201204 Racquet Sports Industry

April 2012Volume 40 Number 4 $5.00www.racquetsportsindustry.com

w Our exclusive ‘map’w The importance ofplaytesting

Selling Tennis Shoes

Soft-Court Award Winners

Annual RacquetSelection GuideAnnual RacquetSelection Guidew Our exclusive ‘map’w The importance ofplaytesting

Selling Tennis Shoes

Soft-Court Award Winners

2

DEPARTMENTS

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INDUSTRY NEWS

7 Har-Tru acquires J.A.Cissel, Century Sports

7 Jorge Andrew is new PTR president

7 “Tennis 15-30” digitalpublication debuts

8 New string brand, L-TEC, launches

8 US Open final to move to Monday

8 Babolat holds VS String Academy

10 Peoplewatch10 USTA, Nickelodeon

launch sweepstakes

10 ASBA presentationsavailable online

12 Short Sets13 USTA PlayDev names

5 training centers

16 Kirk Anderson namedPTR Pro of Year

16 Life Time Fitness buysRac Club of South

4 Our Serve7 Industry News18 TIA News20 Retailing Tip

22 Finances34 Tips & Techniques36 Ask the Experts38 String Playtest: Tecnifibre Ruff Code 1640 Your Serve, by Angela Buxton

2 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY April 2012www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Cover photo by Stephen Whalen

ContentsContentsFEATURES

24 Kicking It Up Shoes are the “journeymen” of tennisequipment. But sooner or later, everyplayer will need a new pair.

32 Feats of ClayThese outdoor ASBA facility winnersare excellent examples of soft-courtconstruction.

RACQUET SELECTION GUIDE

27 Making a Play Date When it comes to selling racquets, theframe’s specs can take you only so far.The customer then has to get it out onthe court.

28 Racquet Selection MapOur exclusive guide enables you to findthe perfect frame for your customersquickly and easily.

Our Serve(Incorporating Racquet Tech and Tennis Industry)

PublishersDavid Bone Jeff Williams

Editorial DirectorPeter Francesconi

Associate EditorGreg Raven

Design/Art DirectorKristine Thom

Technical EditorJonathan Wolfe

Contributing EditorsRobin BatemanCynthia CantrellJoe DinofferGreg MoranKent OswaldBob Patterson

Cynthia ShermanMary Helen Sprecher

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] Sports Industry is published 10 times peryear: monthly January through August and combinedissues in September/October and November/December by Tennis Industry and USRSA, 330Main St., Vista, CA 92084. Periodcal postage paid atVista, CA and at additional mailing offices (USPS#004-354). April 2012, Volume 40, Number 4 ©2012 by USRSA and Tennis Industry. All rightsreserved. Racquet Sports Industry, RSI and logo aretrademarks of USRSA. Printed in the U.S.A. Phoneadvertising: 770-650-1102 x 125. Phone circulationand editorial: 760-536-1177. Yearly subscriptions$25 in the U.S., $40 elsewhere. POSTMASTER: Sendaddress changes to Racquet Sports Industry, 330 MainSt., Vista, CA 92084.

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

www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Benefits of Receiving, and Giving

4 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY April 2012

We all want some recognition for what we do.Pro tennis players get that recognition whenthey win tournaments. But for most of us, it’s

sometimes hard to find ways to satisfy our need to be toldthat our efforts are appreciated, that we’ve done a greatjob—that we’re actually important to tennis.

Frequently, we have to make these opportunities happen ourselvesand seek out that recognition. And in fact, that’s exactly what we allshould be doing.

No matter what you do in tennis, chances are there are award andrecognition programs suited to you and your business. You only need tofind them and apply, or in some cases get someone to nominate you; youdon’t need to be invited or selected to apply.

Think of the organizations you deal with already—the USTA has a veryactive awards program covering everything from school coaches, toleague captains, to CTAs, to facilities and more. And don’t forget, it’s notjust USTA national; all the USTA sections give out awards, as do districtsand local CTAs. There are other national awards, too, such as the ASBAfacility awards, or recognition from the NRPA, but don’t forget localawards, such as from schools, the Park and Rec, Chamber of Commerce,or other retailer and civic organizations.

You also may be in a position to create recognition for others. Clearly,if you’re a retail store or facility owner or manager, you should have waysto recognize employees, which will help build a strong, committed team.If you’re part of a community tennis organization, awards and recogni-tion can go a long way to helping volunteers feel valued.

And here’s another reason for giving, and receiving, awards: It willhelp your business. Think of the chances for publicity, locally andbeyond, for your business or organization when you win recognition—oreven when you give out an award. This type of publicity isn’t just goodfor your business, it’s good for tennis overall.

When your business or organization gains recognition, it shows spon-sors and supporters that you’re worth the investment. Right after RSI’sChampions of Tennis Awards were announced in January, I heard fromthree winners about how the recognition helped them gain funding orother benefits for a program or project.

Sure, like we all do, you may be thinking, I never win these things, sowhy should I bother? Well, you never know—and if not this year, maybegetting your name out there now will help for next year.

