High school tennis players double as refs — honestly...

By Ray Brewer, Lasvegassun.

Jeremy Mann remembers watching the tennis ball fly toward the back line.

The ball had such spin and velocity that Mann couldn’t tell if his opponent’s shot landed in or out of play. So, the Palo Verde High tennis player did what he considered the right thing: He called the shot in to give his rival a point.

But this wasn’t your typical point.

It was match point of a crucial doubles match during the state finals last fall against Coronado High School. Mann easily could have ruled the shot out of bounds, likely not heard any complaints and given his team a point.

Instead, the Coronado doubles team rallied to beat Mann and his partner, taking a crucial point in what was a back-and-forth final. Palo Verde eventually prevailed 10-8 for its fourth state championship in the past six years.

As for Mann, win or lose, he’s happy with his decision.

“You don’t have time to think whether you are making a bad decision,” said Mann, a 17-year-old senior. “It’s a split-second decision. That shot was probably out, but it was too close to call. You have to be honest ... There is nothing worse than a cheater.”

Like the championship, all Nevada high school tennis matches are played without an umpire or linesmen. That puts the onus on the players to call their own lines — and athletes typically put the integrity of the sport ahead of their desire to win.

It’s easier said than done, with plenty of opportunity for conflict. But coaches and players report few problems with this long-standing tradition. Players calling their own lines is the practice on the junior circuit of the U.S. Tennis Association, a more competitive league several high school players participate in when the prep season ends.

“There aren’t too many sports in high school where there isn’t a referee,” Palo Verde coach Zach Brandt said. “But it’s never been a big issue. The children have been real good at solving their own problems.”

Forty Southern Nevada schools have about three matches weekly for their boys and girls teams during the two-month season. Most of the schools’ tennis complexes have eight courts, meaning more than 150 officials would be needed multiple afternoons each week.

That would be more than a typical Friday night of high school football or basketball, and something a majority of the tennis players agree isn’t necessary. A certain integrity is associated with tennis in which players take pride in the honesty of calling their own lines.

“It’s pretty standard what we ask the children to do. It’s not rocket science,” said Ray Mathis, the Clark County School District’s executive director of instructional support and student activities.

“It’s kind of an honest sport like golf where children learn the honor of good play, sportsmanship and following the rules.”

If a shot is close, like Mann’s, the golden rule is to always give your opponent the point. Most of the calls are verbal, and some players also raise their index fingers to signal a shot is out, or hold their hand open to signal the ball is in.

Players are taught to be patient during the heat of the match. The first time they think they have been cheated, the unwritten rule is to say nothing. If it happens again, they call over their coach.

In worse-case scenarios, the coach from each team will be called in to monitor the match. Coaches say that happens once or twice a year.

At the regional and state tournaments, where the intensity in an otherwise laid-back sport is at its peak, three or four volunteers from the tennis community roam from court to court, officiating if requested.

Bishop Gorman coach Craig Witcher has been an instructor at local clubs for almost 20 years. Formerly the men’s coach at UNLV, Witcher said teaching students the value of making a correct call starts at a young age.

“The integrity of the game and the code of the game become second nature,” he said. “It’s part of your life if you are a tennis player.”

Gorman and Palo Verde played Thursday in one of the more competitive matches of the season. The two Summerlin-area schools have one of the biggest prep sports rivalries in which the competition — no matter the sport — is likely intense.

Still, you didn’t see anyone from either side break the sport’s unwritten rule of integrity.

“I just really hate it when people cheat,” said Kyle Del Rosario, a Gorman senior who took second in state singles last year. “People who do that take away the fun. Why waste your time playing?”

But for the most part, “our children do an outstanding job,” Mathis said.

High school sports, as proved each afternoon on the tennis court, is more than winning or losing. It’s about helping build a foundation for later in life.

“Not being honest when calling your own lines is like cheating on a test,” Mann said. “You can’t feel good about yourself if you do well.”

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Phew, a good day in the end and a nice boost for the bank. It got a bit hairy at one point but a couple of wins came in and then I knew at worst I could only lose a few pounds.

Instead the system pulled out winner after winner (a nice habit it's developing) and it boosted the bank to £435.65. For a long time now it has never risked more than around 15% and that has only been on the odd occasion so I have been thinking about upping the target to 1% per sequence instead of 0.5%.

This would mean maybe breaking down a sequence or two a stage earlier but the amount of early winning bets at double the target could be potentially mind blowing to the bank and although it's not as simple as thinking like this because it doesn't work like that I have been thinking "double the target, double the profit" and that could mean doubling the bank every two weeks!!!!!!

I don't think it would be that simple as some sequences would have to be broken down earlier meaning that those losses would be recovered over a longer time whereas at the moment it would be recovered right away.

It's something for me to think about anyway and I may start by doing a few sequences at the higher target to see how it goes. Worst case is a loss builds up and I break it down to recover over time to it's worth trying I think.