College Tennis Rules

People all over the world play tennis at all levels, from novice to professional. At the college level, some schools sponsor varsity tennis teams, or tennis may be played as a club or intramural sport. College tennis at the varsity level is governed by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association and follows the same rules as the United States Tennis Association with some differences specific to college tennis, according to the ITA website. ITA and USTA adhere to the tennis rules established by the International Tennis Federation, the global governing body of tennis.

  1. Eligibility

    • Unique to college tennis players, eligibility rules outline who can and cannot play college-level varsity tennis. As stated on the National Collegiate Athletic Association website, college varsity athletes must adhere to strict requirements regarding age, amateur status, test scores, grades and academics. General requirements include a earning a high school diploma, maintaining a certain GPA and taking a certain number of credit hours each semester. The college division the athlete plays for determines the exact requirements as far as GPA and credit hours.

    Erroneous Calls

    • When a collegiate tennis player makes an erroneous call or is uncertain regarding the ball being out, the opponent receives the point. In other match play, a wrong or uncertain call is played over, states the USTA Rules Handbook.

    Lets

    • Typically, when a player serves the ball and it hits the net, the server receives a “let” or do over. Even if the ball lands in the correct service box after hitting the net, the server still takes a second turn. In Division I men’s tennis, however, if a serve hits the net and lands in the service box, the ball is in play.

    Foot Faults

    • Normally when serving, if a player crosses the service line before hitting the ball, the opposing player may call a foot fault. However, in college matches, foot faults may only be called by an umpire or line judge.

    Team Competition

    • During team competitions, ITA rules dictate that three doubles teams and six singles players may compete for each school. Singles matches consist of the best of three sets, while doubles play best of eight games. Each match won earns one point for that team and the school with four or more points wins the overall competition.