But here’s another reason: Simply writing down your accomplish-ments, like on an awards application, can really make you feel goodabout what you’ve done.

Peter FrancesconiEditorial Director

• ,

THE NEW F. • FULL ACCfLERP/0.A.S. T.

' ' N SHAFT

INDUSTRY NEWSINDUSTRY NEWSI 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

Jorge Andrew Named President Of PTR Board

At the recent PTRSymposium, JorgeAndrew was namedpresident of the PTRBoard of Directors fora three-year term.Andrew, who acceptedthe reins from outgo-ing President JeanMills, is the first Latino

to serve as president of a majorU.S. tennis organization.

Andrew is the director of opera-tions of the Lexington Recreationand Aging Committee, in Lexing-ton, S.C., which has 51 courts at itstwo facilities, the Lexington CountyTennis Complex and the new CayceTennis and Fitness Center. A PTRmember for more than 32 years, heis a Master Professional, clinicianand tester. He’s also a USTA MasterTrainer for Recreational CoachWorkshops and a 10 and UnderTennis Specialist, and is chairmanof the Cardio Tennis NationalSpeakers Team.

A former Venezuelan Davis Cupplayer and captain, Andrew playedon the ATP Tour for more than 10years. He now serves on the USTADavis Cup, Fed Cup and Paralympiccommittees. In 2008, he wasnamed USTA/SC Lucy Garvin Volun-teer of the Year, USTA SouthernQuickStart Trainer of the Year, andRSI’s PTR Member of the Year.

“I am honored to carry on thestrong tradition set for PTR by Den-nis Van der Meer,” Andrew says.“PTR continues to grow as anorganization and I look forward toworking to further that growth forPTR and tennis.”

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April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 7www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Har-Tru Sports of Charlottesville, Va., has acquired the tennis operations of J.A. Cissel Man-ufacturing and Century Sports. Har-Tru says the acquisition will provide itscustomers with access to a wider array of products in the tennis accessories

and surfacing marketplace, while adding value to current and future customers ofCissel and Century.

Cissel and Century, headquartered in Lakewood, N.J., are being purchased fromBob Hellerson. “We’ve admired Bob’s product leadership and focus on introducinginnovative and top-of-the-line tennis court accessories for years,” says Randy Futty,general manager of Har-Tru Sports. “This acquisition allows us to expand our cur-rent product offering to include accessories for clay and hard courts while giving us a chance toincrease our reach and name recognition nationally and globally.”

In an effort to integrate the companies as smoothly as possible, Har-Tru will operate Cissel andCentury independently for the foreseeable future. During this time, Hellerson will continue toserve in a management role and help to transition the company over to Har-Tru. Approximately30 associates are employed within the two companies.

“The acquisition supports and aligns with Har-Tru’s mission to develop innovative tennis prod-ucts that help our customers maximize their potential,” said Anderson McNeill, president of Har-Tru Sports. “The acquisition allows us to stay competitive in the sports supply segment andfocused on our path of developing champions around the world.”

New ‘Tennis 15-30’ Digital Consumer Pub Is LaunchedThe Tennis Media Company has launched a new digital magazine

called “Tennis 15-30.” Delivered twice each month, on the 15thand 30th, the interactive digital-only editions are available on bothdesktop browsers and tablet devices such as iPad and Kindle Fire.

“Tennis 15-30 is a game-changer,” said TMC Managing PartnerBob Miller. “We’re now able to provide world-class written andvideo content more quickly, efficiently and creatively than everbefore with a product that can be delivered across every rele-vant digital platform.”

The digital magazine offers previews, insight and analysisof professional tennis in addition to fitness tips, instructionhelp and other useful content designed to improve the reader’s game. Inaddition to the regular twice-monthly issues, TMC will produce four Grand Slam Specialswith in-depth coverage.

Produced in collaboration with the USTA, Tennis 15-30 will be available to all USTA members.Jon Vegosen, USTA Chairman of the Board and President, said, “This is an extraordinary oppor-tunity to reach out and have a direct relationship with our members. We are thrilled with thisadaptable form of communication designed for the growing tennis community.”

Jeff Williams, Group Publisher of Tennis Media Company (and co-publisher of RSI), said, “Webelieve this new digital-only publication further solidifies our place as the unrivaled premiersource of all news, entertainment and information surrounding tennis. Advertisers will haveincreased opportunities to reach the consumer with video enhanced ads and direct links to adver-tisers’ sites. We expect Tennis 15-30 to be a win/win for both the consumer and our partners inthe advertising community.”

Har-Tru Sports Acquires J.A. Cissel, Century Sports

US Open Men’s Final to Move to Monday

The US Open men’s final will move toMonday, possibly as early as this year."We're in ongoing discussions regard-

ing the schedule to ensure there's a day ofrest for the men and women between thesemifinals and finals," Chris Widmaier, theUSTA's managing director of corporatecommunications, told ESPN.com’s GregGarber in early March. "It's not clear if itwill happen for 2012, but we expect it willby at least 2013."

