The Rules of Tennis
This week we have stumbled onto what may be the most meta part of the USTA Friend at Court handbook. In essence, the USTA Comment against the “Amendment of the Rules of Tennis” section in the ITF Rules of Tennis, explains why the USTA makes comments rather than modifications to the rules.
The ITF, not the USTA, is responsible for the Rules of Tennis. Amendments to the Rules of Tennis are made through the procedures of the ITF. Rule 69 of the ITF controls the manner in which amendments may be made to the Rules of Tennis. Amendments to USTA Comments are made by the process described in USTA Regulation XIX.I.
ITF Rules of Tennis, Amendment to the Rules of Tennis, USTA Comment
This site has previously touched on the fact that the IFT rather than the USTA owns the Rules of Tennis. The USTA can petition the ITF for rules updates, but cannot unilaterally change them. The ITF has processes and procedures outlined for how the rule updates are made. It’s… a big bureaucracy.
The fact that the USTA has republished the ITF Rules of Tennis in the Friend at Court handbook has created an ongoing referential conundrum for this site. I am sure my English teacher friends grimace every time I stumble through the citations of excerpts from the ITF Rules of Tennis and the USTA Friend at Court handbook. On my own meta front, I should probably create a style guide for this site and try to follow it.
If you are wired like me (and really, thank your lucky stars that you aren’t) the most interesting part of the USTA comment is the reference to Regulation XIX.I. To provide a frame of reference, the USTA Comment appears on page 19 of the USTA Friend at Court handbook. USTA Regulation XIX.I appears on page 147. USTA Regulation XIX.I pretty much says what the comment indicates. The USTA has bureaucratic procedures for making updates to the rules and regulations.
I.. probably won’t go into great detail on most of the USTA Regulations when we get to that point. However, there are a lot of ITF Rules of Tennis Appendices in our immediate future before we get there. Next week we will launch into Appendix I: The Ball.
- United States Tennis Association (2021), Friend at Court: Handbook of Rules and Regulations, White Plains, NY
