OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE ONTARIO TENNIS ASSOCIATION

|

Home / Players / Compete / Rogers First Set Tour Rising Stars / Rising Stars Overview

Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars Overview

The aim of the Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars is to create a competitive environment for the more advanced U9 and U10 junior competitors while still encouraging participation. Competitors who meet these requirements are:

  • More experienced players who have competed in at least three to five U8/U9/U10 Rogers First Set Tour - Rookie tournaments (this is a level-based recommendation)
  • Players who are looking to enhance their competitive experience and meet the Whole Player Development Pathway (WPDP).

Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars offers tournaments across the province allowing players to compete regularly and accumulate points in a yearly points race*. Rising Stars tournaments is designed to reward participation alongside tournament results.

Please find more details on the points race* below

OTA Rising Stars Tournament Overview

Event U9 U10
Ball Orange Ball Green Ball
Court ¾ court Full court
Scoring Two short sets of up to 4 games. A 5-point tiebreak will be played at 3 games all. A 5-point match tiebreak will be played at one set to decide the match. Scoring may be adjusted for the indoor season.
Draw Format Round robin with playoff or Compass Draw
Draw Boys and Girls combined draw Boys and Girls on separate draw*

*Draws may be combined in the event of insufficient players to make a draw.

**In the Rising Stars tournaments**, girls and boys will be combined in one draw in order to guarantee 3 matches and fill the draws accordingly.

Tournament Registration

An active OTA Junior membership is required to register for Rising Stars.

Click HERE to sign up for an OTA Junior membership. Be sure to send proof of age to ota@tennisontario.com to get your account validated. Birth certificate, passport, or health card are acceptable proof of age.

For more information regarding the OTA membership, click HERE

Finding Rising Stars Tournaments

Click HERE to look for Rising Stars tournaments in Ontario. Enter Rising Stars in the Search engine to filter Rising Stars events.
Parents are asked to review the Tournament information in the blue message box located on the tournament page. The tournament information box contains important and general information regarding the tournament. Each tournament page is different, and they may contain different information pertaining to the respective host club.

Acceptance To Draws

Due to the limited court availability of host clubs, only a certain number of players can be accepted to the draw.

*Click here for the most updated acceptance criteria pertaining to the current Tournament policies and procedures.

Draw Format

 Compass Draw Format

  • In a full draw of 16, only the Main Draw is played out.
  • For all other sub draws, they will be played until the Consolation Semi Finals to ensure 3 matches are offered to each player.
  • In the event of an uneven draw, more than 3 matches may be offered to some players.

Round Robin and Playoff Format

  • Round Robin draw of 4 players is used to ensure 3 matches are offered to each player.
  • Once the Round Robin draws have been completed. The winner of each respective box is then placed in an elimination playoff draw. This elimination draw is played out until we have a champion.
  • Round Robin Competition: In the event of a tie in the round robin box, the following is used to break the tie:
    • If two players are tied with the same number of wins, the tie is broken by head-to-head between the two players.
    • If three players are tied in the number of match wins,

                        - The difference between the total of sets won and sets lost are calculated. (Head-to-head is then used if two players are still tied.
                        - If still tied the difference between the total of games won and games lost is calculated. (Head-to-head is then used if two players are still tied.
                        - If in such a case the players are all still tied, there will be a lottery draw to decide the box winner.

Match Format

All matches will be best of three short sets up to 4 games with no-ad scoring. A 5-point tiebreak will be played at 3 games all. In the event of one set-all, a 5-point match tiebreak will be played to decide the match. Scoring may be adjusted for the indoor season.

Note: All tiebreaks must be won by a margin of 2 points.

Tournament Schedule

Tournaments can be played in one full day or played over two days depending on the draw size, draw format, and court availability.

Note:  Rest times between matches do not apply to Rising Stars due to the modified scoring format as opposed to regular scoring formats. Competitors may however fill up their water bottles, grab a snack and/or go to the washroom before their next match.

Points Race*

Participation points 20 points for each tournament played. When flights are used for the indoor season, 10 points are rewarded to the Top Flight winner, andf 5 points to all other Flight winners.
 Points per match win 10 points for each match won
Points per draw (tie) 5 points to both players when it is a tie in score
Points when a bye is received  10 points per player

There will be 4 separate leaderboards (BU10, GU10, BU9, GU9) that players can accumulate points in. The leaderboard will be updated 1-2 weeks after the event has taken place. 

The Ottawa region has its own leaderboard (U9, U10) that players can accumulate points based on their results in Ottawa based events.

Prizes

Rising Stars Competitors will each receive a Rising Stars tournaments prize

Prizes are awarded once a player completes their first and third event throghout the year.

The OTA will host a year-end Top 5 player awards banquet at the end of calendar year.

Fair Play Award:

The Fair Play award is an OTA program that rewards one Rising Stars competitor per month for their exemplary conduct during tournaments.

  • Each month the winner will be awarded a Fair Play Certificate and a Cineplex gift card.
  • Only one individual is selected from Rising Stars tournaments in Ontario each month. (Includes GTA & Ottawa; U9 & U10; Boys & Girls)

The selection process

  • Competitors are nominated by tournament directors.
  • Nominations are then reviewed by the player development team and a winner for the month is declared.

Criteria to qualify for this award:

  • Outstanding sportsmanship during matches
  • Applauding your opponent’s good shots
  • Calling out the score when serving
  • Shaking your opponent's hand after the match
  • Maintaining your composure during matches: avoid emotional outbursts.
  • Making accurate and fair line calls
  • Ability to manage your scores (avoid scoring disputes)
  • Avoiding code violations

OTA Code of Conduct: Failure to Play

Click here.

Parent Info

At the OTA it is our goal to ensure that tennis parents and coaches are educated on how to support their child and others during tournament play. Please find some helpful pointers listed below.

  • It is encouraged that all parents clap for good efforts and good points for all players.
  • NO COACHING ALLOWED during matches.
  • NO OUTSIDE OFFICIATING ALLOWED. This includes line calls and scoring. It’s the player’s responsibility to learn these skills. If there are any disputes on court, it’s the player’s responsibility to call for the tournament director or court monitor.
  • Parents are not to communicate with their children during a match. Should they need to pass a water bottle or anything else, they must do so through the Tournament director or roving umpire.
  • It is the parent’s responsibility that the child is at the location of the event 15 minutes before the start time.
  • Clapping on player’s mistakes will not be tolerated.
  • Parents need to ensure that payment has been made at the tournament desk and that the child has checked in for the event prior to their match.

We appreciate your cooperation and support regarding this matter. For more information on Fair Play, please refer to the OTA’s Code of Conduct.

Tennis Canada Rulebook: Rules of the Court

Click here.

Player & Parent Resources 

Parents are asked to familiarize themselves with the information regarding the Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars and tournament regulations before registering their child for a tournament. 

  • Tennis Matchplay 101 – click here
  • Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars: Player & Parent Checklist – click here.
  • Tips for Parents – click here

If you would like to provide feedback on the Rogers First Set Tour - Rising Stars, please complete our survey. This short survey will take approximately five minutes to complete. 

If you have any other questions or concerns regarding the Rogers First Set Tour – Rising Stars tournaments, please email David Fanor at otatournaments@tennisontario.com