My opponent called my great shot out. I thought it was good, so I said, “How far out was it?”
He yelled back: “How far out do you want it to be?”
I knew that call wasn’t going to be changed!
What has always been part of tennis is the questioning of line calls. Yes, I am talking about an interesting part of tennis.
Have you ever had an opponent make one or more bad calls against you? Yes you have! Have you ever made a bad line call? You betcha — 100 percent!
I have played the USTA national circuit for more than 10 years. Even the most respected players in our peer group make bad calls. Some more than others.
Why? It can be greed, bad eeysight, fear, hope, and too much wanting to win!
One bad call can drain you out of the match! What is the remedy? If you ask, “are you sure?” the answer will be, “Yes, I am sure.”
The USTA only allows you to look at ball marks on clay, and even then, you can’t cross over the net to view the markings on the other side of the court.
A good rule is to call for an umpire after two bad calls! Bad calls will never go away — play so well that it won’t matter!