For the past four years, the men’s finalwas pushed to Monday due to rain, andlast year after two days of rainouts, a num-ber of men pros protested the initial deci-sion not to move the final from Sunday toMonday. Even without rain, however, theUS Open was always the Grand Slamexception—having both the men andwomen play their semifinals and finals onback-to-back days. The other three majorsgive the players a day of rest.

"We need to reach an agreement with anumber of different constituents," Wid-maier said. "Our domestic and internation-al television partners, our fan base, as wellas certain sponsor commitments we haveto work through.”

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8 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY April 2012 www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Babolat Holds VS String Academy

Babolat conducted its inaugural VS String Academy on Feb. 29 at its U.S.headquarters in Louisville, Colo., bringing in elite stringers from around

the country to become certified to string for Babolat at Grand Slams andother premier events. It was the first time Babolat has brought the elitestringers together.

At the conclusion of the String Academy, two stringers—Chris Gaudreauof Connecticut and Marc Kessler of New York—were selected to attendRoland Garros, where they will be part of the official stringing team for theFrench Open. “Stringing in a tournament like Roland Garros adds a differentlevel of pressure,” said Babolat’s National Sales Manager, Mickey Maule.“Chris and Marc both bring a strong technical proficiency and previous expe-rience stringing for Grand Slam tournaments. We’re honored to have thesetalented stringers represent our brand at Roland Garros.”

Other stringers participating in the String Academy were: Woody Schnei-der (NY), Steve Vorhaus (CO), Mark Campanile (IL), Richard Flores (TX), DrewSunderlin (PA), Jason Costello (CO) and Josh Newton (CO).

New String Brand, L-TEC, Launches Full-Poly Hybrids

The newest string brand to enter the market is L-TEC Premium. The companysays its strings are “specifically designed to perform together in hybrid combi-

nations for maximum playability and results.” The line consists of 15 string prod-ucts, allowing for a multitude of hybrid combinations, which means players cancustomize and fine-tune their stringbeds to suit their games.

A key to the L-TEC line is that they are extruded in shapes that the companysays will enhance playability, boost performance and extend string life. Accord-ing to L-TEC, the strings are “the first to be specifically engineered to give opti-mal performance at low tensions, especially when installed by a trainedprofessional who is experienced and/or certified in stringing copolys using spe-cific low-tension techniques.” L-TEC recommends a precision stringing methodknown as the JET Method.

L-TEC Premium copolymers are extruded in four shapes: L-TEC Premium 45is a “squoval” (squared-off oval), which the company says is the only string onthe market in this shape; 35 is “delta” (triangular) shape; 55 is a pentagonshape; and OS is a traditional shape. L-TEC also offers synthetics that aredesigned to be used as cross strings with the copolys. Strung properly, says L-TEC, the strings will lose only 2 to 4 pounds of tension in the first six to 10 hoursof play.

The L-TEC Premium line consists of 12 poly-based and three syntheticstrings. The strings are packaged in spool lengths, and customers and

stringers will receive a discount of 20% to30% off retail price. Stringers who useL-TEC in their retail businesses,clubs, schools and shops are eligi-ble to receive additional discountswhen purchasing in quantity.For stringers interested in

learning more about the L-TEC Pre-mium strings and JET Method ofstringing, the U.S. distributor, Gutsand Glory Tennis (ggtennis.com),has live interactive webinars to pro-vide an overview and addressquestions. For more informationand a description of the strings,visit L-Tectennis.com.

10U ‘Legacy Program’ Created for Pro Circuit Events

The USTA Pro Circuit Committee has intro-duced the “10 and Under Tennis Legacy

Program,” which will provide grants to Pro Cir-cuit tournament sites that actively promotethe 10 and under Tennis format at theirevents, and whose facilities make program-ming available to the community.

The goal of the legacy program, a collabo-ration between the USTA’s Profession andCommunity Tennis divisions, is for tenniscommunities in Pro Circuit markets to benefitfrom the tournament throughout the year withenhanced support of grassroots programs.Tournaments can apply for grants to cover thepainting of permanent lines on courts at theirfacility or a partner site connected with thetournament, such as at a school or park.

The program is separate from, and in addi-tion to, the grants available to tournaments forcommunity events. Information is atusta.com/pro-tennis.


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• Jim Curley has stepped down from his USTA position as Chief Profes-sional Tournaments Officer & US Open Tournament Director, a post he’sheld since 2001. Deputy Tournament Director David Brewer, a 14-yearUSTA employee, has been elevated to US Open Tournament Director andalso will oversee the USTA’s professional tennis operations. Curley willremain as a consultant to the USTA through the 2012 US Open.

• Spanish tennis great Manuel Orantes, the 1975 US Open champion andformer world No. 2, will be inducted to the International Tennis Hall ofFame as the only 2012 inductee in the Master Player category. He joinstennis administrator Mike Davies and wheelchair tennis star Randy Snowas members of the Class of 2012. The Induction Ceremony will be July 14in Newport, R.I.

