Welcome to the Restoration Tennis Ladder

This is the community tennis ladder for Restoration Anglican Church in Arlington, VA — open to all skill levels, all match types, and anyone who wants to play more tennis. The season runs April 17 – November 1, 2026. The goal is simple: get more people on the court, make it easy to find opponents, and build a competitive community worth being part of.

Joining

Fill out the Join form with your name, email, phone number, neighborhood, and your NTRP self-rating. Once approved you'll appear in the Rankings and Directory and can start playing immediately.

Match Types

🎾 Singles
One vs one. Men's, women's, or mixed — any combination works.

🎾 Doubles
Two vs two. Any gender combination. Both partners earn the same points and the same rating change after each match.

🎾 Drop-In (Mini-Game)
Used at drop-in nights. Short 4-game rotations — you earn 1 point per game won, with no rating impact. When reporting, select Mini-Game (Drop-In). Results show up on your player profile under Drop-In Nights.

🏳️ Retired / Incomplete
If you start a match but can't finish — lights out, weather, a scheduling conflict — report it as Retired. Both players get 5 participation points, with no rating or win/loss impact. A Complete Match button will appear on that card in Match History. When you reschedule and finish, enter the final score there and full points replace the placeholder automatically.

Score Format

Standard tennis scoring. Sets 1 and 2 are regular sets. If a third set is needed, it's played as a 10-point match tiebreak. When reporting, enter the game scores for Sets 1 and 2, and the tiebreak score (e.g. 10–7) in the Set 3 field.

How Points Work

You earn points whether you win or lose. The system rewards competing — not just winning. Showing up, playing hard, and putting results on the board always counts for something.

What you earn depends on how your result compared to what the ratings predicted going in. Beating a stronger player earns significantly more than beating a weaker one. Losing closely against a much stronger player earns more than getting bageled. The system is designed so there's never a reason to avoid playing anyone — a tough loss against a higher-rated opponent is always worth your time.

Three-set matches earn bonus points for both players, win or lose. Going the distance is recognized.

Drop-in games earn 1 point per game won and count toward your season total. They don't affect your rating.

The best way to climb the ladder is to play more matches. Points accumulate over the season — a mix of wins, competitive losses, and tough matchups adds up. Quality of competition matters as much as quantity of wins.

Ratings

Everyone starts with a self-reported NTRP rating. After each match your dynamic rating updates based on how you performed relative to expectations — winning big against a stronger player moves it up, losing badly to a weaker player moves it down. The changes are small and gradual by design. Your rating and its full history are visible on your player profile.

The Ladder

Men's and women's results sit on one combined ladder, sortable by gender. Rankings are sorted by total points. Ties in points are broken by strength of schedule — the player who competed against tougher opposition ranks higher.

Your player profile shows The Gauntlet — a personalized path showing exactly which opponents you'd need to beat to reach #1, with win probabilities and points at stake for each matchup.

Drop-In Nights

We run regular drop-in nights at Marcey Road Park in Arlington. These are rotating doubles sessions — everyone cycles in and out, you play with different partners each rotation, and it's as much social as it is competitive. All skill levels welcome. Check the Events page for upcoming dates.

Drop-in games count toward your ladder points at 1 point per game won — report your results under Mini-Game (Drop-In) after each rotation.

Match Photos

After any match you can add a photo — either right after reporting or later by finding the match in Match History and tapping Add Photo. All photos appear in the Photos gallery on the site. We'd love to fill it up.

Etiquette

Be honest. Report scores accurately and promptly after matches.

Be responsive. If someone reaches out to schedule a match, reply within a day or two even if you can't play that week.

Be flexible. People have busy lives. Work with your opponent on timing and location.

Be respectful. This is a community ladder. Good sportsmanship on and off the court is the expectation.

Questions?

Text Michael Strickland at 832-833-1990 or visit restotennis.com for full standings, match history, and player profiles.