EAST VALLEY SENIORS TENNIS LEAGUE BY-LAWS Revised March 25, 2014 BY-LAWS ARTICLE I MEMBERSHIP A. Membership shall be vested in those participating Clubs identified in the CONSTITUTION, in addition to any changes of membership approved hereafter. B. Each participating member Club shall be allowed one voting member at all league meetings. Conditional member Clubs will be allowed one voting members each, but will be abstained on certain issues, as determined by member Clubs. C. Each member Club shall be considered a member in perpetuity, unless self-withdrawn or terminated for cause by two thirds vote of a quorum membership. D. New clubs may be added to the league after they submit a written petition to join, are evaluated by a Special Committee appointed by the League President, and then approved by a majority vote of the member Clubs with a quorum present and voting. II FINANCES A. The EVSTL is a non-profit organization, staffed and operated by member Club volunteers only. B. Expenditures are limited to league operation expenses only. C. An annual fee of $20.00 will be levied from each member club to be used for EVSTL operational expenses. This fee would be collected by the Treasurer at the Fall EVSTL meeting of each year. The Executive Committee will have the authority to request an increase as may be needed; however, final approval of any fee change must have a majority vote of the member club Presidents. III MEETINGS A. Three regular meetings will be held each League season, namely the last weeks of October, January and March. B. The League President, as necessary, to act on League affairs, may call Special meetings. A ten-day notice will be given before any such meeting. Notification shall be considered given when one member Club officer from each Club has been contacted by any League Officer. C. Non-representation of any member or conditional member Club shall NOT invalidate that meeting, as long as a quorum membership is in attendance. D. Fifty percent of the member Clubs present at any league meeting shall constitute a quorum. E. Motions shall be considered passed when a majority of the quorum vote is in favor of the motion. If there is a tie vote, the League President or presiding League officer will cast the deciding vote. 1
IV ELECTION OF OFFICERS A. The League Officers shall be elected annually at the January meeting. B. The officers shall consist of a President, Vice President, a Secretary-Treasurer and a Scheduler, The President and the Vice President shall not be from the same member Club. Conditional Club members shall not hold any League office. C. Newly elected officers shall assume office April 1 and serve through March 31 D. If there is an officer vacancy during a term, other than the President, the remaining officers shall appoint a replacement. The Vice President automatically succeeds as President should that office become vacant during tenure. E. League Officers need not be designated voting members of their respective clubs. V DUTIES OF LEAGUE OFFICERS A. President 1. Structure the agenda and preside at all League meetings. 2. Call special meetings as required. 3. Appoint committees as necessary or as prescribed. 4. Act as business administrator on matters relating to league operations. 5. Enforce the Constitution and By-Laws. B. Vice-President 1. In the absence of the President, perform the duties of that office. 2. Assure that rating statistics (see IX, D.) from each park are submitted to the Web Site Manager at the end of each league season. Identify players meeting the criteria of subsection (IX, E.). If a player met the guidelines to move and did not, inquire as to why not. 3. In January, the V.P. will coordinate a Census for the League. When completed, a report will be submitted to the website manager for posting on the website. 4. Perform other League duties as requested by the President. Serve as ex-officio chairperson of the Advisory Committee when called upon by the President to meet on specific issues. C. Secretary-Treasurer 1. Keep minutes of all League meetings. Submit final copy of minutes to the EVSTL President for approval, after which submitting a copy to the Website Manager for posting on the website. 2. Assure that the Member Club Information (MCI) from each park has been submitted to the Web Site Manager prior to the annual March meeting. If changes are made, assure that the updated MCI from each park has been submitted to the Web Site Manager before September 1 st. 3. Assure that current team rosters from each park are submitted to the Web Site Manager by October 15th. Each park is to submit any updates as they may occur to the Web Site Manager. 4. Act as Treasurer in League financial matters. 5. Assist in other League administration as requested by the President. 2
