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Racquet Sports
PICKLEBALL &TENNIS: Can they be friends?
Programming
How to work aCARDIO TENNISclass light on players
Community Tennis
Looking to GROWTHE GAME locally?Call your TSR now!
NOV/DEC 2015 / VOLUME 43/ NUMBER 10 / $5.00
Wish List for the New Year!Last years Champions of Tennis tell
us their hopes for 2016.
Help Your PlayersGet A Grip
New Tennis Shoes Create Opportunities
Incorp
oratin
g USP
TA pg. 4
3
USPT
A Pro
of the
Year
Jorge
Cape
stany
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DEPARTMENTS
4 Our Serve
7 Industry News
14 Letters
16 TIA News
18 Racquet Tech
20 Community Tennis
22 Grassroots Tennis
38 Tips & Techniques
40 String Playtest: Babolat M7 17
42 Your Serve, by Kevin Theos
PLUS
44 CEOs Message
46 Vice Presidents Message
48 Endorsee News
50 Beyond the Court
63 Inside Coaching
64 Master Pro Corner
66 Career Development
68 Member News
INDUSTRY NEWS
7 Dave Haggerty elected ITF president
7 USPTA headquarters to move to Lake Nona
7 Babolat introduces connected wristband
8 Court surface uses recycled tennis balls
8 Hall of Fame capital campaign exceeds goal
8 Vitalsox introduces hot new socks
9 Youth Tennis event held at US Open
9 Van der Meer, Gullikson into USPTA HoF
10 People Watch
11 Canadian doctors prescribe exercise
11 NCAA Div. 1 Chps. to use no-ad scoring
12 Short Sets
13 PTR HoF to induct Billie Jean King
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015Tennis Industry
26 Wish List for the New YearWe asked last years Champions of
Tennis winners what theyre looking for in the coming year.
30 Mixing It UpTennis shoe manufacturers are creating
opportunities with a complex balance of fashion, technology and
changes in the game. 32 Pickleball and TennisThe explosive growth
of pickleball can be a positive for the tennis marketif tennis lets
it. 34 Numbers GameDont yet have the numbers for an ideal Cardio
Tennis session? You can still create a great experience, and grow
your profits. 36 Getting a Grip!Having the right grips and
overgrips are crucial to not only good performance, but also to the
players health.
50 The True Warrior
54 USPTA World Conference Wrap up
64 Pay Yourself First
65 Remembering Rich
p.30
p.32
2 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
p.43
FEATURES
p.26
www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com
Read more articles online at www.ADDvantageUSPTA.com
www.tennisindustrymag.com
p.34
p.36
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Our Serve Publishers David Bone Jeff Williams
Editorial Director Peter Francesconi
[email protected]
Associate Editor Greg Raven
Design/Art Director Kristine Thom
Special Projects Manager Bob Patterson
Contributing Editors Robin Bateman Cynthia Cantrell Kent Oswald
Cynthia Sherman Mary Helen Sprecher
Contributing Photographers Bob Kenas David Kenas
TENNIS INDUSTRY Corporate Offices PO Box 3392, Duluth, GA 30096
Phone: 760-536-1177 Fax: 760-536-1171 Email: [email protected]
Website: www.TennisIndustryMag.com Office Hours: Mon.-Fri., 8
a.m.-5 p.m. Advertising Director John Hanna 770-650-1102, x.125
[email protected] Apparel Advertising Cynthia Sherman
203-263-5243 [email protected]
Tennis Industry is published 10 times per year: monthly January
through August and combined issues in September/October and
November/ December by Tennis Industry and USRSA, PO Box 3392,
Duluth, GA 30096. Periodcal postage paid at Duluth, GA and at
additional mailing offices (USPS #004-354). Nov/Dec 2015, Volume
43, Number 10 2015 by USRSA and Tennis Industry. All rights
reserved. Tennis Industry, TI and logo are trademarks of USRSA.
Printed in the U.S.A. Phone advertising: 770-650-1102 x 125. Phone
circulation and editorial: 760-536-1177. Yearly subscriptions $25
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magazine of the USRSA, TIA,and ASBA.
Looking for back issues of Tennis Industry/Racquet Sports
Industry? Visit the archives at our website at
TennisIndustrymag.com for free digital versions back to 2004.
In the September/October is-sue, I wrote about how we in this
industry have let ourselves be pulled away from what should be our
mainand very simplepurpose: getting more people to play tennis. I
received many sup-portive comments. (Unfortunately, I was unable to
convince many of those who commented to put their name to their
thoughts and send me a letter to the editor I can pub-lish. But,
that is a topic for another day.)For those of us who have put
our
time, career, and life into this sport, we need to make sure
increasing tennis participation is always front and center. For all
the millions of dollars spent on programs, initia-tives and
marketing for tennis, the focusand the resultmust be growth of the
sport at the grass-roots level. To repeat what I said in the last
issue: My business, as does yours, depends on this sport
growing.But one of the continuing chal-
lenges we have in trying to grow tennis is that we tend to
overcom-plicate things. Growing this sport isnt rocket science, but
it is all about being local. Its great to have large national
programs, but they need to be brought down to a local
level, with support from and for local tennis providers. And
related to that, we still need
to give people clear and simple reasons to play this game in the
first place. Theres a small item in Industry News this month about
doctors in Canada prescribing exercise to patients. I had
sug-gested this years ago: We should be reaching out to doctors to
get them to promote and prescribe tennis to their patients. At the
risk of sound-ing like a broken record, we must use health and
fitness as a major reason to play. Plus, we should take a cue from
the many nations who are effectively growing tennis in their
countries using Cardio Tennis (a program we developed here!).The
newest industry-wide initia-
tive announced during the US Open is Rally the Family, which
will launch to consumers in the spring and is designed to position
tennis as an activity families can do together (see page 16). While
plans are still being developed for Rally the Family, the idea is
to fish where the fish areattract those people who are most likely
to play tennis. Families are looking to have fun,
engage with each other and be ac-tive. We know tennis can fit
that bill.
Peter Francesconi, Editorial
[email protected]
Catching More Players
4 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
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Former USTA and TIA President Dave Haggerty was elected
president of the International Tennis Federa-tion on Sept. 25 at
the ITF Annual General Meeting in Santiago, Chile. Haggerty will
serve a four-year term, from 2015 to 2019, heading the world
governing body responsible for the rules of tennis and maintaining
the integrity of the sport.
The 58-year-old succeeds Francesco Ricci Bitti, who held the
post for the last 16 years. Ricci Bitti has been named an Honor-ary
Life President of the ITF.
Haggerty was elected on the second ballot with 200 votes, over
Anil Khanna (IND) with 192 votes. Rene Stammbach (SUI) and Juan
Margets (ESP) were eliminated on the first ballot.
Katrina Adams, the current president of the USTA, was elected to
the ITF Board of Directors and also named as an ITF Vice President.
The other vice presidents are Khanna and Stammbach.
The rest of the ITF Board of Directors for the 2015-19 term
include: Martin Cor-rie (GBR), Sergio Elias (CHI), Ismail El Shafei
(EGY), Bernard Giudicelli (FRA), Jack Graham (CAN), Thomas
Koenigsfeldt (DEN), Celia Patrick (NZL), Aleksei Selivanenko (RUS),
Rene Stammbach (SUI), Stefan Tzvetkov (BUL), and Bulat Utemuratov
(KAZ).
Haggerty has held a variety of roles within the USTA since 2001
and within the ITF since 2009. He served as chairman, CEO and
president of the USTA in 2013-14, and was a vice president on the
ITF Board of Directors in 2013-15. He is a former president of the
TIA and a current board member of the International Tennis Hall of
Fame. His 30-year career in the racquet industry includes being a
former chairman of Head USA, president of Penn Racquet Sports, and
president of Dunlop Maxfli Slazenger Sports.
November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 7
Industry NewsInformation to help you run your business
Babolat POP is a Connected Tennis Wristband
Just before the US Open, Babolat unveiled to media its new
Babolat POP, a sensor worn in a wristband that will work with any
tennis racquet. It pairs with an IOS or Android device via
Bluetooth so players can see their stats live, and it also collects
data about a players game and allows players of all ages and
abilities to interact with and challenge friends, taking advantage
of social and gaming features.
Available now, the Babolat POP has a suggested retail price of
$89.95 and includes wristband, sensor, charger and USB cable. Visit
play.babolat.us/pop-connected-tennis.
Solomon-Led Group Buys Atlanta, Memphis Events
Tennis promoter Jerry Solomon and a group of financial backers
have bought the BB&T Open, the ATP Tour tournament in Atlanta
that is part of the Emirates Airline US Open Series and played at
the end of July. Earlier this year, the same Solomon-led group also
acquired the ATP event in Memphis, which is played in February.
Solomon has indicated that both events will stay in their
current loca-tions, with their current tournament directorsEddie
Gonzalez for the Atlanta tourney and Erin Mazurek for the Memphis
Open.
