Coaches--What Do You Do When Your Player Gets Overruled?

The most contentious moments in an ITA match always seem to occur right after a player has been overruled.  The player either erupts into some fit or the coach tries to outdo him/her and makes a fool out of themselves.

The one thing you need to ALWAYS REMEMBER--a chair official is not going to change their overrule now matter how much you rant, rave, whine, belittle, or howl.  In fact, if one of our officials lets a coach get them to change their call, they would never work for me again...

Here are some options for coaches to consider during this monstrous moment of decision:

*  Yell to the top of your lungs.  Just have to hope that your wife/husband and kids don't see you.

*  Berate the official as loudly as you can and call into doubt their birthright, existence, and mental capacities.  This always makes a great impression on everyone at the tennis center and actually turns the focus on the coach instead of the official.

*  Yell and scream and then whisper to the chair official, "I really agree with you but I need to show my player that I support them."  This has happened to me on numerous occasions and I always want to ask, "Your player knows he cheated and now he has you to stand with him.  How is that working out for both of you?"

*  Throw water on the chair official.  The results might surprise you...

*  Spit on the shoes of the chair official.  This one is especially adult isn't it?

*  Lay on the ground and throw a fit.  I've actually seen this happen and I still remind that coach of how much he looked like a 2 year old throwing a tantrum.

*  Crawl up the fence and scream to the heavens.  First of all, you probably will cut your hands and second, the Lord probably doesn't want you in His Heaven.

*  Actually say and do nothing since the chair is most likely correct.  Your player actually knows if they made the right call and sometimes they are just baiting you to see what you will do.

*  Tell your player that the chair made the right call and to continue playing.  I know this might be asking a lot of some coaches but it actually is the right thing to do.

*  Tell the chair official, "You cannot possibly overrule on the far sideline or the baseline (while you are standing one court away and say you saw it clearly.)  Remember--you and your players don't get a free pass to cheat on the far sideline or the baseline.  I can also guarantee you that we can see those locations better from a chair 6 feet up in the air than you can standing behind us.

*  Actually accept the fact that your player made a bad call and move on.  Happens a whole lot more than you think--and I guarantee you that we respect those coaches above everyone else.

*  Don't tell an official that they blind as a bat.  We're not and never have been and never will be so get over it.

*  Please don't rush on to the court screaming, "That ball was a foot and a half out."  Even you could see one that far out so please don't accuse us of missing something like that.  It doesn't happen.

*  Please don't tell us that we are cheating for the home team and doing home cooking on every burner.  I've only really heard of that happening one time and it was north of the Red River...  The bottom line is that home officials are usually harder on the home players than the others.

*  Give the same respect to the chair official that we give to you.  It will go further than you can even imagine...

We are all in this sport because we love the game.  Now let's all move on and do the best we can to make it all work.

NOTE:  All of these examples come from real-life happenings.  Now just try to figure out which coach did what...  It might surprise you.

Like Father, Like Son----Like Coach, Like Team

In the past few weeks I have officiated a match where the team was an absolute abomination in their behavior and also one where the team was a model of integrity and character.  Just like the times that you see a family with one child that is a demon and another that is pure quality--what makes the difference?

There are a lot of things that go into developing character and integrity in a child--or in a tennis team.  It takes hard work, consistency, accountability, and pure grit.  Not all players learn quickly, if ever, and a lot respond immediately so it is up to the coach to find the right balance and stay with them until they produce a quality product.  The truth is that the team always takes on the personality (and values) of the coach.

Here are some thoughts to ponder in this discussion:

*  A team will radiate the values of the coach.  Any time we officiate a match with quality players, they always seem to have a quality coach.  Never fails...

*  A coach with ethics, values, and a strong sense of morality will always instill that in their players.

*  A quality coach doesn't permit his/her players to cheat on a consistent basis.  The other side of the coin is that a team that consistently cheats usually has a coach that either encourages it or ignores it.

*  You can't force-feed integrity.  It always comes through when they are able to see integrity in deeds, words, and attitudes and then emulate it in their behavior.

*  The sad thing is that a player who has no integrity usually has parents with very little or none and a coach with even less.

A female official recently got her nose all out of joint when I suggested taking a prospective official to lunch so you can get to know them and observe how they live their life out in public.  I still hold to that principle.

