By Erik Gudris | @atntennis | Wednesday, April 2, 2025
Photo credit: Charleston Tennis LLC
CHARLESTON—Electronic line calling for clay is here, but is it 100% accurate?
Some players are not so sure.
The WTA 500 Credit One Charleston Open event is one of the first to utilize Electronic Line Calling Live or ELC Live at a clay court tournament.
"The introduction of Electronic Line Calling at the Credit One Charleston Open is a major milestone, not just for Charleston but for all clay tournaments on the Hologic WTA Tour," said Charleston Tournament Director Bob Moran. "This groundbreaking technology will bring enhanced accuracy and consistency to line calls across clay courts, setting a new standard in tennis."
ELC Live is a constant at many hard and grass court events, yet clay has proved a challenge for technology due to the unique nature of the surface. ELC Live is now able to determine where a ball lands, mainly by using the dust a ball creates when landing, along with the mark it leaves, to determine its exact location.
While players in the past have long relied on a mark on the court when making their case with an umpire, that will no longer be allowed as ELC Live will have the final say.
Players competing in Charleston this week with ELC Live, for the most part, are getting used to it on clay, but still have some doubts.
Hailey Baptiste said that while she is comfortable playing with ELC Live, she is still adjusting to its use on clay.
"I asked a question yesterday in my doubles match, if we saw a mark and you can see the ball is out with the mark, but the electric line calling calls it in, (we asked) 'What do we go by?'," said Baptiste. "And (the umpire said), with the machine.
"And I couldn't understand that at first, but then she was like, (it's) where the dust could move from (the ball). So that was my only concern."
Danielle Collins, while acknowledging that ELC Live speeds up play, is concerned about its larger impact on lines people who work in the sport.
"Electronic line calling can be a good thing. I'm not always convinced that the electronic line calling is always accurate," Collins said. "I mean, it's a robot, right?
"Like there's going to be technical difficulties. I've had other matches where we've had the electronic line calls and it's very clear, that there's some shady calls, on both sides.
"I do appreciate, too, having line judges and the opportunity that gives people to have jobs, because I think right now there's a lot of jobs being taken away because of electronics.
"So that's a scary thing. That's a scary concept that we're dealing with in our lifetime.”
“So I kind of like having the line judges for that purpose, and the tradition of having them. But I also understand how the electronic line calls can kind of speed up play."
Later this season, ELC Live will also be used at WTA 1000 events at the Mutua Madrid Open and the Internazionali BNL d'Italia (Rome).