The BB&T Open is played in mid-town Atlanta and was owned by
the USTA Southern Section. The Memphis Open, which is played at the
Racquet Club of Memphis, is the only indoor ATP event contested in
the U.S. Ownership was transferred to Solomons group from a company
in which the USTA is a joint owner. Solomon is president of Star
Games Inc., which runs an annual exhibition at Madison Square
Garden.
www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com
Former USTA, TIA Prez Haggerty To Head ITF
The USPTA Executive Committee voted on Sept. 21 to relo-cate the
organizations headquarters from Houston to the Lake Nona area in
Orlando, Fla. The plan, unveiled on Sept. 22 by USPTA President Tom
McGraw at a general session during the USPTA World Conference in
New Orleans, is to occupy an office directly across the street from
the new USTA National Campus currently under construction. Also in
the same location as the new USPTA headquarters will be the offices
for the USTA Florida Section, which will relocate from its current
office in Daytona.
USPTA CEO John Embree said the plan is to move into the new
10,000-square-foot Lake Nona headquarters building at the end of
2016. Well be paralleling the path of the USTA in opening in the
fourth quarter of 2016, he said. The synergies that well be able to
have here will be fantastic.
The USTA National Campus will have 102 courts, of various sizes
and surfaces. USPTA sources say it is close to a deal for selling
the current, 40-year-old building in Houston.
This will be a tough time for our staff in that not everyone
will be relocating, Embree said. But we know down the road this
will be the best thing for our association."
USPTA HQ to Move from Houston to Lake Nona
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HoF Capital CampaignExceeds $15 Million Goal
The International Tennis Hall of Fames fundraising on the Match
Point Capital Cam-paign has exceeded its $15 million goal, the HoF
announced in September.
After three years of hard work by the Capital Campaign Committee
and especially by Chairman Ed Woolard, I'm very pleased to announce
the campaign has exceeded its goal and, in fact, construction on
the im-provement projects that will result from the campaign is
already more than 70 percent complete, said HoF Chairman
Christopher Clouser.
The entire project is set to be completed and dedicated in May.
The campaign was focused on a complete renovation of the museum;
six new tennis courts and major expansion to the tennis club;
improvements to Bill Talbert Center Court, primarily new
Industry News
seating on the South and East sides; an overall expansion and
enhancement to the property, including the addition of a
signifi-cant new building to house offices and tennis club
facilities.
Attention Stringers! Scam Alert! It was recently brought to our
attention
that someone may be contacting USRSA members by text and/or
email with a scam asking for their rates for stringing services.
They then send the stringer a fake cashiers check, then later ask
for a portion of that amount back, before the stringer is alerted
by his/her bank that the cashiers check is fake.
The USRSA has filed a complaint with the F.B.I. about this scam.
Please be cautious in responding to any texts or emails you might
receive from someone regarding your services. The USRSA
apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause you. Vitalsox
Introduces Hot New Socks
The newest crew socks from Vitalsox are a tribute to our Italian
creativity, says Vital-sox National Sales Manager Don Crusius. The
new crews are constructed like all of our socks, with a patented
superior wicking fiberSil-verDryStatand our familiar compression,
like all of our socks. Each of the three new styles comes in three
eye-catching colors, too.
Crusius says Vitalsox plans to introduce new styles every two
months. For more information, visit Vitalsox.com or contact Crusius
at [email protected] or 214-460-7681.
Industry Loses Dr. Howard Brody
The industrys foremost physicist of tennis, Dr. Howard Brody,
passed away on Aug. 11 in Bryn Mawr, Pa., at the age of 83. Brody
was an emeritus professor of physics at the University of
Pennsylvania, where he spent his entire career.
Brody became inter-ested in the science and physics of tennis in
the 1970s and was the first to make the sport the object of serious
scien-tific study. An avid recre-ational player, he wrote the book
Tennis Science for Tennis Players and co-authored The Physics and
Technology of Tennis, in addition to dozens of other scientific
articles on the sport. He also wrote the PTRs science manual.
He was a member of the ITFs Techni-cal Commission, and among the
many honors he received were the Educational Merit Award from the
International Ten-nis Hall of Fame and the Stanley Plagen-hoef
Award for sport science achieve-ment.
8 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
Surface Uses Recycled Balls
A court surface made partially of recycled tennis balls was
installed at the Tenafly Racquet Club in Tenafly, N.J., in August,
says Franz Fasold, owner of Ace Surfaces Inc. of Orlando,
Fla.Advanced Polymer Technology and Ace Surfaces Inc. created with
Laykold Mas-
ters the first cushioned court with a shock pad that absorbs up
to 10,000 recycled tennis balls in a single tennis court. Rather
than rolling into a landfill, the ground-up tennis balls are
incorporated into a cushioned indoor/outdoor sports surfacing
system: Laykold Masters 5 and Laykold Masters 8.
Those who found hard courts to be difficult on their hips, knees
and back will be pleasantly surprised by the difference the surface
will have on their body, says Gor-don Uehling, founder and managing
director of Tenafly Racquet Club. We hope to see other clubs in the
country follow our lead in making the sport more enjoyable while
helping the environment. Visit tennisballcourts.com.
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Industry News
November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 9www.tennisindustrymag.com
www.tennisindustrymag.com
UST
A/A
ND
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W O
NG
Nancy Horn Passes Away Nancy Ellertson Horn died peacefully
at
her home in Boulder, Colo., Aug. 22 after a two-year struggle
with ALS. She was 58 years old. In 1977, Horn joined Rocky Mountain
Sports Inc. and for 38 years helped manage the company, rising to
vice president. Contributions may be made in her name to: Crayons
to Calculators, 721 Front Street, Suite A, Louisville, CO 80027, or
ALS Therapy Development Institute, 300 Technology Square #400,
Cambridge, MA 02139.
Van der Meer, GulliksonInducted into USPTA HoF
Dennis Van der Meer and Tom Gul-likson were inducted into the
USPTA Hall of Fame in September at the annual awards presentation
during the USPTA World Conference in New Orleans.
Both of these men have made an incredible impact on our
profession and in the tennis industry, and USPTA is hon-ored to be
able to recognize them, said USPTA CEO John Embree. Throughout
Youth Event Held at US Open
T he USTA held a Youth Tennis exhibition during the US Open to
gener-ate awareness of the importance of multi-sport participation
in creating a lifelong enjoyment of sportsempowering future
generations of children to stay healthy and active.
Nastia Liukin, 2008 Olympic gold medalist; Ryan McDonagh,
captain of the New York Rangers and a U.S. Olympian; and Laila Ali,
former boxing champion, TV host and USTA Youth Tennis spokesperson,
spoke about the benefits of playing multiple sports and how an
early, positive experience in sports creates a lifelong commit-ment
to an active lifestyle.
The event coincided with National Childhood Obesity Awareness
Month and USTA Tennis Play Events taking place around the country
in the month of Septem-ber. Visit YouthTennis.com.
their careers, they have made an enor-mous impact to our mission
of elevating the standards of tennis-teaching profes-sionals and
coaches across the country and around the world.
Van der Meer and Gullikson join 16 oth-ers in the USPTA Hall of
Fame, which is the associations highest honor.
HoF, ITF Honor Stenning In a special ceremony at the US Open,
the
International Tennis Hall of Fame and the International Tennis
Fed-eration honored former Hall of Fame CEO Mark L. Stenning with
the 2015 Golden Achieve-ment Award, which is presented annually to
an individual who has made significant contributions
internationally to tennis in the fields of administration,
promotion, or education, and who has devoted long and outstanding
service to the sport.
Stenning served as CEO of the Interna-
Tennis Racquet PerformanceSpecialty StoresJanuary-June, 2015 vs.
2014Units 2015 305,585 2014 299,767 % change vs. 14 2%Dollars 2015
$45,009,000 2014 $44,391,000 % change vs. 14 1%Price 2015 $147.29
2014 $148.08 % change vs. 14 -1%
Top-Selling Racquets at Specialty StoresBy year-to-date
dollarsJan.-June 20151. Babolat Aero Pro Drive 2013 (MP)2. Babolat
Pure Drive 2015 (MP)3. Wilson Pro Staff 97 (MP)4. Babolat Pure
Drive GT 2012 (MP)5. Wilson Pro Staff RF 97 Auto (MP)
Hot New Racquets(introduced in the past 12 months)1. Babolat
Pure Drive 2015 (MP)2. Wilson Pro Staff 97 (MP)3. Wilson Pro Staff
RF 97 Auto (MP)4. Babolat Pure Drive Team 2015 (MP)5. Babolat Pure
Drive Lite 2015 (MP)
Top-Selling Tennis Shoes at Specialty StoresBy year-to-date
dollars, Jan.-June 20151. Asics Gel Resolution 62. Prince T223.
Nike Zoom Vapor 9.5 Tour4. Asics Gel Solution Speed 25. Asics Gel
Resolution 5
Top-Selling Strings at Specialty StoresBy year-to-date units,
Jan.-June 20151. Babolat RPM Blast2. Prince Synthetic Gut
Duraflex3. Wilson NXT4. Wilson Sensation5. Luxilon 4G(Source:
TIA)
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PeopleWatch
Jimmy Evert, father of Chris Evert and a legendary, longtime
teaching pro who served as the tennis director for the City of Fort
Lauderdale for nearly 50 years, passed away Aug. 21 at age 92.
Con-tributions may be made to the Jimmy Evert Scholarship Fund;
checks can be made payable to the USTA Founda-tionJimmy Evert Fund,
70 West Red Oak Lane, White Plains, NY 10604.
Head players found success at this years US Open. Novak Djokovic
won his third Grand Slam of 2015 and 10th in his career after
defeating
Roger Federer in the singles final.
