200706 Racquet Sports Industry

June 2007Volume 35 Number 6 $5.00

DEPARTMENTS

R S I J U N E 2 0 0 7Contents

June 2007 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 3

ContentsINDUSTRY NEWS

7 RSI enhances, relaunches website

7 DirectTV to launch Tennis Channel

8 Babolat extends Nadalcontract, debuts Aeropro Drive

8 USPTA launches onlineresource for H.S. coaches

9 Industry continuesbullish streak into 2007

9 Penn introduces newtransition ball program

10 PTR offers TennisOne benefit

10 Wilson promotes Adams, Springer

10 Own the Zone offersvibration dampeners

11 Prince debuts newChampionship tennis balls

12 Tennessee club gets newUniversal Fabric Structure

12 Prince releases newjunior racquets

12 Gamma debuts two new strings

16 N.Y.C. campus getsClassic Turf surface

4 Our Serve

18 Annual Awards: 2007 Champions of Tennis

20 Customer Service

22 Marketing Success

24 Business of Tennis

26 School Programming

36 String Playtest: Isospeed Professional 17

38 Ask the Experts

40 Tips and Techniques

43 2007 Industry Resource Guide

48 Your Serve, by Dave Haggerty

FEATURES28 Hit Your Target!

The latest research from the TIA can show you exactly what your customersare looking for.

34 Inside TrackTwo indoor court award-winners provide local players with year-round tennis.

ecently I had the good fortune to address the students

in the Professional Tennis Management program at Fer-

ris State University in Big Rapids, Mich. If you’re not famil-

iar with this program—and the handful of others like it that

offer college degrees for students who want to pursue a

career in tennis—then you’re missing out on something

pretty amazing.The Ferris State program was started more than 20 years ago by Scott

Schultz, a Michigan native who is now the USTA’s managing director ofrecreational tennis. For the last five years, the program has been ably runby Tom Daglis, who has a very impressive group of students, 10 of whichearned their degree this past May.

After four years, the students graduate with a business degree with a con-centration in tennis management, and they are USPTA-certified teachingpros at a minimum Professional 2 level. But the experience they come awaywith—from internships, to volunteering in tennis, to running their own pro-jects for credit, to helping to manage and maintain Ferris’s own tennis clubwith indoor and outdoor courts, to giving lessons—is simply invaluable.

Manufacturers, tennis clubs, and other tennis businesses are constantlycalling Daglis to hire his students. It’s no wonder that the program has a 100percent placement rate for graduates. (RSI co-publisher David Bone, who isalso the USRSA’s executive director, is a graduate of the Ferris State PTMprogram.)

I, and my co-presenter at Ferris, longtime tennis journalist and tennisweb guru Liza Horan, spoke to the students about dealing with the media,something they will know doubt have to do when they’re out at their ownfacilities, trying to drum up business and memberships in their local area.The students were great, they were interested, asked insightful questions,and we could tell they really were into this business of tennis.

At the awards dinner that evening, which featured Tim Mayotte as thekeynote speaker, the students again impressed us with their poise, knowl-edge, and interest in the field they had chosen. The graduating seniors clear-ly felt prepared and ready to go out into the world of tennis to make theirmark.

If you’re coaching school teams or teaching tennis to high-school stu-dents, let them know about these types of PTM programs. (RSI will writemore on this and other PTM programs in a future issue.) Your students maynot know that a college degree in the business of tennis may be an optionfor them.

After meeting the students in Big Rapids, I feel great about what thefuture holds for this sport.

Peter FrancesconiEditorial Director

Our ServeA Look Into the Future

(Incorporating Racquet Tech and Tennis Industry)

PublishersDavid Bone Jeff Williams

Editor-in-ChiefCrawford Lindsey

Editorial DirectorPeter Francesconi

Associate EditorGreg Raven

Design/Art DirectorKristine Thom

Contributing EditorsCynthia Cantrell

Rod CrossKristen DaleyJoe DinofferLiza Horan

James MartinChris NicholsonBob Patterson

Cynthia Sherman

RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRYCorporate Offices

330 Main St., Vista, CA 92084Phone: 760-536-1177 Fax: 760-536-1171

Email: [email protected]: www.racquetTECH.com

Office Hours: Mon.-Fri.,8 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific Time

Advertising DirectorJohn Hanna

770-650-1102, [email protected]

Apparel AdvertisingCynthia Sherman203-263-5243

[email protected]

Racquet Sports Industry (USPS 347-8300. ISSN 0191-5851) is published 10 times per year: monthly Janu-ary through August and combined issues inSeptember/October and November/December byTennis Industry and USRSA, 330 Main St., Vista, CA92084. Periodicals postage paid at Hurley, NY 12443and additional mailing offices. June 2007, Volume35, Number 6 © 2007 by USRSA and Tennis Industry.All rights reserved. Racquet Sports Industry, RSI andlogo are trademarks of USRSA. Printed in the U.S.A.Phone advertising: 770-650-1102 x 125. Phone circu-lation and editorial: 760-536-1177. Yearly subscrip-tions $25 in the U.S., $40 elsewhere. POSTMASTER:Send address changes to Racquet Sports Industry,330 Main St., Vista, CA 92084.

4 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY June 2007

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RSI is the official magazine of the USRSA, TIA,and ASBA

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INDUSTRY NEWSINDUSTRY NEWSR S I J U N E 2 0 0 7

I N F O R M A T I O N T O H E L P Y O U R U N Y O U R B U S I N E S S

Racquet Sports Industry recently relaunched its website, www.racquetsportsindustry.com, toallow access to news from theindustry as it happens.

Visitors to the new website willfind continually updated informa-tion on the business of tennis andother racquet sports. The websitewill also offer more in-depth andextra coverage of many stories thatrun in the printed magazine.“Our new website offers unlim-

ited space for us to bring to thoseinvolved in the tennis industry thevery latest information, so they canrun their businesses as profitablyas possible,” says David Bone, co-publisher of Racquet Sports Indus-try, which is the largest tennistrade magazine in the world.“You’ll be getting more news, on a more timely basis.”The new RacquetSportsIndustry.com will even offer a service that allows readers to be noti-

fied whenever a new story hits the site.In addition to breaking news, visitors to the site will also find the largest archive of racquet

sports business related stories anywhere on the web. All the past issues of RSI magazine will behoused on the new site, with improved search capabilities that will allow searches based on textkeywords, dates published, categories of information, specific issues of RSI, specific months ofRSI.com news, and even by author.

Racquet Sports Industry is the only magazine that exclusively covers the racquet sports busi-ness. For more information about RSI, including how to subscribe, visitwww.racquetsportsindustry.com.

Racquet Sports Industry Relaunches WebsiteDirecTV to LaunchTennis Channel

TennisChannelandDirecTVInc., thenation’sleadingsatellitetelevi-sionprovider,

announced a multi-year distribu-tion agreement that begins with a“Sneak Peek” of the French Open,May 27 to June 10, followed bythe launch of Tennis Channel laterthis summer.

The free “Sneak Peek,” availableto 16 million DirecTV customers,will offer the Tennis Channel’smore than 100 hours of coverageof the tournament. As part of theSneak Peek, DirecTV will offerFrench Open Interactive, providingviewers expanded coverage andfeatures, such as the French OpenMix Channel, designed to enhancetennis fans’ enjoyment of thegame.

Tennis Channel is also announcingthe pending launch of a second,high-definition network. In Decem-ber 2007, DirecTV will make thenetwork available in HD to itsviewers. This will mark the firsttime fans anywhere will be able towatch Tennis Channel in HD.

When DirecTV launches TennisChannel this summer, the networkwill be available on a base pro-gramming package with morethan 8 million customers.

Head/Penn’s new “Please String Responsibly” campaign is hitting pro shops around the coun-try. The goal, says a Head spokesperson, is to drive awareness for Head string, such as theFXP, FXP Power, FXP blend, Sonic Pro and the new

C3Rocket.In-store support for stringers includes stringer mats

with the slogan, along with plastic racquet bags thatstringers can use to place customers’ frames in afterthey’ve restrung them. To receive the plastic racquetbags, stringers should contact their Head/Penn districtsales managers.

Head’s New Please String ResponsiblyCampaign Offers Stringers Plastic Racquet Bags


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Babolat Extends Contractwith Nadal, Introduces NewAeropro Drive Frame

News from Babolat includes a 10-year contractextension by World No. 2 player RafaelNadal, and the introduction of the new Babo-

lat Aeropro Drive racquet with the Cortex Sys-tem, which Nadal started using in April.The contract extension includes racquets,strings, grips, accessories, and bags.

Babolat says the new Aeropro Drivewith Cortex is the result of a collabora-tion with Nadal, who recently capturedhis third straight Masters Series MonteCarlo pro title. “We accompany him tohis major tournaments; we listen to himto design a racquet that best fits hisgame,” says Babolat CEO Eric Babolat. “Weare proud of the collaboration with such achampion. This collaboration is large for himand for us.”The Aeropro Drive racquet has been

enhanced with the Cortex System, says Babolat, to optimize the feel of the ball atimpact. Located at the base of the throat, the Babolat Cortex System technology fil-ters unnecessary vibrations, keeping only those that players are looking for whenthe ball comes in contact with the racquet, says the company.Baseline hitters who like heavy topspin will appreciate the aerodynamics of the

Aeropro Drive for its power, says Babolat. The racquet has a 100-square-inch head andweighs 10.6 ounces unstrung. Suggested retail price is $185.For information, and to view a video of Nadal with Eric Babolat, visit

www.babolat.com.

New Penn Website LaunchedPenn has an updated and redesigned website, www.pennracquet.com that hasthe company’s complete product line, its print advertising campaigns, a videoabout making tennis balls called “How to Make America’s No. 1 Selling Ball,”games, and wallpaper to download.

USPTA Launches OnlineResource for H.S.Coaches

The USPTA recently launched anew website thatoffers extensive

resources to highschool tennis coaches andothers who work withhigh school tennisteams and players.The new site—

www.highschoolcoaches.uspta.com—will help support the “No-Cut”high-school tennis team program thatthe USTA is pushing. So far, more than1,400 high-school tennis coaches havesigned on to run No-Cut programs,which accept every student onto thetennis team who tries out.The new USPTA site will provide

resources that enable coaches toorganize effective team practices forlarge groups. One of the most impor-tant elements is a practice templatewith a large library of drills and gamesthat can be copied and pasted into thetemplate to create a high school prac-tice session of any length or complexi-ty. Drills and games have been usedextensively and successfully by USPTAcoaches.“We need to do all we can to pro-

vide high school coaches with the toolsthey need to run effective programs,”says USTA Chairman and PresidentJane Brown Grimes. “The USPTA's HighSchool Coaches Resource Center willdo just that. We are particularly excitedabout how this can help develop more‘no-cut’ high school teams.”Information on the new USPTA site

comes from many sources, includingalmost four years worth of TV showproductions for “On Court withUSPTA,” video recordings of both spe-cialty courses and seminars from pastUSPTA World Conferences, audio semi-nars from past World Conferences,DVD productions from special events,including the USPTA Competitive Play-er Development Conferences, drills,games and more. The site is free toUSPTA members and available free for90 days to anyone else who registersand provides a valid e-mail address


Top-Selling Racquetsat Specialty StoresBy year-to-date dollars, January-March 2007

Best-Sellers1. Prince O3White (MP) $1862. Babolat Pure Drive Cortex (MP) $1733. Prince O3 Speedport Red (OS) $2324. Prince O3 Speedport Silver (OS) $2695.Wilson N SixOne Tour 90 (MS) $186“Hot New Racquets”(Introduced in the past 12 months)1. Babolat Pure Drive Cortex (MP) $1732. Prince O3 Speedport Red (OS) $2323. Prince O3 Speedport Silver (OS) $2694.Wilson K SixOne tour 90 (MS) $1865.Wilson K SixOne 95 (16 x 18) (MS)$175(Source: TIA/Sports Marketing Surveys)

Tennis Racquet PerformanceSpecialty Stores, Jan.-March 2007 vs. 2006

Units 2007 143,2122006 132,347% Change vs. ’06 8%

Dollars 2007 $19,690,0002006 $17,796,000% Change vs. ’06 11%

Price 2007 $1372006 $134% Change vs. ’06 2%

(Source: TIA/Sports Marketing Surveys)

Top-Selling Tennis Shoesat Specialty StoresBy year-to-date dollars, January-March 2007

1. Adidas Barricade IV $1012. Nike Air Breathe Free 2 $953. Adidas Barricade II $844. Prince T 10 $805. Nike Air Breathe Free 3 $93(Source: TIA/Sports Marketing Surveys)

Top-Selling Tennis Stringsat Specialty StoresBy year-to-date dollars, January-March 2007

1. Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex2.Wilson NXT3.Wilson Sensation4. Prince Lightning XX5. Luxilon Alu Power(Source: TIA/Sports Marketing Surveys)

I N D U S T R Y N E W S

Penn Introduces New Transition Ball Program

Penn recently launched its Pro Penn Tennis Instructional Program (T.I.P.)—aseries of transitional tennis balls designed to help beginning players learn thebasic skills of tennis in a fast and fun way—in conjunction with the USPTA.

