Tennis Briefs(4): 98th American Tennis Association Tournament, More

98th American Tennis Association Tournament to Honor USTA’s Katrina Adams, Bobby Curtis

The Fort Lauderdale area will again brace for the influx of thousands of adult and junior tennis players when the 98th American Tennis Association National Championships are held from Aug. 3-9, 2015 at The Tennis Club of Fort Lauderdale, the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center, and other area facilities.

This year’s ATA Honors Evening will feature current USTA National President Katrina Adams, and a tribute to legendary former USTA Florida junior organizer Bobby Curtis (see schedule below).

“The theme of the ATA National Championships — ‘Where Culture Comes to Play’ — is a reflection of those who play in the annual tournament,” said Al tucker, ATA member and vice president, multicultural business development, Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We bring a wide variety of cultures from across the country for a week of competitive play, camaraderie and cultural activities.” We pride ourselves in making this a fun and affordable week so all registered junior players can participate in the evening activities at no cost to the family.”

Registration for the event is now open. Divisions of play will include all men’s and women’s age divisions, NTRP divisions and Open singles, doubles and mixed, and all junior divisions. Juniors will be guaranteed 2-3 matches, as well as meeting new friends from across the country.

“It will be a family-friendly and cultural week for all youth and adult tennis players,” Tucker adds. “Junior players who are USTA members will receive a free one-year ATA membership if they are playing in the ATA National Championships, and in partnership with the USTA Florida Diversity Camps and the Tenis Para Todos initiative, we are looking forward to a record number of Latino/Hispanic community participation.”

USTA Florida Diversity Camps in 2015 will be June 27 at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Sept. 12 at Midtown Athletic Club (Weston), and Nov. 7 at Tampa Tennis at Hillsborough Community College. For more information visit www.USTAFlorida.com/Diversity or e-mail Maria Romo at romo@florida.usta.com.

98th American Tennis Association National Championships schedule highlights:

Sunday, August 2, 2015
12-5pm Practice Courts Available, Jimmy Evert Tennis Center (JETC)
6-9pm Junior Workshop, B Ocean Hotel
6-10pm Tournament Registration

Monday, August 3, 2015
8am Junior play begins
7-9pm ATA Board Meeting
7-9pm Junior Welcome Evening, B Ocean Hotel

Tuesday, August 4, 2015
8am Adult play begins; junior play continues
3:30-5pm Junior Workshop, JETC
7-10pm Juniors: Gameworks or Dave & Busters
7-8:30pm ATA Annual Meeting, B Ocean Hotel
9-11:30pm ATA Adult Event, Blue Martini, Hosted by local Kappa Chapter & Divine Nine

Wednesday, August 5, 2015
8am Adult and junior play continues
3:30-5pm Junior Workshop, JETC
7-9pm Welcome BBQ, B Ocean Hotel

Thursday, August 6, 2015
8am Adult and junior play continues
3-4:30pm Youth Workshop
7-10pm Junior Pizza Party, Convention Center
7:15-8pm ATA Honors Reception
8-11pm ATA Honors featuring the Black Tennis Hall of Fame Inductions, Convention Center

Friday, August 7, 2015
8am Adult and junior play continues
7-11pm Midtown Summerfest

Saturday, August 8, 2015
8am Adult play continues; junior finals

Sunday, August 9, 2015
8am Adult finals

For the full schedule of events at the 98th ATA National Championships, go to www.americantennisassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-ATA-Schedule.pdf.

Founded in 1916 in Washington, D.C., the American Tennis Association created a circuit of clubs and tournaments for black tennis players who were excluded from the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association. Since then the mostly-volunteer organization has served all players while challenging the racial barriers of segregation, cultivating promising young talent, providing a vital social network for African American professionals such as past notables Althea Gibson and Arthur Ashe, and influencing younger black stars such as current players Venus and Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens.

For more general tournament information or to enter go to www.americantennisassociation.org. 

