It’s always humorous when old stodgy sports organizations make a new rule that implicates Twitter as a problem. They usually get it wrong and what happened with the USTA is no exception. The USTA which is the group which runs the US Open Tennis Championship decided that tweets from players during breaks in matches are now banned because they are potentially unfair to gamblers betting on the tennis match!
The USTA posted signs in the players’ lounge and locker rooms that states, “Important. Player Notice. Twitter Warning: Many of you will have Twitter accounts in order for your fans to follow you and to become more engaged in you and the sport – and this is great … However popular it is, it is important to warn you of some of the dangers posed by Twittering as it relates to the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program Rules.”
It’s certainly nice to see the USTA so concerned about equal information to all gamblers. Gamblers can still get inside information by talking, texting or emailing tennis players or their people, but no tweets. Those tweets are just too dangerous to the integrity of fair betting!
So this brings us to what all of you social media savvy Murdok readers are likely thinking: Isn’t Twitter accessible for all to read? That is the beauty of Twitter, anyone can follow anyone without approval. So if Andy Roddick tweets during a break in a match that his leg is cramping, anyone who so chooses can read it, gamblers included. It is no different than TV interviews with a players’ coaches or parentents that happen during matches all the time. It’s not inside information if everyone has access.
According to Twellow, the directory of active Twitter users, Andy Roddick has over 112,000 followers. Andy tweeted his gripes about the new rule:
i definitely respect the rule about inside info and on court, but u would seriously have to be a moron to send “inside info” through a tweet
10:28 PM Aug 28th from web- cant do it on our own time…. we’ll see
10:21 PM Aug 28th from web - i think its lame the US Open is trying to regulate our tweeting.. i understand the on-court issue but not sure they can tell us if we can
10:21 PM Aug 28th from web
not very subtle/smart ….. come on
10:28 PM Aug 28th from web
In my opinion, as long as information is equally available to all the USTA should not be worried. Tweets during matches are good for the game and not bad for those tennis gamblers either.