The program consists of two levels: Pro Penn T.I.P. 1,designed for beginners, is a high-density,lightweight foam ball with a high bounce,great for developing motor skills. Pro PennT.I.P. 2, designed for advanced beginners,features a low-compression core for controland consistency, while maintaining a livelybounce for longer rallies.Pro Penn T.I.P. products come packaged

in a 3-ball polybag with a USPTA instruc-tional booklet with drills and tips. All ProPenn T.I.P. products are ITF approved andfollow the coloration and technical specifi-cations for transitional tennis balls.

2007 Facility Awards Application Available

Applications for the USTA’s 2007 Facility Awards are now available. The program,now in its 26th year, is administered by the USTA Technical Committee and pro-motes excellence in tennis facilities.Last year, nine facilities were honored. Awards are given in five categories:1. Public Courts—small tennis centers with two to 10 courts2. Public Courts—large centers with 11 or more courts3. Public Tournament Tennis Centers, with permanent stadium seating4. Collegiate Tennis Centers5. Private Tennis Facilities that support USTA programs and other grow-the-game

programs.Deadline for applying is July 6, with awards presented at the USTA semi-annual

meeting in New York in September. Applications can be obtained online atUSTA.com; by contacting a USTA Section office; or by requesting an application [email protected].

Industry Continues Bullish Streak Into ’07

The tennis industry, after finishing a strong 2006 in racquet and tennis ball sales,has begun 2007 with more good news. First-quarter shipments of tennis rac-quets to all dealers were up 11.5 percent in dollars and 8.9 percent in units over

the same period in 2006. Tennis ball shipments also showed significant growth in thefirst quarter, up 8.4 percent in dollars and 8.7 percent in units compared to last year.In racquets, the largest growth continues to be in the super premium category,

which was up 32.1 percent in dollars and 22 percent in units compared to the firstquarter of 2006. Also, sales of youth racquets were strong, up 17.6 percent in dol-lars and 14.6 percent in units over 2006.“Overall, we are on the right track,” says TIA President Dave Haggerty. “Industry

sales are the most positive they have been in years, and the efforts to grow the gameat the grassroots level have also intensified. Along with our industry partners andworking closely with the USTA, we have promoted Tennis Welcome Centers for fourstraight years, the USTA has greatly expanded its Tennis in the Parks campaignamong other programs, and Cardio Tennis, entering its third year, is seeing terrificmedia attention and success in attracting new and existing players.”These latest figures for the tennis industry continue the bullish streak begun four

years ago. For more information, visit www.tennisindustry.org.

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Wilson Promotes Adams, Springer

Wilson Sporting Goods’ Racquet Sports Division announces twopromotions. Jeffery Adams is the new national sales managerand Cory Springer is the new U.S. marketing director. Both are

newly created positions.In his new role, Adams will manage the Racquet Sports sales seg-

ment and oversee the regional sales managers and sales planning man-ager. Springer will be responsible for the day-to-day marketingactivities, as well as product line plans and execution of marketingstrategies for all tennis categories.Since joining Wilson in 1996, Adams has held several roles within

the Racquet Sports Division, including his most recent position asregional sales manager for the South Central Region. Springer has beenwith Wilson for nine years, the last three as marketing manager in Wil-son’s Chicago headquarters.


PTR Offers TennisOne Benefit

In a new partnership agreement, PTR memberswill receive a complimentary one-year member-ship to the tennis instruction website TennisOne.Launched in 1996, TennisOne is a premier

instruction website and has twice won Forbes mag-azine’s best tennis site of the year award. The sitehas multimedia tools and offers free online invita-tion and event management tools for tennis cap-

tains and teaching pros to bettercommunicate with their players and

manage their tennis programs.“PTR is thrilled to partnerwith TennisOne, the leaderin quality online educationfor tennis teaching profes-

sionals and coaches,” says PTR Executive Directorand CEO Dan Santorum. “With top notch contribu-tors like PTR Founder and President Dennis Van derMeer, PTR Master Professional Ken DeHart, Ten-nisOne Editor Jim McLennan, and other talentedwriters, PTR members will be kept abreast on aweekly basis of excellent educational articles andvideos.”

Texas A&M Wins Again atNational Campus Championship

The Texas A&M University Aggies took home its fourth consecutiveUSTA National Campus Championship title in April, defeating the Uni-versity of Virginia in the championship match. It was the Aggies fifth

title in six years, and Virginia’s third appearance in the last four finals.The Aggies have now won 29 straight matches at the nationals over the

past four years, and have reached the past six finals. The event, present-ed by Tennis Warehouse, was held at the Cary Tennis Park in Cary, N.C.Sixty-four club and intramural teams from colleges and universitiesthroughout the country participated this year. The University of Floridaplaced third, and Penn State fourth.Among the schools represented this year was Virginia Tech, a campus

that was still reeling from the shooting tragedy just a week earlier. A num-ber of players and tournament staff wore maroon and orange ribbonsthroughout the event to show their support for Virginia Tech and its team.More than 400 colleges and 25,000 students currently participate in

the Tennis On Campus program, which features co-ed teams playing inWorld TeamTennis format. The USTA National Campus Championship isthe culmination of the Tennis On Campus season. The tournament isadministered in partnership by the USTA, National Intramural-Recreation-al Sports Association, Intercollegiate Tennis Association and WorldTeamTennis.—Kristen Daley

Lendl Teams Up with Trion:Z

Tennis legend Ivan Lendl has signed on to bethe official tennis spokesman for Trion:Z,which makes ionic/magnetic necklaces and

bracelets worn by professional athletes in golf,tennis, football, baseball, basketball, car racingand more.“Fitness has always been important to me and

Trion:Z supports my active lifestyle,” says Lendl,who captured 94 singles titles in his career and isin the Tennis Hall of Fame. “If you have aches andpains, you should try it.” Lendl will be featured inpromotions for the Trion:Z as well as representingthe product worldwide.Trion:Z bracelets are available in 24 color com-

binations and necklaces are available in eight col-ors. For more information, visit www.trionz.com.

Own the Zone Offers VibrationDampeners

Are your players looking to improve on the simple rubber-band vibration dampen-er that top pros such as Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, and Maria Sharapova haveused? Now, according to Own the Zone band vibration dampeners, they can.The manufacturer says Own the Zone (OTZ) bands, which come in eight colors, are

made from a special compound that dampens vibration 35 to 45 percent better thanordinary elastic bands. But unlike ordinary bands, OTZ bands won't quickly dry out inthe sun, lose their elasticity, or crack after repeated use. Depending on how much youplay, a single OTZ band will last from six to 12 weeks, the company says.The design of the OTZ band, says the manufacturer, allows for vibration energy to

be transferred away from the strings and the frame, into the air. For more informationor to order online, visit www.otzsports.com or email [email protected].



L E T T E R SKeep Members Happy and Offer Many ProgramsTo the Editor:The Your Serve article “Teaching Assistance” (April) by Liza Horan was wellwritten, and it is very important to understand why pros are underpaid.First, teaching pros still teach the old way and do not educate their staff.Second, learning tennis should be fun. I see so many teaching pros who

have a schedule, and they never change it. Each student is different and theylearn in different ways.Finally, I give free tennis lessons to beginners at my club. It is a six-week

program. Many pros in the area say I should not give free lessons. Well, nowI have people playing tennis, I sell tennis clothes, and I’ve also sold many rac-quets. The best part is that there are people playing tennis who would neverhave done it, if it wasn't for the free lessons.If the membership is happy and there are many programs for members,

the teaching pro’s income will increase. Remember, teaching pros in the ten-nis industry work for more than just the money. They work for the love ofthe game. Don Turner, Director of Tennis Operations

Tarpon Cove Yacht and Racquet Club, Naples, Fla.We welcome your letters and comments. Please email them to [email protected] or fax them to 760-536-1171.

Prince’s new Championship tennis balls are hand-covered for quality andconsistency, says the company, with an optic yellow felt that provides con-trolled “fluff” during use. They come in Extra Duty, Regular Duty, and HighAltitude Extra Duty. Visit www.princesports.com.

USTA Honors Junior Tennis’s Seena Hamilton

The USTA honored the Easter Bowl and its founder and tournament director,Seena Hamilton, for the tournament’s longevity and success at the openingreception for the 2007 event on April 15. Hamilton has been the tournament

director since 1968.The 40th Annual Easter Bowl, a USTA National Spring Championship, was held

for the first time at the Rancho Las Palmas Resort in Rancho Mirage, Calif., in mid-April. The Easter Bowl showcases the best of American juniors, both boys andgirls, in 14s, 16s, and 18s. It is the only national championship featuring three age

divisions at one time.Nearly every top U.S. tennis player has played at the

Easter Bowl, including Pete Sampras, Jim Courier, AndreAgassi, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati and mostrecently, Andy Roddick and James Blake.The Easter Bowl has prided itself on being about more

than just tennis. Hamilton created the Easter Bowl in part toencourage players and their families to mingle and socializewith each other. She bases all her planning around the ideathat a junior tennis tournament should be a learning expe-rience for both the players and their parents.

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New Fabric Structure for Tennessee Club

Baseline Sports Construction ofKnoxville, Tenn., recently completedits fourth project using a structure

supplied by Universal Fabric Structures.The new project was the four courts of theCentre Court Racquet Club in Louisville,Tenn.Unlike other fabric structure projects,

which cover existing facilities, this onestarted from scratch. The earth was moved and shaped to accommodate thebuilding, foundations were poured and courts installed. The building coversthe four indoor tennis courts, as well as a prefabricated panel building thatincludes a mezzanine level. Accessories include gable curtain end walls, indi-rect lighting, radiant heating system, four 40-inch, 11,000-cubic-feet-per-minute exhaust fans, six 60-inch ceiling fans, two sets of double glass doors,backdrop curtains, and divider netting between courts.The structure is a 118- by 243-foot TFS building that took less than six

weeks to complete. The fabric is Ferrari 702 white translucent with a gray bor-der. The TFS Series is engineered using the principle of the peaked arch pro-file and has proven its viability and versatility on projects ranging from tennisfacilities to airplane hangars. Universal Fabric Structures, of Quakertown, Pa.,has previously provided structures for Baseline Sports Construction at Pellis-sippi State Community College, Fort Sanders Health and Fitness, and theWebb School. All three sites are in Knoxville. For more information on Uni-versal, call 800-634-8368 or visit www.ufsinc.com.

