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Home , Laykold, Li Na, Patrick Galbraith, Tommy Ho, World TeamTennis

COURTESY USTA, RANDY FUTTY G String LXN Smart Wilson Unveil Luxilon, EQUIPMENT US Open—gross revenue nearly doubled US Open—grossrevenue nearlydoubled oversaw unprecedentedgrowth ofthe of theUSTA’s digitalplatforms. He also Net Generation,aswelltheoverhaul the launchofitsyouthtennisinitiative, ments underSmith’s leadership, notably assist inthesearchprocess. andTommyAdams Ho. Smith willalso current USTA BoardMembers Katrina lead theinternalUSTA team,joinedby search fi rm by March.Galbraithwill for anewCEOby fi rst identifyinga and hisactwillbehardtofollow.” with classanddignityaroundtheworld, he hasrepresentedAmericantennis “He hasbroughtoursporttonewlevels, Board andPresidentPatrick Galbraith. Smith,” says USTA Chairmanofthe for thesportoftennisthanGordon leader andamorepassionateadvocate in hispositionsinceNovember 2007. announced inJanuary. Smithhasbeen Set to RetireatEndof2019 USTA E.D. GordonSmith ADMINISTRATION www.tennisindustrymag.com The USTA saw anumberofachieve- The USTA says itwillbeginasearch “We couldn’t have asked forafi ner Industry end of2019, theUSTA history, willretire atthe tive DirectorinUSTA tenured CEOandExecu- ordon Smith,thelongest Information tohelpyou runyour business shots, touch shots andmoresti ness onpower speed thenadapt toprovide more fl ex on National CampusinOrlando. construction ofthe100-courtUSTA Center. Heforthe alsoledthecharge USTA BillieJean KingNationalTennis $600 milliontransformationofthe USTA history. Thefirst was thefi ve-year infrastructure construction projectsin all-time high. during histenure,withattendance atan Smart “isabletoidentifyaplayer the forceofaplayer’s swing orshot. LXN whose characteristicsbasedon change says isahigh-performancetennisstring the LXNSmart,whichcompany Luxilon andWilsonhave introduced 1.25 and1.30mm. Visitluxilon.com. Smith stewarded thetwolargest ” thecompany says. It

News ’ s available in s available in ’ s swing and world-class tennis.” trends, uniquenetworkingopportunities, an immersionofthelatesteducation and Operating Office. “Thisyear’s eventwillbe Club,” saysBrianParkkonen, PTRChief WTCA and returning toTheLakes Country the BNPParibas Open.VisitPTRTennis.org. Attendees alsowillhaveexclusiveaccess to ers NathanandGiselleMartin,others. Graham andMarianneWerdel, fitness train- Dean Hollingworth,formerplayersDebbie Robert Lansdorp,JudyMurray, NickSaviano, Tennis CoachesSummit. Association (WTCA) are co-sponsoringthe Open. PTRandtheWomen’s Tennis Coaches Calif., March 7-8,duringtheBNP Paribas at TheLakes CountryClubinPalm Desert, annual Tennis CoachesSummit willbeheld Charlottesville, Va. USTA League player, Futty willbebasedin SportsSurfaces.Anactive Connor SportCourtInternationaland more than20years withHar-Tru Sports, his 27 years inthetennisbusiness. surfacing materialsmanufacturingover all facetsofcourtconstructionand the past15years andbeeninvolved with American SportsBuilders Association for directors andexecutive committee ofthe Committee. He hasserved ontheboard of member oftheUSTA Tennis intheParks National Technical Committee and bodies andindustryorganizations. NRPA andanumberofsports’governing USTA, TIA,USPTA, PTR,USAPA, ITA, ASBA, manage domesticrelationships withthe to-day responsibilities, Futty alsowill Sports Surfaces.Inadditiontohisday- APT asthegeneral managerofLaykold asGM Randy Futty Joins Set forIndianWells PTR CoachesSummit Industryveteran RandyFutty hasjoined The PTR announced that the second The PTRannouncedthatthesecond “We’re excitedtobepartneringwith Speakers attheSummitwillinclude Before joiningLaykold, Futty spent Futty isapastchairman oftheUSTA