Spend a little time with the players and the coach and you will know where their level of integrity stands...  Never fails.  You can learn a lot from officiating their matches but mealtime is the best indicator of all.

Things Heard 'Round The Town...

Tennis officiating is a wonderful profession--and it even has its humorous moments...

Here are some things we have heard (and have been sent to us) over the years:

*  "Most of the ball missed the line."

*  "Coach, the more you yell at me, the worse my eyesight gets."  Probably not how I would phrase it but got the point across.

*  After hearing a coach yell across the court at the chair official, I heard the chair official yell this back at him, "You yell at me and I'm going to yell at you."

*  One coach said, "Don't be offended if I scream at you.  Its not personal."  I replied, "Then don't be offended if I code you.  Its not personal."

*  One chair official succinctly said, "40 apiece" when calling out the score. 

*  A player said, "You shouldn't call footfaults on me because I'm not going to net behind my serve."

*  One self-centered official once sat in the corner and pouted.  When asked what was wrong, she replied, "I'm mad because I didn't get to chair the #1 singles match."

Just goes to show you--if you keep your eyes and ears open you can hear and see most anything at a tennis tournament.

Officials Drought--How Do We Overcome It?

If anyone is familiar with tennis officiating they know we are in a dire drought when it comes to having enough quality officials.  In the USTA world we are seeing tournaments officiated by under-qualified officials on a regular basis and everyone just keeps complaining and asking why.  In the ITA world we have quite a few highly qualified officials but not nearly enough to go around when there are a lot of matches that need officials.

This has always been an issue with tennis officiating but one that we have been successful in sweeping under the rug and just going on with what we have--but that day is coming to an end.  When parents and players pay huge entry fees for USTA tournaments they have every right to expect quality officiating so its time for us to begin some difficult decisions.    ITA coaches expect (and rightfully so) officials who are qualified, experienced, and prepared to properly officiate their matches.  Due to the drought, I have observed USTA officials working tournaments they have no business inflicting their lack of training, knowledge, and experience on the unsuspecting public.  In the ITA world, I have seen coordinators have to put inexperienced officials in matches where they should never be officiating--and all because we don't have enough officials to meet the need.

We all ask--what do we do?  I'm not totally sure of all the answers, but here are some suggestions for us to begin to deal with the drought...

*  Develop a system of much more accountability among officials.  When an official continually makes poor or bad decisions, they need to be held accountable.  Unfortunately we have too many referees who just ignore ineptness to keep the boat sailing.  In the collegiate world, there is more accountability because you have a referee who personally observes an official in the chair (along with at least 4 other officials) so mistakes and errors can be dealt with quickly.

*  Re-examine our testing process for officials.  Just taking an online exam and watching a few webinars doesn't automatically ensure a good official.  Its a start but there needs to be more much more stringent requirements for an official.

*  Strengthen our on-court training.  Many USTA officials are just shoved out onto a court with no prior training or shadowing and then we wonder why we have problems.  I personally require an official to have done at least 10 training chairs before I ever even consider hiring them--and sometimes I don't think that's enough.

*  Develop a "buddy system" for strengthening new and weaker officials.  Pair them up with an experienced official who knows how to teach and train and not belittle and disrespect them.  Usually an inept official knows down deep that they are inept but don't really know how to rise up and improve.

*  Since pay is an issue, do your best to compensate everyone fairly.  I never ask someone to do USTA training with me without paying them the standard rates.  After all, they are certified so do a little on-job training with pay and there should be an improvement.  In the ITA world, an official may have to do a few chairs without pay but the referee should do his/her best to get them into the paying world as soon as possible.

*  Referees need to step up to the plate and do their job.  This is a job and not a fraternity/sorority where we hug, kiss, and drink beer together.  We are paid to do a job and we should expect quality officiating from our officials.  If they are inept, call them on the carpet and do something about it.

*  Tournament directors need to do their fair share too.  Quit complaining about how much the officials cost and start demanding quality out of those you employ.  Noone loves working for a tournament director who is late with their payments, complains about how much they are paying officials, tries to get them to work beyond their shift without pay, and cuts out their lunch or brings them a hamburger that even a starving indigent wouldn't touch.  Make the workplace better and you should see the quality improve.

No one thing will cure the drought but if we all work together, it can be done!  I hope we can count on you because we need a fresh drink of water in the officiating world.