USPTA AcceptingNominations for Awards

The USPTA is accepting nominations for its2007 National Awards Program. Eachyear the USPTA seeks inspiring stories of

USPTA Professionals who go above andbeyond the call of duty to provide their stu-dents with the highest level of tennis instruc-tion and personal development. The nationalawards program recognizes members whohave winning strokes, who teach tennis’many life lessons, who build businesses thatspur the industry, and who serve the sportand their communities with distinction.Deadline for nominations is July 5. Those

chosen as award winners will be honored dur-ing the annual awards breakfast on Sept. 20 atSaddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Fla.,during the 2007 USPTA World Conference onTennis. All Professional-level USPTA membersare eligible.Awards are presented in every facet of the

tennis business in which USPTA memberswork. More information, and award nomina-tion forms and guidelines, are available atwww.uspta.com, by calling 800-877-8248, orby sending a request to [email protected].

Prince Releases New Junior Racquets

Prince has come out with a line of new junior racquetsnamed for two of their biggest stars, MariaSharapova and James Blake.

The new Air O Sharapova and Air O Blakeframes are each available in three differentlengths—21, 23, or 25 inches—with similar specsfor each length. The 21-inch Air O Sharapova andAir O Blake both have a 95-square-inch head andweigh 6.7 ounces. The 23-inch versions are 100 squareinches and 7.6 ounces, and the 25-inch frames are 107square inches and 8.8 ounces.All feature Prince’s Fusionlite Alloy O-Beam and Tech-

nigrip. For more info, visit www.princesports.com.

Gamma Debuts2 New Strings

Gamma has come out with two newstrings: Live Wire Professional Spinand Zo Pro Spin. The new 16-gauge

Live Wire Professional Spin has an outerwrap added that allows the string to bite theball better for more spin and control, saysGamma. The hybrid Zo Pro Spin uses the16-gauge Live Wire Professional Spin in thecross strings and Zo Power 16L in the mainstrings, to provide a softer feel, greaterpower, and more bite on the ball, saysGamma. For more information, visitwww.gammasports.com or call 800-333-

0337.

Cardio Tennis Does Ireland

More than 60 coaches from around Ireland gathered at the NationalTennis Centre in Dublin to attend a Cardio Tennis workshop in lateApril, put on by the TIA’s Michele Krause and two other teaching

pros from her Cardio team based in the U.S.The three Cardio team members came at the invitation of Tennis Ire-

land, which wants Cardio Tennis to be a key program in its new “partici-pation initiatives,” designed to bring more players into the game in thatcountry. Krause was assisted by Florida-based pros Samantha Ardenfriendand Ted Murray.



USRSA MEMBER CLASSIFIEDSNOW HIRING: REGIONAL SALES REPRESENTATIVES Fis-cher, one of the leading manufacturers of ski and tennisequipment worldwide, is accepting applications forRegional Sales Representatives in the Tennis division. Ifinterested, please submit a cover letter and resume [email protected] or contact 800.844.7810 formore information.

FOR SALE: Puma X-tra Power Super. Like new! Originalgrip. Has swing weight adjustment syste. PCS keyincluded in cover compartment. L-3 grip size. $35. BobPayne – [email protected]

NOW HIRING: TENNIS RACQUET STRINGER with priorstringing experience. Must be reliable, detail orientedand able to work in a high-volume and fast-paced envi-ronment. USRSA certification preferred. Chicago Tennisand Golf Company has been serving the tennis communi-ty for the last 18 years. Email [email protected] orcall Corinne at 773-588-8884.

HOUSE FOR SALE: Two Tennis courts with a great 3/ 21/2/2 home in central Florida for sale. Call 352-746-4063 orview virtual tour on owners.com id # tpg3087. Greatteaching and stringing mkt. fsbo $325,000

Babolat Debuts NewTeam All Court Shoes

In tennis, 80 percent of the movement on court is lateral anddiagonal, says Babolat. That’s why the company says itdesigned two new shoes specifically to aid in lateral movement.The Team All Court 3 and Team All Court White both feature

Babolat’s Exact technology, which the company says allows forsmoother, more efficient footwork and provides for quicker startsand better recovery. The Michelin outsole is designed for durabili-ty and resistance to abrasion.Both shoes also have Vibrakill, a shock absorption system that

Babolat says protects the heel and improves recovery by optimiz-ing energy transfer. And both shoes come with a six-month out-sole limited durability warranty.The Team All Court 3 started shipping at the end of March, and

the Team All Court White starts ship-ping in late June. Suggested price

is $99. For more informa-tion, visit

www.babolat.com

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• Steve Bellamy, thefounder of The Tennis Channel, is

launching The Ski Channel in early 2008, inconjunction with his company, Atonal Sports and

Entertainment. Bellamy said the network will focus on“everything you can do on a mountain…literally hun-dreds of activities.” Bellamy, who owns the Palisades Ten-

nis Center in California, also says he recently acquiredthe Westwood Tennis Center.

• Prince Sports has added Daniela Hantucho-va to its list of sponsored athletes. Hantucho-va, currently No. 13 in the world, contactedPrince about switching to the O3 White rac-

quet prior to this year’s Pacific Life Open. Hantu-chova later captured the title at the Pacific Life Open.

• K-Swiss has signed Anna Kournikova to endorse its shoes.She appears in advertising and on the company’s website,www.kswiss.com.

• Former World No. 1 Kim Clijsters announced her immedi-ate retirement from pro tennis in early May. The 23-year-old,who was still ranked No. 4 at the time of her announce-ment, said injuries have led to fatigue, a lack of motivation,and a decline in play. Clijsters has been playing for 10 yearsand won 34 career singles titles.

• Dunlop player Nicolas Almagro of Spain won his secondstraight title at the Valencia Open in April. Ranked 32 in theworld, Almagro plays with a Dunlop Aerogel racquet.

• Florida-based ATP touring pro Taylor Dent has become acertified Professional 1 member of the USPTA. Dent, whotested in Kansas City, Mo., at the Homestead Country Clubunder USPTA testers Gary Trost, Bunny Bruning and KendellHale, earned his USPTA certification after an extensiveexamination of tennis operations management skills, tennis-teaching skills, stroke analysis, and demonstrations of groupand private lessons.

• Andre Agassi will receive the second annual Eugene L.Scott Award at “The Legends Ball” in New York City thisSeptember. The award is presented to an individual whoembodies the Tennis Week founder’s commitment to com-municating honestly and critically about the game, and who

has had a significant impact on the game.

• Jelena Jankovic kicked off her clay court sea-son in dramatic fashion by winning the 2007Family Circle Cup in April. The No. 6-rankedpro plays with a Prince O3 Red racquet.

• In his first competitive tournament sincebeating Andre Agassi in the 2002 US Open

final, Pete Sampras won the 2007Champions Cup Boston title

in May.

P

EO P L E W ATCH

L E T T E R SForeign Presence in College Tennis Spurs DebateTo the Editor:

As a recent men’s college tennis participant and now USPTA rookie, I haveto agree with the letter that John Williams wrote in the April 2007 issue (page18). The jump from American juniors into the college game is nearly impossi-ble. Foreign players come into the NCAA older, with more maturity in theirgames, and can produce results immediately.

Every other college sport uses college as way to develop athletes, howevermost foreign tennis players have had much more experience than Americans.This is not a result of American juniors making an active choice, but ratherthe result of foreign-born players having an unfair opportunity.

As a taxpaying citizen, I personally can't see any reason why a single dol-lar of my hard-earned money should support any foreign-born person whenAmerican-born kids aren't even given a level playing field.

As a high school senior with two state championships, a top sectionalranking, limited national exposure, as well as a national ranking, I could noteven merit a letter of interest from Oklahoma State University (which was 45minutes away). I was forced to walk-on at the University of Oklahoma, wherebefore my arrival my coach had "recommended" that maybe [a local commu-nity college] would be a good place for me to continue my tennis career. Thatsame incoming year at OU, three French players were given scholarships andallowed to play an entire semester in which they never attended a singleclass.

With all due respect to Colette Lewis [who wrote the Your Serve on foreignstudents in RSI’s February issue], women’s college tennis is in a completelydifferent place. Because of Title 9, more athletic scholarships are available tofemale teams (there is no female equivalent to football, participant-wise, andbecause of the money involved football isn't going to change).

As having seen first-hand what the foreign presence is doing to men’sAmerican college tennis, something needs to change, or American boys willcontinue to go in other directions athletically. Some sort of regulation isneeded.

Matt Lopez, USPTA

To the Editor:Mr. John Williams has himself “not been observing closely enough.” Gone

are the days of older foreign players infiltrating college tennis. NCAA rulesare in place to make sure that all foreign tennis players entering Division 1attend school within one year of their class graduating high school. In fact, allforeign players are now processed through the newly created Internation-al/Amateurism Clearing House.

Are foreign players more experienced? Who generally have more opportu-nities and resources to compete than American players? There are opportuni-ties to compete in junior, ITF and Futures tournaments almost every week!

Mr. Williams thinks that American players are more entitled to scholar-ships than foreign players. Is this attitude the seed of the problem? Wouldn’tAmerican players be at a higher level if they knew that they had to battle des-perately to earn the limited amount of scholarships available, rather thanhave a sense of entitlement to those same scholarships?

How many USTA ranked players entering college can compete immediatelyat the Division 1 level? There are over 200 NCAA schools competing for thatvery small group of players. Division 1 tennis is not T-ball—not everyone getsto bat. At some stage the players who “can’t connect” need to concentrate ongetting an education and continue to play this great game at another divisionor level of college tennis where there are many opportunities to compete.

Developing the grassroots is fantastic, but let’s make sure we are concen-trating on the correct age group and introducing more 4- to 8-year-olds to thegame rather than worrying about a USTA player ranked 100 getting a scholar-ship he thinks he “deserves.”

Laurie Warder, ATP Professional,USTA High Performance Coach, USPTA

We welcome your letters and comments. Please email them to [email protected] or fax themto 760-536-1171.

> Dunlop Sports Group Americas hasbeen granted the worldwide licensingrights for the use of the legendaryPeanuts characters, created by Charles M.Schulz, in the marketing and sales of itschildren sports products. Dunlop will usethe characters and images from thePeanuts comic strip for children/junior rac-quet and golf sports products. The fullrange of products will become availablethroughout spring and summer, with newproduct lines in shops and stores by latesummer.

> Stringers from the U.S., Brazil, Eng-land, Scotland, and Spain met at the T-Bar-M resort in New Braunfels, Texas, inearly April for the first Grand SlamStringers Racquet Stringers Symposium.The event included training sessions byMaster Racquet Technicians and vendorswith new products. Plans are under wayfor the 2008 symposium.

> CBS Sports will continue its long histo-ry as the network broadcaster of the USOpen. A new agreement with the USTAbuilds on CBS’s 40-year history as broad-caster of America’s Grand Slam, one ofthe longest relationships in broadcastsports. The agreement provides morethan 50 hours of US Open programmingeach year, as well as coverage of select USOpen Series tournaments, and runsthrough 2011.

> The PTR has recently published andmailed its annual PTR Membership Hand-book. The 385-page book provides PTRmembers with information about theorganization and the tennis industry, inaddition to a directory of PTR membersworldwide, complete with individual list-ings by last name, certification rating andcontact information, cross referenced bylocation.

> The USTA announced record ticketsales through April for the 2007 US Openin its advance ticket sales offer to USTAmembers. Members purchased nearly27,000 tickets, an increase of more than20 percent over 2006. And more than176,000 subscription ticket packages hadbeen sold through April, up 57 percentover last year’s record amount. All told,advance ticket sales were up 52 percentfor 2007. American Express Cardmem-

bers will have the opportunity to purchase2007 US Open tickets beginning June 4. USOpen tickets will go on sale to the generalpublic on June 11.

> Steve Rothe, an MRI technician fromSioux City, Iowa, is the winner in DunlopSports Group’s 2007 Roland Garros FrenchOpen Sweepstakes. Rothe won an allexpense paid trip for two to attend the2007 French Open. Co-sponsored by TennisMagazine, the grand prize consists of first

class round-trip air transportation to Paris, 4-night hotel accommodations, ground trans-portation and tickets to the 2007 French Open,all valued at about $15,000. Rothe and his guestwill also receive Dunlop Aerogel racquets.