March 2019 TennisIndustry

7 IndustryNews

PARTNERSHIPS Carlos Silva Joins USTA National Campus to WTT as New CEO World TeamTennis has appointed Host Facility sports media executive Carlos Silva to the position of CEO. Silva replaces Chris Renner, who was in the job for he USTA and Tennis Channel have announced an agreement to partner about six months. on the construction and operation of a permanent broadcast facility at Prior to joining WTT, Silva served for the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla. The agreement also grants four years as league president of the Tennis Channel the rights to distribute a number of USTA events played Professional Fighters League (PFL), Tin other locations. and CEO of World Series of Fighting The agreement paves the way for live coverage of USTA professional, collegiate, (WSOF). He was the architect of the adult and junior events on a year-round basis. It will also give visibility to the turnaround at PFL with the creation variety of events, initiatives, matches and competitions held at the Lake Nona of the fi rst MMA League Format and campus. The USTA National Campus serves as the national training center for elite subsequent rebrand following the sale American professional and junior players. of WSOF to a new ownership group. As part of the partnership, which runs through 2022, Tennis Channel will air “Carlos has launched, operated and matches and additional programming from USTA Pro Circuit tournaments, College spearheaded the meteoric growth MatchDays and USTA League, Wheelchair and Junior National Championships of sports and entertainment media on linear television. A number of these events will take place at the USTA National properties for the past 25 years and Campus itself. is a well-respected sports media executive, proven digital leader and recognized content innovator,” said Tennis Channel now has another home at the USTA Fred Luddy, who owns the World National Campus in Orlando, TeamTennis league along with Billie where it will operate a broadcast facility. Jean King and Mark Ein. “We welcome him to our team as we look to continue to attract the best players in tennis, grow our sports league and our digital footprint.”

Prince Debuts Updated Tour, Re-Introduces O3 Prince Tennis partnered with ATP player Lucas Pouille to debut the updated Tour 100P racquet at the . Prince says new TeXtreme material increases precision, while Twaron provides greater vibration damping. The new TourSeries re-introduces O3 technology with the O3 Tour 100.

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8 TennisIndustry March 2019 www.tennisindustrymag.com IndustryNews

Li, Pierce, Kafelnikov To Enter Hall of Fame Chinese tennis great Na, France’s Short , and Sets of Russia have been elected to receive tennis’ ultimate honor in 2019— induction into the International Tennis The Volvo Car Open has partnered profits benefit NYJTL. Find out more at Hall of Fame. with Universal Tennis on a qualifying adlovetennis.com. Li, ’s first global tennis star, tournament, with the winner reached the world No. 2 ranking and receiving entry into the WTA Premier Tennis Channel added more than 5 was a champion at both the French event’s qualifying player field. The million subscribers in December and and Australian Opens. Pierce is a tournament is Feb. 28-March 3 on has gained close to 18 million in the two former world No. 3 in singles and dou- Daniel Island, S.C. years after the onset of its NTI Nielsen bles, and a four-time major champion ratings measurement. TC says it is the (Australian singles, French singles and AD LOVE is a new tennis apparel greatest distribution growth of any tele- doubles, Wimbledon mixed). Former brand “on a mission to promote love vision channel during this time. Tennis world No. 1 Kafelnikov has two major using tennis as a platform.” The brand Channel is now in 61 million homes. singles titles, four major doubles titles recently partnered with New York Junior and an Olympic gold medal. Tennis & Learning to hold the organiza- Puma North America has announced The three join an elite group of just tion’s first-ever T-shirt design contest. plans to establish a new North American over 250 individuals from 23 nations Last fall, students from across all five headquarters in Somerville, Mass., in who have received the honor. They boroughs of submitted a 2021. The new HQ will bring together will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on July 20, during T-shirt print idea to AD LOVE, with one two Puma offices, currently in Boston Hall of Fame Weekend in Newport, design chosen to be made and sold. All and Westford, Mass. Rhode Island.

