club's USTA Coordinator
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The PATC Membership Rule for USTA Teams
The Palo Alto Tennis Club requires that all players on PATC’s USTA league teams must be members of PATC. This has long been a policy of the club — as, indeed, it is among all the local public tennis clubs (Sunnyvale TC, Mountain View TC, Los Altos TC, San Carlos TC, and Foster City TC). The Board decided in 2003 to reaffirm this rule and, in the interest of fairness and consistency, to begin monitoring compliance with the rule.
PATC provides significant support and benefits to its USTA league teams. Our USTA Coordinator is instrumental in organizing and facilitating team formation, court assignments, and court reservations at the beginning of each season. The Coordinator also provides active support during each season, assisting with additional reservations (for make-up matches, etc.) and acting as a troubleshooter when problems arise. It’s a complex, challenging job and takes a considerable amount of time.
PATC teams also receive from the city of Palo Alto priority in court reservations and a fifty percent discount in court usage fees, compared with non-PATC teams. Importantly, club teams benefit from the club’s insurance policy—non-PATC teams must provide the city with an original insurance certificate for $1 million general liability insurance that also indemnifies the city and the Palo Alto Unified School District before they can reserve city courts.
The Club monitors the rosters of its USTA teams and will apply sanctions to teams that don't comply with the membership rule. This may sound a little harsh, but the Club wants captains and players to feel confident that the rule will apply to everyone equally.
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