Tennis Ireland V1.2
Table of Contents Chapter 1... 1 Tennis Ireland Tournament Loader... 1 Application installation... 1 Chapter 2... 2 Manual loading of results (single matches)... 2 Match detail information... 2 Verification... 3 Chapter 3... 4 Semi-automatic loading of results (Excel)... 4 template... 4 Chapter 4... 6 Tournament Planner results... 6 Tournament Planner... 6 Preparing results from a Tournament Planner tournament... 7 load process... 11 Loading tournament results (Tournament Planner)... 12 Chapter 5... 16 League... 16 Preparing results from League Management... 16 load process... 17 Loading League results... 18 Chapter 6... 23 ITN grading calculation... 23 Which matches count towards the ITN?... 23 When does the ITN calculation system start?... 23 Who deals with the results of these matches?... 23 How often should the ITN rating be calculated?... 23 Is there a minimum number of matches required to get an ITN rating?... 23 What about defaults and walkovers?... 23
What if a player does not compete?... 23 How does the calculation formula work?... 24 Recommended ITN calculation formula... 25 Chapter 7... 26 Privacy Policy... 26 What we collect... 26 What we do with the information we gather... 26 Internal record keeping... 26 Security... 27 Links to other websites... 27 Controlling your personal information... 27 What is a QR code?... 28
Chapter 1 Tennis Ireland Tournament Loader Application installation The application is loaded directly on to a workstation or laptop. This would normally be where the Tournament Planner software or the League Management Module is running (files will be available). Alternatively, the results files can be transferred to the loading computer using email or a USB key. To install the Tournament Loader software, log in to your NPD profile and select Tournament Upload in the left panel. Agree to install the Microsoft Silverlight application. The application loader will automatically install the software; make an entry in All Programs and creating a desktop icon. This procedure should only be run once per PC. The actual Tournament Load process is run from the desktop, not from the Internet. Page 1
Chapter 2 Manual loading of results (single matches) In order to load a single result, select the Manual Entry option on the left side of the player profile panel. Match detail information On the left side of the panel, enter the type of match (doubles or singles), round (usually Single Match ), match date and location. On the right side, enter the Tennis Ireland number(s) of the opposing player(s) ensuring that the winners are entered first. Complete the scores in the format 6-1 6-1. Click Enter Match when completed (an entry is made within each players profile and marked U unverified). Page 2
Verification The result must be manually verified by the person who authorised the match. This is usually a coach, Ladies Captain or Men s Captain. He/she will be able to complete this task from his/her own account options. Unverified results are ignored for the purposes of the ITN re-grading process. Page 3
Chapter 3 Semi-automatic loading of results (Excel) This form of entry would be used for internal club competitions where Tournament Planner is not used. Each match result would be entered manually on to the spreadsheet. template Download the template from tennis ireland and complete the pages in the format below: Replace My Tennis Tournament with your tournament name and enter the correct date. Add or delete pages at the bottom to reflect the dates of the competition. Enter your competition name. Add (*) if the event is to be excluded from the ITN grading process i.e. handicap events. Enter the round or Single Match followed by the name(s) and TI PIN(s) in the format above. Team 1 winner(s) and team 2 loser(s) followed by the score. Page 4
See the following chapter Tennis Ireland Tournament Loader to attach the results to individual accounts on the Tennis Ireland. Page 5
Chapter 4 Tournament Planner results Tournament Planner The player records must be entered with the Tennis Ireland PIN in the Member ID field. These results will not be automatically recorded against the NPD accounts but must be appended using a separate procedure (see subsequent sections). Process all the matches in the normal way, following the procedures and options within Tournament Planner. Page 6
Preparing results from a Tournament Planner tournament Two files are required from a Tournament Planner competition. The first is the results file reflecting each match played on a given day. The second file is the player file and this allows the system to match details if a Tennis Ireland PIN is not available. file Click on Report Matches Matches Select all competition days in left panel Select Event, Round, Team 1, Team 2, Score in the right panel Select Member ID in the Extra drop-down box below the right panel Select Excel and the Save As option will display as below. The Tournaments folder will be located as a sub-folder of My Documents. Click Save. Page 7
The saved Excel spreadsheet shows the results of matches on a day-by-day basis. The individual days are presented as tabs at the bottom of the spreadsheet. Each entry includes a tournament description, date, event name, team 1 (winners) and team 2 (losers) along with the result. Page 8
Player file Click on Report->Players->Players Click All to select all the players. Click OK Click All Click Excel Save the Excel file Page 9
Close the Tournament Planner application by selecting Tournament and then Exit. Navigate to the Tournaments folder in MyDocuments to view the two files created, if you wish. The files will be used during the Tournament Load process. This is a separate application. See the following chapter Tennis Ireland Tournament Loader to attach the results to individual accounts on the Tennis Ireland. Page 10
load process Select the Tennis Ireland Tournament application on your desktop or in All Programs and enter your login credentials. These will be the same as you use to access the. Click Select Tournament to proceed. The files for players and results or in the case of League, the results file only, should be available in My Documents or a subfolder within My Documents. Both examples are listed in the sections below. Page 11