Kolkmann to Present Court Builder Seminars Fred Kolkmann Tennis & Sports Surfaces is providing a series of seminars that deal with court construction and maintenance issues, the latest technol- ogy in court construction and renovation, the life-cycle cost analysis for court con- struction, long-term court reconstruc- tion/renovation, and other topics. The seminars are designed for facility owners and managers, park & rec per- sonnel, architects, engineers, municipal/ county administrators and officials, school district personnel and job speci- fiers. Topics include AIA-CES registered courses and are ASBA CEU eligible. Dates and locations are: • Feb. 19: Minneapolis • Feb. 26: Lansing, Mich. • Feb. 28: Columbus, Ohio • March 5: Greensboro, N.C. • March 7: Charlotte, N.C. • March 12: • March 14: Milwaukee/Madison, Wis. • March 19: Kansas City, Kan. • March 21: St. Louis. Visit kolkmanncourtbuilder.com to register. For more information, contact Fred Kolkmann at 800-833-8873 or [email protected].

www.tennisindustrymag.com March 2019 TennisIndustry 9 IndustryNews

ATP, Dunlop Announce New Global Partnership People The ATP and Dunlop have announced Watch a new, fi ve-year partnership that will see Dunlop become the Offi cial Ball of the ATP Tour and the Nitto ATP Finals Fila has signed a sponsorship Professional, serving most recently as beginning in 2019. agreement with , the WTA director of tennis for First Miami. Dunlop will also become a Silver No. 9-ranked singles player. The 27-year- Partner of both of the ATP Tour and old Dutchwoman owns seven career Jermaine Jenkins, former collegiate the Nitto ATP Finals. The partnership WTA singles titles and 10 doubles titles. All-American and recent hitting coach for expands Dunlop’s already extensive , has been hired by USTA portfolio of partnerships with ATP Tianna Flores, vice president of Design Player Development as a national coach Tour events, which includes a Next Build for Hellas Construction in Austin, for Women's Tennis. He played at Gen ATP Finals Gold Partnership that Texas, passed the Certifi ed Clemson from 2003 to 2007, where began in 2018. Builder exam in early December at the he was MVP and captain and earned “This new agreement is a testament American Sports Builders' Association doubles All-America honors in 2004. to Dunlop’s continued commitment to Technical Meeting, making her the fi rst the sport of tennis and we are excited woman in the industry to hold all three Max LePivert is the new director to build a long-term partnership with such a world-renowned brand,” said builder certifi cations for Synthetic- of racquets for The Stanwich Club in Chris Kermode, ATP executive chair- Fields, Tracks and Tennis Courts. Greenwich, Conn. A native of Nice, man and president. France, he was formerly at the Aspetuck Christopher Champion is the new CC in Weston, Conn. Mark McMahon of Ashaway Introduces head tennis professional overseeing McMahonTennisSearch (m.mcmahon@ ZyMax 64 TX String all public tennis sites in Gainesville, mcmahontennis.com or 404-271-3099) Fla., which is under USTA Florida Tennis was retained by The Stanwich Club as the Management. Champion is a USPTA Elite search and hiring consultant.

ACCESSORIES Izzers Helps Players Always Know the Score

zzers is a unique device that Ashaway Racket has introduced makes it easy to keep track of ZyMax 64 TX, a new badminton string the score—no matter your age. with a proprietary textured surface coat- Eight nearly weightless, ing to enhance feel and control of the colorful cloth bands (made shuttle. Like its ZyMax 68 TX sibling, Ifrom a specially designed stretch ZyMax 64 TX utilizes Ashaway's proprie- material) wrap with Velcro around tary BETA polymer fi bers and is construct- the racquet’s throat pieces. Each band ed using the company's special ZyWeaVe represents one , and as the score core technology, says Ashaway. changes, the player slides the appropri- ZyMax 64 TX is 0.64 mm in diameter. ate band up the throat. The BETA polymer ZyWeaVe core provides Inventor Lynne Hartmann says minimal tension loss and the textured researchers and sports psychologists coating adds stiffness to the string bed, believe that when players can ignore the enhancing control and of the shuttle. score, it improves performance. “Young White, orange or optic yellow in color, Colorful Izzers bands can ZyMax 64 TX is available in 33-foot sets players who try Izzers fi nd it natural to be used for scoring games always know the score easily,” she adds. and tiebreaks. Players and 660-foot reels. Recommended string- Contact [email protected] or slide them up and down ing tension is up to 32 pounds. the throat after each point. (321) 432-6482 for wholesale pricing. Visit ashawayusa.com. ASHAWAY HARTMAN; IZZZERS/LYNNE COURTESY

