Fiend at Court Unplugged
Feed in Consolation through the Quarterfinals (FICQ) should be used for all National Level Amateur Tennis Tournaments. For anyone not familiar with that tournament format it is a close approximation of double elimination. A player who loses a match in the quarterfinals or earlier could still finish as high as 5th in the tournament. Players who lose in the semifinals play a match that decides 3rd and 4th. That is a significant match for a Bronze Ball in a National “Gold Ball” event.
“An Ode to the Back Draw” contains a detailed technical breakdown on why I think FICQ should be the preferred format. The next point from my recent letter to the USTA ACC committee echos many of the themes from that post and reiterates why Level 1 tournaments should be FICQ. As reminder, my letter was specific to Senior Women’s National Level Tournaments.
For additional context, the USTA is encouraging National Level Events to go to “Voluntary Consolation” for losers of the first match played. I think the remaining paragraphs supporting why they should actually be requiring FICQ stand on their own. Here they are without additional commentary.
FICQ Should Be Used for All Level 1 Tournaments (And… Really Level 2 and 3)
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC.
I understand that the concern for Back Draw withdrawals at some events is what is driving some of the changes to tournaments, specifically voluntary consolations. However, when solving a problem it is essential that the root cause of the issue be accurately identified before it can be solved. The primary driver for back draw drop outs is that there is not enough incentive for players to stick around and play that format. Voluntary consolations further reduces the incentives available to players and actually exacerbates the problem.
At a fundamental level, National Level 1 Tournaments have three sets of incentives for players: 1) Gold/Silver/Bronze Balls, 2) Ranking Points, and 3) Competitive Match Play. When a player loses a first round match, they have lost the opportunity to play for a Gold Ball. However, there is still an opportunity to achieve significant rankings points and competitive match play.
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Continued
That is not a hypothetical statement. Twice I have lost my first round match at a Cat 1 (now Level 1) tournament to fight all the way back to compete for 5th place. Along the way I achieved a lot of rankings points and played a ton of competitive tennis.
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Continued
First Round Consolation takes the rankings point incentives completely off the table. There simply aren’t enough rankings points available to induce players to stick around and play for that reason. Whether or not competitive match play in First Round Consolation is a function of players who lost in the first round and varies widely. Adding voluntary consolation to the mix further dilutes the competitive player pool.
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Continued
The level of competition effect can be observed in Junior tournaments where UTR ratings are a driving factor. I have had USTA tournament directors and a player describe to me the cascading withdrawals from junior First Round Consolation back draws. Without the incentive of rankings points, junior players are unwilling to play people with lower UTR ratings. The problem is worse for juniors than adults, but the solution is the same in either case.
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Continued
FICQ keeps a significant amount of rankings points on the table for National tournament competitors who lost a first round (or subsequent matches) in play. Additionally as the top players drop down from the main draw the possibility of competitive match play is preserved.
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Continued
If I could wave a magic wand to change one thing in the Adult tournament structure it is this: FICQ should be mandatory for Level 1 Tournaments. (And really level 2 and Level 3 as well. If players are traveling outside their section, FICQ should be the standard.)
Point 3 of my feedback letter to the USTA ACC Concluded