Taylor Fitz won the boys singles title. Head player
Leander Paes, with Martina
Hingis, won a third mixed doubles
title of the season. And David Wagner earned the Mens Quad
doubles title, with partner Nicolas Taylor.
International Tennis Fed-eration President Francesco Ricci Bitti
received the 2015 USTA Presidents Award during the USTA Semi-Annual
Meeting in New York City during the US Open. Hes served as
president of the ITF since 1999 and is stepping down this fall.
LSI Industries Inc. has named Jay Matsueda as Senior Director of
Strategic Marketing & Communica-
tions for the Lighting Solu-tions division. Matsueda will be
responsible for all aspects of marketing strategy and execution,
public relations, trade shows, collateral, site content, social
media, competitive research, creative direction, brand development
and more for LSI Lighting Solutions.
Terri Graham has resigned her position at Wilson Sport-ing Goods
after 21 years as the Business Director of Indoor Racquet Sports.
She will be moving on to the world of pickleball develop-ing the US
Open Pickleball Championships taking place in Naples next
April.
Head player Sloane Stephens won her first career title at the
Citi Open in Washington in early August, playing with the Head
Gra-phene Radical.
South African Kevin Anderson received the fifth annual US Open
Sportsmanship Award pre-sented to the professional tennis player
who best demonstrates excellence in sportsmanship throughout the
Emirates Airline US Open Series and the US Open.
Longtime USPTA Director of Operations Rich Fanning passed away
on Aug. 21,
following a battle with cancer. Memorial dona-tions may be made
to:
Priest Retirement Fund, In Memory of Rich Fanning,
St. Cecilia Catholic Church, 11720 Joan of Arc Drive, Houston,
TX 77024-2602.
Longtime USTA Missouri Valley staff member and volunteer Fred
Johnson died Aug. 5 following a coura-geous fight with cancer.
The Sports & Fitness Indus-try Association (SFIA) has
promoted Cameron Jacobs to manager of communica-tions and research
and John Peters to director of sales and member services.
Five U.S. tournament directors were selected by a subcommittee
of the USTAs Junior Competition Committee to be named the first
class of Blue Ribbon tournament directors. Hon-ored for their hard
work and dedication were: Ivan Baron of Parkland, Fla.; Robert
Dunivan of Deer Park, Texas; Meghan Houk of Tucson; Lorraine Novak
of Mobile, Ala.; and Sheryl Osborn of Arlington, Texas.
John Bridgeland, a 1982 Harvard graduate, received the
Intercollegiate Ten-nis Associations highest honorthe 2015 ITA
David A. Benjamin Achievement Awardin September. The award honors
past partici-pants in varsity tennis who have achieved excellence
in their chosen careers. Bridge-land is the CEO of Civic
Enterprises, a public policy firm, and Co-Chair of the Franklin
Project at the Aspen Institute, an initiative to cre-ate a
voluntary, civilian na-tional service counterpart to military
service. The award this year was renamed in
honor of Benjamin and made possible by a legacy gift from Margie
and Stan Smith.
Ben Porter is the new Global Product Manager for Wilson Sporting
Goods.
Wayne and Kathy Bryan, Jerry and Jeanie Buss, Bill Rombeau,
Brian Teacher and Pam Teeguarden were recently inducted into the
Southern California Tennis Association Hall Of Fame.
The National Senior Games Association honored 67-year-old
racquetball player Sharon Huczek with a Class of 2015 Personal Best
Award. Huczek earned one gold and one silver medal for her
racquetball singles and doubles play at the recent 2015 National
Senior Games.
Jennifer Capriati was among eight professional athletes honored
in early October at the 30th Annual Great Sports Legends event in
New York City, which is sponsored by the Buoniconti Fund to Cure
Paralysis.
Former World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka has switched her
rep-resentation from the Lagardere company to IMG.
Brian Ogle is the new senior director of global sales and
marketing for K-Swiss. His new responsibilities include developing
a global voice for tennis, creating sales programs and strategies,
overseeing the footwear/apparel/accessories product lines, and
developing partnerships with retail part-ners around the world.
Hell also be responsible for athlete recruitment and
development.
Industry News
10 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
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Industry News
November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 11
tional Tennis Hall of Fame for 14 years, before stepping down
last September, and he was with the organization for 35 years
overall in various leadership roles. Stenning, who also was on the
TIA board of directors, has been highly engaged in the sport as a
whole.
Canadian Doctors Write Prescriptions for Exercise
Many Canadians who visit the doctor with health and medical
issues are going home with a unique prescription: writ-ten
instructions to exercise. This new philosophy is picking up
momentum in the province of Quebec where nearly 9,000 general
practitioners have new prescription pads produced for exercise and
physical activity prescriptions. The pads are designed so that
exercise instructions can be given by doctors in 15-minute
increments, which are called exercise cubes.
So many people say the right thing about the importance of
physical exer-cise, but Canada is taking this to a whole new level,
says PHIT America Founder Jim Baugh. We hope doctors in the U.S.
quickly follow the lead from our friends to the north.
NCAA Div. 1 ChampionshipsTo Use No-Ad Scoring
Starting in 2016, the NCAA Division I men's and women's tennis
championships will utilize the no-ad scoring format. The NCAA
Division I Competition Oversight Committee announced its decision
before the US Open, following more than three years of discussion
that included members of the ITA, USTA and the NCAA Division I
Men's and Women's Tennis Committee.
The decision of the NCAA to adopt the ITA format for the NCAA
Division I Tennis Championships helps create a bright future for
the sport of tennis, said David A. Ben-jamin, former ITA executive
director for 37 years and presently the chairman of the ITA Board
of Directors. The goal of everyone in-volved these past several
years has been to make college tennis even more relevant and more
exciting.
New ZyMax 69 BadmintonString From Ashaway
Ashaway Racket Strings has intro-duced ZyMax 69 Fire, the
heavyweight
in its new line of ZyMax badminton strings. The line
incorporates Ashaway's proprietary BETA polymer fibers, and is
constructed using the company's special ZyWeaVe string core
technology. At 0.69 mm, ZyMax 69 Fire is the heavi-est string in
the line, and is de-
signed to provide chronic string breakers with dynamic stiffness
for excellent feel and repulsion; optimum power and dura-bility;
knot and loop strength; and ten-sion holding ability for consistent
reliable performance. Visit ashawayusa.com.
TuringSense IntroducesWearable Technology
TuringSense, a Silicon Valley-based startup
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12 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
Industry News
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ShortSets
The U.S. Davis Cup team beat Uzbekistan, 3-1, in a 2015 World
Group Playoff match in September to move back into the World Group
and be eligible to compete for the 2016 Davis Cup. The U.S. will
travel to Aus-tralia for its first-round 2016 World Group match
March 4-6.
The long-running Fam-ily Circle Cup is changing its name to the
Volvo Cars Open. The event, which began in 1973, is the largest
womens-only tennis tournament in the world. It will be April 2-10
on Daniel Island, S.C.
PGA Tour Superstore says 14 of its tennis associates from stores
around the country have received the highest certification a
racquet sports retailer can receive, recogni-tion as Master Racquet
Technicians (MRT) by the USRSA. We're thrilled to have so many
newly-minted Master Racquet Technicians at our stores to ensure
consumers receive the best service in retail, said Dick Sullivan,
President and CEO of PGA Tour Superstore.
Sports industry ex-ecutives Mark Miles and Larry Scott were
recog-nized for their extensive contributions to tennis by
presentation of the Eugene L. Scott Award during the Legends Ball
in New York, which is hosted by the Interna-tional Tennis Hall of
Fame
during the US Open. In addition, The Ten-nis Media Company,
which this year marks the 50th anniversary of Tennis Magazine,
received the Joseph F. Cullman 3rd Award
Rome, Ga., has been selected to host the 2016-17 USTA Southern
Junior Team Tennis Section Championships. The city is on track to
open the 51-court Rome Tennis Center at Berry College in June. The
annual tournament will be Aug. 11-14 and is expected to draw about
60 co-ed teams from the USTA Southern Section.
Rocky Mountain Sports will be exclu-sive U.S. distributor for
Mauve Sports products.
The USPTA has partnered with the International Tennis
Performance Asso-ciation (iTPA), which now is now the official
tennis-specific sport science educational organization for the
USPTA. The partner-ship allows members of both organizations to
take advantage of ad-ditional education op-portunities. Visit
uspta.com/certification.
Ashaway Racket Strings has terminated Harrow Sports as a
distributor of Ashaway strings, the company announced. In
addi-tion, Ashaway will no longer supply Super-
Nick XL squash strings for factory stringing in Harrow
frames.
TIA Cardio Tennis Manager Michele Krause received a letter of
appreciation from Florida State Rep. Greg Steube recently,
follow-ing a story about Krause and Cardio Tennis in the Sarasota
Herald. "I would like to offer my wholehearted congrat-ulations to
you on the outstanding success of Cardio Tennis, Steube wrote.
"Thank you for dedicating your talents to our community.
The press center at the US Open was of-ficially named the Bud
Collins US Open Media Center in a ceremony Sept. 6, during the
tournament.
Maria Sharapova, the co-owner of Super-goop!, has announced the
launch of Project Black Dot, an education and activism platform
with the mission to end the epidemic of skin cancer and improve
skin health in America. The initiative will focus on providing
consum-ers with sun-care edu-cation and activations year-round.