10 TennisIndustry March 2019 www.tennisindustrymag.com IndustryNews

PPR Adds Staff to Serve Growing Membership Professional Pickleball Registry (PPR) started 2019 by hiring its fi rst full-time employee. Nashville native Nicole Hobson is the new member services manager and will relocate to the Hilton Head Island headquarters. PPR was started in June, and in six months has seen its membership grow to more than 1,000. Hobson is

EQUIPMENT Prince Tennis, founded in 1970, and Boast, the soft-goods brand founded in Prince, Boast 1973, have partnered for the “Prince x Boast Limited Edition R107 Graphite Produce Tennis Racquet.” The co-branded frame “pays homage to the sport’s stylish heyday Limited- and combines Prince’s nearly 50-year legacy of technological innovation with Edition R107 Boast’s spirit of irreverence.” The racquet was made famous by and an ambassador for the USA Pickleball . Visit princetennis.com. Association, a USAPA Certifi ed Referee, tournament director and a lead clini- cian for PPR. In her new position, Hobson will be responsible for the marketing, operations and growth of PPR from initial inquiry contact through member certifi cation and beyond.

USRSA Names MRT, CS, PRA Master Racquet Technicians • Jinwan Jun, Kimpo, Gyunggido, Korea • Shane Kelly, Fayetteville, N.C. • Michael Lesko, Columbia, Ill. Certifi ed Stringers • Adrien Andurand, Montreal • Jean-Marc Bourgeois, Montreal • Dale Hibner, Fort Myers, Fla. Professional Racquet Advisors Add length to racquets and paddles with the new • Shane Kelly, Fayetteville, N.C. • Richard Gray, Spring Lake, N.C. XTP–XtendedXTP–Xtended TennisTennis Product!Product! Djokovic, Tennis Australia Partner With Universal Tennis Patented XTP butt cap installs Universal Tennis announced partner- quickly, easily and securely. ships in January with both Tennis Australia, the governing body for ten- www.xtptennisbuttcap.com nis in the nation, and star ATP player Novak Djokovic. UTR (Univeral Tennis USRSA Tested • Dealers Wanted Rating) will be recognized as an offi cial

global tennis rating of Tennis Australia. OFFCOURT PRINCE, PTR, ONCOURT COURTESY

12 TennisIndustry March 2019 www.tennisindustrymag.com IndustryNews

impacts on the sport of tennis, from the (2013), Jim Baugh (2014), Peter Burwash 1960s to the present. (2015), Eugene Scott (2016), Eve Kraft Current inductees, and the years they (2016), David Haggerty (2017), were inducted, are: Howard Head (2008), (2018) and Jim Fromuth (2018). Dennis Van der Meer (2008), Alan Schwartz Tennis Industry Hall of Fame inductees are (2009), (2010), Nick Bollet- recognized with their names displayed on tieri (2011), Howard Gill Jr. (2013), Walter a plaque at the International Tennis Hall of Montenegro (2013), Sheldon Westervelt Fame in Newport, R.I.

MultiTube picks up balls, but also can be used as a standup target on court. MultiTube Picks Up Different Types of Balls OnCourt OffCourt’s new, patent-pending MultiTube was built double-wide to pick up more balls. Plus, it is designed to pick up regular tennis balls, all sizes of transition balls (including Red balls) and pickleballs. As a bonus, the MultiTube stands up easily on any surface to transform into a highly visual target. Visit OnCourtOffCourt.com for more details.

Nominate for 2019 Tennis Industry Hall of Fame

In nder vento ou r F C r o o n t tr a ib v u o t n o n r I Tennis Industry HALL OF FAME Nominations are now being accepted for the annual Tennis Industry Hall of Fame. Inductees for the class of 2019 will be announced at the 12th Annual TIA Tennis Forum, to be held in New York City on Monday, Aug. 26. Visit TennisIndustry.org/HoF for more information or to nominate. All nominations will be confidential. Nominations will close on July 1. The Tennis Industry Hall of Fame was started in 2008 to honor inven- tors, founders, innovators and con- tributors who have made significant

www.tennisindustrymag.com March 2019 TennisIndustry 13