> The second annual Bowen’s Wharf FashionShow and Champagne Breakfast, hosted by theInternational Tennis Hall of Fame, will be July 12during the 2007 Campbell’s Hall of Fame TennisChampionships in Newport, R.I. Tickets are $65each and include courtside tennis seats. Call401-849-6053 or 866-914-FAME.



SHORT SETS

J U N E 2 0 0 7I N D U S T R Y N E W S


Bruce Karr (right) receives Rac-quet Sports Industry’s 2006Wheelchair Tennis Champion ofthe Year Award from formeraward recipient Dan James, theUSTA’s national manager ofWheelchair Tennis. The presen-tation took place in April at theFlorida Open player’s banquetin Boca Raton.

Tennis Resorts Online Travel WebsiteNames Top 100 Resorts and Camps

Tennis Resorts Online has come out with its annual top tennis resorts andcamps, based on evaluations submitted by vacationers. “The best sources ofinformation about a tennis resort or camp experience are the players who go

there on vacation,” says Roger Cox, founder and editor of Tennis Resorts Online(www.tennisresortsonline.com). “But these aren't ordinary players. They spend onaverage 100 days a year on court, which means that they have high expectationsof the staff and programs.”The No. 1 tennis resort on the list is once again Kiawah Island Golf Resort in

South Carolina, which is a credit to former touring pro Roy Barth, who has direct-ed the tennis operation since the resort opened in 1976. Rounding out the top 5resorts are The Boulders Resort & Golden Door Spa in Arizona, Bio-Hotel Stan-glwirt in Austria, Rancho Valencia Resort in California, and Ponte Vedra Inn & Clubin Florida.For tennis camps, once again New England Tennis Holidays took top honors,

the sixth year in a row the New Hampshire camp has been No. 1. The rest of thetop 5 camps are Vic Braden Tennis College at Green Valley Resort in Utah, RoyEmerson Tennis Weeks at the Palace Hotel in Switzerland, PBI Tennis Camp at theBio-Hotel Stanglwirt in Austria, and Saddlebrook Tennis in Florida.Visit www.tennisresortsonline.com for the complete list of 75 resorts and 25

camps.

N.Y.C. Campus Gets Classic Turf SurfaceRockefeller University in New York City recently converted a 100-year-oldconcrete parking garage deck into a tennis court using the Classic Turf Sys-tem, a cushioned sheet-goods surface system. The Classic Turf engineeringdepartment redesigned the drainage system, among other construction

specs, and replaced thespot drains with a trenchdrain. The company alsoinstalled custom fencing, alighting system from LSI,and custom windscreenswith the Rockefeller Uni-versity logo. For moreinformation, contact 800-246-7951 or visitwww.Classicturf.org.



USPTA MagazineNow AvailableOnline

The USPTA’s member mag-azine, ADDvantage, isnow entirely available

online in PDF format atwww.ADDvantageuspta.com.In addition to the current

events, news and advertising,the online version also fea-tures the following topicsmonthly: CEO’s message,board member’s message,classified ads, USPTA drills,career development, andindustry action. Other topicsfeatured bimonthly or periodi-cally include Cardio Tennistips, Jack Groppel’s “Ask theProfessor,” question of themonth, and the USPTA mail-box. Members also can searchfor past articles and drills thatwere featured in previousissues.

Deadline for ASBAAward Entries July 1

The deadline for submitting entries for theAmerican SportsBuilders Associa-

tion awards pro-gram is July 1.This yearthe applica-tions areavailable onlyonline to ASBA members. There is a $100 feefor each entry.In other ASBA news, the organization has

scheduled its 2007 Technical Meeting for Dec.2 to 4 at the Hyatt Regency Austin in Austin,Texas. Attended by builders, manufacturers,suppliers, designers, consultants, and more,the ASBA Technical meeting features educa-tional seminars and presentations offering top-ics that can help you run your business better.

For more information on the awards pro-gram, the Technical Meeting, and ASBA mem-bership, visit www.sportsbuilders.org, [email protected], or call 866-501-ASBA.


ANNUAL awards

Help us recognize the people who are making a difference in thebusiness of tennis.

�

nce again, we’d like to honor thechampions of our sport—the many,often unheralded heroes who work

tirelessly to develop tennis in the U.S. Butonce again, we need your help in identi-fying these men and women and howtheir accomplishments have helped thegame, whether in their local areas ornationally.

Please take a look at the categories atthe right and email your nominations [email protected] (please put“Champions” in the subject line).Include:� Nominee’s name;� Where they work or what they dorelated to tennis;

� Phone (if possible);� Brief description of why you believe

O

Champions of Tennis 2007

they are the champions in their areas.We’d also appreciate your name

and contact information, for confirma-tion purposes only. All nominationswill be confidential, and you maynominate for as many categories asyou’d like. And, if there’s a categorythat we don’t list that you think weshould include, please let us know.

We need your nominations byAug. 3, 2007. Email is preferred, butyou may fax them to 760-536-1171or mail them to: Racquet Sports Indus-try, 330 Main St., Vista, CA 92084.

In our November/December issue,we’ll include a special sectionacknowledging the dedication ofthose who work to keep tennis vital inthe U.S.

2007 CHAMPIONS OFTENNIS CATEGORIES� Person of the Year� Pro/Specialty Retailer of the Year� Chain Retailer/Mass Merchant of the Year� Online Retailer of the Year� Stringer of the Year� Builder/Contractor of the Year� Grassroots Champion of the Year� Junior Development Champion of the Year� Sales Rep of the Year� Wheelchair Tennis Champion of the Year� Municipal Facility of the Year� Private Facility of the Year� Public Park of the Year� Community Tennis Association of the Year� High School Coach of the Year� USTA Section of the Year� PTR Member of the Year� USPTA Member of the Year

customer SERVICE�

When should customer servicebecome important to you? As soonas your players pull into your park-

ing lot? When they first step into yourbuilding or onto your courts? Or whenthey call on the phone to verify programinformation?

How about before they officiallybecome your customers?

Charlie Ruddy, a longtime customer-service specialist and developer of theTennisConnect.org software, believes youshould prepare your potential customerswith enough information to make themfeel welcome and want to visit your facili-ty. “Really, all your marketing efforts andpromotions provide your customers with awindow into what your company’s cus-tomer-service philosophy is,” says Ruddy.


At-Ease!Make potential customers as comfortable asyou can and you’ll turn them into regulars.B Y R O B I N B A T E M A N

“Why not make the experience asmooth, easy ride for them?”

In other words, any fliers, FAQ sheets,website publishing, etc. should all be cre-ated with the idea of making your poten-tial customers feel comfortable andwelcomed into your tennis center. Theline between customer service and mar-keting just got thinner.

“The more thorough you are here,the more at-ease your potential customeris, the more you increase the likelihood ofa visit from them,” says Ruddy. To illus-trate his point, he relates a story abouthis first golf lesson.

For his 30th birthday, Ruddy’s wifegave him golf lessons. He’d neverplayed before, but he wanted to learn.On the appointed day, he shows

up for his first lesson.“Where are your clubs?” the golf

instructor asks. Ruddy, feeling uncomfort-able because he doesn’t have any clubs,stammers, “Um…yeah…well…”

“Don’t worry. Not a problem,” theinstructor says while he rustles up somespare clubs. Then, he looks down at Char-lie’s feet, “Where are your shoes?”

“Shoes?” The uncomfortable feelinggrows into full-blown embarrassment.

The truth is, the facility is—at leastpartially—responsible for Ruddy’s embar-rassment. They easily could have preparedhim by providing his wife with some sim-ple information when she purchased thelessons. Why would Ruddy show up with-out golf clubs or shoes if he knew inadvance it was his responsibility?

If you could prevent such embarrass-ment at your tennis facility, would you?Of course you would.

Working in the industry, it’s easy tomake assumptions. Why not take yourcues from your customer’s questions andadjust your information accordingly.Macon (Ga.) Tennis Connect TournamentDirector Bonnie Smith offers this rule ofthumb. “If I get asked the same questionthree times by three different people,then it’s time for me to provide this infor-mation to the public.”

No matter how you choose to com-municate with customers and potentialcustomers (whether through email or yourwebsite, fliers, advertisements, etc.), youstill have to provide answers to basicquestions: who, what, where, when, why,how. Remember to include the following:

� Calendar information: dates,times, length of classes and sessions. Intoday’s world where people have mostof their free time scheduled, this is keyinformation.

Robin Bateman is the site coordi-nator for the Tattnall Tennis Cen-ter in Macon, Ga., where shecoordinates tennis programs andleagues, is a tournament direc-tor, serves as a team captain and

assists junior teams competing at district,regional, and section events.

� Attire: It may seem silly, buta novice player might think heor she needs to go out andbuy “real” tennis clothesbefore stepping onto thecourt. Also, list rules, like “allmen must wear shirts,” etc.

� Equipment: Does yourclub provide racquets for useduring classes? Is there arental fee? Should a playerbring his own equipment?

� Requirements: For instance, age,skill level, any prior instruction neces-sary.

� Money: What’s the cost? Any addi-tional amount needed? How embar-rassing to arrive without yourcheckbook when additional fees will beapplied.

� Policies: What happens if the weath-er’s bad? What is the make-up or can-cellation policy?


� Rules and Regulations: It’s bet-ter to post these than to assume every-one already knows them.

� Goals/Objectives: Players want toknow what they will get out of takingyour classes. Tell them and don’t beafraid to get specific, for instance,“The emphasis on this class is doublesstrategy,” etc.

� Benefits: Providing customers withan objective for each of your programs

gives the player a picture ofwhat your goals are. It’s alsoa great idea to list any and allbenefits here. Doing so mayhook a middle-of-the-roader.

� Quotes: Adding testimo-nials from players or par-ents gives your programmore credibility.

No one wants to show upunprepared. With a little thought andeffort on your part, your players will walkonto your tennis courts ready to swingtheir racquets, have a great time, andmore importantly, come back for more.�

Get the FAQsMake sure you have an FAQ (FrequentlyAsked Questions) page posted on your web-site for different types of programs you offer.Print these pages out and post them behindthe counter so all your employees are kept upto date and are able to field telephone orwalk-in inquiries.

SUCCESSmarketing&


er’s interest and schedule, you’re onlyhalfway to getting them to sign upand participate. The other half of youroffering has to include “identifying aneed.” In simple terms, this meansoffering a program or clinic with atheme that reminds a person of aneed that they have thought aboutbefore. Then, entice them to sign upby presenting how they will benefitfrom the experience.

ESTABLISH THE BENEFITWe don’t normally think of tennis prosas salesman, but when you identify aneed and then show how someonewill benefit, you are selling the idea. Ifyou’re a purist, you may not like tothink of yourself as selling anything.But selling is not a bad word. Think ofit this way: How will you share yourexpertise unless you have people toshare them to?

Here’s an example:

LEAGUE TEAM DRILLINGOne of the mainstays of tennis teach-ers across the U.S. is running drills andworkouts for league teams. In manyplaces, working with these teams rep-resents nearly 50 percent of the annu-al gross teaching revenue. It’simportant enough that if you don’thave a local inter-club league, start

marketing&

ver four centuries ago, Sir FrancisBacon is quoted as saying, "Thingsalter for the worse spontaneously, if

they be not altered for the betterdesignedly."

This is certainly true in the tennis busi-ness. Left to their own devices, programsyou’re running will most likely decline inquality and participation over time. But ifyou are proactive and constantly work tomove your programs forward, you’ll reapmajor rewards.

Let’s take a look at just one area ofyour activities: tennis lessons and clinics.Posting lesson rates and nothing else isthe norm. The game plan at clubs likethese is “wait and see.” Unfortunately,according to Sir Francis Bacon, “wait andsee” precipitates a downturn in business.

