Tournaments are held on Saturdays mainly in the fall semester with some in the spring semester, including the Sectional and National Championships as well as Invitationals. Check out the schedule tab under tournaments for tournament dates and locations.
Travel Within Texas
Tournaments are held throughout different cities in Texas including Dallas, Houston, Corpus Christi, and Waco. We organize rides from members there and back. If the city is close, we will leave Saturday morning and come back Saturday night. If the city is farther away (like Houston), we will leave Friday after classes, sleep at a member’s home, and come back Saturday after the tournament.
*Due to COVID there might not always be availability to sleep over at a person’s house. Therefore you will have to leave very early in the morning Saturday.
Teams
As no one is cut from our roster, we send many different teams to each tournament. Teams are formed based on our ladder which ensures you will be playing people at your level.
Format
- Many larger club teams send numerous teams to each tournament. Due to this, each tournament also has many different draws. The first team is placed on first draws, sometimes second teams as well, and so on.
- Each match is played against another club tennis team with a lineup that consists of 1 guys and 1 girls doubles set, 1 guys and 1 girls singles set, and 1 mixed doubles set, in that order
Scoring
- Tournaments are played with World Team Tennis Scoring
- One set, change sides every 4 games, sudden death tiebreak to 5-all (switch serves every 2 points and the last server serves 3 points, win by 1 point and change sides every 4 points)
- We are allowed to sub players out (a player can play a maximum of two events)
- Tiebreak to 7 if teams are tied, win by 1 point
- Overtime: If you win mixed doubles (the last match played) then you keep playing even if you’re down in games. You play until you either catch up to the other team or lose a game.
- Teams with the most total games at the end of all sets will win
Out-of-State Opportunities
- In the spring, two teams have the chance to attend the National Championship and Spring Invitationals
- In the fall, those who have not qualified for Nationals or Spring Invitationals before may, based on overall club involvement, be picked for the Fall Invitationals team
- *People on the Fall Invitationals team can still qualify for the following Nationals or Spring Invitationals
- For those of you wanting to try to compete in Spring Invitationals or Nationals, you are required to play in 2 tournaments (1 in the fall and Sectionals; or 1 in the spring with the exception of injury, foreign exchange students, or studied abroad in the fall)
- The Intraclub tournament in the fall does NOT count
- There is an 8-hour volunteer requirement for those selected for traveling teams
- More information can be found in the Travel Teams document
IMPORTANT
You will NOT be allowed to play in any tournaments until you submit a membership form (and it is approved), turn in your health insurance if you have it (on the membership form), and pay dues.
*If you would like to drive teams to tournaments you MUST have a Texas license, no out-of-state licenses.
DO NOT sign up for a tournament unless you know for sure you can play. We have had players back out or not show up before and that hurts your team during the tournaments.