Singles Ladder.
The Singles Ladder is for those members looking for competitive singles play.
How high can you climb?!
News and Updates
2024 registration date TBA
Player Rating
Players must have an NTRP rating assessed by one of our club professionals in order to participate in HPTC’s programs including teams, ladders, lessons, and the year-end tournament.
If you have not received a rating or would like a reassessment, please refer to the Ratings Policy section in the Member's Area for more information on how to register for a rating session.
How to sign up
Go to “Register for Adult Programs” of your club account to sign-up.
Ladders
Coed Singles NTRP rating up to 3.5.
Coed Singles NTRP rating 4.0 and up.
Women’s Open
Cost
$5 per season.
Booking court time
Challengers book the court unless players agree otherwise.
The club's standard Ball Policy is in effect.
Booking a ladder match is exactly like how you would book regular singles play and follows the token policy.
It is your responsibility to manage your booking tokens to make sure that you get to play all your matches.
TennisRungs
HPTC uses TennisRungs to manage the ladders. An account with TennisRungs is required in order to participate.
Opening an account and use of TennisRungs is free of charge.
Please enter your NTRP rating in lieu of the USTA rating in TennisRungs on the registration form.
TennisRungs is where you will issue challenges, enter scores, track matches/rankings and more.
There is also a free mobile app for players. Download for free in the Google Play and Apple App Stores.
Open your TennisRungs account here!
How to Play
You may issue 2 challenge(s) at a time.
You can only accept one challenge at any given time. This prevents outstanding challenges from accumulating against you.
You may challenge up to 10 spots above or below your current ranking.
If the challenge is successful, you will take the spot of the person you challenge if they are ranked above you and your opponent will be bumped down 1 spot.
If you hold a wildcard, you may challenge anyone above you.
An additional wildcard will be granted after 5 matches have been played.
If challenged, you will have 3 days to "Accept" or "Deny" the challenge or the challenge will be considered a "forfeit" and the challenger will be granted the win.
By accepting a challenge, you agree to play the challenge within 7 days after the date of acceptance.
If you cannot play within 7 days, simply "Deny" the challenge and the challenger will be rewarded the win and can move on.
If a challenge is accepted and not played within 7 days, it will expire and the challenge will be deleted from the system and will have to be re-issued. Since rankings continually change, a re-challenge may not be possible.
A player must wait 7 days before re-challenging the same player.
TennisRungs.com is setup to automatically "drop" inactive players. The current auto-drop rules are as follows:
AFTER 21 days of no activity - player will be dropped 5 spots.
AFTER 42 days of no activity - player will be dropped 5 more spots.
AFTER 63 days of no activity - player will be dropped out of the ladder.
Your ladder admin is HPTC Court Managers and can be emailed at info@howardparktennis.com if you have any questions.
*Rules of the ladders may change as we collect player feedback and identify improvements.
Match Rules
Format
Each match is a 60-minute pro-set which is first to win 8 games, by a margin of 2 (e.g. 8 – 6). If the match is tied at 8 – 8, a 7-point tiebreaker is played to a two-point advantage; e.g. 9 – 8 ( 13 – 11).
Matches can be in any alternate formats as long as both players agree. However, it must be completed on the scheduled day and the score must be entered as an 8 game pro-set.
Lateness
If an opponent is late by 5 minutes or less, they begin the match down 1 game.
If they are between five to 10 minutes late, they begin the match down 2 games.
If they are over 10 minutes late, a default loss is recorded.
Serves
If playing a pro-set, each player gets first in, to a maximum of 5 attempts, for their first 2 service points.
Deuces
If playing a pro-set, the second deuce point is sudden death with the receiver choosing which side to receive the serve.
FAQs
What happens if my opponent doesn’t show up because he/she thought the weather didn’t look favourable or the courts were too wet for play?
If weather is ever in question, both players should call the on-duty Court Manager to get a ruling on if the courts are suitable for play. If a player did not check with the Court Manager and chose not to show up for the match, a default win will be awarded to the player left waiting.
What happens if it begins to rain at the beginning/during match?
Check with the staff to determine if the courts are suitable for play. If they are not, and a minimum of 5 games total have been played then the leading player is considered the winner. If less than 5 games, then agree to the current score, re-book to a mutually agreeable time, and continue the match where you left off.
If the match cannot be completed within 7 days the challenge will expire and the match will be cancelled. In order to play the match, the challenge will have to be issued again though changes in ranking may not make it possible to do so.
What happens if we run out of time?
Whichever player is leading, is the winner. In case of a tie, play a sudden death point.
Still have questions?
Please contact the Programs Director.