Loading tournament results (Tournament Planner) If you are entering results from Tournament Planner, select Tournament and locate the results and player files in My Documents/Tournaments. Click... to the right of the Player File description, navigate to My Documents and the folder containing the results of your tournament. Select the Player file and click Open. Page 12
Locate and select the results file for your tournament and click Open Click Load. The validation program will examine the file and validate the information. The validation process will check for correct dates, clear score definitions, player names, TI number, etc. Page 13
Load errors Errors that are identified on either the player or results file should be corrected in Tournament Planner. The process to create the Excel files should then be re-run. The common errors that can be checked in Tournament Planner during the competition include: Correct entry and fully completed results Players nominated as male/female Club details completed accurately Incorrect TI PIN or Junior code Page 14
ITN Grading Once the file is accepted, the matches are compared to standard definitions (Mens Singles, Ladies Doubles, etc) and nominated for acceptance for ITN Grading purposes. Only nominated competitive matches can be used for grading purposes. For confirmation purposes, the individual match details can be viewed. Upload to Review each event and match it to the standard description (see below). Once the various values have been entered and verified, click Upload Tournament to transfer the results to the National Player Database. Page 15
Chapter 5 League League results are recorded using the Tennis Ireland League Management Module. Please refer to the separate publication on this topic. Preparing results from League Management At the conclusion of the League campaign, locate the file RESULTS.DBF in the C:\NPD folder. Rightclick the file, select Open With and select Excel. Save the file to My Documents as RESULTS.XLSX (or a memorable name). See the following chapter Tennis Ireland Tournament Loader to attach the results to individual accounts on the Tennis Ireland. Page 16
load process Select the Tennis Ireland Tournament application on your desktop or in All Programs and enter your login credentials. These will be the same as you use to access the. Click Select Tournament to proceed. The files for players and results or in the case of League, the results file only, should be available in My Documents or a folder within My Documents. Page 17
Loading League results Click Select Tournament then League if you are entering the results from a League campaign. Locate the results file RESULTS.XLSX - in My Documents. Click Load The validation program will examine the file and validate the information. The validation process will check for correct dates, clear score definitions, player names, TI number, etc. Page 18
Load errors If an error is identified, the process will stop and explain the error. Errors can be corrected on the Excel file and saved. In this particular example, the process stopped when it encountered a player with a surname (only) entered. The original match sheet was examined and the name changed on the Excel sheet. Some invalid dates were also encountered and these were also corrected. Press Select Tournament and Load again (this process can be run as many times as is necessary). Page 19
Duplicate entries During the entry process, it is possible that the results has already been loaded by the opposing team. If this is the case, the entry source will be noted in red in the left panel and the results will be identical. Select ignore results in this instance. In certain circumstances, two teams will play each other again within the same competition. In this case, the match details will be different and the option to add results to meeting should be selected. Continue through the panels to correctly identify the option relevant to each entry and select Apply Changes. Page 20
ITN Grading Once the file is accepted, the matches are compared to standard definitions (Mens Singles, Ladies Doubles, etc) and nominated for acceptance for ITN Grading purposes. Only nominated competitive matches can be used for grading purposes. For confirmation purposes, the individual match details can be viewed. Review each event and match it to the standard description (see below). Page 21
Upload to Once the events have been matched, select Upload Tournament to transfer the results to the specific NPD accounts. for players who do not have a Tennis Ireland PIN will be held in a separate table for future matching these are known as Ghost players. When you see the message Tournament Upload Complete, close all windows and log in to your account and verify that the results have loaded correctly. Page 22
Chapter 6 ITN grading calculation Type of system: The recommended ITN Calculation Formula system is a head-to-head system. Which matches count towards the ITN? It is recommended that only matches recognised by the national, regional, provincial association and or club count towards the ITN i.e. so called official matches. These matches can take place in a tournament, in a team-competition or a club-match. Official matches should be played under the Tennis Ireland Rules of Tennis. So, if players want to have an ITN that is re-evaluated according to their match results, they should participate in competitions using match formats within the Tennis Ireland Rules of Tennis. When does the ITN calculation system start? Players will get their first ITN on the basis of their most recent competitive history or by participating in an ITN On-Court Assessment conducted by an authorised person. From then onwards their ITN rating will be decided by results in official competitions or in the case of recreational players ITN 10 to ITN 7 by completing additional ITN On-Court Assessments. Who deals with the results of these matches? The tournament directors, referees or coaches should collect the results and submit them to the Tennis Ireland. How often should the ITN rating be calculated? The ITN rating should be calculated at least once a year. However, it is recommended to calculate the rating twice a year or every three months. Obviously, how often the rating is calculated will depend on the number of players participating as well as on the means available. Is there a minimum number of matches required to get an ITN rating? It is recommended that the minimum of matches within the period of evaluation should be 6, but fewer matches are possible. What about defaults and walkovers? In an effort to avoid players giving walkovers on a regular basis, players winning by walkovers should not be given points for these wins. In addition, if a player gives more than 3 walkovers in a year they should be penalised. What if a player does not compete? Page 23