On the other hand, some successfulclubs gross over $1 million a year in les-son revenue. How do the best ones doit? They are proactive in regularly offeringa wide variety of new learning and prac-tice opportunities. And, importantly, theymake sure club members and playersknow about these opportunities. Getting

the word out is fairly easy. Some of themost common approaches include:

� Fliers� Postings on bulletin boards� Bag stuffers� Newsletters (email and print)� Email a weekly schedule of activitiesHow to get the word out is clear. How-

ever, becoming highly successful year afteryear requires more. After studying success-ful programs, there are common threadsamong all of them. Use this as a checklistagainst your own recipe for success.

PEOPLE ARE INDIVIDUALSSince no two players are exactly alike, itmakes sense that their hot buttons on atennis court are unique as well. Age, play-ing level, work schedule, competitive goals,social desires, and whether they prefer sin-gles or doubles are just a few of the vari-ables that will affect the level of interesteach person may have in a particularprogram.

IDENTIFY A NEEDWhen you offer a program that suits a play-

O

Keep ’Em Interested!When it comes to promoting lessons and clinics,

don’t take a “wait and see” attitude.BY JOE D INOF F ER

Target audience:Male weekend warrior

Playing ability: 4.0Playing style:

Powerful but inconsistentNeed:

Power with more consistencySelling point:

“Add control to your powergame in one lesson.”

one! It’s not that difficult.One way to get started is to invite

all your local pros to a meeting andoutline the costs and benefits ofstarting a league. A good start is tomodel your league after anotherregion about the size of your owncommunity. How can you find outwhat’s out there? I just googled“community tennis leagues” on mycomputer and came up with morethan 4 million listings! Also, theUSTA, PTR and USPTA all should beable to assist in some way, withinformation or suggestions.

DROP-IN DRILLSIn today’s world, people are so busyand pulled in so many directions thatto commit to a regular weekly activi-ty is difficult. That is the genius ofthe “drop-in drill.” The concept issimple. Set up a weekly time, such asSaturday mornings from 11 a.m. to12:30 pm. This is a time when courtbookings start slowing down, butpeople are still interested in gettingout. Then create weekly themes soplayers know what they are signingup for.

Since there is no established abili-ty level, have enough pros on handto allow you to divide up the playerson different courts according to theirability. Charge a reasonable amountto give good value for the 90-minutedrill, a time frame that is neither tooshort nor too long.

With consistent effort in runningthese “drop-ins,” you’ll probably findthat interest and participation willbuild, and that players from thisgroup will spill over and sign up foryour other programs as well. �


Joe Dinoffer is a Master Profes-sional for both the PTR andUSPTA. He speaks frequently atnational and international tennisteacher workshops as a memberof both the Head/Penn and

Reebok National Speaker’s Bureaus. He ispresident of Oncourt Offcourt Inc. and haswritten 16 books and produced more than 30instructional videos.

OF TENNISbusinessw

home matches this summer. Anindoor/outdoor pro shop features about50 racquet demos, Prince shoes, premiumtennis balls not available at big-boxstores, spring and fall apparel lines frommajor manufacturers, next-day stringing,and special ordering.

Despite steady fee increases, however,Hampton says the DuPont Country Clubcontinues to fall short of its corporatemandate of operating at a break-evenrate while remaining affordable. In fact,the club’s 10,000 members are looking at


efore restructuring and downsizingbecame widespread practices, cor-porations customarily employed a

variety of recruiting tools to impressprospective workers. It wasn’t unusual,for example, for a generous benefitspackage to include membership to acorporate tennis facility among its perks.

Yet today, only a handful of thesefacilities remain.

“As companies go public and look at[corporate tennis facilities] from a coststandpoint, the main concern becomesthe bottom-line return on invest-ment,” says Greg Mason, seniordirector of sales for Head/Penn Rac-quet Sports. “It becomes tough toexplain to shareholders why some-thing that can be so costly is a pri-ority.”

That is precisely the struggle fac-ing Larry Hampton, tennis directorat the DuPont Country Club inWilmington, Del. “There is extremepressure to be profitable,” saysHampton, who has worked at theDuPont Country Club since 1985.

Built in 1952, the DuPont Coun-try Club is a private facility offeringmembership exclusively to DuPontemployees, spouses, dependents,and retirees. The club offers sevencategories of membership foraccess to its 25 tennis courts, threegolf courses, lawn bowling and cro-quet greens, fitness center, andsocial activities that include a varietyof classes and trips.

Constructed just five years ago,DuPont Country Club’s indoor ten-nis center features six hard courts.Outside are 19 Har-Tru courts, 10of which are lighted. In fact, thestate-of-the-art facility has earnedattention and accolades from theindustry for years, with the WorldTeamTennis Delaware Smash againselecting the club as the site of its

B another 8 percent hike over the nextyear.

“Dues are still dirt cheap, but ourolder members just don’t understand”the financial constraints prompting theincreases, Hampton says. New members,on the other hand, are more forgiving.“They flip when they see what we haveto offer,” he added. “It’s like they’vefound the Promised Land.”

While PTR CEO and Executive DirectorDan Santorum has never visited DuPont’sfacility, he was impressed by his experi-

ence at Wal-Mart’s Walton Life Fit-ness Center in Bentonville, Ark.,where he conducted a certificationworkshop in January.

“Wal-Mart is offering a conve-nience for its employees,” Santo-rum says, “but the company is alsodoing its part to promote fitness,prevent obesity, and keep itsemployees healthy.”

The Walton Life Fitness Center islocated in the heart of Wal-Mart’ssprawling corporate headquarterscomplex. Amid warehouses, offices,and other nondescript buildings isthe corporate fitness center offeringcardio and strength training equip-ment, circuit training, free weights,and a variety of fitness classes, plussix racquetball, one squash, andtwo basketball courts, separateindoor tracks for running and walk-ing, three swimming pools, mas-sage therapy rooms, and healthysnack bar. It takes 12 pages to listthe additional activities, rangingfrom nutrition to ballroom danceclasses.

Built less than three years ago,the adjacent tennis facility offers adozen hard courts—six of themindoors which members can useyear-round at a comfortable, con-trolled 74 degrees. Tennis playershave a choice of more than 50

Corporate StructuresFor DuPont and Wal-Mart employees, tennis at top-notch facilitiesis an added perk. BY CYNTH I A CANTRE L L

It’s All About the RelationshipsRegardless of the ownership nature of your tennis club or proshop, building relationships is a key to growing your business. Ifyou develop enough rapport with members, they’ll look to youfirst whenever a product or service need arises.

� Don’t fear the internet. Today’s customers are tech-savvyshoppers who know where to look online for rock-bottomprices. Match prices as closely as you can and be honest whenyou can’t. Good customer service is worth a price for whichmany people are willing to pay.

� Quality over quantity. Limit product lines to the volume forwhich you can comfortably remain an expert. Customers won’tbe overwhelmed with choices, and there will be less of achance that your products will compete against each other.

� When special orders are especially burdensome. Beforeyou say no, think about options that both sides can agree on,such as a no-return policy on special orders. If you’re willing toinvest a little more in relationship-building, however, you mightaccept the return and give the next buyer a deep discount justto move the merchandise.

� Turn a negative into a positive. When a special event takesup court time and parking spaces, give members priority seat-ing or other perks. The University of Arkansas men’s andwomen’s tennis teams practiced and played home matches atthe Walton Life Tennis Center while their own courts wererehabbed in the spring of 2006, while the DuPont Country Clubwill host the World TeamTennis Delaware Smash again thissummer. An inconvenience for a few may actually be thechance of a lifetime for many more to learn from top collegeand pro players.

Wal-Mart Walton Life Fitness Center

Corporate StructuresFor DuPont and Wal-Mart employees, tennis at top-notch facilitiesis an added perk.

classes plus lessons, USTA League Tennis, andtournaments. With such extensive programming,which keeps more than 500 juniors and adultson the courts each week, a toll-free telephonenumber has been established so members canregister with a credit card.

“You name it, and we pretty much do it,”says Jake Shoemake, head tennis pro and facilitymanager of the Walton Life Fitness Center. WhileShoemake and his assistant teaching pro areemployees of Wal-Mart, the other five teachingpros are independent contractors.

“There are six or seven country clubs in thearea, but very few indoor facilities,” he adds.“And when you see the array of classes we offerand throw in the price, it’s pretty hard to beat.”

Doubles players, for example, pay $2 per per-son for twohours of courttime. A 10-week “anklebiters” tennisclass for 5-year-olds costs $20,while a 10-week ladies’ 3.5doubles clinic isjust $33. How-ever, even rock-bottom feesdon’t spareShoemake fromcompeting forbusiness.

“I’m alwayslooking for newways to getpeople involved,maybe withmore nightclasses for peo-ple who workduring theday,” saysShoemake, noting that a presentation and tourof the facility is given to new employees duringorientation. To date, more than one-third of Wal-Mart’s 24,000 employees in northwest Arkansashave joined the Walton Life Fitness Center,although the total number of members is about21,000 when you include spouses and children.Membership fees are deducted from paychecks.

“You try to match as many people with pro-grams as you can,” Shoemake adds, “and youtry to take care of every person who walks in thedoor.”

That effort extends to the pro shop, which

carries racquets, apparel, shoes, and grips. Lastyear, the shop strung 3,000 racquets with 24-hour turnaround available.

“I try to meet every need our memberscould have,” Shoemake says of the pro shop,which is also open to the general public.“Sometimes I do well ordering clothes, andsometimes I miss. You live and learn. Now I asksome members what they think about theclothes before I order them, so I don’t have tohear later how awful my taste is.”

The pro shop does not carry Wal-Martclothes or merchandise, but rather “basic”apparel from K-Swiss, Prince, and Lejay; rac-quets from Prince, Head, and Wilson; and shoesfrom K-Swiss, Prince, Wilson, and Adidas. Allprices, according to Shoemake, are competitive.

“Remember who I work for,” he says, recit-ing Wal-Mart’s “everyday low prices” motto.“Our members are smart shoppers who dotheir research.”

While both the DuPont Country Club andWalton Life Fitness Center are owned by corpo-rate entities, business principles of fairness,respect, exceeding customer expectations, andproviding a good product for a good price stillapply.

“A big Wal-Mart philosophy is striving forexcellence above all things,” Shoemake says. “Ifyou do that, you can’t go wrong.”�


Know AllSides of YourBusinessWhen the position of tennisdirector opened up at theDupont Country Club in 1985,more than 300 applicationswere submitted nationwide.Larry Hampton believes he gotthe job simply because he wasthe most well-rounded candi-date.

As an independent contractor,Hampton, runs the tennis pro-grams, pro shop, front desk,and court maintenance for theDuPont Country Club in Wilm-ington, Del., through his com-pany, Larry Hampton TennisServices Inc. In addition tokeeping proceeds from lessonsas well as the pro shop, he hasthe freedom to hire his ownstaff. From 1977 to 1996, healso ran the nearbyindoor/outdoor Bellevue TennisCenter, which he founded, ren-ovated, expanded, and servedas head pro before the indoorfacility was irreparably dam-aged in a blizzard.

“It’s cool because I have con-trol and have been able to puttogether a great team that I’dmatch against any staff in thecountry,” he says. “Plus, wedon’t get bogged down by cor-porate policies. If we need anew net on court 5, we go outand buy a new net.”

Large-scale expenses at the cor-porate tennis facility, on theother hand, are the responsibili-ty of DuPont. New lighting, forexample, would be considereda capital expense.

The lesson to be learned, hesays, is diversification. “I knowI’m a good teaching pro,”Hampton says, “but the fact Ican handle all the other facetsof the business has made allthe difference.”

DuPont Country Club

The latest research into the tennis market by the TennisIndustry Association can be a gold mine of informationfor those in this business. But just having the information

isn’t enough; you need to put it to use. As author Heinz Bergenwrote, “Information is the seed for an idea, and only growswhen it's watered.”

For teaching pros and facilities, the TIA data (most ofwhich was gathered by Taylor Research & Consulting Groupand Sports Marketing Surveys) can help you determine whatyou can do to attract players and to offer them more of whatthey’re looking for, so they continue to come back to you andyour courts. For retailers, point-of-purchase trends and pricingdata can help you determine where to invest your inventorydollars.

