How To Ref When There Is No Ref
RULE 1 - SAFETY
Safety is the primary and overriding
responsibility of every player who enters the court. At NO time
should the physical safety of the participants be compromised.
Players are entitled, and expected to hold up their swing, without
penalty, any time they believe there might be a risk of physical
contact. Any time a player says they held up to avoid contact,
even if they were over cautious, they are entitled to a hinder (rally,
replayed without penalty).
RULE 2 - SCORE
Since there is no referee, or
scorekeeper, it is important to see that there is no misunderstanding
in this area: so the server is required to announce both the server's
and the receiver's score before EVERY first serve.
RULE 3 - DURING RALLIES
During rallies, it is generally the
hitter's responsibility to make the call--if there is a possibility of
a skip ball, double bounce or illegal hit, play should continue until
the hitter makes the call against them self. If the hitter does
not make the call against them self and goes on to win the rally, and
the player thought that one of the hitter's shots was not good, they
may "appeal" to the hitter by pointing out which shot they thought was
bad and request the hitter to reconsider. If the hitter is sure
of their call, and the opponent is still sure the hitter is wrong, the
rally is replayed. As a matter of etiquette, the players are
expected to make calls against themselves any time they are not
sure. In other words, if a shot is very close as to whether or
not it was a good kill or a skip ball, unless the hitter is sure the
shot was good, they should call it a skip.
RULE 4 - SERVICE
Fault Services (Long, Short, Ceiling & 3-Wall):
The receiver has the primary responsibility to make sure these calls,
and again, they should give the benefit of the doubt to the opponent
whenever it is close. The receiver must make this call
immediately, and not wait until after the ball is hit and has the
benefit of seeing how good a shot can be hit. It is not option
play.....the receiver does not have the right to play a short serve
just because they think it's a setup.
Screen Serves:
When there is no referee, a screen serve does not become an option
play. When the receiver believes the vision of the ball was
sufficiently impaired as to give the server too great an advantage on
the serve, the receiver may hold up their swing and call a screen
serve, or if they still feel they can make a good shot at the ball,
they can say nothing and continue play. A screen may not be
called after an attempt to hit the ball. Further, the server may
not call a screen under any circumstances. They must simply
expect to have to play the rally until they hear a call from the
receiver.
Foot faults, 10-second violations,
receiving-line violations, service-zone infringement and other
"technical" calls really require a referee. However, if either
player believes their opponent is abusing any of these rules, between
rallies it should be discussed with the opponent to be sure there is
agreement on what the rule is, and to put each other on notice that the
rules should be followed.
RULE 5 - HINDERS
Generally, the hinder should work
like the screen serve--as an option play for the hindered party.
ONLY the person going for the shot can stop the play by calling a
hinder, and they must do so immediately--not wait until they have the
benefit of seeing how good a shot can be hit. If the hindered
party believes they can make an effective return in spite of some
physical contact or screen that has occurred, they may continue to
play. However, as safety is the overriding factor, either party
may call a hinder if it is to prevent contact.
RULE 6 - AVOIDABLE HINDERS
Since avoidable hinders are usually
not intentional, they do occur even in the friendliest matches.
When a player turns the wrong way and gets in the way of the opponent's
setup, there should be a better way than saying "I'm sorry" to make up
for the mistake. Instead of saying "I'm sorry," the player who
realizes such an error was made should simply award the rally to their
opponent. If a player feels the opponent was guilty of an
avoidable, and the player did not call it on them self, the "offended"
player should appeal to the opponent by pointing out that they thought
it was avoidable. The player may then call it on them self, or
disagree, but the call can only be made on yourself. Often, just
pointing out what you think is an avoidable will put the player on
notice for future rallies and prevent recurrences.
RULE 7 - DISPUTES
If either player, for any reason,
desires to have a referee, it is considered common courtesy for the
other player to go along with the request, and a referee suitable to
both sides should be found. If there is not a referee and a question
about a rule or rules interpretation comes up, seek out the club pro or
a more experienced player, then, after the match, contact the League
Coordinator.