UTR Tennis Tournaments (in Britain or with British Players)

Elegant Point · Satellite level

UTR Tennis Tournaments (in Britain)

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

The Brighton UTR event will take place 6-9 April.

Shout out to the ISE Language School there who are sponsoring it and bumping up the prize money to £300 for the winner, £150 to runner-up and a week's training package (flights included) at one of the Spanish academies for the top U18 player

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

That's quite an inspiring prize for the top junior

Progress Tour · Improver

Hi Forum Posters

I was looking for something online and stumbled across this thread... I had no idea!

Happy to answer any questions relating to the UTR system, Prize Money events and The Progress Tour itself...

Some exciting prize Money events on the horizon and some smaller one day events which makes events more accessible to juniors and adult club players on a more local level.

Info on these and more www.fb.me/TheProgressTour

Elegant Point · Satellite level

Question for Progress Tour

Whilst I am all for a method to ensure competitive matches in a local environment, UTR has chosen to use a secret, proprietary algorithm to assign personally identifiable numeric scores to tennis players, some of whom may not have consented to their data being used in this way. The data is used not just to allow people to find competitive matches locally, but to determine scholarship and education opportunities etc. Tennis associations e.g. LTA requires players to sign up and provides ratings and rankings that are transparent and non-proprietary and I see no reason why the UTR algorithm/rating system needs to be secret.

I would be interested to hear your views on the UTR algorithm and its uses.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

At the UTR Sutton Progress Tour this week:

"Champ Jack Molloy scoops the title after a hard fought champ-breaker victory of Giles Hissey to take the trophy and the £800 Winners Cheque!"

Semi-finalists were Brandon Murphy and Nick Brookes

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

More Barry Fulcher Retweeted Barry Fulcher
UTR Prize Money Event

Just 5 Days left to enter!

Main Draw 2nd & 3rd August

Male Champ takes the £2500 top Prize!
Female Champ would scoop £3250 for the title!

Flexibility given to Ladies competing in the $25k UK event!

JonH · All-time great

Ok, gonna plead ignorance. I know UTR is some sort of tennis rating system but why do they need to create a separate tour and what is the point of said tour?

I am afraid it has escaped me completely!

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

JonH wrote:
Ok, gonna plead ignorance. I know UTR is some sort of tennis rating system but why do they need to create a separate tour and what is the point of said tour?

I am afraid it has escaped me completely!

OK. THis is as much as I know: the men and women play together (i.e. against each other i.e. every one in one big draw). And the UTR rating acts like a handicap, so the weaker players play first and then move up to the middle ones and then the best. SO you get a staggered, progressive draw.

This is the way domestic rankings and tournaments work in Europe - it's far better - it guarantees everyone at least a couple of decent matches, one just below your level, one just above.... so it's more fun and you get more entrants.I think they are also more flexible in approach in general, less snotty, more fun. The UTR is also recognised by the US college system so some youngsters are playing for their ranking as part of their application.

Personally, it seems a great idea and far more interesting than the British Tour (the only other possibility) where you can come up against the top seed in round one and there's hardly any money.

And anything which gives tennis players more chance to play, especially players across the board, and more money is a gift from heaven.

More power to their elbow, I say ! Shows the LTA there's a demand that's been ignored.

Born2WinTennis · Club Coach

These UTR events seem to be aimed at the best players in the country, with high levels of prize money. I wonder why no one has ever run them as recreational competitions, aimed at middle of the road club players.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Born2WinTennis wrote:
These UTR events seem to be aimed at the best players in the country, with high levels of prize money. I wonder why no one has ever run them as recreational competitions, aimed at middle of the road club players.

I'm not sure that s quite right. The entry level goes right down to very much club players and I think there are certain prizes along the way (seem to remember that but haven't checked again)

Oakland2002 · All-time great

JonH wrote:
Ok, gonna plead ignorance. I know UTR is some sort of tennis rating system but why do they need to create a separate tour and what is the point of said tour?

I am afraid it has escaped me completely!

Because it makes Universal Tennis some money like everything in Tennis somebody is making a buck!!

They are in cohorts with college tennis you scratch my back Ill scratch yours and yes Tennis becomes even more inaccessible to those that arent part of the status quo.

indiana · Tennis legend

Seeing a gap that could be filled / making a buck does not mean that they are not a useful addition to the tennis scene.

Oakland2002 · All-time great

And that would be the view of the establishment.

Generally it is the view that permeates Tennis and is killing soccer as it is called in the US and not mine, I speak as someone who pays to facilitate my kids to access Tennis purely with a view to playing the game properly not internationally, they play other sports at equivalent or better levels at a fraction of the price. Why doI bother?

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Not sure I quite see the argument.

The parent who posted somewhere else on here said that they'd given up trying to get an ITF ranking (too expensive) and were focusing on the UTR one - far cheaper and simpler.

Now, that's a parent of a very good player (presumably) so not your average club player.

But at least it's serving a purpose for them, and in a way that the LTA doesn't.

That's not to say that there's not room for lots more different sorts of competition - the more the better - but I think the British Tour system is SO feeble as seemingly the only singles events for adults that give ranking points (I tried really hard to find any others and gave up) that I think any other competitions at all should be welcomed.