T I A R E S E A R C H

HIT YOURTARGET!HIT YOURTARGET!The latest research from the TIA can show you exactlywhat your customers are looking for. B Y P E T E R F R A N C E S C O N I

The latest research from the TIA can show you exactlywhat your customers are looking for.

The information presented here is from “The Tennis Marketplace 2006 Year-End Executive Summary.” Various levels of research data are avail-able from the TIA depending on your membership level. (TIA memberships starts at $100 per year.) For more on research in the tennis indus-try or TIA membership, visit www.tennisindustry.org, call 843-696-3036, or email [email protected].



The 2006 TIA/USTA Tennis Participation Survey shows thattotal and frequent player numbers essentially are flat.However, taken as a two-year “rolling average” (where 2006 isan average of ’06 and ’05, 2005 is an average of ’05 and ’04,and so forth), the trends show a continuing increase in bothtotal players and frequent players from 2004 (see chart at left).

Total players (those ages 6 and up, who’ve played at leastonce, including frequent players) currently stand at 24.5 mil-lion, up from a low of 23.8 million in 2004. Frequent players(who play 21 or more times a year) have increased to 5.2 mil-lion, from a low of 4.7 million in 2003.

The four-year increase in frequent players is extremelyimportant to tennis facilities and specialty retailers, since theseplayers essentially are the heart of your market. Generally, asfrequent players increase, so do most indicators in the tennisbusiness—racquet and ball sales, courts booked, apparel andshoe sales, etc.

When there’s an increase in frequent players, and eventotal players, there generally will also be an increase in thenumber of times they play, a measure called tennis play occa-sions. The latest two-year rolling average for total play occa-sions shows some important increases since 2004 (see charton next page). Total play occasions increased to 538 million,and in the key frequent-player demographic, the increasehas gone from 361 million play occasions to 425 million.Not only are frequent players your best customers, butthey’re also playing even more tennis than in therecent past.

This data points up several opportunities for tennisfacilities. For instance, it’s in your best interest to keepfrequent players doing what they love to do—play ten-nis. What’s popular among your frequent players?

Singles leagues? Social doubles?Cardio Tennis classes? Try slowlyincreasing or expanding your offerings.You don’t want to suddenly flood yourplayers with options, or offer more pro-gramming that only receives a lukewarmresponse. You want to keep any growth ascontrolled and as manageable—and as prof-itable—as possible.

And if you’re able to have your frequent play-ers playing even more tennis, then they’ll need tobe prepared when it comes to equipment. If play-ers are increasing the amount of time they spendon court, maybe it’s worth it for them to get a sec-ond—or third—racquet. More play means they’llwant to restring their racquets more often, too. Makesure they know that when their string tensiondecreases 25 to 30 percent, they need to restring. Oryou can fall back on the well-worn, yet still valid,advice of stringing as many times per year as youplay in a week.

You may also find them going through tennisshoes more frequently. And, on a very practicallevel, if they’re playing more times per week,

they’ll probably need more tennis apparel, to replace theclothes that are waiting in the laundry hamper.

TheFitness FactorAll of this player data plays nicely into the Sporting GoodsManufacturers Association’s study of traditional participa-tion sports. Much has been made of the study that cameout last year of how, from 2000 to 2005, tennis is the onlytraditional participation sport to have grown (10.3 per-cent), while all others have declined in participation (seechart on the bottom of the following page). And while the2006 data is not yet finalized for publication, initialreports indicate that tennis growth in participation is evengreater than the year before, while the slide in participa-


tion of most other tradi-tional sports has contin-ued. Again, this is all verygood news for the tennisbusiness.

The SGMA study alsopoints up some other inter-esting things that play intoyour business. The highestgrowth in sports participa-tion has come from newindividual sports and fit-ness-based activities.According to the SGMA, 12out of the top 20 growthsports over the last fiveyears are fitness activities.

Need further proof thatfitness is key when itcomes to attitudes towardtennis? TIA research indi-cates that playing tennisfor exercise was high on the list of virtually every group ofplayers. For instance, of new players to the game, nearly60 percent said “exercise” was very or somewhat impor-tant in getting them on a court for the first time. Of con-tinuing players (defined as having played tennis for morethan one year), 53 percent said exercise was very or some-what important in keeping them playing; for frequent play-

ers, that number is 63 percent, while 59 percent of “rejoin-ers” felt that way, too.

Research also indicates that 50 percent of lapsed playersand 48 percent of “samplers” (who have tried tennis buthaven’t played in the past 12 months) would be a lot/a littlemore likely to play tennis again if a Cardio Tennis programwas available to them.

A TIA email survey ofmore than 340 CardioTennis sites shows someimportant trends for yourbusiness. For instance, onaverage, Cardio facilitiessaid 15 new players werecreated, 15 playersreturned to tennis, and 20players were playingmore frequently becauseof Cardio Tennis.

The same study showsthat 71 percent of facili-ties have increased theirlesson revenue because ofCardio Tennis, 47 percenthave increased programfees, 23 percent haveincreased pro shop sales,22 percent have increasedcourt booking fees, and18 percent have increasedmembership sales. Inaddition, 52 percent ofCardio facilities figure toincrease the number ofCardio Tennis sessionsthis year. Overall, nearly75 percent of Cardio sites


said the benefit to their facility was either Good or VeryGood (see chart above).

This emphasis on fitness in the U.S. is something thatyou can easily capture in your business. Think CardioTennis sessions, think fitness-related tennis apparel withthe latest in performance fabrics, think local advertisingand marketing that pushes the fitness aspect of tennis.

Go online, forinstance tow w w . c a l o r i e -count.com, and youcan find out that a 150-pound person burns544 calories per hour insingles and 408 calo-

ries per hour in doubles. Then compare it to those burnedplaying other sports—for instance, golf using a riding cartburns only 238 calories per hour. Cardio Tennis, which isnot yet on these lists, can burn anywhere from 600 to 1,000calories an hour. Let players—and potential players in yourarea—know about the positive fitness aspectsof tennis.


Lessonsand TeamsEssential for creating more frequent tennis players are theavailability of programs that allow for team play, and theavailability of pros for lessons.

TIA research indicates that 47 percent of new playerswould “play a lot more tennis” if they could play on a teamwith friends. Current data shows that only 14 percent ofnew players have ever played tennis on a team, while 40percent of frequent players have played on teams. (About32 percent of “regular” players (11 to 20 times a year) and28 percent of “infrequent” players (4 to 10 times) haveplayed on teams.)

When it comes to lessons, only 16 percent of new play-ers have ever taken a lesson from a local pro, compared tonearly 50 percent of frequent players. Getting new playersto take lessons is important to keeping them playing tennis.

Turning new players into frequent players may not be allthat difficult—it could just be a matter of having them signup for a series of lessons or getting them on a team, whichwill get them hooked on the sport and playing more. Thekey, though, is that you need to make them feel at homewith the sport, and with your facility and staff.

Developing leagues, teams, and lessons that specificallytarget the new players in your area could be critical to theexpansion of your membership and your future businessgrowth. Be aware that new players may not know all thethings that we may take for granted, such as where andwhen to sign up for leagues or lessons, what levels theywould best fit into, what type of equipment or apparel theymay need, or even tennis “etiquette.” For someone who isnew to the sport, this can all be quite intimidating.

You and your staff need to make these newbies com-fortable, and you need to make it easy for them to getinvolved. Be friendly, be inclusive. Introduce them to staffand other players at your facility. You may even want toidentify a few of your regular players who are particularlyfriendly and helpful, and ask them to help make the newplayers feel more at home.

Observe how your staff interacts with customers—espe-cially newcomers. If any of your staff or pros aren’t person-able and friendly, you need to talk, to them about it. If theycan’t or won’t change, replace them with more customer-

(wholesale)

oriented personnel—chances are they’re hurting yourbusiness.

This doesn’t just hold true for players who are newto the sport—your staff needs to be courteous, kind,and helpful to all your customers and potential cus-tomers. Last year, there were 6 million new players tothe sport—an amazing number. Unfortunately, thesport lost about an equal number of players. Think howamazing tennis—and your business—would be doing ifwe were able to retain even a fraction of those we lost.

EquipmentTrendsTIA data shows good newsin racquet, ball, and stringshipments from manufac-turers—all have increasedfor the last two years (seechart above, left). In units,from 2004 to 2006, racquetshipments increased by 12percent, balls by 11.3 per-cent, and strings by 5.7 per-cent. In dollars, racquetsincreased 12.8 percent,balls, 6.9 percent, andstrings 15.6 percent.

Pro/specialty racquetsales in units and dollarsare at their highest levelssince 2000. Last year, shopsmoved more than 793,000racquets, for a total of morethan $105.2 million, contin-uing the yearly upwardtrend since 2003. Clearly,consumers are looking fornew equipment that willhelp their games, and manufacturers—together withtheir retail partners—are able to respond.

The bad news on this front, however, is that theaverage racquet price has been declining. The latestdrop of 4.2 percent puts the average at $132.55—thelowest average price for racquets at pro and specialtystores since 1995. Dealer optimism dropped a bit at theend of last year, with 43 percent predicting an increasein racquet sales, down from 53 percent earlier in theyear.

Inventories seem to have gotten under controltoward the end of 2006, with 26 percent of retailerssaying they were “overstocked” with racquets. That’sdown from 41 percent in early season ’06, and downfrom the 36 percent at the end of ’05.

In late season 2006, the percentage of racquet salesrepresented by closeouts continued to grow, to 16.8percent for all retailers, and over 20 percent for largeretailers.

WhereConsumersBuyAs technology becomes more and more a part of dailylife, sales over the internet, as expected, are on theincrease. Data from more than 2,000 interviews of fre-quent tennis players shows that apparel sales, in partic-ular, had the biggest internet increase. In late season2006, 19 percent of all “purchase occasions”—nearlyone in five—were from internet sales, up from 16 per-

cent earlier in 2006 and 12percent in late season ’05.The TIA attributes at leastsome of this increase in inter-net apparel sales to theadvancements in perform-ance fabrics and theincreased fitness trends.

Racquet sales over theinternet remained fairlysteady through 2006, with 23percent of all sales comingfrom internet purchases inlate season data. That sameperiod showed pro and spe-cialty shops selling 50 percentof racquets, down from 54percent earlier in the year.

Shoes bought over theinternet accounted for 19 per-cent of all shoe sales late in2006, up from 16 percent ayear earlier, while internetball sales remained steady at5 percent of all ball purchas-es.

Clearly, the increase insales over the internet is further challengingpro/specialty retailers to provide the kind of service thatwill attract and retain retail customers. Customer serv-ice, and your knowledge of not just the sport, but theproducts you carry, is key. Take advantage of all thatmanufacturers supply in terms of point-of-purchasematerials and opportunities to learn more about theirproducts.

And make sure you’re reaching your customers effec-tively in your local market. Review your advertising,marketing, and public relations. Make sure your websiteis up to date and that you’re effectively using email andelectronic and printed newsletters to communicate withmembers, potential members, and the local media.

And, importantly, use the data that the tennisindustry itself provides to effectively map out where youand your business need to be. By looking at the num-bers, you can target your business to maximize yourprofits. �

The NewTennisHealth IndexThe TIA and the USTA have been sponsoring a largeU.S. Tennis Participation Study for the last five years.However, due to various challenges, including thechanging nature of telephone surveys in the U.S.,the 2006 study is being modified to provide a moreaccurate picture of tennis’ overall health.

In the future, the Tennis Participation survey will becombined with half a dozen other components toform the new Tennis Health Index, an annual meas-ure of the state of tennis in the U.S.

“The new Tennis Health Index will provide a bettergauge of the state of tennis in the U.S.,” says TIAExecutive Director Jolyn de Boer. “It won’t rely onone single measure, but instead seven differentcomponents.”