USTA Foundation, the national charitable foundation of the USTA,
has granted 53 high school students a vari-ety of college
scholar-ships totaling $373,000.
American Express has entered into a multi-year renewal of
its USTA and US Open sponsorship. American Express first became
a sponsor of the US Open in 1994. Through its partnership, American
Express contributes to the growth and health of the sport of tennis
from the grassroots level to the US Open.
Fisher Island Club Ho-tel & Resort, located on a private,
216-acre island accessible by ferry from Miami Beach, recently
finished renovations to its tennis center that included
construction of two red clay tennis courts. Now, Fisher Island
offers all three Grand Slam playing surfaceshard, clay and grass,
with its total 18 courts.
The USTA announced its first LEED (level of certification) Green
Building Certification for its US Open Transporta-tion Building,
part of the USTA's commitment to create a sustainable future and
reduce envi-ronmental impact.
The Toluca Lake Tennis & Fitness Club has been voted the
2015 Best Health and Fitness Club in Los Angeles in the Readers
Choice Awards for the Los Angeles Daily News. Ben Brunkow is the
tennis director and Christian Straka is the head pro.
The Pro League of Hilton Head Island, S.C., donated $2,600
recently to the PTR Foundation, the charitable arm of the PTR.
Infosys and the ATP have announced a strategic partnership to
leverage the latest technological advances in mobility, cloud and
analytics. As part of this partnership, Infosys will become the
Global Technology Services Partner and Platinum Sponsor of the ATP
World Tour, as well as the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour
Finals, for the next three years.
The FirstEnergy Foundation has do-nated $10,000 to Inner City
Tennis Clinics of Cleveland (ICTC) to support programs that provide
local children the opportunity to de-velop skills both on the
tennis court and in the classroom. Founded in 2010, ICTC has served
thousands of children with free programs designed to increase high
school gradua-tion rates and physical fitness, and develop skills
to compete on the tennis court.
Plannit, which offers a smartphone app to help tennis
pro-fessionals manage their business, is now the official mobile
busi-ness platform of the USPTA.
Wilson has launched a marketing campaign called My Wilson
designed to spot-light the relationship between athletes and their
equipment and the stories they create together.
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www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com
November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 13
Industry Newsin wearable sports technology, made its debut in
September at the USPTA World Conference in New Orleans, showcasing
its first product, Pivot, a multi-sensor, high-speed full-body
motion analysis system.
"We wanted to show our commitment to tennis and felt [the USPTA
World Conference] was the perfect venue, said TuringSense
co-founder and CEO Limin He. Pivot, now in beta, is the most
advanced motion capture technology designed to improve each
player's tennis game, and ultimately, help elevate the tennis
industry. It is wearable technology that can truly empower and
democratize tennis playing and training. For more information,
visit turingsense.com.
Art Tucker Retires From CSS After 32 years at California Sports
Sur-
faces, Art Tucker officially retired in Sep-tember. He joined
California Products in March 1983 and helped set the company on the
path to becoming the worlds larg-est manufacturer of acrylic sports
surfac-ing systems.
Tucker long-champi-oned the Plexipave and Plexitrac product
lines and was instrumental in California Products acquisitions of
DecoTurf and Rebound Ace. In his final year, he helped provide a
guiding hand through the acquisition of the Pre-mier Group.
He served several terms on the ASBA board of directors, served
on several ASBA committees and presented at the Technical Meeting
many times.
Vigeant is New USRSA Tester in Canada
Yan Vigeant, owner of the store Le Coin Bad-minton in Canada, is
the newest USRSA Tester. Vigeant, a USRSA Master Racquet
Technician, has been in the racquet sports industry for al-most 10
years and went from being a competi-tive badminton player to a
badminton coach and a tennis player. He spent the last decade as a
racquet technician at various local and state tournaments, which
led to the opening of his racquet sports business near
Montreal.
Vigeant says he has a passion for stringing techniques and
stringing machines, which has led him to always staying on top of
the newest products and technologies in the field, as well as
always being ready to provide the best advice and services to the
tennis community.
USTA Foundation Receives$150,000 Grant from ESPN
USTA Foundation, the national chari-table organization of the
USTA, has received a $150,000 grant from ESPN to support seven
National Junior Tennis and Learning (NJTL) network chapters. The
NJTLs are part of the newly established Capacity Building Program,
designed to provide long-term technical assistance for selected
NJTL chapters.
The seven receiving a Capacity Build-ing Program grant on behalf
of ESPN are: A's & Aces, New Orleans; New HYTEs- New Haven
Youth Tennis and Education, New Haven, Conn.; Down the Line and
Beyond Foundation, Villanova, Pa.; Dal-las Tennis Association,
Dallas; InnerCity Tennis, Minneapolis; Sloane Stephens Foundation,
Compton, Calif.; and Youth and Tennis Academy, Queens, N.Y.
PTR Hall of Fame To Induct BJK Billie Jean King will be inducted
to the PTR
Hall of Fame on February 17, during the PTR International Tennis
Symposium on Hilton Head Island, S.C. King was induced into the
International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Tennis
Industry Hall of Fame in 2010.
The PTR Hall of Fame was created to preserve history and honor
excellence. The PTR Board of Directors elects members for
enshrinement. Induction into the Hall of Fame is considered PTRs
highest honor. King will be the fifth inductee, joining Dennis Van
der Meer, Jim Verdieck, Dr. Jim Loehr and Arthur Ashe.
USRSA AnnouncesNew MRTs and CSs
Master Racquet TechnicianYan Vigeant - Longueuil, QC CANADA
Certified StringersPaul Gordon - Etobicoke, ON CANADAMeredith
Nixon - Markham, ON CANADAGrace Tomlinson - Wynne Wood, PAMitchell
Zavesky - Flossmor, IL
Correction Our September/October issue contained
an incorrect phone number for Tecnifibre. The correct contact
info is 888-301-7878 or [email protected]. We apologize for
any inconvenience.
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Fighting the FightEach issue, Editorial Director Peter
Francesconi writes a column called Our Serve in which he often
begs, pleads and cajoles the tennis industry to keep its eye on the
participation ball. Please, keep serving.
Participation is the only engine that will drive tennis forward.
Par-ticipation drives racquet sales, ball sales, shoe sales.
Participation fills pros lesson books. Participation fills courts.
Tennis can only do well when people are driven to consume our
sport.
Pete, keep fighting the good fight. Keep using your platform to
demand participation initiatives. Keep serv-ing. You are the
conscience of our sport.
Jill FonteExecutive Director
& Chief Operating OfficerUSTA Eastern
Editors Note: Jill, thank you for your kind words and support.
In this way-too-political industry, you pinpointed another key
issue: This shouldnt need to be a fight at allwe all must have
ten-nis participation and the growth of this game as our top
priorities.
Because We Allow ItIn reference to the editorial Eye on the Ball
in the September/October issue, we as volunteers allow our
organization to be manipulated inef-fectively by paid national
leadership. Where are the results for spending millions on staffing
year after year? Have we ever seen a business plan? What is our
current marketing strat-egy to meet our mission: To promote and
develop the growth of tennis? I learned to play tennis at a park
and recreation department 60 years agowhere is the support for the
largest aggregate of tennis courts in the U.S.?
These are just simple questions to those we pay to grow the
game. Per-haps I just havent seen the answers to these questions.
If theyre out there, please share!
Ron FriedmanPast President, USTA New England
Letters
Business Model Needs to ChangeI just read John Embrees "Tennis
Di-rectors of The Future" in the Septem-ber/October issue and I
thought he hit the nail on the head. This topic is rarely discussed
in our industry. The busi-ness model as a whole of how directors
are compensated as well as their job descriptions needs to
fundamentally change for the longevity of this career path.
I've just recently been fortunate to have been promoted from a
Tennis Director to General Manager for two clubs that are owned by
the same fam-ily in Buffalo, N.Y. My time on court as a TD ranged
from 20 to 30 hours a week, but now that I'm overseeing two clubs,
it no longer is the best use of my time to be grinding away that
many hours on court.
The challenge I'm having is finding a way to pull back my hours
from clients I've taught over the years that still want my time on
court. I'm getting the sense they feel I am abandoning them to a
de-gree. Any feedback or suggestions that could help my clients
understand this transition would be appreciated.
Mike ManzellaBuffalo, N.Y.
ROG Enlarges the Talent PoolId like to point out a few flaws in
logic in the letter Bill Pantsari sent in for the August issue
regarding the potential value of the ROG progression in devel-oping
tennis players.
1. Despite the increase in the number of players now
participating in tennis because of ROG balls, Pantsari remains
skeptical of the overall quality. The tennis industry is making use
of the Law of Large Numbers. We are com-peting against other sports
and activi-ties in our efforts to attract the best youth athletes
to tennis. It is the tennis professionals job to recognize the best
talent and cultivate it. I would rather be selecting talent from a
large pool than a small one.
2. Pantsari states, It is sad ... to watch 10- and 11-year-olds
who have never hit a ball above their shoulders. No. Whats sad is
watching 15-year-
olds who are married to a Western grip forehand because that is
what worked best for them at age 10 or 11, when 70 percent of all
balls hit to them were over their shoulders.
3. Pantsari invites us to a Little Mo tournament being played by
8- to 10-year-olds with yellow balls to see the amazing results.