• The Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association named Ron Rosenbaumas its senior vice president of marketing & business development. Prior tojoining SGMA, Rosenbaum worked for the Club Managers Association ofAmerica (CMAA) in Alexandria, Va., as senior vice president of marketingand communications. From 1998-2001, he worked for the USTA as market-ing manager.

• Novak Djokovic was recently named the 2012 Laureus World Sportsmanof the Year.

• Babolat National Sales Manager Mickey Maule of Wayzata, Minn., andpartner Rick Leach, a nine-time Grand Slam doubles winner, won the titleat the 2012 ITF Seniors World 40s Doubles Championships in San Diego,Calif., in February. Maule and Leach, the No. 2 seeds, defeated top-seededEllis Ferriera, a former Australian Open doubles champion, and Roger Mills6-1, 5-7, 7-5 in the final.

• Pro tour player Sam Querrey and Babolat have a three-year racquet

deal. He will play with the AeroPro Drive GT Plus.

• Watch brand Tag Heuer has formed a partnership with Japan-ese tennis star Kei Nishikori, currently ranked No.17 on theATP Tour.

• Head Penn racquetball players Ben Croft and RockyCarson teamed to win their first U.S. National dou-bles Championship. With the win, the duo earn aone-year appointment to the USA RacquetballNational Team Pool.

• Val Wilder of Fort Worth, Texas, won both the sin-gles and doubles titles in the Men’s 50 division at the 2012International Tennis Federation Seniors World Individual Championshipsheld in La Jolla, Calif. He teamed with Mike Fedderly of Palm Desert, Calif.,to win the doubles. Earlier, Wilder had defeated Fedderly in the singlesfinal.

• Ten-time Grand Slam champion Dr. Anne Smith is partnering with T BarM Racquet Club to offer her Mach 4 Mental Training System to players inthe club’s Junior Development Program. In addition to her tennis career,Smith has a private psychology practice in Texas, and says this program isthe perfect way to integrate tennis and psychology.

• Longtime USTA volunteer and former USTA Missouri Valley Section pres-ident Leigh Strassner died Feb. 4 in Colorado. Strassner was nationallyranked as a junior and played tennis at Colgate University. He was a tenniscourt builder and member of the USTA Missouri Valley Hall of Fame.

• Ken Brown, a former member of the National Sporting Goods Associa-tion Board of Directors, died Feb. 22 in Buffalo, N.Y. He was 81.

PEOPLEWATCH

New Book Tells of Titanic’s Tennis Connection

Karl Behr was one of the best tennis players in the U.S.—a memberof the 1907 U.S. Davis Cup team and a Wimbledon doubles finalist.

In 1912, he was in love with Helen Newsom, but Newsom’s motherdid not approve and whisked her daughter away on a European adven-

ture in an attempt to break up the couple. Behr concoct-ed a business trip to chase after his love. Both scheduledreturn trips to America on the Titanic.

The love story of Behr and Newsom, as well as theincredible story of survival and triumph of anotherTitanic survivor and future U.S. singles champion,Dick Williams, are featured in the new book “Titanic:The Tennis Story,” by Lindsay Gibbs ($12.95, NewChapter Press, available on Amazon.com).

The book narrates the extraordinary stories ofBehr and Williams, who survived the sinking 100

years ago and met on the deck of the rescue ship Carpathia.The two men eventually became teammates on the U.S. Davis Cupteam and faced each other in the quarterfinals of the 1914 U.S.Nationals in Newport, R.I.— the tournament that is now the US Open.

The historical novel is published by New Chapter Press of New YorkCity.

USTA, Nickelodeon Launch ‘Tennis Really Rocks’ Sweepstakes

The USTA and Nickelodeon’s “Tennis Really Rocks”sweepstakes will run through April 1, with the

grand prize for one lucky youngster of a trip for fourto New York to attend Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day, the annu-al kick-off event to the US Open; as well as hang withthe stars of Nickelodeon’s new live-action series “Howto Rock,” Cymphonique Miller and Max Schneider.

Fifty other youngsters will win a first prize: 10 andUnder Tennis equipment. Kids between 6 and 12years old or their parents can enter the contest by vis-iting nick.com/tennisrocks.

“With our agreement with Nickelodeon, we’re nowstepping outside of tennis and reaching a much wideryouth audience to engage them in tennis,” says KurtKamperman, the USTA’s chief executive of Communi-ty Tennis. Also as part of the partnership, Miller andSchneider will make appearances, throughout theyear, at USTA events aimed at kids and be featured incommercials promoting youth tennis.

April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 11

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ASBA Tech PresentationVideos Available Online

Videos of a number of presentationsat the ASBA’s Technical Meeting held

in December are now available forviewing on the association’s website,sportsbuilders.org.

Among the videos available is thepresentation “Court Preparation,Removing Coatings (Techniques,Equipment),” which was presented byTom Hinding of Hinding Tennis Courts;Tom Magner of Plexipave System, Div.of California Products Corp.; andCarvin Pallenberg of RiteWay CrackRepair. Other presentations for thetrack, fields and indoor divisions areavailable.

To view the videos, go to the home-page and click the “videos” button atthe bottom right.

