To kick off this weekend, I shared a recent personal experience of an official USTA match that was not stopped despite lightning sensor warnings as a thunderstorm approached. The natural culmination of this topic is an examination of the USTA policies and guidelines that apply to this situation. Since this match was played without officials, what a referee or umpire would have done in this situation is a purely academic exercise.
The USTA Friend at Court establishes that the Referee in charge of a site has the authority to suspend or postpone play. While lightning is not explicitly listed under the potential conditions where that may occur, weather and safety concerns are.
The Referee or Deputy Referee in charge of a site may suspend or postpone play when weather, inadequate light, surface conditions, health concerns, safety concerns, or other circumstances justify doing so.
USTA Friend at Court, USTA Regulations III.D
The USTA League National Regulations indicate that all matches are played following the rules outlined in the USTA Friend at Court. Other than that indirect reference, the USTA League Regulations are silent on weather. Similarly, the USTA Officiating Techniques and Procedures also make no mention of weather or lightning.
The strongest reflection of the USTA’s position on lightning comes in Part 4 of the USTA Friend at Court within the Emergency Care Guidelines section.
Lightning is a potential severe hazard and life-threatening consequence of an approaching storm near outdoor tennis matches. It is important to be prepared for immediate cessation of all matches or warm-up in the event of lightning. In essence, if lightning is sighted, stop all activity and direct everyone to seek appropriate shelter.
USTA Friend at Court, Part 4, USTA Emergency Care Guidelines, Thunderstorms and Lightning
It is important to note that Part 4 is labeled as guidelines rather than regulations. Guidelines are recommended best practices designed to provide direction and help inform decisions, but they are often flexible and leave room for interpretation. While an official on-site would have the latitude to make their own interpretation, this particular USTA guidance would tilt any decision toward the suspension of play.
Another source of the USTA’s position on lightning is reflected within the USTA National Campus Program Policies. While the rules and regulations associated with the National Campus are clearly not binding outside that context, it does serve as an example of what other facilities should consider for their own programs.
When the lightning alarm sounds, players should evacuate the courts and move to official shelter areas. Players may not leave shelter areas until the “ALL CLEAR” has sounded.
USTA National Campus Program Policies, 2024
The experience I shared to kick off this weekend was an official USTA League qualification tournament where warnings from the lightning detectors were ignored, and play continued. With no USTA officials on-site, the responsibility fell to the players and organizers, who arguably made the questionable non-decision to press on. Based on the USTA’s guidelines, play may have been stopped had an official been present. However, that is not certain.
In retrospect, I should have insisted that our match be suspended. Prioritizing safety shouldn’t be left to chance or the discretion of those unprepared to make the right call.
- Friend at Court: The Handbook of Tennis Rules and Regulations, USTA, 2024
- 2025 USTA League National Regulations, USTA Resource Document, April 14, 2024.
- USTA Officiating Techniques and Procedures, USTA Resource, 2024.
- USTA National Campus Program Policies, USTA Website, 2024, viewed November 9, 2024.