The world is littered with tennis players who were young phenoms
who never de-veloped beyond that early flowering. I am more
interested in what kind of player my student will be when he or she
is 17. How well developed are all the skills needed to hit a tennis
ball?
A more important observation is that the U.S. Junior Davis Cup
teams have not only performed well, but dominated in international
competition for the last 20 years. Where have all those players
gone? Certainly not into the Top 10 on the ATP tour.
The definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing over
and over while expecting a different re-sult. Tennis professionals
who per-sist in denying the potential benefits of training our
youngest players on ROG balls are skating on the thin ice that
separates us all from the cold pond of insanity.
Scott HarrisUSPTA Elite Professional/
PTR ProfessionalRiverside, Calif.
Praise for TIs ChampionsThank you for printing the Cham-pions of
Tennis Honor Roll in the July issue. Looking back at all the
people, places and organizations youve honored over the last 14
years makes me realize just how special this sport, and the people
in it, truly are. Its inspiring to see how many of the winners from
the early days of the awards are still so dedicated to helping this
sport grow. Keep up the great work in bringing these true
grassroots tennis cham-pions to light.
Josh MyersHilton Head Island, S.C.
14 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
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16 TennisIndustry November/December 2015 Join the TIA . . .
Increase Your Profits . . . Grow the Game . . .
www.TennisIndustry.org
A Rally the Family campaign designed to bring more players into
the sport of tennis was unveiled by the USTA and TIA at the 8th
Annual TIA Tennis Forum, held in New York City during the 2015 US
Open. The new initiative will be rolled out to consumers in
March.
Research shows that while families are spending more time
together and want to be active, theyre not engaging with each other
nor are they active because they are either watching TV or using
their own smartphones and other electronic devices, said Kurt
Kamperman (below left), the USTAs chief executive of Community
Tennis.
We believe we can help tennis grow by positioning it as an
activity that families can do together, he said. Tennis is
something every family can rally around. We have distribution of
the product, but we cant just make the equipment accessible; we
have to make the activity accessible.
With Rally the Family, the USTA and the tennis industry are
coming together to grow the game, TIA President Greg Mason told the
more than 250 industry executives and tennis providers at the
Forum. The use of lower compression Red, Orange and Green tennis
balls, shorter tennis courts, shorter racquets and modified scoring
can bring more kids and adults into tennis in a fun, social
way.
Playing into the Rally the Family campaign is research presented
at the Forum indicating 14.6 million Americans are interested
in playing tennis, but currently arent tennis players. This
latent demand represents a significant opportunity, Mason said,
adding that there also are another 12 million Americans who
consider themselves tennis players but did not play in the previous
year.
Also speaking at the Tennis Forum was USTA President, CEO and
Chairman of the Board Katrina Adams, who updated the crowd on three
key initiatives on which she is focusing: engaging the Hispanic
community, focusing on high school tennis players, and improving
sportsmanship in tennis. All three revolve around the family, Adams
said.
The Tennis Forum concluded with a ceremony honoring industry
pioneer Peter Burwash, a former pro player and coach who founded
Peter Burwash International, the worlds largest tennis-management
company, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Burwash
(below right with Mason and Jeff Williams) became the 10th inductee
into the Tennis Industry Hall of Fame.
Rally the Family Campaign Introduced at TIA Tennis Forum
Ten years ago, Cardio Tennis made its national debut, with
sessions and demonstrations at the 2005 US Open that included
celebrities and major media coverage. Launched by the TIA in
conjunction with the USTA, the focus of Cardio Tennis is on health,
fitness, and cardiovascular exercise. As a result of the
fitness-based element and social atmosphere, the program has grown
its participation base to more than 1.6 million Americans. It also
is now being delivered in more than 30 countries.
Cardio Tennis was created to address the growing fitness trend,
and it truly appeals to a broad spectrum of consumers, says TIA
Executive
Director Jolyn de Boer. It brings both avid players to the court
as well as non-tennis players who are looking to simply get a great
workout. And for providers, it generates business by creating core
tennis players and consumers.
Interest in fun, group, social fitness is at an all-time high
and Cardio Tennis is a great crossover activity that not only
allows you to get an amazing workout, but to also get into tennis,
and to improve your tennis, says Michele Krause, the TIAs Cardio
Tennis manager.
Its great for all ages and ability levels.Whats in the future?
In addition to the well-
honed adult version, the TIA, with help from the
Cardio Tennis Marks 10 Years of Growing the Game
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Industry leaders and top experts in the field of facility
operations and management will be headed to Miami March 23-25 for
the third annual Tennis Owners & Managers (T.O.M.) Conference,
which will take place during the Miami Open pro tournament. The
event will include a separate session on the State of the Tennis
Industry.
While the T.O.M. Conference curriculum and presentations are
still being developed and refined, among the important topics will
be the new, industry-wide Rally the Family campaign and how tennis
facilities can take advantage of the initiative to help boost
business while increasing participation for all ages.
In addition, to help encourage young professionals and
entrepreneurs to continue to pursue careers in the tennis industry,
the 2016 T.O.M. Conference will include a Mentor Program with
special incentives and programming. The conference also will
include a Resource Center and a Tech Fair, which will give club and
facility owners, managers and staff an opportunity to learn more
about and try out the latest products that can engage members and
players. There will also be roundtables and interactive workshops,
along with a session that will look at the successful tennis
facility of the future.
Our third annual Tennis Owners & Managers Conference will
build on the successful event held last spring in Indian Wells,
Calif., says TIA Executive Director Jolyn de Boer. T.O.M. attendees
also will have a chance to attend the Miami Open. More details will
be posted soon at TheTomConference.com.
T.O.M. Conference Takes Shape in Miami
Join the TIA . . . Increase Your Profits . . . Grow the Game . .
. www.TennisIndustry.org
With the new year, the TIAs volunteer leadership will shift from
current President Greg Mason to a new p res iden t , Jeff Williams
(left), the managing partner of The Tennis Media Co. (Tennis.com,
Tennis Magazine, Tennis Tuesday) and co-
publisher of Tennis Industry magazine. Williams will begin a
three-year term in January; Mason remains on the board representing
Head/Penn.
The TIA Global Council continues to move ahead, with the release
of the new Global Tennis Marketplace research report. The Global
Council consists of Chairman Eric Babolat (Babolat), Ottmar Barbian
(Head), Mike Ballardie (Prince), Hans-Martin Reh (Wilson), and,
starting in January, Williams.
In other T IA news, John Suchenski (right), the senior manager
of programming and acquisitions at ESPN, becomes the newest member
of the Board of Directors. Suchenski oversees the networks
portfolio of tennis and g o l f p r o p e r t i e s a n d maintains
relationships with the tournaments, event organizers, and other
industry partners. In addition, Jim Fromuth of Fromuth Tennis will
represent the tennis retail sector and Greg Lappin, former national
tennis director for Life Time Fitness, will represent the facility
sector.
Stacey Allaster, who has been on the TIA board since 2009, has
resigned as chief executive of the WTA. Named by Forbes as one of
the most powerful women in sports, Allaster, a longtime supporter
of the TIA, has been a speaker at TIA Tennis Summit events.
TIA Leadership News
November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 17
In late September, former TIA and USTA President Dave Haggerty
was elected president of the ITF, the world governing body
responsible for the rules of tennis and maintaining
the integrity of the sport.
Current USTA President Katrina Adams was elected to the ITF
Board and selected as one of three ITF Vice Presidents.
We wish them the best in their roles on the international tennis
stage!
CONGRATULATIONS, DAVE HAGGERTY!New President of the
International Tennis Federation
national Cardio Tennis Team and other industry experts, is
updating Cardio Tennis Kids, to help get youngsters active and into
tennis. For adults, there also is TRX Cardio Tennis, the ultimate
ball-striking, calorie-burning workout that incorporates power,
muscular endurance, flexibility and balance and includes
tennis-specific TRX Suspension Training System exercises. In
addition, Krause and her team are leading training sessions around
the country, to increase the number of licensed Cardio Tennis
Authorized Providers
(APs). Among the benefits APs receive is access to dozens of
videos, drills and downloads at Cardio Tennis TV.
For more on Cardio Tennis, i n c lud ing i n fo rmat ion on
becoming an Authorized Provider, visit CardioTennis.com.
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By Bob Patterson
Racquet Tech
18 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com
N ext to stringing, installing grips is the most expected
racquet service we perform. Many technicians, especially those just
starting out, will hesitate to offer services like customizations,
but stringing and gripping are the basics of the business and its
hard to do one without the other. (For more on grips and overgrips,
see Getting a Grip on page 36.)
To do a good job, you will need a few tools: scissors, a staple
gun, grip tape. Supplemental tools are a small, strong flat
screwdriver to remove old staples and a tack hammer to seat
stubborn staples.
You can refer to the USRSA Racquet Service Techniques Guide for
a step-by-step tutorial, but we will cover a few basic points here
to ensure that your grip job is a professional one:1. Make sure of
your customers preference. Are they right- or
left-handed? What type of grip do they prefer? Do they use an
overgrip? Is their handle the proper size? These are essential
questions to ascertain what your customer needs. It is hard to
provide a good job if you dont have this information. Just as with
stringing, you must first determine what your customer needs.
2. Make sure you remove all the old adhesive and grip material
before you install the new one. If you have left old residue on the
handle, the new grip will not feel right and may be too large.