Kids Learn 10U TennisAboard Aircraft Carrier

Hundreds of kids from USTA East-ern were introduced to 10 and

Under Tennis aboard the IntrepidSea, Air & Space Museum on Feb.23, receiving encouragement fromPatrick McEnroe (below), the gener-al manager of USTA Player Develop-ment and a former French Opendoubles champion. The clinic washeld for the second consecutiveyear at the Intrepid, which is aWorld War II aircraft carrier dockedin the Hudson River on the westside of Manhattan, as part of theMuseum’s Annual Kids Week, whichfeatures fun, educational and inter-active activities for kids during thePresidents’ Week vacation. The clin-ic was led by a group of instructorsfrom Yonkers Tennis Center, theHarlem Junior Tennis and EducationProgram, and the USTA Billie JeanKing National Tennis Center.


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>Tennis Warehouse and the ATP announcedthat they will extend their online retail partner-ship through 2014. Partners since 2000, TennisWarehouse operates the official ATP World Touronline store.

>The USTA announced that Emirates Airlinewill be a global, integrated sponsor of the USOpen and US Open Series. As part of the seven-year agreement, Emirates becomes the “Offi-cial Airline of the US Open” and the titlesponsor of the “Emirates Airline US OpenSeries.”

>Penn has launched a Facebook promotionthrough April 27 for its new Pro PennMarathon ball. One prize will be awarded eachweek, and include a case of Pro PennMarathon balls, a Head backpack, a Head rac-quet, and signed memorabilia from two Headpro players. To enter, visit facebook.com/penntennis.

>The U.S. will face France in a Davis Cup quar-terfinal, to be held April 6-8 in Monte Carlo. TheU.S. won its first-round match over Switzer-

land, 5-0, in February in Switzerland. Mardy Fish,John Isner and Ryan Harrison posted singles wins,and Fish and Mike Bryan won the doubles.

>The U.S. Fed Cup team will travel to UkraineApril 21-22 to play in the BNP Paribas World GroupPlayoff. The U.S. and Ukraine have never facedeach other in Fed Cup; the U.S. needs to defeatUkraine to compete in the World Group next yearand contend for the 2013 Fed Cup Title. In Febru-ary, the U.S. blanked Belarus, 5-0, in the WorldGroup II first round played in Worcester, Mass.

>The Tennis On Campus National Championshipwill be April 12-14 at the Cary Tennis Park, Cary,N.C. Visit TennisOnCampus.com for more informa-tion.

>Pro-1 Sports has now fully merged with Putter-man Athletics. The two tennis supply companiesannounced a joint venture in late 2010. Puttermanwill continue to operate out of its Chicago salesand corporate office and Marietta, Ga., for its salesand distribution warehouse. Inquires relating toeither company should go to [email protected] or 800-621-0146.

>Cliff Drysdale Tennis is now managing thetennis operation at Bluewater Bay Tennis Cen-ter in Niceville, Fla. Bryce Cunningham, whowas program director at the Drysdale-managedRitz-Carlton Tennis Garden in Key Biscayne, isthe new tennis director at Bluewater Bay,which will also see facility improvementsincluding court resurfacing and pro shopenhancements.

>In 2011 USPTA teaching pros raised nearly$2.5 million for charity through the associa-tion’s Lessons for Life program. Lessons for Lifebecame USPTA’s national charitable program in1999 and since then the USPTA and its mem-bers have raised more than $47 million in aneffort to support various charities. While Les-sons for Life is officially celebrated in October,events may be hosted any time during the year.

>The Orange County Breakers will play theirseven home WTT matches this July on a spe-cially-constructed court at the Bren Events Cen-ter on the University of California, Irvinecampus. The Breakers, who have played in near-by Newport Beach since 2003, start their 10th

SHORT SETS

April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 13 www.racquetsportsindustry.com

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

USTA PlayDev Names 5 RegionalTraining Centers

USTA Player Development hasnamed five junior develop-

ment programs in four states asUSTA Certified Regional Train-ing Centers—part of the contin-uing effort to develop the nextgeneration of world-class

American players. The Barnes Ten-

nis Center in SanDiego and the North-

west High PerformanceTennis program in Seattle arethe first CRTCs named in theUSTA Southern California andUSTA Pacific Northwest sec-tions, respectively. The 4 StarTennis Academy in Fairfax, Va.,will join the Junior TennisChampions Center in CollegePark, Md., in a CRTC networkfor the USTA Mid-Atlantic Sec-tion. The Rochester AthleticClub in Rochester, Minn., andthe Life Time Fitness center inLakeville, a suburb of Min-neapolis/St. Paul, will comprisea USTA Certified Regional Train-ing Center network for theUSTA Northern Section.

As USTA Certified RegionalTraining Centers, the five pro-grams will enhance the trainingand development of juniors intheir areas, and USTA PlayerDevelopment will use thesenew partnerships as vehicles toeducate and collaborate withjunior tennis coaches in thesefour USTA sections.

year in the League when the 2012 regular sea-son kicks off July 9 and runs through July 29.

