Tennis News You Can Use
Timing is everything. Michael Dowse took the reins of the USTA in January of 2020. With all that has happened in the interim, it is kind of easy to lose track of the fact that he had only been in his new position for 70 days before the pandemic became the mother of all complicating factors.
On a personal note, when Dowse was standing up his new organization in January 2020, I was also in Lake Nona on an extended business trip that kicked off the year. A member of Dowse’s staff was staying on the same floor of my hotel and the tennis racquet protruding from my backpack was a natural conversation starter. In fact, I actually learned of the USTA leadership transition via those conversations in passing at the hotel. Fiend at Court was just starting operation at the time and was sticking strictly to the Rules of Tennis. In retrospect, it was a genuine lost opportunity. Hindsight.
While the tennis.com podcast was released April 5, it was actually recorded on March 1. That means it occurred before the USTA issued the statement about the status of the Digital Application Platform that I wrote about in “Harsh Realities Revealed in the USTA Digital Platform Update.” It would have been a weird topic to come up in that venue so the fact that there was no discussion on that topic was hardly unexpected.
The opening topic was how tennis participation is booming because of the pandemic. Dowse did not cite the 22% “surge” number from the PAC report that has been annoying me as of late, but he did reveal that participation at the USTA National Campus at Lake Nona is up 20% this year. In this unscripted long form interview, he comes off as generally just excited about people playing tennis. The USTA press releases make it seem that he is clinging to the numbers as evidence that things are going right.
US Open Talk
The normal fare for the tennis.com podcast is professional tennis, so the US Open was a major topic of discussion. Dowse spoke at length on what a team effort it was to pull the tournament together in 2020. Additionally a medical advisory group was created as a counter balance to the obvious desire by the tennis community to have the event. Sound medical perspectives was at the core of the decision making process.
The USTA decision making criteria for the US Open revolved around three questions: 1) Is it safe? 2) Is it good for tennis, and 3) Does it make financial sense?
On the money side, the complete absence of fans in 2020 was a $180 million dollar hit to the USTA. Looking ahead to 2021, Dowse is confident that the tournament will occur and that some fans will be in attendance. The exact capacity remains to be seen, but they are hoping for 75%.
Money, Money, Money
The USTA went through a major restructuring in 2020 that reduced the size of the organization by 25%. Even so, the $180 million dollar hit created by the exclusion of fans from the US Open created some hardships. Dowse indicated that the USTA was able to use its cash reserves as well as some extended lines of credit to carry the event in 2020, but those levers are not available to the USTA in 2021.
Fans are essential for passing the “Does it make financial sense?” criteria in 2021.
Participation in Tennis
Dowse indicated that the current surge in participation reminds him of the tennis boom of the 70s when he first took up the sport. He learned to play tennis at a public park in a program that included people of all ages and demographics. Hearing him speak of his own history reveals his personal influences in the USTA Strategic Choices, which were previously detailed within the “2020 Tennis Industry Forum Recap” post.
He was asked directly if it is harder to attract players to tennis or to retain them in the sport. His answer was extremely insightful. First and foremost, the learning curve to play tennis is steep. In addition, there is an inactivity epidemic in the United States. It is a pretty big leap to transition someone directly off the couch into tennis. People need to be active first.
The USTA National Campus has Pickleball courts and is in the process of adding Padel Tennis as well. The organization is taking the strategic approach that any racquet sport is a potential gateway to tennis. We can convert those pickleball players, by golly.
Dowse also emphasized that the tennis establishment has a great responsibility to transition the pandemic boomers into core players. His overarching approach for that are is that it must start with great service providers. If people learn how to play tennis properly and can overcome the learning curve, his idea is that they will naturally dovetail into leagues and tournament programming.
Finishing Shots
I have hung on Dowse’s every word issued in press releases and have also viewed (obviously) pre-recorded presentations of him at the Tennis Industry Forum. I found him to be much more relatable in the unscripted interview format.
In fact, unscripted question and answer sessions are probably needed from the USTA on a variety of other topics. For the tournament playing community, a transparent assessment of the new Digital Application Engagement platform would be a pretty good start.
I am probably just dreaming.
- USTA CEO Mike Dowse on the Tennis Boom and the US Open, Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi, tennis.com podcast, April 5, 2021