3. Secure your starting point with a staple to ensure your job
doesnt come unraveled during play.
4. Make a clean, straight cut at the top. The finishing tape
should cover your cut. This is the most common mistake we see in
grip installation. Your work is a product of your overall service.
If you produce
sloppy and unprofessional work, your customers will associate
that directly and your business will suffer.
For more details on grip installation and racquet service, USRSA
members can access the Racquet Service Techniques section of the
USRSA website at www.racquettech.com.
Gripping 101The grip is a players connection to the racquet.
Make sure it is installed properly.
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Growing tennis, and growing your tennis business, is all about
be-ing local. It all boils down to how many tennis players are
playing at your facility, or on your local community or school
courts.
Ten years ago, the USTA created the Tennis Service
Representative (TSR) programbilled at the time as a sales force for
tennisto reach out and offer resource support to tennis providers
looking to increase local participation and gain new customers.
Every USTA section has TSRs, and while created by the USTA national
office, TSRs are em-ployees of the section they reside in.
Its fair to say that TSRs have a lot on their plates, says Glenn
Arrington, the USTAs director for TSRs, High School and Tennis On
Campus. Not only do they provide resources and guidance to all
types of tennis providers in their territories, but they also pitch
in on sec-tional and national initiatives, industry campaigns and a
host of other respon-sibilities. These are some of the hardest
working people in tennis.
Currently, there are more than 85 TSRs, Arrington adds. They
have to stay up to date on new programs, initiatives
and trends within the sport so they can provide useful ideas and
solutions to their customers. In many ways, they act as tennis
consultants, identifying resources to help you fill your courts and
grow your business.
Our TSR team in Texas is how we do tennis delivery, says Mike
Carter, director of community development for USTA Texas, which has
six TSRs. Its all about supporting those who are
engaged in building local tennis op-portunities, and thats what
our TSRs do so well.
Arrington, with help from sales consultant (and 29-year former
Wilson territory manager) Bob Pfaender, has been reaching out to
TSRs and section staff to make sure they have what they need to
build long-term relationships and grow tennis in communities. The
depth and breadth of what TSRs deal with on a daily basis is pretty
amazing, Arrington says.
For instance, Jon Kostek, a TSR for USTA New England, recently
started a local Junior Team Tennis middle-school league in northern
Connecticut. Weve used our relationships with Park & Rec
departments and schools to form the league, Kostek says. Each
school or town can enter teams.
Jons gotten a terrific response. The schools and towns love the
format and love being able to offer organized, recreational play,
Arrington says.
USTA Intermountain TSR Toni Sinclair (in front row with red
shirt) is a Play Day masterso far this year, shes helped organize
and conduct more than 130 of them, in addition to helping train
CTAs and other organiza-tions in how to do Play Days in a bigand
funway.
Since Toni has become involved as a TSR, the numbers (in our
junior high clinics) have quadrupled, says Nancy Sommerwerck,
president of McCall CTA and director of the Donnelly Tennis Club in
Boise, Idaho.
Molly Zimmer, a TSR for USTA Florida, partnered with YMCA
Volusia County to train 65 staff for summer camps, then coordinated
Kids Tennis Camps that saw 1,036 youngsters on court. Each of the
five sites doing the Kids Tennis Camps plans to continue them in
after-school programs, Zimmer says. And the trained summer staff
will also transition to providing after-school tennis.
TSRs also are leveraging pro events. At the Western + Southern
Open this past August in Cincinnati, USTA Midwest TSR Manager Jim
Amick and his team hosted a High School Tennis Hospitality Day for
coaches and players. We had tons of fun, Amick says. It was great
to support high school tennis, a great way to thank high school
coaches and players for all they do in tennis.
Our TSRs are unique, Arrington says, able to keep a lot of balls
in the air while growing participation for all ages. For tennis
providers, connecting with the TSR in their area will be a win for
everyone.
Local Delivery
By Peter Francesconi
Community Tennis
www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com20
TennisIndustry November/December 2015
For Tennis Service Reps, its all about growing tennis in your
area.
For more information on Tennis Service Reps and to find the TSR
who serves your area, visit www.USTA.com/TSR.
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TEXAS
Creating Hot Shots!What do you get when you combine a local
superstar sports organization, a brand new USTA Texas program, and
a former World No.1s tennis foundation? More than 450 new kids in
the game.
The Alex OBrien Tennis Foundation and KidsInc, both of Amarillo,
were looking to introduce tennis as a new sport offering at
KidsInc, and they found the USTA Texass Hot Shot program to be the
perfect combination of skills in a cooperative team format.
The idea of teaming up with USTA and KidsInc to reach kids with
little to no exposure to tennis was too good to be true, said
OBrien, a former World No. 1 doubles and No. 30 singles player.
Hot Shots reaches kids right after their introduction to tennis
in PE, providing them the opportunity for semi-formal, team-based,
fun and social competition. Through four to six sessions, players
compete with groups of teams and are guided by a Commissioner of
Play, who has had access to USTA Texas training as well as the Play
Plan. Local Amarillo pros, coaches, and parents volunteered to help
on court.
Alex and his colleagues made this program well-received and
extremely successful, said Jimmy Lackey, president and CEO of
KidsInc. Our goal is to continue the original cur-riculum and add a
more advanced curriculum. And, with support from the Amarillo Area
Tennis Association, the next step is to transition kids into Junior
Team Tennis and Junior Tournaments. Amanda Friday
INTERMOUNTAIN
Rebuilding in BoulderRain hit the greater Denver area in
September 2013 with a vengeance. Within a week, more than 17 inches
fell in Boulder County alone, causing catastrophic flooding along
Colorados Front Range. Gov. John Hickenlooper declared a disaster
emergency on Sept. 12, 2013, in 14 counties. Hundreds of homes were
damaged and destroyed and several lives were lost.
Flood waters surged down rivers and creeks, inundating fields
and pastures, and leav-ing Knollwood Tennis Courts under a blanket
of thick mud. This fall, the City of Boulders Parks &
Recreation Department began its facility upgrade work at the
courts, with help from the USTA family.
In August, the USTA Facility Assistance Program awarded a
$25,000 grant to the city to support the rebuilding of the damaged
tennis courts, and Colorado Tennis Association and Intermountain
Tennis Foundation donated an additional $5,000. Facility
enhancements will incude two post-tension concrete courts, new
fencing and equipment, new stairs and an ADA accessible walkway
ramp, and an improved drainage system.
We are very fortunate to have strong collaboration in our
section with the Colorado District and the Intermountain Tennis
Foundation, said USTA Intermountain Executive Director Rob Scott.
We are very grateful to Kurt Kamperman and the USTA Facility
As-sistance Program for providing the lions share of these funds.
Without this assistance these courts would have been lost from
Boulders inventory forever.
The Knollwood Tennis Courts project is one of the citys final
2013 flood recovery efforts (also supported by FEMA and city funds)
and anticipated to be completed this springpro-vided the weather
holds.Wendy Anderson
Play It Forward!
Grassroots Tennis
www.tennisindustrymag.com www.tennisindustrymag.com
CTAs and public parks are on the front lines when it comes to
growing this sport in communities.
22 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
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Future of Tennis
Bahram Akradi Chairman & CEO, Life Time2014 Person of the
YearMy wishes for the future of tennis include putting more of an
emphasis and spotlight on high school and college tennis. There
seems to be a fairly good level of interest in the sport from
children, but then we tend to lose them in high school, so I am
completely supportive of USTA President Katrina Adams focus on this
important area as one of her priorities. The USTA, tennis clubs and
facilities, the media and this industry overall needs to
collectively work on creating more scholarships and visibility for
high school and college tennis. Id like to see more tournaments for
high school players, and publicize, market and televise them. Why
not have an annual national high school tennis championship that
draws players from every state, then finishes play at the US
Open?
From our business point of view as the largest operator of
indoor tennis courts in the country, were going to continue to
build and invest in opportunities to grow this sport. When we buy
or build a club with tennis courts, we bring a substantial
investment to that location, and we plan on continuing our work in
this areaproviding venues that we hope will spur the rest of the
country to invest in tennis as well.
I love this sport, and of course, while I wish I could play at
the professional level, I think realistically, Ill have to settle
for significantly improving my own game in 2016.
Joe Wang Tennis Director, Army Navy Country Club2014 Private
Facility of the YearAt the top of our wish list are facility
additions to accommodate a tennis program that has grown by nearly
50 percent this past year. We experience a pattern of older
"empty-nest members replaced by young families of five that are
more likely to be interested in an active sport like tennis. In
that regard, we are looking forward to plans to add an additional
two indoor courts to our six-court indoor tennis center. Wed also
like to continue our efforts to design a facility that maximizes
operational and financial efficiency while also keeping focused on
green" initiative opportunities that have led to a LEED certified
clubhouse and an LED lighting project at our indoor center. Next
year we are hoping to start a project to leverage the large roof
surface of the indoor center as a solar energy center for the
Club.
Program-wise, we hope to leverage our eight dedicated 36-foot
court facility to host more tournaments. And we look forward to
ways to grow our charity-based large pro-am events that we host as
a vehicle to serve our community while also providing unique tennis
opportunities for our membership to experience.