>The ITF has renewed its sponsorship agree-ment with Wilson Racquet Sports as the OfficialBall of Davis Cup and Fed Cup for five moreyears, starting in 2013 through 2017.

>The USPTA has provided a grant to the “A’s &Aces” program for New Orleans public schoolchildren. A’s & Aces serves more than 500 chil-

dren through in/afterschool and summer program-ming. Summer camps teach tennis fundamentalsand life skills. In-school/after-school clinics areoffered to partner elementary schools.

>Wilson will launch Wilson Collegiate TennisCamps at 10 universities this summer, providingplayers 8 to 18 years of age overnight program-ming led by top college coaches. The camps will beat Brown University, Case Western University, Col-orado College, College of William & Mary, Kalama-

zoo College, University of Virginia, University ofNorth Florida, College of Wooster, University ofNotre Dame, and Vanderbilt University. Visitwilsontenniscamps.com.

>The top-seeded USC Trojans beat third-seededOhio State 4-3 to win the 2012 ITA NationalMen's Team Indoor Championship, held in Char-lottesville, Va. On the women’s side, UCLA beatDuke 4-0 to win its first Team Indoor Champi-onship.


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Top-Selling Tennis Stringsat Specialty StoresBy year-to-date units, January-December 20111. Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex2. Babolat RPM Blast3. Wilson NXT4. Wilson Sensation5. Luxilon Alu Power

Top-Selling Racquets at Specialty StoresBy year-to-date dollars, January-December 2011Best Sellers1. Babolat Aero Pro Drive GT (MP)2. Babolat Pure Drive GT (MP)3. Babolat Aero Pro Team GT (MP)4. Babolat Pure Drive Lite GT (MP)5. Wilson BLX Six.One 95 16x18 (MS)

“Hot New Racquets” (introduced in the past 12 months)1. Wilson BLX Blade (MP)2. Prince EXO3 Red (2011) (OS)3. Prince EXO3 Blue (2011) ()S)4. Head YouTek IG Extreme (MP)5. Head YouTek IG Speed 18x20 (MP)

Tennis Racquet PerformanceSpecialty StoresJanuary-December, 2011 vs. 2010Units 2011 719,490 2010 719,943 % change v. ’10 0%Dollars 2011 $101,748,000 2010 $102,216,000 % change v. ’10 0%Price 2011 $141.42 2010 $141.98 % change v. ’10 0%

Top-Selling Tennis Shoes at Specialty StoresBy year-to-date dollars, January-December 20111. Prince T222. Adidas Barricade 6.03. Babolat Propulse 34. Nike Air Breathe Free 25. Nike Court Ballistec 3.3

(Source: TIA/Sports Marketing Surveys)

Pros Can Travel Free to Wimbledon

Looking to go to Wimbledon this year? The Wimbledon Experience, a part of KeithProwse Ltd., is offering tennis pros, tennis directors and general managers the chance

to travel for free as the 10th person accompanying nine members, with trips that can becustomized to your group.

The Wimbledon Experience has worked with the All England Club since 1982 as theofficial agent for overseas tours and hospitality at the Championships. The “Tennis ClubTour Program” includes guaranteed reserved seats for two days of play and playing timeon grass courts at a nearby club. The trip also includes an evening at the theater, dinner,lunches and more.

For details, visit wimbledon-experience.com or call 888-552-6791.


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Kirk Anderson Named PTR Pro of the Year

Kirk Anderson of New Fairfield, Conn., was presented with PTR’s Professional of theYear Award during the 2012 PTR International Tennis Symposium, held Feb. 24-28

at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando, Fla. Anderson, who was named RSI’s Person of the Year in 2006, is the Department

Director for Coach Education and Development at the USTA. Since 2000, his depart-ment has conducted on-court training workshops for more than 69,000 coaches.

One of only a handful of Master Professionals certified by both PTR and USPTA,Anderson has served on the ITF Tennis Participation Task Force since 2000 and is amember of the Special Olympics International Global Resource Tennis Team and theSpecial Olympics North America Tennis Development Committee. He is also on theNational Tennis Advisory Staff for both Head and Adidas. He’s published dozens of arti-cles, written curriculum guides and participated in instructional videos.

Anderson is a graduate of the USTA High Performance Coach program and is certi-fied as a Youth Fitness Specialist by the International Youth Conditioning Association.He’s a popular presenter at international, national, regional and local workshops. In2003, he received the International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award.