USTA Florida Jr. State Singles Semifinalists to Receive Grant Support; Tournament Deadline May 24

The USTA Florida Junior Competitive Committee is designating $350 for each player that reaches and competes in the semifinals singles competition of the 2015 USTA Florida Level 3 ‘Bobby Curtis’ Junior State Championships.

The 2015 USTA Florida ‘Bobby Curtis’ Junior State Championships will be held on June 6-10, with an entry deadline of May 24.

“It is the Committee’s goal to provide a grant to these specific players to assist the players with an opportunity to compete in other elite events or team events during the year 2015, who may not otherwise have an opportunity to participate,” says USTA Florida Competitive Education Coordinator Ann Brown. “The semifinalist grants will apply to boys and girls in the 12’s, 14’s, 16’s and 18’s age divisions.”

The players must use the grant money towards either a USTA National Level 1 or 2 tournament, or Zonal competition. It can be applied to hotel and/or travel cost, and/or tournament entry fees. Players can submit the receipt(s) to the USTA Florida office in Daytona Beach in order for the receipts to be placed in line for reimbursement.

The period for reimbursement will expire as of Dec. 31, 2015 and any receipt submission after that date will not be accepted for reimbursement. For more info contact Ann Brown at brown@florida.usta.com. 

USF Men’s Tennis Live Stream Today in NCAA Round of 16

Host Baylor University is providing live video stream coverage of the men’s and women’s team and individual matches at the NCAA Division I Tennis Championships on May 14-25, 2015 via PlaySight’s “SmartCourt Live” technology from the Hurd Tennis Center.

The University of South Florida, the lone Florida men’s team in the Round of 16, will face Baylor today at 7 p.m. CT.

The live streaming for all outdoor matches can be viewed on Baylor’s official NCAA Tennis Championships website at http://m1e.net/c?83116921-XzGu6RVw1QZgM%40298249525-cjqD0Hcp94VU2

Baylor is hosting the NCAA Tennis Championships for the first time in its history. Live scoring and video is available from the Baylor website’s Tournament Central at http://www.baylorbears.com/sports/w-tennis/2015ncaa.html. 

Record ROGY Tennis Event at TOPS’L in Miramar Beach, Fla.

TOPS’L Beach & Racquet Resort hosted the largest ROGY event ever on the Florida Panhandle with 42 players in a Level 9 ROGY “Tourn-event” on May 9, 2015 in Miramar Beach, Fla.

“It was a great afternoon of tennis with a non-elimination, round robin format,” said TOPS’L Director of Tennis Joe D’Aleo. “All the kids got plenty of tennis and learned a lot about all aspects of the game as well. After a brief introduction of the format for the day and going over how much fun we were going to have, the best part was the parent orientation after I sent the kids to their courts.”

As the majority of parents were first-time ROGY participants, D’Aleo took the time to explain “why they were playing in their natural age division with the right ball and correct size racquet to play among their friends and peers,” D’Aleo said. “I had about a dozen kids signed up for the wrong division, mostly playing up an age group, but after calling them and explaining why I have to move them to the correct division, and then the parents seeing them play, made them believers why I put them in the correct division.”

USTA Florida Tennis Program Coordinator George English assisted with the event. “This was a great example of how to run a successful ROGY,” English said. “The large turnout of children experienced tennis using the red, orange, and green balls on modified courts.”

Also assisting with the event were Todd Hanson, Jim Gray and Kevin Tucker (Sandestin tennis professionals), and Ken Petty with S&P tennis, as well as TOPS’L staff of Sam Vickroy, Tyler Marengo, and Robert Okuly directing the Red, Orange, and Green Ball events.

“With the weather being a little warm at the end of the ROGY, everyone got ice cream cones and juice boxes to go with their participation awards, and ROGY medals for best serve, fastest feet, and my favorite, the sportsmanship award,” D’Aleo added. “I appreciate all the help and assistance that USTA Florida provides us, and giving the resources to run these events in the youth tennis tournament pathway.”

For more information on ROGY Tennis in Florida go to www.ustaflorida.com/youthtennis/rogy.