INSIDE TRACKTwo indoor court winners provide local playerswith year-round tennis.

These two indoor court winners of the Racquet Sports Indus-try/American Sports Builders Association Distinguished Facil-ity-of-the-Year Awards represent two ends of the spectrum.

One, the Centre Court Racquet Club in Louisville, Tenn., isall about tennis, with four indoor courts and four outdoor. Theother, the Vaughan Athletic Center in Aurora, Ill., is a state-of-the-art multipurpose facility funded by a partnership betweenthe city and a park district, and complete with multiple fitnessand weight rooms, indoor running track, fieldhouse, and muchmore.

The Centre Court Racquet Club’s four indoor courts arehoused in a fabric frame building, and inside that is a prefabri-cated panel building with the office, locker rooms, child carerooms, and a mezzanine level viewing and social area. TheVaughan Center is 225,000 total square feet with a prefabricat-ed 12-mm rubber multisport surface that accommodates fivetennis courts.

But the similarity is that the two sites, which are both newconstruction, are excellent havens for local tennis players.

—Peter Francesconi

Centre Court Racquet ClubLouisville, Tenn.(Nominated by Baseline Sports Construction, Knoxville, Tenn.)Number of Indoor Courts: 4General Contractor: Baseline Sports ConstructionSurface: Nova Sports USAFabric Frame Building: Universal Fabric StructuresLights (indoor and outdoor): LSI IndustriesNet Posts: EdwardsNets, Divider Nets, Backdrop Curtains, Equipment: BP InternationalBaskets, Hoppers, Scorekeepers, Benches: Douglas Industries

For details on the2007 DistinguishedFacility-of-the-YearAwards, contact theASBA at 866-501-ASBA [email protected].

D I S T I N G U I S H E D F A C I L I T Y - O F - T H E - Y E A R A W A R D S

INSIDE TRACK

Vaughan Athletic Center/Fox Valley Park DistrictAurora, Ill.(Nominated by Keifer Specialty Flooring Inc., Lindenhurst, Ill.)Number of Indoor Courts: 5Specialty Contractor: Keifer Specialty FlooringSurface: Mondo Rubber Sports Flooring


string PLAYTEST

EASE OF STRINGING(compared to other strings)Number of testers who said it was:much easier 1somewhat easier 5about as easy 16not quite as easy 13not nearly as easy 2

OVERALL PLAYABILITY(compared to string played most often)Number of testers who said it was:much better 2somewhat better 9about as playable 11not quite as playable 11not nearly as playable 3

OVERALL DURABILITY(compared to other stringsof similar gauge)Number of testers who said it was:much better 2somewhat better 19about as durable 12not quite as durable 1not nearly as durable 2

RATING AVERAGESFrom 1 to 5 (best)Playability 3.6Durability 3.7Power 3.5Control 3.8Comfort 3.6Touch/Feel 3.3Spin Potential 3.5Holding Tension 3.4Resistance to Movement 3.6

Isospeed Professional is a multifilament

string composed of Power Ribbons and

polyamid filaments. According to

Isospeed, the polyamid filaments are

pre-stretched during manufacturing,

which helps with tension maintenance.The Power Ribbons are made of a

unique polyolefin, which Isospeed saysprovides gut-like properties. The surfaceof the string is welded under heat, whichallows the inner filaments and ribbons tooperate independently.

Isospeed tells us that Professional isdesigned for players who seek gut-likeperformance, yet want to have moredurability in a weather-resistant string.Isospeed markets Professional as offeringspeed and arm protection.

Professional is available in 17 gauge innatural only. It is priced from $12 per set.For more information or to order, contactIsospeed at 866-554-7872, or visithttp://www.isospeed.com/english/. Besure to read the conclusion for moreinformation about a special offer on thisstring.

IN THE LABWe tested the 17-gauge Professional. Thecoil measured 41 feet. The diameter mea-sured 1.19-1.23 mm prior to stringing,and 1.16-1.19 mm after stringing. Werecorded a stringbed stiffness of 73 RDCunits immediately after stringing at 60pounds in a Wilson Pro Staff 6.1 95 (16 x18 pattern) on a constant-pull machine.

After 24 hours (no playing), stringbedstiffness measured 63 RDC units, repre-senting a 14 percent tension loss. Ourcontrol string, Prince Synthetic Gut Origi-nal Gold 16, measured 78 RDC unitsimmediately after stringing and 71 RDCunits after 24 hours, representing a 9 per-cent tension loss. Professional added 12grams to the weight of our unstrungframe.

The string was tested for five weeksby 37 USRSA playtesters, with NTRP rat-ings from 3.5 to 6.0. These are blind tests,with playtesters receiving unmarked

strings in unmarked packages. Aver-age number of hours playtested was30.3.

Out of the package, Professionalfeels thick and substantial, despite it’sthin gauge and light weight. It marks abit at clamping points, and if you hurrywhen installing the crosses it looks a littlebeat up when you’re done. Somestringers recommend waxing the mainsbefore installing the crosses to mitigatethis.

No playtester broke his sample duringstringing, 14 reported problems with coil

memory, one reported problems tyingknots, and five reported friction burn.

ON THE COURTJust about all of our playtesters foundProfessional to be a great string, scoringit well above average in every one of ournine categories. Of the 111 publishedplaytests we’ve performed, Professional’sratings were in the top 20 in the Playabil-ity, Power, Control, Comfort, and SpinPotential categories. As a result, Profes-sional garnered a top-20 overall averagescore of all published string playtests todate.

Three of the playtesters broke hissample during play, one at one hour, oneat 15 hours, and one at 18 hours.

CONCLUSIONAccording to our playtest team, Profes-sional is a balanced string that will bene-fit just about any kind of player. This isclear from the ratings, but it can easily beseen in the comments, too.

One aspect of our playtest resultsthat jumps out at you is that Professionalreceived high marks for Durability, eventhough it’s a 17-gauge string.

Interestingly, even though Profession-al lost more tension than some otherstrings we’ve tested, three playtestersspecifically told us that it holds tensionwell. Most of our playtesters either didn’tnotice or didn’t care, and only oneplaytester complained of tension loss.

If you think that Isospeed Professionalmight be for you, Isospeed has a specialoffer: Buy 7 sets of Isospeed Professional,and get 3 at no charge. —Greg Raven �

Isospeed Professional 17

TESTERS TALK


becomes very easy on the arm. Overall, I’mamazed by the spin and comfort.” 4.0 malebaseliner with heavy spin using Dunlop 200G(Muscle Weave) strung at 65 pounds CP (PrinceSynthetic Gut w/Duraflex 17)

“ This string has a soft feel. The comfort andplayability definitely make this a high-endstring.” 3.5 male all-court player using VölklTour 9 V Engine (70 Holes) strung at 55 poundsCP (Babolat VS Team 17)

“ Comfort, comfort, comfort. Plays very well atlow tensions. For a durability string, this has greattouch. This string can handle a wide range ofshots and swing speeds. My arm thanks you.”5.0 male all-court player using Prince TripleThreat Warrior MP strung at 48 pounds LO (Wil-son NXT Tour 17)

“ Stringers take note: the crosses do not pulleasily. Perhaps try some wax. Secondly, don’t befooled by the way this string handles, it is NOT apolyester; it is quite soft. Unfortunately, soft

strings usually have too much rebound energy,making them hard to control. This string, however,provides refreshingly soft comfort without exces-sive power. This is not a ‘dead’ string by anymeans; if your mechanics are in order, the juice isthere. It plays with more predictability and controlthan any ‘comfort’ string I’ve ever used. It defiescategorization and will probably prompt a lot ofmisreadings. This is not a pedestrian monofila-ment, it has more nuance than a 1982 Bordeaux.If you like a comfortable, muted response withtons of control, try this string.” 4.5 male all-court player using Head FXP Prestige Team strungat 56 pounds LO (Babolat Xcel Premium 17)

“ The playability is above average and the dura-bility is truly impressive for a soft string. Not onlyis spin production easy, but the strings don’tmove. Tension maintenance is excellent; thestrings feel fresh after 16 hours.” 4.5 male all-court player using Völkl DNX 8 strung at 53pounds CP (Gamma Live Wire XP 17)For the rest of the tester comments, USRSA members can visit

www.racquetsportsindustry.com.

“ This is the most comfortable string I’veever used. Though impact feels very soft,the response is crisp and precise.” 4.0male all-court player using Wilson nTourstrung at 65 pounds LO (nylon multifilament16)

“ This string has superior comfort, control,and feel. No dampener needed. The lowpower makes it perfect for big hitters, andthe low trampoline affect makes it great forthose who prefer low tensions. The combi-nation of comfort and control are trulyimpressive.” 4.5 male serve-and-volleyerusing Handler Arrow strung at 58 poundsLO (Gamma Dura Blast 16)

“ This string is very comfortable. It has acrisp liveliness and simply great control.After 15 hours, there is no sign offraying.” 4.5 male all-court player usingVölkl DNX 9 strung at 58 pounds LO (nylon17)

“ This string has a nice, quiet, mutedresponse. Control is excellent and the com-fort level is high.”5.0 male all-court player using Pro KennexKinetic Pro 7g strung at 63 pounds LO (Tec-nifibre Promix 16L)

“ This string does not install nearly as wellas it plays. It has excellent control, power,and comfort. I prefer playable multifila-ments with excellent control and this stringis one of the best I’ve tried.” 5.0 male all-court player using Head i.prestige Midstrung at 55 pounds CP (Gamma Live WireProfessional 16)

“ Initially, this string has excessive power,but eventually the string settles and hassuperior touch, comfort, and spin. It sur-passes my typical set-up, which I’ve beenusing for two years. I would definitely try itin the crosses, if not the whole stringbed.” 4.0 male all-court player usingPrince O3 Tour MS strung at 62 pounds LO(polyester/nylon 16/17)

“ This string starts a bit stiff, but the spinis out of this world. It softens quickly and

the EXPERTSask

PRE-LACINGI’M HAVING AN ARGUMENT WITHanother stringer who pre-laces hisracquets, and insists I should do so

as well. He claims I'll get a faster, moreaccurate string job. I disagree. What dothe experts say?

AS WITH SO MANY ISSUES dealingwith technique, pre-lacing is a mat-

ter of personal preference. There are sometournament stringers who pre-lace inorder to get the string off the floor beforesomeone else comes along and steps onit, and it doesn’t slow them down to doso. For others, however, a pre-laced rac-quet is a nightmare, as the loose stringsare always in the way of the clamps andseem to get snagged on everything, andyou have to “shuffle” string back andforth through the grommets to getenough loop to reach the tension head. Itwouldn’t hurt to try it, perhaps out of

view of your proselytizing friend, but if itdoesn’t work for you, you are under noobligation to continue doing it.

STRINGING ‘ONE AHEAD’IS STRINGING THE CROSSES one-ahead a mandatory procedure forstringers who string at profession-

al tournaments? If a stringer decides notto string one ahead, what are the poten-tial risks of this practice? What is theUSRSA position regarding stringing one-ahead?

NO, STRINGING ONE-AHEAD ISnot a mandatory procedure for

tournament or — for that matter —other stringers. However, stringing thecrosses one-ahead, as shown on page 48of Racquet Service Techniques, can savestringing time. Also, because the previ-ously tensioned crosses produce an off-set in the mains, there can be less

string-to-string friction when pulling thecrosses through the mains. Therefore, ifyou’re not stringing the crosses one ahead,you are increasing the potential for longerstringing times and more damage to thestring during installation. The USRSA leavesthe decision to the individual stringerwhether or not to weave one-ahead.

MACHINE CLEANINGIN A PAST ISSUE I READ AN ARTICLEregarding how and what type ofproducts to use to clean your string-

ing machine. I have a lockout machine, ifthat makes a difference.

FOR VIRTUALLY ALL MACHINESexcept Tecnifibre, use alcohol and lint-

free wipes. For Tecnifibre machines with thesingle-action glide bars, you use WD-40.Therefore, you would use alcohol on yourmachine. For clamps with textured clampingsurfaces, an old toothbrush is handy. The

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Your Equipment Hotline

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owner's manual that came with yourstringing machine should have clean-ing information.