D. Scheduler Prepare League team play schedules and submit schedules to the Website Manager for posting on the website. VI COMMITTEES AND APPOINTMENTS A. Executive Committee 1. The Executive Committee will consist of the President, immediate Past President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer, and the Scheduler. 2. The President will call special meetings of the Executive Committee, when deemed necessary, to discuss and resolve EVSTL issues. 3. The Executive Committee will enforce the EVSTL By-Laws and Constitution. 4. Violations of the EVSTL By-Laws or Constitution will be brought before the Executive Committee for discussion and resolution. For enforcement, any resolution (s) must have a majority vote of the Member Club Presidents or voting Representatives. B. Advisory Committee 1. The committee will consist of five Club Presidents and the EVSTL Vice President. The Vice President will serve as Chairman (ex-officio). 2. The Advisory Committee members are selected by the President on a rotating basis in alphabetical order of club names. 3. The members will serve from April 1 to March 31 of each year. 4. Duties: At the directive of the President, when deemed necessary, the Advisory Committee will review specific EVSTL issues, discuss possible solutions, etc, and present recommendations to the President. The President will then present those recommendations to the Executive Committee for appropriate action. Vice President will serve as ex-officio chairperson of the Advisory Committee when called upon by the president to meet specific issues. C. Nominating Committee 1. The President will appoint three Club Presidents to serve on the Nominating Committee before the first week in January. 2. A Chairman will be established by the three members. 3. The committee will present the nominees for each office at the January meeting when elections will be held. 4. Floor nominations will be allowed. D. Web Site Manager 1. The Executive Committee will appoint a member of EVSTL to the position of the Web Site Manager. 2. Duties: To manage the EVSTL Web Site. 3. To update club information, By-Law revisions, and all other aspects pertaining to EVSTL business. 3
E. EVSTL 1.5 Coordinator 1. The EVSTL President will appoint a 1.5 Coordinator at the beginning of each season. 2. The duties of the 1.5 Coordinator are: a. Communicate with the 1.5 team captains to assure each club has a good 1.5 program in existence, including instruction and practice sessions for the players. b. Hold 1.5 captain's meetings as necessary to strengthen the programs and/or discuss any other pertinent information that may be useful to the captains and/or the players. c. As deemed necessary, submit progress reports to the President. VII TEAM MEMBERSHIP REQUIRMENT A. To form a team, a Club must roster, at a minimum, the following number of players: Level 1.5: 4 men, 2 women Level 2.0-3.0: 7 men, 5 women Level 3.5: 7 men, 4 women Level 4.0: 4 men 2 women B. To play a league match, a Club should try to field, at a minimum, the following number of teams: Level 1.5: 2 men s, 1 women s Level 2.0-3.0: 3 men s 2 women s Level 3.5: 3 men s 2 women s Level 4.0: 2 men s 1 women s C. Any level may field two #1 teams if both opposing team captains agree D. Mixed doubles may be included and may be recorded, but CANNOT be recorded as position #1 play. VIII CONDUCT OF LEAGUE TENNIS MATCHES A. All matches shall be conducted in compliance with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Rules and the guidance of the USTA Code of Conduct. B. League match play season begins the first full week of November and ends in March of the following year, to run for a 16 week playing period. C. Each participating Club may field two teams at each rating level with three courts and up to four teams per rating level with six available courts. D. Play days are Monday 3.5, Tuesday 2.0, Wednesday 3.0, Thursday 4.0+ and 1.5 play on alternate weeks, Friday 2.5 E. All parks must start their EVSTL matches at 9:00 A.M. Exceptions will be allowed at those parks where scheduling conflicts require an earlier or later time. Captains should always verify start time when scheduling game with opposing captains. (Note: Clubs are highly encouraged to start league play at 9:00 a.m., if at all possible.) 4
