Why Play UTR?

by: Mike Sprouse/TennisCT

At TennisCT, across Fairfield County and southern Connecticut, we have seen the benefits of Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) and what it brings to the sport. We think it is an important system for players of all levels to get acquainted with. Other sports have similar concepts - like the GHIN, or handicap index, for golf. UTR is similar for tennis.

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Across the network of tennis clubs that we're affiliated with, we've seen UTR become a necessary part of people's lives over the past year. The stress relief benefits, the ability to get out of the house for a period of time, and the natural social distance of the sport have all been welcome additions in people's normal routines.

UTR has been around for quite a while but only relatively recently has become more of a mainstay in recreational circles around here. It's been used on the college level nationally for a long time, and to some extent on the high school level. In Connecticut, we've seen it catch relative fire lately on all levels especially with kids. There are good reasons why:

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  • It complements USTA ratings and match play. In fact, USTA results are incorporated into UTR's rating system. We've seen a number of players that are new to UTR be surprised that they actually already have a UTR without knowing it (based on their prior USTA play).

  • Flexible formats: depending on the venue and type of event, matches could be traditional two out of three sets, or they could be something else like Fast Four. The variety helps fight against the same formats becoming stale.

  • Tighter Match & Event Scheduling: With many UTR events, there is a finite time commitment - not necessarily an entire weekend like some tournaments. Some events require only a two or three-hour commitment while still guaranteeing two matches. In the craziness of most people's lives, this structure is incredibly helpful.

  • It's universal (obviously): One of the goals of UTR is to match tennis players up competitively regardless of age or gender. This potentially creates discomfort when first signing up to play UTR events...until the first few points are played. Then, it's obvious that no matter what the profile is of the person you're playing against, you're bound to have a competitive match if your UTR ratings are comparable. That’s the thing - UTR naturally increases the pool of people you can play with competitively.

  • It's fun: Playing tennis that actually counts for something is more fun. With UTR, every game counts towards your rating. So, if you're losing a set 5-0, scratching out that game or two actually does matter.

  • It's global: One of the cool things about the rating system is that you can compare your level to every other tennis player in the world - even the professionals.

If you're not familiar with UTR, check out more information on it here. See you on the courts soon!