GUT LIFEWHAT IS THE LIFE RESILIENCYof a gut string? How often dopros restring their racquets

when using gut? How often whenusing synthetics?

NATURAL GUT DOES LOSE ten-sion, as do all strings, but in

many cases it remains playable towithin hours of when it breaks.We’ve seen cases of racquets withten-year-old natural gut in them thatwere still playable.

Just like recreational players, dif-ferent pros restring on differentschedules. It depends on the pro, butgenerally speaking, they don't lettheir strings get more than a coupleof days old before restringing, eitherbecause of age and performanceissues, or because the old string hasbroken.

MOVING GROMMETSWHILE STRINGING CERTAINracquets, some of the grom-mets fall out. Would you have

any suggestions on how to preventthis?

IF THE INDIVIDUAL grommetson a modern racquet are liter-

ally falling out, you should replacethe grommet set. If the friction of thestring against the inside of the grom-met is pulling the grommet out ofposition during tensioning, simplypress against the outside of thegrommet strip (and/or bumperguard)as you pull tension on the string. Thisnormally happens only at a couple ofpositions on the frame, so youshouldn’t have to do it for each andevery pull.

BEST MACHINE HEIGHTAFTER STRINGING ABOUTthree racquets, my back startsto bother me. Is there an

ergonomically best height to set thetable of my machine to avoid (or atleast mitigate) this situation?

AS FAR AS WE KNOW, THERE haven’tbeen any studies on setting stringing

machine height for best ergonomics. Therealso seems to be a fair amount of personaliza-tion regarding machine height, as we’ve seentall stringers with short machines and shortstringers with tall machines, apparently withno problem. You might try setting the heightof the stringbed to about the level of yourforearms, when you are standing up straightwith your arms at your sides with the elbowsbent 90 degrees. Because you normally workwith one hand above and one hand below

the stringbed, this splits the difference soyou shouldn’t have to bend to reachbelow the stringbed nor stretch to reachabove it. You might also try monitoringyour internal stress level while stringing. Ifyour overall demeanor is calm and relaxed,you won’t have other tensions migratingto your back.

—Greg Raven �

We welcome your questions. Please send them toRacquet Sports Industry, 330 Main St., Vista, CA,92084; fax: 760-536-1171; email:[email protected].

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Editor’s note: There are other waysof cutting out strings that don’tstress the frame, and mounting theracquet on the machine beforeremoving the strings allows dirt,string savers, and stencil ink to fallonto your machine. It’s also veryimportant to re-check the way theracquet is mounted in the machineafter cutting out the strings, as youalways want to start the string jobwith the racquet at its naturallength.

BROCCOLI BANDSI use overgrips, but I flip them over toget wear on both sides before I’m donewith them. This means I can’t use tapeto secure the overgrip, because remov-ing the tape tears the overgrip. Insteadof buying grip bands, I use the rubberband I get from the grocery store whereI buy broccoli. They’re just the right size

and TECHNIQUES

CUTTING OUT STRINGS

Before I cut out the strings, I mount theracquet in my machine as for restringing,and then cut the strings out in the reverseorder that they were installed. I thencheck the racquet mountings for tightnessbefore restringing. I believe this reducesstress on the frame during string removal,plus I’m ready to start stringing as soon asthe strings have been removed.5 sets of Prince Premierw/ Softflex 16 to:Len Borrett, Hampshire, England


tips

to hold the overgrip to the racquet,they’re reusable, and they’re free—aslong as you eat broccoli.Dunlop 6 Racquet Bag to:Todd Volker, Ottawa, IL

Editor’s note: This seems to work bestif you wrap the band around the pal-let portion, as opposed to the shaftportion of the racquet.

CALIBRATION LOCKINGTo help my lockout machine stay in cali-

Readers’ Know-How in Action


Tips and Techniques submitted since 2000 byUSRSA members, and appearing in this column,have all been gathered into a single volume ofthe Stringer’s Digest—Racquet Service Tech-niques which is a benefit of USRSA membership.Submit tips to: Greg Raven, USRSA, 330 Main St.,Vista, CA 92804; or email [email protected].

bration longer, I use a smalldab of thread locker on thecalibration adjustment screw.I happen to use Loctite. Payattention when purchasingthread locking fluids or gels,though, as they come in dif-ferent strengths. You wantto get the “weakest”strength so you can loosenthe screw and make adjust-

ments in the future.5 sets of Gamma Synthetic Gut w/Wearguard 16 and a Gamma Hat& T-Shirt to:John T. Arima, Chicago, IL

POINTLESS STRINGINGAfter cutting off the excess string nearthe knot on polyester string jobs, I takean emery board and sand off the sharppoint. I find the emery boards in packs of

20 in the cosmetics section (some peopleuse them for fingernails).5 sets of Silent PartnerHeadspin 15L to:Ralph Flohre, Virginia Beach, VA

Editor’s note: On many frames, youcan cut the string slightly below theedge of the frame in such a way thatthe point is against the frame, andnot easily reached. You just have tomake certain that you leave enoughthat the end doesn’t slip out of theknot.

SLICK BUMPERGUARD TRICKWe have each struggled from time totime with the installation of bumper-guards. I use suntan lotion (any SPF!)applied with my finger along the inside ofthe bumper guard. This allows the guardto slip into the grommet holes much easi-er as you secure the guard into place.

Clean up is super easy: Just wipe off anyexcess lotion and you’re good to go!5 sets of Tecnifibre X-OneBiphase 1.30 to:Terry Boyle, Columbine Valley, CO

CUSTOM STRING SELECTORTo help my customers select the correctstring, I created a string list of all thestrings I stock, separated into one ofthree categories: Power, Mid-range, andControllable/Durable. This allows them to

look over the list and then ask questionsabout strings that seem interesting.Forten Tour Bag to:Bob Tuttle, MRT, Freeport, NY

—Greg Raven �

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10-S Tennis Supply1400 NW 13th AvenuePompano Beach, FL 33069P 800-247-3907

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Alpha Sports7208 McNeil Drive, #207Austin, TX 78729P 800-922-9024

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L I S T I N G B Y C O M P A N Y


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Oncourt Offcourt5427 Philip Ave.Dallas, TX 75223P 88-TENNIS-11

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Prince Sports, Inc.One Advantage CourtBordentown, NJ 08505P 800-2 TENNIS

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Pro Supex USA510 SE Fourth Ct.Dania, FL 33004P 866-787-4644

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PTR(Professional Tennis Registry)P.O. Box 4739, 116 Shipyard Dr.Hilton Head Island, SC 29928P 800-421-6289

843-785-7244F 843-686-2033email: [email protected]: www.ptrtennis.org

Putnam Tennis and RecreationPO Box 96Harwinton, CT 06791P 800-678-2490F 860-485-1568email: [email protected]: www.putnamtennis.com

Rocky Mountain Sports650 South Taylor #ALouisville, CO 80027P 800-525-2852

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Unique Sports Products840 McFarland RoadAlpharetta, GA 30004P 800-554-3707

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USPTA(US Professional Tennis Association)3535 Briarpark Drive, Suite 1Houston, TX 77042P 800-877-8248

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USRSA(US Racquet Stringers Association)330 Main StreetVista, CA 92084P 760-536-1177F 760-536-1171email: [email protected]: www.racquettech.com

USTA(US Tennis Association)70 West Red Oak LaneWhite Plains, NY 10604P 800-990-8782

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Volkl/Boris Becker Tennis6450 Lusk Blvd., Suite E-103San Diego, CA 92121P 866-554-7872

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Wilson Racquet Sports8700 West Bryn Mawr Avenue, 10th floorChicago, IL 60631P 800-272-6060

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Wimbledon, div. of The LBHGroup, Ltd.18700 Crenshaw BlvdTorrance, CA 90504P 800-421-4474


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L I S T I N G B Y P R O D U C T

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InsolesATS Sports

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Your ServeA ProfitableFuture for AllThe TIA president says that thisindustry’s longtime collaborativenature is paying off for all inmeaningful programs andinitiatives to grow the sport.

Tennis is an amazing sport. Think aboutit—what other sport combines all thepositives that you find in tennis. It’s fun to

play, it keeps you fit and healthy, it’s a very socialsport, yet it can be extremely competitive, youcan play it with friends and family, you can playit as an individual or on a team. I’m sure you canlist manymore reasons to love this sport.

Those of us who work in the tennisbusiness are especially fortunate, particular-ly at this time in tennis’s development. Eachyear for the last four years, this businesshas been improving—participation is up,equipment sales are up, play occasions areup and there is a lot of positive momen-tum.

All of this is a testament to the powerof working together—and that’s the advan-tage that the Tennis Industry Associationhas over many other industries. In the TIA,we’ve been working together for manyyears—as a group—to develop meaningfulprograms and initiatives to grow this sport.More than any other participation sport inthe U.S., tennis for many years has beendeveloping and strengthening its network.And now, it’s all paying off.

When I became the volunteer presidentof the TIA in January, I was fortunate totake over the reins of an organization thathad been well on its way to boosting tennisparticipation in the U.S. And some of thelatest figures prove that we’re definitely onthe right track: In the first quarter of 2007,tennis racquet shipments to all dealers wereup 11.5 percent in dollars and nearly 9 per-cent in units over the same period in 2006.Ball shipments, too, have increased in thefirst quarter 8.7 percent in units.

Together with our industry partners and

by working closely with the USTA, theefforts to grow the game at the grass-roots level have intensified. We’ve suc-cessfully promoted Tennis WelcomeCenters for four straight years, the USTAhas greatly expanded its Tennis in theParks campaign and other programs, andCardio Tennis, entering its third year, isseeing terrific media attention and successin attracting new and existing players.

But our collaborative spirit in the TIAand the industry as a whole has had otherbenefits, too. For instance, the TIA hasalways seen the value of using research(facts) to help determine the right direc-tion for the sport, and we continue to doso. The research we sponsor, with thehelp of all of our partners and members,goes beyond what any other sport in theU.S. is doing. We use the data to betterrefine our programs, to make courseadjustments when necessary, to keep thissport heading toward a profitable future.This research is also a vital tool for ourmember companies who use this marketintelligence to make better business deci-sions and monitor the marketplace.

For many years, we’ve emphasizedusing technology to help better your busi-ness, especially in today’s fast-paced,competitive environment, as the TIA isway out ahead in terms of what we’vedeveloped to help service our membersand their businesses. Again, with helpfrom our industry partners, our technolog-ical tools have gone a long way towardincreasing awareness of and access to thissport—whether it’s searching within theindustry on tennisindustry.org; using thetools and services provided at growingten-

TIA President Dave Haggerty is theCEO of Head USA, President of PennRacquet Sports, and on the USTABoard of Directors. He’s been in thetennis business for nearly 35 years.


B Y D A V E H A G G E R T Y

We welcome your opinions. Please emailcomments to [email protected] or faxthem to 760-536-1171.

nis.com; using the Find a Game, Find aFacility, Find a Program features the TIAmanages on industry and consumer sites;running your business online through Ten-nisConnect.org; looking for drills on Car-dioTennis.com; or a myriad of other toolsand information that can help you run yourbusiness.

This focus on technology, along withthe flexible, streamlined nature of the TIA,allows us to get things done quickly. We’renot afraid to take action, to try—oradjust—various programs, or to put ourmoney behind what we think will helpgrow this sport.

And importantly, none of this would bepossible without all of our industry part-ners. Yes, the members of the TIA are, onthe outside, fierce competitors with oneanother, but when we come together forthe good of the game, we’re able to putaside any differences or company agendas,and work strategically for the good oftennis.

The millions of dollars that the TIA,USTA, and other partners have put into thecollaborative bucket to grow the game hasmade a huge difference in the sport, andit’s making a difference in your business,too. �

Documents

200706 Racquet Sports Industry