Happy Labor Day!

Calendar of Events

Sep 6 9:00 am	Men-Only Ladder Wild Card
Sep 6 5:30 pm	Club Hosted BBQ *
Sep 17 Noon	Men's SMIL Match against Oakland Hills Tennis Club
Sep 20 5:30 pm	End of Season BBQ*

*Club Hosted BBQ: Club will provider grill items, soft drinks, beer and wine. Bring a dish to share and place settings

* End of Season BBQ: BYOB grill items, a dish to share and place settings

Women's Teams News:

The 2025-26 season for women's tennis begins in September. The Rossmoor women have two teams in the East Bay Women's Tennis League. We have a 50+ B1 level team and a 65+ A2 level team. The 50+ team is led by Carol Pillsbury and Yvonne Merrick and has 21 members. The 65+ team is led by Mary Benin and Terry Quinlan and has 17 members.

The 50+ league team will have their home matches on Mondays and will have a total of 7 matches at home between October 3rd, and March 9th. The 65+ league team will have their home matches on Fridays and will have a total of 8 home matches between October 6 and April 17th. All matches will start at 10:00 with the courts reserved at 9:30 for warm-ups.

We are excited to begin a new season of interclub play. We enjoy the competition and the chance to meet new players. Some of the players from visiting teams have become Rossmoor residents and members here, so having tennis players from the east bay play at our lovely facility is good advertising.

If you are someone who would be interested in finding out more about either team, please email Carol (cpillsbury1952@gmail.com) or Mary Benin (mary.benin@gmail.com).

The History of The Tiebreak....

Tennis tiebreakers were introduced to address the problem of excessively long sets that could theoretically continue indefinitely under the traditional scoring system. The modern tiebreaker was developed by Jimmy Van Alen and first used at the 1970 US Open, though it took several years for all major tournaments to adopt it. Initially, tournaments experimented with different formats, including sudden-death tiebreakers and best-of-nine-point systems, before settling on the current standard. Wimbledon was the last major to embrace the tiebreaker, finally introducing it in 1971 for all sets except the fifth set in men's matches and third set in women's matches, maintaining this tradition until 2019 when they adopted a first-to-seven tiebreaker at 12-12 in the final set.

The standard tiebreaker operates as a first-to-seven-points system, with the requirement that the winner must lead by at least two points. Players alternate serving after every point, with the first server delivering one serve, then the opponent serving the next two points, and this pattern continuing throughout. Serving switches from the deuce court to the advantage court and back with each serve. Players change ends after every six points to account for any court advantages like wind or sun. Some tournaments have adopted variations, such as the "super tiebreaker" or match tiebreaker (first to 10 points, win by two) used in doubles or as a decisive third-set replacement, while others employ different formats like the fast4 tennis scoring system that uses first-to-four tiebreakers at 3-3 in each set.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The Coman Tiebreak:

The main difference between the standard tiebreak and the Coman tiebreak lies in when players change ends during the tiebreak, while the scoring system remains identical. In both formats, players compete in a first-to-seven-points system (win by two), with the same serving rotation where the first player serves one point, then players alternate serving two points each. The scoring progresses numerically (1, 2, 3, etc.) rather than using traditional tennis scoring.

The key distinction is the changeover timing. In the standard tiebreak, players change ends after every six points and at the conclusion of the tiebreak. However, the Coman tiebreak has players change ends after the first point, then after every four points (at 1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, etc.), and at the end of the tiebreak. The common system was developed by players at the Balboa tennis club who realized it was unfair to wait six points before changing sides as this could give one player a significant advantage, if court conditions, like wind, sun, or surface of regularities favor, one end. Additionally, each server serves on the same side they served for the entire match. The more frequent changeovers in the Coman system help ensure more equitable playing conditions throughout the tiebreak.

Suggested Amendment to RTC Rules for Access and Use of Buckeye Tennis Court Complex

Court Courtesy Guidelines

We recognize that Courts 7 and 8 currently have playing surfaces that some members find challenging due to rougher, uneven conditions. To help ensure everyone gets quality court time while maintaining our spirit of community and fairness, we ask for your cooperation with the following courtesy guideline:

**When Courts 1-6 are in high demand:**

- Players who have enjoyed Courts 1-6 for **one hour** (singles) or **one hour and thirty minutes** (three or more players) are kindly asked to consider rotating to available courts when approached by waiting players

- This applies even when Courts 7 or 8 may be open, if the waiting players express a preference not to use those particular courts

This guideline helps balance court access while acknowledging that all players deserve an enjoyable tennis experience. We appreciate your understanding and continued cooperation in making our tennis community welcoming for everyone.

*Thank you for helping maintain the friendly, considerate atmosphere that makes our tennis complex special!*

Two "Friendly" Reminders:

Let's keep the wildlife off the courts...... please close the gates when finished playing.. . .. And, remember, the ball machine and equipment is only to be used by members who have paid the additional fees for its use, not by family members or friends.

Linda Hague, Publicity
Rossmoor Tennis Club