F. Each MATCH will consist of TWO regular sets, but at a 6-6 tie in any set a 12-point tiebreaker game will be played to determine the winner. If each team has won one set then a Coman tiebreaker game will comprise the third and deciding set. An 18-point match Coman tiebreaker will be used at all levels. The winner of a match tiebreaker will receive 2 points and the loser 1 point on the match play log. The match and game win and loss will be recorded for a player's statistics. Both players who win a match tiebreaker, which counts as one game played, will receive 1 extra game win for statistics G. Matches that are canceled or not played for any reason other than injury may be rescheduled by mutual agreement of the principals. The League will not be responsible for rescheduling such matches. All completed sets and games of those matches prior to cancellation WILL be recorded. Wins and losses WILL NOT be recorded. H. Matches will not be scheduled during the Christmas and New Year holiday. I. Injured Player Policy: Once a match begins and a player withdraws, for any reason, the opposing team has an automatic match win by forfeit. Results are recorded on the match play log as two (2) points to zero (0). All games that have been finished will be recorded for both teams and players. A win is awarded to the players on the team that did not withdraw; a loss is awarded to the players on the team that withdrew. J. Player Shortages: 1. Club players may PLAY UP to the next rating level if required due to shortages of players on the higher rated team. The opposing team must be notified if this occurs. 2. A player shall not play in a rating level lower than that assigned to the player. Exception: If shortages of players exist at the 1.5 level, and only then, lower level 2.0 players may be borrowed from the same club to play for the 1.5 team. 3. Due to player shortage: a. If a member club cannot form even one team at an given level but has players for that level, those players may play for another EVSTL member club on a permanent basis. Those players must commit to playing for the ONE team for the season and MUST be placed on that team s roster. (NOTE: All players must be a resident of an EVSTL member park.) Alternatively, the member club short a few players to form a team may borrow players on a permanent basis from another club to fill out a team. Again, those players must commit to playing for that ONE team for the season and must be placed on that team s roster. (NOTE: All players must be a resident of an EVSTL member park.) Player transfers must be approved by both clubs. b. 4.0 teams with a shortage of players, may borrow from a "bye" team or from another EVSTL member team with excess players, on a "temporary" basis. (Note: Only 4.0 captains (or co-captains are allowed to contact other captains (or co-captains) to obtain players for League play) 4. A player may be a member of only one team. 5. Due to shortages, a team at any level other than 4.0 cannot borrow a player from a sister team and play them at first position. A player pulled up to a higher level can play in any position. Note: 4.0 players who are #1 position players may be borrowed and may be played in the #1 position provided that both opposing captains agree. 6. Teams are encouraged to utilize players from the team they are playing to supplement their team to enable additional matches. Except as indicated in 3.above, players may not be permanent members of another Club s teams. 7. If a team has a "bye", first position players from the "bye" team may NOT be borrowed to play for another "home" team. 5
K. In the event there is a conflict between EVSTL By-Laws and other procedures, guidelines, and/or policies, EVSTL By-Laws will prevail. (Revised Jan. 06) L. Member Clubs will enforce EVSTL By-Laws and Constitution. M. All matters not expressly covered in the EVSTL By-Laws shall come under the jurisdiction of the individual EVSTL Member Clubs. IX PLAYER RATING PROCEDURES A. Each club shall rate their players, using the National Tennis Rating Program (NTRP) guidelines or League play experienced Rating Verifiers from their own Club. B. New Players: To ensure new players are placed in the appropriate level, the member park s rating committee should give them an on-court rating evaluation. C. Returning Players: If a returning player was unable to play in the previous season, the member park s rating committee should give them an on-court rating evaluation. D. Rating Statistics: Each Club shall submit to the Web Site Manager, within two weeks after the end of the season, the following statistics for position one play of all players in rating categories 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, and 3.5 who have played in the first position at least once: Matches played Matches played after Jan 1 st Percentage of matches won Percentage of games won Move up comment (indicate if the player was moved up) E. Moving Up Criteria: Any player who has met all