by pluigh » 07 Nov 2026, 14:55
No, it’s the other way around: Hawk-Eye hasn’t disappeared; rather, the presence of human line judges has been gradually phased out.
What has changed—creating this impression—is the disappearance of the "challenge" system, which used to feature animations on a big screen.
Here is what actually happened:
Widespread adoption of "Hawk-Eye Live" (Electronic Line Calling, or ELC): Previously, Hawk-Eye was used only to verify a point following a player’s challenge (with a limit of 3 challenges per set). Now, across the majority of the ATP and WTA tours, as well as at the Grand Slams (US Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon), the system runs continuously in real time. The call ("Out") is generated automatically, accurate to the millisecond.
The end of human line judges: The ATP has committed to the full automation of line calling across its entire circuit. Human line judges have been replaced by automated camera systems to eliminate human error and keep the game flowing smoothly.
The specific case of clay courts (Roland-Garros):
For a long time, Roland-Garros remained one of the few tournaments to resist 100% electronic line calling, continuing to rely on the marks left by the ball on the clay and visual verification by the chair umpire. However, even on clay—notably at ATP-level tournaments—electronic line calling has been gradually adopted.
In short, Hawk-Eye (and its competitors, such as Foxtenn) has not gone away; it has simply become a permanent, omnipresent, and silent fixture in the background.
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