PTR Names Winners of Annual AwardsDuring the PTR International Tennis Symposium in February, the PTR named its 2012 award winners:

2012 PTR SYMPOSIUM

w Professional of the Year – Kirk Anderson, NewFairfield, CT

w Wheelchair Professional of the Year – Jon Ryd-berg, Oakdale, MN

w Clinician of the Year – Anne Pankhurst, USA &UK

w Tester of the Year – Oliver Stephens, Chicago, ILw Jim Verdieck College Coach of the Year – CraigWard, Ouachita Baptist University, Arkadelphia,AR

w High School Coach of the Year – Kenneth A.Griffith, Henry E. Lackey School, Indian Head,MD

w Public Facility of the Year – Fred Wells Tennis &Education Center, St. Paul, MN

w Private Facility of the Year – The Mar-a-LagoClub, Palm Beach, FL

w Newcomer of the Year – Joanne Wallen,Nicholasville, KY

w Male Player of the Year – James Cerretani,Reading, MA

w Female Player of the Year – Yulia Bolotova,Philadelphia, PA

w Humanitarian Award – Diana Seggie, Bluffton,SC

w PTR/ USTA Service Award – Rita Gladstone,Port Orange, FL

w PTR/TIA Commitment to the Industry –Michele Krause, University Park, FL

w Media Excellence Award – Mary Helen Sprech-er, Baltimore, MD

PTR State Members of the Yearw AL – Betsy Smith, Daphnew AZ – Josh Bates, Chandlerw CA – Barry Poole, San Josew CO – Kendall Chitambar, Boulderw CT – Deidre Tindall, Cheshirew DE – Alejandro Justiniani, Lewes

w FL – Sam Garcia, Vero Beachw GA – Ian Thomson, Alpharettaw IL – Jim Bates, Chicagow IN – Reggie Sanderson, Wheatfieldw MD – Vicki Datlow, Olneyw MA – Michael Mercier, Beverlyw MI – Mike Woody, Midlandw MS – Justyn Schelver, Madisonw NH – Diane Phelps, Manchesterw NJ – Colleen Cosgrove, Princetonw NY – Savina Diankova, Hastings-on-Hudsonw NC – Francie Barragan, Fayettevillew OH – Anne Krupp, Fostoriaw OR – Gerri Allen, Lake Oswegow PA – Lee Underwood, Edinborow SC – David Carrick, Greerw VA – Donald Widener, Suffolkw WA – Tracie Mitchem, Freelandw WV – Otis Cutshaw, Elkins

Life Time Fitness Buys Racquet Club of South

Minnesota-based Life Time Fitness Inc. has boughtAtlanta’s Racquet Club of the South. Life Time Fitness

now operates clubs with a total of 158 courts, 104 of themindoors.

With the purchase, for an undisclosed sum, RacquetClub of the South has been renamed Life Time TennisAtlanta. The facility will undergo a remodeling to its exteri-or, lobby and locker rooms, and the company says it willadd a fitness center, clubhouse with restaurant, pro shopand stadium court that could seat more than 4,000 fans.

Life Time Tennis Atlanta has 28 outdoor courts and eightindoor courts, and it is a USTA regional training center.

Nominations Open for USTA Outstanding Facility Awards

Do you know an outstanding tennis facility? One that hasgreat courts—and great programming? The USTA is accept-

ing nominations through June 29 for its 31st Annual Outstand-ing Facility Awards program, designed to recognize tennisfacilities by encouraging high standards for construction andrenovation. Nominations are evaluated on criteria that includesthe facility and courts themselves (i.e. quality of construction,overall layout, accessories/amenities, etc.) and also tennis pro-gramming (such as USTA programs, 10 and Under Tennis, andother programs). Winners are recognized at the USTA Semian-nual Meeting in September in New York City. Visitusta.com/facilityawards for more information and to nominate.

-•• TENNIS , .... "

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Cardio Tennis Is Expanding Benefits, Services & Partnerships 2012 IS tHU\'tll:J !rJ ll~.t tjri:·.Hidbrh!klrl') 'f~l.r ft")r CarriKJ Te-tHH', Nnlt:·lll'i lr.!S Ill~ TIA-nml·:J.:<l ;mXJrdrr~ br:-~r u.;_:kec J(.1 t-t· T~''~''" Au ... ~rf111.i r· 11 r:ld.IOf :.;t)llsumer C<i.rtidw,!IJ': drr.,'! I' I ~~ldf c ::·LJ'I~r·,. but C&rrJID T~Wl$ rc•.•.t hd~ mer~ tl-!-n~II!S an<! srr·.'Kn fiJf ·Ault'c.r;l.:-J Prov)de·s- .:rd ha:, Oe·;ek:>p~d "--!'1 ~<.3·tn~:·~h;J'l ,•: It' TRX St.:s.pensiof1 Tr.\n:·t; .-rr1: Tc!,il HP"Attl lrllr-r.iC:t.~

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Retailing 109

This is part of a series ofretail tips presented bythe Tennis IndustryAssociation and writtenby the Gluskin Townley

Group (www.gluskintownleygroup.com).

before purchasing. You need to man-age the intercept and greeting skillfullyso they’ll purchase from you.

w Shopping Bags: Provide carts, baskets ornylon shopping bags—whatever isappropriate for your retail space. Thesewill invite customers to actually shop.

wMake Your Store Sticky! Researchshows that the amount of time a shop-per spends in a store is perhaps the sin-gle most important factor in determininghow much he or she will buy.

w Seating Shows You Care: According toUnderhill, “In the majority of stores,sales would instantly be increased by theaddition of one chair.”

w Kids Go Everywhere: Including yourstore! Make sure your store is kid-friend-ly; include a play area if necessary.

w Clean Restroom and Changing Rooms:These are essential if you want to attractand hold onto more women as cus-tomers.

w Flowers and Plants Are Good: Add flow-ers and green growing things throughoutyour store.

w Open It Up: If your aisles are so tightthat two people can’t pass withouttouching, you’ll lose shoppers. Andremember that many women shop withchildren, so your aisles need to accom-modate strollers.Addressing the needs of all shoppers,

and in particular the needs of women, willhelp bring in more customers, and createmore loyalty among your current clients.