the following criteria MUST be moved up to the next higher rating: 1. Played in position 1 for a minimum of 6 matches, at least 3 of which must be played after January 1 st 2. Has a winning match percentage at position 1 of 75% or more 3. Has a game winning percentage at position 1 of 60% or higher 4. When a player FIRST meets the criteria to move up to the next higher level, the Club will have the option of moving that player up immediately, but no later than the beginning of the next season. (Notes: After meeting the criteria to move up, any subsequent matches during the same season will not affect the player's move up status.) F. Move Down Criteria: A player who has played at positions other than the #1 and/or #2 positions, has played at least six (6) matches, at those lower levels and was unable to sustain a game winning percentage of at least 35% for the season, MUST be moved down to the next lower level of play. A Club may not move a player down to a lower level of play for any reason other than: health issues, disabilities due to the aging process, as noted in the "move down criteria" section (IX, F), or as noted in a Club's criteria for a "self evaluation" system. G. When two teams at the same level from the same club are scheduled for league play, prior to start of play, the two captains shall determine whether or not to record the match statistics. 6
X GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES A. A problem, which cannot be resolved among the concerned Clubs or one, which is contrary to the Constitution or By-Laws, shall be referred to the President in writing from or through a Club President. B. The President, under the authority of Article V, shall conduct or cause an investigation of the problem: The President shall then render a decision regarding the problem, which shall be binding on the League Clubs. C. An appeal of the decision of the President in B. above may be made in writing to the President, who shall present the appeal at a Special Meeting of the league. The final decision will be made by a vote of the Clubs. A two-thirds majority of the Clubs present and voting is required to overturn the President s decision. This is an exception to Sections III E. XI PROCEDURES FOR AMENDING BY-LAWS A. Only Club Presidents (or their designees) and EVSTL Executive Committee members may submit proposals for amending the By-Laws. B. All By-Law proposals must go through the League President so that they can appear on the EVSTL meeting agenda. C. Proposed changes are discussed and modified, if necessary, at a regularly scheduled meeting. D. After discussion and modification, the Club Presidents must vote on whether to forward them for final approval at the next EVSTL meeting. E. All approved amendments take effect the following EVSTL season unless at least 75% of the Club Presidents (or their designees) vote to implement them at a different time. F. To temporarily suspend any By-Law requires the approval of the League President. XII TEAM CAPTAINS (TC) A. A team captain shall be designated for each team fielded. B. Be familiar with the USTA Rules, Code of Conduct Guide, EVSTL By-Laws, and Constitution. C. Counsel your team players when their infractions are noticed, or brought to your attention by the opposing team captain. Make every effort to keep matches fair and fun. D. Make own team pairings, keeping them competitively balanced. E. Visiting TC call Host TC at least one day before scheduled match and discuss match-ups that will produce best-balanced games. When two teams at the same level from the same club are scheduled for league play, prior to the start of play, the two team captains shall determine whether or not to record the match statistics. If so, all matches will be recorded. F. Co-arbitrate on-court disputes during matches. DO NOT disregard or abridge USTA rules in decisions. G. TC shall also: 1. Provide NEW (optic yellow only) balls that can be used for TWO matches that day. 2. Provide coffee and refreshments as deemed appropriate. 7
3. Provide on court scorekeepers for each match (optional for add-on or extra matches) for all 3.0 players and below matches. Scorekeepers for 3.5 and 4.0 matches are at the discretion of the team captains. Scorekeepers shall call out the score AFTER each point. Scorekeepers will NOT make any line calls or referee rulings. H. TC s are the key link in the chain of league success. Knowledge of the rules, fairness, sportsmanship, flexibility and a cool head are the best tools of the Team Captain. I. Each TC shall clearly note on their Match Play Log all players who are playing up for each match. J. A copy of the USTA Rules shall be available at each match. 8