Players who do not compete at all for more than a year will need to be rerated. How does the calculation formula work? The ITN Calculation is processed within the (NPD) framework. The result of the calculation shows the player s new ITN rating. For a win against a player of his own rating, a player gets + 1 point For a win against a player of one rating band higher, a player gets + 2 points For a win against a player of two rating categories higher, a player gets + 3 points etc. For a loss against a player of his own rating, a player gets - 1 point For a loss against a player of one rating band lower, a player gets - 2 points For a loss against a player of two rating categories lower, a player gets - 3 points etc. For a win against a player one or more rating categories lower or a loss against a player one or more rating categories higher, no points are given because these wins or losses are expected. NEW ITN RATING = (ACTUAL ITN) - (TOTAL POINTS NUMBER OF MATCHES) To calculate points won when playing doubles, add together the ITNs of the two opponents (Opponent 1 and Opponent 2) and subtract the ITN of the partner (D = B + C- A). The value obtained represents the opponents combined doubles ITN and can be treated in the same way as that of a singles opponent. The singles formula can then be used as normal to calculate the points won. This gives the National association the ability to maintain separate spreadsheets for singles and doubles or combine them on the same spreadsheet. The results in doubles will then count towards the singles ITN of each player. Page 24
Recommended ITN calculation formula Page 25
Chapter 7 Privacy Policy www.tennisireland.ie This privacy policy sets out how Tennis Ireland uses and protects any information that is provided to Tennis Ireland. Tennis Ireland is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Should we ask you to provide certain information by which you can be identified when using this website, and then you can be assured that it will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement. Tennis Ireland may change this policy from time to time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to ensure that you are happy with any changes. This policy is effective from 1 st November 2009. What we collect We may collect the following information: name and club membership details contact information including email address International Tennis Number (ITN) information including tournament, league and club results other information relevant to playing the game of tennis What we do with the information we gather We require this information to support the centralised record keeping in relation to the ITN and the playing of social and/or competitive tennis and in particular for the following reasons: Internal record keeping We may use the information to improve our offerings and services. We may periodically send information which we think you may find interesting using the email address which you have provided. From time to time, we may also use your information to contact you for market research purposes. We may contact you by email, phone, fax or mail. We may use the information to customise the website according to your interests and feedback. Page 26
Security We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect online. Links to other websites Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question. Controlling your personal information You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways: whenever you are asked to fill in a form on the website, look for the box that you can click to indicate that you do not want the information to be used by anybody for direct marketing purposes if you have previously agreed to us using your personal information for direct marketing purposes, you may change your mind at any time by writing to or emailing us at info@tennisireland.ie We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission or are required by law to do so. We may use your personal information to send you promotional information about third parties which we think you may find interesting if you tell us that you wish this to happen. You may request details of personal information which we hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1988 and 2003. A small fee will be payable. If you would like a copy of the information held on you please write to info@tennisireland.ie If you believe that any information we are holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to or email us as soon as possible, at the above address. We will promptly correct any information found to be incorrect. Page 27
What is a QR code? A QR code looks like this: A QR Code (it stands for "Quick Response") is a smart phone or tablet readable bar code that can store website URL's, plain text, phone numbers, email addresses and pretty much any other alphanumeric data. Storing up to 4296 characters they are internationally standardised under ISO 18004, so a QR code is a QR code all over the world - they've been big in Japan forever, broke into Europe and the UK a few years back, and are now getting real traction in USA. Think "print-based hypertext links" and you'll get the idea. Install the free app Qrafter to scan QR Codes if you have an iphone or ipad and use the free i-nigma bar-code reader for Android. To use the app, target the QR code using the phone camera and the associated web page will open automatically. Tennis Ireland will use more QR codes on its publications to allow smart-phone and tablet users faster access to relevant web pages. Page 28