A ranked tennis player is someone who has had his tournament results analyzed and rated by an official tennis organization. Both amateurs and professionals are ranked, with many often ranked by more than one organization. Rankings affect your ability to get into tournaments and your seeding once you enter. For juniors, rankings also affect your ability to get free equipment and scholarships to academies and colleges.
Professional Rankings
Professional players earn rankings based on their play in professional events. The men's governing body of professional tennis is the Association of Touring Professionals, while the Women's Tennis Association governs women. Players earn points for each round of a tournament they win, with more important tournaments offering more points.
Amateur Rankings
Recreational players become ranked by playing tournaments sanctioned by an official organization. The most common tournaments in the U.S. are those sanctioned by the U.S. Tennis Association, which awards points and rankings to encourage and reward tournament participation among amateurs. The USTA awards state, sectional and national rankings. To qualify for a sectional ranking, you must play a set number of state and sectional tournaments. To earn a national ranking, you must play in one of the four national tournaments.
Ratings vs. Rankings
To facilitate fair and challenging play, many tennis organizations rate players, placing them into groups of like abilities. Some use a system of A for advance players, B for intermediate players and C for beginner and advanced beginner players. The USTA uses the National Tennis Rating Program, assigning players a rating from 2.5 for beginners to 7.0 for top professionals. After each tournament or league match, your results go into a computer, and your rating might change at the end of a season or year, based on your results.
Age vs. Skill Rankings
Some rating systems rank all players using the same system, regardless of age. The thinking is that a 25-year-old might be faster than a 55-year-old, but the 55-year-old might have better strokes and strategy, evening the skill level. Many leagues offer rankings, tournaments and leagues exclusively for seniors to address the physical fitness disparities between older and younger players. A senior player usually can play regular events, as well, earning two rankings.
Ladders
Many local organizations offer challenge ladders, with lesser-ranked players allowed to challenge higher-ranked players to a match. If the lower-ranked player wins, she takes her opponents slot on the ladder, the opponent moves down one spot, and everyone under the two of them move accordingly. This ranking system is different from a computer model, which takes into account the results of two players who do not play each other, but play the same opponents.
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