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Great Christmas Gifts for Tennis Players (2024 Edition) Ultimate Stocking Stuffer List for Tennis Players (2024 Edition) Secrets of Winning Tennis The USTA Encourages Double Dipping The Speed Ladder Tennis Beyond the Headlines: November 18, 2024 A Balanced Diet: Healthy Tennis Engagements

Location, Location, Location: New Tennis Participants

On By Teresa Merklin

The Tennis Industry Forum is an annual meeting that publicly shares information from the Tennis Industry Association, the USTA, the National Golf Foundation (!), and Tennis Industry United. The target audience includes tennis service providers and tennis equipment manufacturers. The data disclosed at that meeting is positioned as key industry research that can help a tennis business grow. The 2021 presentations included location details on where new tennis players are engaging with the sport. That data illustrates the fundamental challenge the USTA has with retaining those new players in the tennis ecosystem.

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Checking the Numbers: More Tennis Participation Data

On By Teresa Merklin

Earlier this year, the post “Geeking Out over Tennis Participation Data in the Physical Activity Council Report” broke down the data revealed in the public version of the 2021 Physical Activity Council (PAC) Report. At the time, the USTA was falling all over themselves to issue press releases announcing a “surge” in tennis participation in 2020. The thing is, the data in the public PAC report didn’t exactly support that assertion.

What is a Tennis Referee Anyway?

On By Teresa Merklin

Tennis officiating is divided into quite a few sub-disciplines. At an event it is pretty typical have officials on site fulfilling various roles and responsibilities. The tournament referee is responsible for making sure the competition is fair. The referee is also responsible for ensuring the tournament is played under ITF rules of tennis in accordance with USTA Regulations.

The Perfect Pitch Rebounder

On By Teresa Merklin

In early 2020, I hastily purchased a Perfect Pitch Rebounder for tennis when it became apparent that shut down of my city park courts was imminent due to Covid mandates. Apparently other tennis players simultaneously did the same thing, as the device went on long term back-order shortly after mine was shipped. It didn’t seem sportsmanlike to write about a tennis training device that players couldn’t have, so I didn’t at the time. As we head into the tennis “off-season” this year, the device is once again widely available. It is the perfect time to write about my own Perfect Pitch Rebounder.

Taking a Flyer on Tennis Promotion

On By Teresa Merklin

The October challenge for the USTA Tennis Champions program was to distribute flyers promoting tennis. Harkening back to my own days as a youth soccer coach and parent, there were many days when I stumbled off the pitch emotionally primed to embrace the virtues of an individual sport. As the Fall soccer season comes to a close, the time is right to distribute some flyers to encourage youth soccer players to give tennis a try.

A Heavy-Duty Story About Tennis Balls

On By Teresa Merklin

Yesterday I wrote about how the USTA foists regular duty tennis balls on female tournament players. The next obvious question is when and why the policy started in the first place. It is a sordid tale of how tennis is a victim of the forces of technology and marketing. It is also a testament that complaining about the balls is an indelible part of the culture of tennis.

Even More Separate (But Unequal) Balls

On By Teresa Merklin

On the hard courts of Texas, bringing a can of regular duty tennis balls to a match is the epitome of poor taste. It simply isn’t done. The felt used for regular duty tennis balls doesn’t hold up to the wear and tear of play on an outdoor hard court. Consequently, I was surprised that regular duty balls were in use when I played the National Senior Women’s Hard Court Championships in Mission Hills, California earlier this month. I assumed that the selection was driven by necessity due to the the ongoing tennis ball shortage. As it turns out, the culprit is USTA policy.

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Come to Win: Venus Williams

On By Teresa Merklin

Slightly over a decade ago, Venus Williams was the lead author on a book about how athletics has shaped highly successful business leaders. The premise of the book is that athletic competition develops essential life skills including teamwork, problem solving, resilience, time management, and commitment. Those attributes are also important in the boardroom. Some of the leaders featured in the book competed professionally. Other contributors played collegiate and junior sports.