2008 WTT Twin Cities Corporate Season

World TeamTennis Overview

World TeamTennis (WTT) was founded as a professional league in 1974.  Billie Jean King has been closely associated with WTT since its inception, as coach, proponent, and champion.

World TeamTennis is different from traditional tennis in surprising and exciting ways.  For example, players compete as members of a team rather than as individuals, and every game counts toward the team’s results.  All scoring is no-ad, players on the bench cheer for teammates (and opponents) on the court, coaching is encouraged, and player substitutions (unheard of in “standard” tennis) are allowed.   

A WTT match has one set each of men's and women's doubles, one set each of men's and women's singles, and two sets of mixed doubles.  If the total game score is tied after these six sets, excitement builds as the match goes into overtime or a match-winning supertiebreaker is needed!   In true corporate form, players sometimes need a conference to figure out the rules.

Corporate World TeamTennis

Corporate WTT was launched nationally in 2005, initially targeting ten U.S. cities, including Minneapolis / St. Paul.  Locally, players told others about the fun, fast-paced, coed format that promotes corporate spirit, and the Twin Cities Corporate WTT League is now the largest in the country.  In 2007, nearly 200 players participated, with most enjoying the official sponsorship and financial support of their companies.  Our players and their companies recognize WTT as a great way to play tennis, stay healthy, and build corporate spirit.

Participating companies in the Twin Cities include Boston Scientific, Ernst & Young, General Dynamics, General Mills, the Greater Twin Cities Tennis Association, HealthPartners, Honeywell, Land O’Lakes, MTS, PTC, the University of Minnesota, and USTA Northern.  Co-ed teams will compete this year weekly at the 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, and 4.5 levels.  Several companies have had teams in multiple divisions, and in 2007, Boston Scientific had a record-setting five teams competing.

World TeamTennis in the Twin Cities is sponsored by the national World TeamTennis organization, by the Greater Twin Cities Tennis Association, and by participating companies.

Twin Cities Corporate Divisions and Schedule

There will be four Corporate divisions for 2008

• 3.0 and below – Wednesdays from 6:00 - 8:00
• 3.5 and below – Wednesdays from 6:00 - 8:00
• 4.0 and below – Tuesdays from 6:00 - 8:00
• 4.5 and below – Tuesdays from 6:00 - 8:00

Specific team schedules will be assigned by mid-May. 
The season starts on June 3 or 4, and ends in August.  There will be no play on July 1 or 2.

WTT Corporate Rule Summary

• Age.   Players must be 18 or over.
• Captain.  Each team must have a captain.
• Team size.  A team must have a minimum of two men and two women. Six to eight players (or more) are recommended, to allow for substitutions and vacations.
• Employees on roster.  At least 50% of a team must be employees (this includes retirees or full-time contractors).
• Employees at matches.  A team must have at least two employees present to play at each match.
• National eligibility.  Players must compete in at least two matches to be eligible to participate in the National tournament.
• Scoring.  All game scoring is no-ad.  Each set is won by the first team to reach six games.  A nine-point tiebreaker (see below) will be played at five games all.  Note that a set does not need to be won by two games, and a tiebreaker does not need to be won by two points.
• Substitutions.  A team can at any point substitute a player (same gender) into a set for any reason.  Once a player is replaced, he/she cannot return in that set.
• Changing ends.  After every four games players change ends.  In the nine-point tiebreaker, change ends only after the first four points.  In the Supertiebreaker (see below), change ends only after the first six points. 
• Service lets.  Service lets will be played. When a serve hits the net and bounces within the service court, the ball is playable.  In doubles, either player on the receiving side may return the ball after it bounces.  If any player on the court calls “let”, their team loses the point.  If players on both teams call “let” then the point will be replayed. 
• Coaching.  Coaching is allowed throughout the match.
• Nine-point tiebreaker.  A nine-point tiebreaker will be played at five games all in any set. The person who is to serve next begins the tiebreaker.  Each player serves two points in succession starting from the deuce court.  Players change sides after four points.  The first team (or person) to score five points wins the tiebreaker.  If the tiebreaker reaches 4-4, the person who served the eighth point serves the ninth (final) point.  The winner of the ninth point is the winner of the set.  The tiebreaker can be won by one point.
• Overtime.   After both mixed doubles sets are finished, if the leading team won set number six, the match is over.   If the trailing team won set number six, the match goes into Overtime.  If the overall score is tied, the match goes into a Supertiebreaker.  If the match has gone into Overtime, game play continues until the leading team wins one game (in which case the match is over) or until the score is tied (in which case the match goes into a Supertiebreaker).
• Supertiebreaker.  Each player serves two points in succession starting from the deuce court.  Players change sides after six points.  The first team to score seven points wins the Supertiebreaker.  If the Supertiebreaker reaches 6-6, the person who served the 12th point will serve the 13th (final) point.  The final serve will be gender-to-gender.  The winner of the 13th point wins the Supertiebreaker and the match.  The Supertiebreaker can be won by one point.
• More information on rules.  The back of the standard WTT scorecard contains a convenient listing of the WTT rules.  Reading glasses are recommended.  In addition, the national WTT site has a thorough listing of WTT rules.

Captain's Responsibilities

• Register the team by Friday, May 16, 2008.
• Arrange for company support.
• Recruit team members.
• Distribute information to team members.
• Choose a team name.
• Select home courts.
• Get all players registered.
• Collect fees from team members.
• Manage matches.
• Make certain there are at least two men and two women at every match
• Make certain there are at least two employees at every match
• Provide tennis balls for home matches
• Record scores on scorecard (home team captain).
• Report match scores to the league director (home team captain)

For more detailed information on captain’s responsibilities, see the Instructions for Captains.

If you don’t have a team or a captain, you could become the captain and form a team. Or, if you don’t have a team but wish to play, let us know, and we will try to find an existing team for you.

Determining Team Rating

The average NTRP rating of the top two men and top two women players registered for your team determines the division in which the team will participate.  This average NTRP rating must not be higher than the division in which the team is registered.  For example, if the top two women and top two men are three 3.5 players and one 4.0 player, the average is 3.625, and the team must compete at the 4.0 level, rather than the 3.5 level.  Note that the average is rounded up, not down, to determine the division in which a team must register. 

Court Locations

All matches will be played outdoors at public parks, schools, or other outdoor recreational facilities.  Each team will select its own home courts. 

Cost

WTT registration cost per team is $200 for the 2008 season. Other costs for a team include new balls (about $20 - $30 per team for the season) and court fees (ranging from zero cost to $180 per team).  WTT has no additional membership costs, either for teams or individual players.  Teams are strongly encouraged to have their companies provide financial support for the season.

Registration

For instructions on how to register for World TeamTennis, click Information / Captains Instructions on the menu at the top of this page.

Registration Deadline:  Friday, May 16, 2008

WTT National Tournament

The WTT National Championship tournament will be held in Indian Wells, California on October 31 - November 2, 2008.  A captain’s meeting will be held on Thursday evening, October 30.  The tournament will take place at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden (home of the Pacific Life Open).  The facility features a 16,000 seat arena and more than 20 courts spread across 88 acres.  For more information on Indian Wells, see the Indian Wells Web site.  Winners of the Twin Cities 3.5, 4.0, and 4.5 divisions are eligible to participate. The winning teams advance directly to Nationals (there are no regionals or sectionals). 
New this year:  The Twin Cities WTT organization will pay the $250 registration fee for all teams which advance to and play in the National Championship tournament.

More Information

Call the Twin Cities WTT League Director Bob Williams at 763-488-9986 or e-mail xxxxwilliams@playwtt.com (please replace xxxx with bobf).