Lastly, as a private club manager, I would love to see continued
efforts to aggregate and share data between clubs on a national
level. Private clubs often operate in a vacuum. Continued
coordination among club managers, organizations like Tennis
Industry magazine, the TIA,
Wish List for the New YearWe asked last years Champions of
Tennis winners what theyre looking forward to in the coming
year.
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USTA, USPTA, and PTR provide valuable insight to industry
metrics and standards as well as help assure that we are creating a
consistent and strong career and training path to attract and keep
talented tennis experts to feed the future of this industry.
David Yamane USRSA Certified Stringer/ Master Racquet
Technician2014 Stringer of the YearIn the past five years I have
been stringing professional events, I have seen several changes in
touring pros stringing habits. As recreational players often follow
the lead of touring pros, I am hoping to see two trends that I have
observed on tour trickle down to the average player. First, softer
string beds. This can be achieved through a combination of lower
(especially below-50-pound) reference tensions, softer monofilament
strings, and more hybrids (including gut). Second, and related to
the first, more dynamic string beds. This can be achieved through
more frequent restringing. Although these increase the players
stringing expenses, both of these changes will reduce injury and
improve performance, which should be worth the cost for most.
Steve WrightTrans Texas Tennis2014 Builder of the YearMy wish is
that player participation will grow on all fronts, that the USTA
will continue and hopefully increase its work in helping fund
facility improvements in all markets, and that the public
institutions (municipalities, school districts, colleges and
universities) will continue their efforts to build high-quality,
multi-court, tournament-level facilities as they realize that
tennis is not only a great sport for life, but is also a
money-making sport for their communities and institutions. I also
wish for some of the younger U.S. professional players to have
"break-out" years to stimulate interest in professional tennis.
Allan Iverson Babolat2014 Sales Rep of the YearId like to see
innovative tennis products that will make tennis even more fun and
socially interactive to play. Products that make tennis easier on
the body and help to connect tennis players are essential. It would
be great to have footwear that not only are the lightest and most
maneuverable shoes, but also have excellent support; new standards
for racquets that create more spin with better
feel and control; string that is more durable yet easy on the
arm. Imagine a device you could wear no matter what racquet you use
that could give you immediate feedback on your game and allow you
to challenge other players with the results. My hope is that
technology can make tennis easier and connect more people through
the sport.
Shima & Joe Grover Richmond, Va.2014 Tennis Advocates of the
YearFor the new year, wed like to see the Tennis Channel be as
welcome and available to basic cable channel packages for tennis
players everywhere as is the Golf Channel for golfers. We also
would like to see innovative tennis formats that are easier to
learn and less physically demanding promoted everywhere for new and
returning senior players, comparable to the ROGY approach for
kids.
We need to form more neighborhood tennis support groups to help
underfunded public schools and city Park & Rec Departments
clean and maintain neighborhood courts while also supervising
regularly scheduled play for kids and adults. Wed like to see USTA
Adult/Senior League teams adopt elementary, middle and high schools
to assist coaches with supplies, training, practices and
supervision to build a strong play continuum for kids of all ages.
In addition, it would be great if every public tennis facility had
a godparent that would advocate for it and, if possible,
financially support it. And, here in Richmond, wed like to see the
city and Virginia Commonwealth University build a major
indoor/outdoor tennis complex to broadly serve public and local
university needs while promoting the legacy of Arthur Ashe.
Adam QueenYour Serve Tennis2014 Pro/Specialty Retailer of the
YearIn 2016 I would love to see brick-and-mortar specialty
retailers focus on improving customer service and the shopping
experience. As specialty retailers, we are expected to be the
experts. Manufacturers make strides in improving the quality and
functionality of racquets, shoes and strings and it is our job to
educate tennis players on how these new products can help them on
the court. Creating a better shopping experience will attract
customers to a specialty retailer instead of internet or big-box
retailers where service is not individually tailored. By focusing
on each customer, we as specialty retailers can help customers find
the right equipment for their needs so that they play their best
tennis and enjoy this great game even more.
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Robert OberrenderChairman of the Board, InnerCity Tennis
Foundation2014 Community Tennis Association of the YearAt InnerCity
Tennis, as a not for profit organization, we are hoping to see the
continued evolution of our youth development programming, and an
expansion and deepening in our relationship in the children and
youth we serve. Using tennis as our vehicle to engage with children
and youth, we look forward to more youth tennis activity each and
every day , more volunteers engaging in helping these youngsters,
and engaging in their own tennis activity, and continuing to grow
our supportive tennis community, all accelerated by our physical
transformation of our tennis facility.
Ellen Miller Teaching Professional2014 Grassroots Champion of
the YearMy wish for 2016 is plain and simple: Red, Orange, Green
for novice players. Read: No more yellow balls for beginner youth
players under the age of 10. So for all the ROG hold-outs, please
try the low compression balls! Go do a Coach Youth Tennis Workshop,
learn some new skills and update your teaching delivery. We have
such wonderful training tools in the Red-Orange-Green trilogy and
we can get young players rallying so much quicker because of it.
While you are at it, use these balls with your adults for fantastic
results. We need to grow the game, right? When players are
successful and having fun, they stick with it and, voila, the game
has grown. Be a part of it!
Simon GaleOwner/GM, Taconic Sports & Racquet2014 Youth
Tennis Provider of the YearI would love to see kids playing the
game and developing a passion for playing tennis more than taking
lessons. So I guess my wish is that teaching programs encourage
more play opportunities, and get kids playing the game right away.
Other youth sports get them playing immediately after just one or
two practices. We are still teaching technique for a long time
before kids actually play the game. When you expose what they have
trouble with, they are more inclined to work on it. I believe we
can all grow our tennis business by doing so and at the same time
get them hooked on staying in tennis!
Steve Simon COO & Tournament Director, Indian Wells Tennis
Garden2014 Municipal Facility of the YearOn-court in 2016 I am
looking forward to watching Roger and Serena continue their
respective journeys to the discussion of the greatest to have ever
played the game,
continuing to marvel at the athleticism and consistency of
Novak, pulling to see Rafa again challenge to be the best and
seeing if younger players in the game such as Keys, Muguruza and
Sock can take that next step and cement themselves in the Top
10.
From a BNP Paribas Open and Indian Wells Tennis Garden
perspective, we are looking to continue our commitment of growth,
evolution and improvement for everything we do. We want our
tournament to cater to fans in new and enhanced ways to make sure
their experience is unparalleledno matter whether this is the first
time or 10th time attending the event. Our facility showcases the
best in the world each March, but we also want to continue our
focus on grassroots efforts, and recognize the game grows when
seeds are planted with players of all ages. We have big and lofty
goals for our tournament and facility, and 2016 will present
another year to keep pressing on to reach those aspirations.
Jack Newman CEO, Austin Tennis Academy2014 Junior Tennis
Champion of the YearMy wish for 2016 is to introduce tennis to the
six lo-cal elementary schools here through their P.E. classes,
touching 3,000 students, and bringing 5 percent of them into our
development program. Id also like to increase the number of
students in our program attending Level 1 National tournaments from
15 to 25, and to help our local high school win a state
championship in team tennis. I also wish that college tennis would
pick a format and stick with it. In the pro game, Id like to see
young U.S. profes-sional tour players make a big breakthrough at
the Grand Slams in 2016. As the big four pro players move toward
the end of their careers, Id like to see younger champi-ons step
forward to take their places and new rivalries develop at the top
of the game.
Marc J. Vecchiolla Director of Tennis OperationsMercer County
Park Tennis Center2014 Public Park of the YearWe will continue to
grow and introduce a younger generation to a lifetime sport by
expanding our 10 and Under leaguesespecially since all of our 28
courts have lines for shorter courts. We will expand the diverse
programming we currently offer to all ages and ability levels. 2016
will be a big year for us as a new Hall of Fame class will be
inducted. This happens every four years and the five inductees this
year established themselves as leaders in the tennis industry and
outstanding educators who have advanced the interest in tennis.
Their important contributions to tennis are measured through their
involvement in the sport.
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TennisIndustry November/December 2015
Future of Tennis
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Laurie MartinHead Tennis CoachXavier College Prep, Phoenix,
Ariz.2014 High School Coach of the YearAs I considered what Id like
to see in the coming year, I found myself reflecting on how many
girls we are exposing to tennis in our program at Xavier College
Prep. This fall we have 93 girls on the freshman team out of a
class of 310a 50 percent increase over last years freshman team.
The reason we are getting so many girls involved is we have blended
lines on our courts and use Red, Orange, Green and Yellow balls.
Girls are having success playing the game on shorter courts with
lower pressure ballsand it keeps them interested in the game.
For 2016, Id like to see every court across America have blended
lines on them. This would allow any player the flex-ibility to play
the game on a court size where they can enjoy it. In addition, I
would love to see high schools have the fund-ing to purchase a
supply of the ROG balls. Funding in the high schools is always very
limited, so most schools only purchase the regular yellow ball,
which makes the game challenging for beginners. Lastly, I wish for
programing for all ages and levels on 36- and 60-foot courts.
Jeri Ingram Tennis Director, Washington D.C. Parks &
Recreation2014 Park & Rec Agency of the YearFor next year, Id
like to see a larger number of Park and Rec-reation organizations
carry a full pathway for development and competition for tennis
players. Id also want a larger al-location of Player Development
resources to go to NJTL and CTA programs that develop players who
are at a place in their development where Player Development
becomes neces-sary for their next level of success. We need a more
efficient process for capturing Play Day participants and their
demo-graphic details, in addition to a more diverse offering of
Play Days as they pertain to participant demographics regard-ing
where they are in the tennis pathway. Id also like to see an
extended portfolio of competitive and non-competitive activities
for participants at Play Days.
