WK+ Marlborough Interclub Championship — Launch Newsletter
New name, same club spirit — now with a clearer grading system
Our long‑running “President’s” competition is relaunching as the WK+ Marlborough Interclub Championship for 2025–26. The new name better reflects what this event is about: clubs competing, connecting, and lifting the standard across Marlborough. Alongside the rebrand, we’re introducing a transparent grading and playing‑order system driven by World Tennis Number (WTN) to make match‑ups fairer and fixtures smoother.
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Key dates
Competition windows: 7 Oct – 9 Dec 2025, and 20 Jan – 17 Feb 2026
Semi‑finals: 24 Feb 2026
Finals: 3 Mar 2026
Who can enter
Age: 19+ as at 1 Oct 2025
Membership: Fully paid member of a Marlborough club affiliated with MTA.
> Note: Anyone not financial by 31 Oct 2025 isn’t eligible for points.
Contact one of our Captains, namely Stephen Dempster or Taylor Keen if you want to play
Entries & fees
Entries close: 14 Sep 2025 (via Google Form)
Entry link: enter https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScuO9txPvlCgSebw1toiyYcWCqdspXUWxkza01RhgMkhYWGqw/viewform?usp=share_link&ouid=102340503887567183135
Entry fee: $200 + GST per team (payable by the club)
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The new grading & playing‑order system (WTN)
Everyone registers WTN: Players must provide DOB, email, and mobile to secure MatchPoint registration; WTN sets the #1 male and #1 female, who must partner in Mixed Doubles.
0.25 allowance: A 0.25 WTN differential can be used when setting order.
Playing order stays fixed: Teams set their order with their Club Captain and get MTA approval. Natural WTN movement during the season doesn’t change the established order.
Reserves: Must have a WTN before the fixture and slot in where their WTN dictates, regardless of established pairings.
Special cases: If a WTN clearly doesn’t reflect true level, consult your Club Captain. MTA may issue a “WTN override” for playing position (this does not alter the public WTN).
Division eligibility (by Doubles WTN)
You can play up but not down. Division is locked based on WTN as at 1 Oct 2025.
Division thresholds:
Div 2: Doubles WTN ≥ 30.50
Div 3: Doubles WTN ≥ 35.00
Examples: WTN 30.0 → Div 1 only; 32.0 → Div 1 or 2; 37.8 → Div 1, 2 or 3.
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Match & scoring format
Sets: First to 9 games, 7‑point tiebreak at 8–8
October only: Short deuce / no‑advantage scoring (daylight‑saving friendly)
Balls
HEAD balls only, supplied by each team.
Please buy locally within Marlborough (no parallel importing / out‑of‑district) — this directly impacts our funding from HEAD.
Courts & scheduling
Total teams are limited by court availability. Some school courts may be scheduled (thanks for your patience). Grovetown access can be tight and Rapaura courts may have a delayed start.
Results & app process (MatchPoint)
All results entered online at the end of each fixture via the TNZ MatchPoint app.
Winning captain enters results; losing captain verifies.
No entry = no points for either team — so appoint an app‑savvy captain.
Captains’ info evening: MTA will host a session for club and team captains to run through MatchPoint and answer WTN questions.
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What’s changing from “President’s” to “Interclub”
Name: Reflects club‑vs‑club competition and community reach.
Fairer grading: WTN‑based grades and playing order, with a small 0.25 flexibility and MTA override option to handle outliers.
Cleaner admin: MatchPoint captures results instantly, keeps standings consistent, and reduces disputes.
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Call to action
Form your teams now, confirm every player’s WTN, and submit by 14 Sep 2025.
Club Captains: please start order‑setting conversations with your squads and prepare your app‑ready team captains.
Questions? Contact your Club Captain or MTA.
Let’s make the first WK+ Marlborough Interclub Championship a cracker season. See you on court! 🎾