Paul WalkerPlayer and Coach2014 Wheelchair Tennis Champion of
the YearIn 2016 I'd love to see the continued growth of our Junior
Wheelchair tennis program. 2015 saw them win a world championship
at the BNP Paribas World Team Cup. All three members of that
teamChris Herman, Casey Ratzlaff and Connor Stroudhave massive
potential in the sport. 2016 is also a Paralympic year, and the
best players in the USA will be competing for gold in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil. I wish all our players luck, and just as much I
wish the player who has yet to discover this great sport a speedy
path to something that can change his or her life forever!
P.J. Simmons Founder, The Tennis Congress2014 Innovative Tennis
Event of the YearThis year I was thrilled to see the launch of Play
Tennis Fast, an intro-to-tennis teaching framework designed to make
tennis more welcoming to adult players using the very techniques
that we know work for kids: slower balls and shorter courts. As
someone who knows what it feels like to start tennis later in life,
I can attest to the huge need for this program and its enormous
potential to attract and create more passionate adult lifers.
Play Tennis Fast will make it easier for those without strong
athletic backgrounds to take the first step and gain confidence. It
will help athletes who played other sports to experience sooner why
tennis is so awesome. And for people like me who come into tennis
deadly serious about being good players from day one, it will help
fast-track progress by introducing sound fundamentals on which
sustained progress depends. So one of my big wishes for 2016 is
that hundreds of facilities will embrace Play Tennis Fast and
cre-atively experiment with its marketing and implementation. To
that end, The Tennis Congress will launch a nationwide competition
in January that honors the most innovative Play Tennis Fast program
at the 2016 U.S. Tennis Congress.
Nigel PughDirector of Tennis, City of Fremont, Calif.2014 PTR
Member of the YearMy wish for 2016 is for continued development in
the certifi-cation process, enhancing the quality of certified
tennis teaching professionals throughout the country. PTR has done
an amazing job providing certifications that are tailored to a
specific player group, which has provided poten-tial coaches with a
solid knowledge that can be immediately utilized.
Rob Scott Executive Director, USTA Intermountain2014 USTA
Section of the YearI wish for the tennis manufacturers to become
more involved in supporting grassroots programming (10 and Under
Ten-nis, Play Days, locally branded Junior Team Tennis, High School
tennis, Millennial programming, such as 2.5 Initia-tive and Sets in
the City, etc.). This is where brand loyalty is formed!
Manufacturers are missing out by being so focused on direct ROI. I
also hope that the USTA National Leadership will continue to strive
for collaboration with the Sections and not dictate policy. We are
17 unique business models. I also wish for the Intermountain
Section to continue our efforts to grow the bottom and middle of
the junior pyramid (entry- and mid-level players) and not focus so
much on the top 1 percent to 5 percent.
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Footwear
Mixing It Up Tennis shoe manufacturers are creating
opportunities with a complex balance that includes changes in the
game, available technologies and new fashions. By Kent Oswald
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TennisIndustry November/December 2015
The tennis shoe market is complex and likely to get more so.
There is ever-greater pressure to control inventories at all levels
in a way that both minimizes financial investment and maximizes the
ability to satisfy customers who have internet access to worldwide
information and sales possibilities.
Tennis specialty stores sold more than a million pairs in 2014
for nearly $100 million (.7% and 3.3% increases, respectively),
according to Sports Marketing Surveys/Tennis Industry Association
figures. Results for the first two quarters of 2015 (latest
available at press time) show a 1.3% increase in units sold, but a
negative 1.1% in dollars received, compared to the same period in
the previous year. Shoes below $85 account for about 29% of those
sales, with those priced above $115 adding up to about 27% of the
market.
Manufacturers continue to search for the magical logarithm
that perfectly balances the changes in the game (recently a
University of Sheffield team began working with the ITF to easily
measure how much friction players create when sliding on all
courts, particularly hard ones), available technologies, and the
needs of fashion that send designers adventuring ever deeper into
the Pantone palette. Additionally, there is no longer a specific
season for product introductions: shoes are rolled out as series
extensions throughout the year as manufacturers (and retailers)
adapt on the fly to a fluid marketplace.
Paired with the complexity is opportunity. There is consumer
interest in ethical and recycled footwear yet to be fully
investigated, and a welcome embrace for the retro Stan Smith, Jack
Purcell and Fred Perry series suggests that new markets await,
including the potential of an unexploited area for tennis kicks in
a new niche collectibles market. Upcoming highlights (all prices
are suggested retail) include:
ADIDASKeeping with the changing marketplace, the latest
offerings of new technologies and colorways in Barricades and
Adizeros will be revealed throughout the year rather than in one
big splash. First up will be the Barricade 2016 Boost (suggested
retail $160), which debuts in January as the foundation of
Jo-Wilfried Tsongas game. In this iteration, the shoe, which was a
Tennis Magazine Editors Choice for 2015, gets not just an
eye-catching new skin color but also the technology in the heel
that adds a greater energy return to the continuing attributes of
robust stability, comfort and durability.adidas.com
971-234-2300
ASICSTwo stories to be shared in 2016 are the GEL-Solution Speed
3 ($130) and the GEL Court Bella for women ($100). As are all its
tennis shoe offerings, these are built on the companys time- and
mileage-tested running shoe lasts. The former is updated
with three new style options for both men and women and has been
tweaked to shave a bit of weight and add a touch more flexibility.
The latter is an extremely lightweight
(9.2 oz.), comfortable option for women with a low profile
offered in two different stylings. Sales support for both will
include in-store support and staff incentives; print, online and
social media programs; and seasonal introductions and special
editions of each series designed to rally attention across the
brand.asicsamerica.com 800-678-9435
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FILAThe new Cage Delirium ($100) is the featured footwear for
Filas 2016. The shoes are boldly colored in ways that tie back to
the brands apparel lines. The shoe is designed for stability,
flexibility and comfort, with high-stress areas reinforced for
durability.
In addition to the hard-court version, the shoe also is
available in clay court, grass court and XT outsole options.
fila.com 800-845-FILA
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November/December 2015 TennisIndustry 31
DIADORAThe Italian sportswear company achieved acceptance and
accolades for its reintroduc-tion of footwear into the North
American marketplace. With a distribution network established, the
next step is make more noise, which the company says it will do
with the planned announcement for 2016 of the signing of a
bold-faced name on both the ATP and WTA tours. The mens and womens
2016 S.Star Ks ($139) with signature kangaroo uppers and S.Pro EVOs
($119) will reach store shelves prior to the first ball in
Melbourne. Neither series will offer significant tweaks to the
just-introduced technol-ogies, but both will feature new, more
dramatic colorways. In support of the expected announcement,
marketing will continue with in-store support and an emphasis on
seeding the product with influencers.diadora.com 800-768-4727
K-SWISSThe California company marks its 50th anniversary in 2016
via a 50 LOVE campaign celebrating lifestyle aspects of the brand
across primary and secondary consumer marketing platforms. Specific
to tennis, the Hypercourt ($130) for both men and women has a
slightly tweaked new midsole composition and new colorways
launching for the Australian Open. The shoes will be highlighted as
part of the companys 100% Tennis Initiative, a marketing program to
reinforce for players how much the sport is an integral part of the
companys DNA. kswiss.com 800-768-472
BABOLATBabolats Propulse All Court ($120) for men continues as a
sturdy and durable option.
For the new year, it features new colorways (including special
edition themes labeled Stars & Stripes, Skull & Bones and
Aero). Players who in the past may
not have found the shoe a fit for their game may take comfort in
the option of a wider fit shoe, which adds to the slightly more
robust toe box that has been part of the shoe
since last year. babolat.com 877-316-9435
WILSONEmbracing changes taking place in hard-court play, Wilson
unveils widespread
distribution of its Glide ($200) in March 2016. The shoes soft
launch came through availability at select tennis academies and
consumer sales at the 2015 US Open. The
goal for R&D was to find an effective balance of slide and
traction for players on hard courts. From that starting point the
companys R&D folks added to the shoes support
and stability, as well as reinforcing the shoe in high-wear
areas.wilson.com 773-714-6400
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32 TennisIndustry November/December 2015
Racquet Sports
Pickleball and Tennis: Can They Be Friends?
Sports that are skyrocketing in popularity can usually point to
a youthful, testosterone-fueled athlete base and a bucket-list
appeal (were looking at you, obstacle racing.) But when was the
last time a sport absolutely exploded off the charts because of an
aging demographic that couldnt get enough of it?
Not before, and not until, pickleball. And with 68% of all its
players over 60 years of age and more players coming in every day,
its sneaking up on the tennis market.
Not that anyone in the industry really wants to admit that.Its
gaining, says consultant Doug Cash succinctly. There
are more than 2 million people playing it today. In a few years,
we expect there to be 8 million. Its gaining popularity and its
gaining players.
The paddle sport with the funny namethe one that took hold in
the Sun Belt and migrated north and east as snowbirds came homeis
here to stay and poised for even more growth. According to the
Sports & Fitness A