Coming Up:Direct response marketing. w

No matter what size your store is, thinkabout a redesign built around a friendly,fun tennis lifestyle shopping experiencethat will make shoppers comfortable.

You should evaluate your customer ser-vice and develop a store culture based oneducation. Create an operations manualthat focuses totally on the consumer. Startby getting together a group of women whoyou know play tennis, and ask them to“mystery” shop your store and evaluatetheir shopping experience for you. If youare a one-man operation, ask them toshop your store just like they would anyother specialty tennis store, and providethe same evaluation. Then, walk throughyour store yourself and do your own eval-uation. Here is a checklist to consider: w Clean and Neat: Keep your parking lotand the outside of your store clean. Thesame goes for the interior—do “recov-ery” every day, which means vacuum,sweep, dust, fold and fix the displaysand signs.

wWindows: Make sure they are clean,inside and out, and merchandised ifappropriate to your traffic. If there areany stickers on your windows or doors,take them off.

w Entryway: Easy access to your store isimportant.

w Intercept and Greeting: Here is wheredifferentiating between men and womenshoppers becomes a retail skill:• Women will seek out you and yourstaff to ask questions and ask for help;men, for the most part, will avoid con-tact. If left on their own, men will seekthe product they are interested in, gath-er as much information as they canand leave as quickly as they can.

• Once you intercept and greet maleshoppers, you may need to give someof them space, but be available toanswer questions. Research shows thatmen will visit as many as three stores

hile recent statistics show thatmen are beginning to do moreretail shopping than in the

past, women still buy the majority ofgoods at retail. As a tennis specialtyretailer, are you addressing the needs ofwomen when it comes to shopping? Doyou and your staff know the differentshopping habits between men andwomen? Do you know how to attractmore women as customers to your retailstore?

To start to understand this, we firstneed to realize that retail shopping fol-lows social change. According to PacoUnderhill, the author of “Why We Buy:The Science of Shopping” and a pre-emi-nent retail anthropologist: “Retail mustpay attention to how women wish tolive, what they want and need, or it willbe left behind.”

Understand, too, that there are funda-mental differences in how men shop vs.how women shop. “Males just want aplace that allows them to find what theyneed with a minimum of looking andthen get out fast,” says Underhill. “Ifmade to wander and seek—in otherwords, to shop—he’s likely to give up infrustration and exit. Men take less plea-sure in the journey.”

Women, on the other hand, demandmore from the shopping experience—orjourney—and hence from the retail envi-ronment itself. Women need to feelcomfortable in retail environments andbe able to move about comfortably.

So the challenge for specialty tennisretailers begins with making their retailenvironments appealing to female shoppers.

A Complete ExperienceIncreasing sales to women is all aboutthe complete retail shopping environ-ment and the total shopping experience!

W

What Do Women Want? Answering this age-old question—as itapplies to tennis retailing, of course—canbring more love to your business.


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Finances

software development (currentlydeductible like research and developmentcosts) and currently deductible advertis-ing expense—all without challenge by theIRS.

Research and Mailing Lists as a TaxDeduction: Testing the waters beforecommitting to an advertising campaign isalways advisable. Unfortunately, onlycosts of research in the laboratory or forexperimental purposes are tax-deductible. Market research and normalproduct testing costs are not researchexpenditures under the tax rules.

Mailing lists are an important part ofthe advertising campaigns of many rac-quet sports businesses. On one hand, themailing list is an intangible asset,deductible only if a reasonable life can be determined for it. A tax deduction forthe cost of compiling that list is a littletrickier.

Consider the situation of a tennisretailer that mails catalogs to people onits mailing list as well as to others on liststhat it rents. Prospects for the permanentlist are drawn from advertising, andadded to the company’s mailing list ifthey make purchases. The business keepsrecords of its costs in adding to the mail-ing lists and expenses those costs in theyear the catalog to which the expensesrelate is distributed.

The IRS has ruled that the companymay deduct as an ordinary businessexpense its costs related to adding namesto the mailing list. Keep in mind, howev-er, that this situation involved a catalogthat was published semi-annually, whilein other cases the IRS ruled on the cata-log had a useful life of several years.

Marketing As AdvertisingPaid advertising isn’t the only way tospread the word about your business.Public relations are marketing strategies

All reasonable advertising expensesare tax deductible so long as they bear areasonable relationship to your tennisbusiness. Under our tax rules, deductibleexpenses may be for the purpose ofdeveloping goodwill as well as gainingimmediate sales. Even better, the cost ofadvertising is deductible when paid orincurred, even though the advertisingprogram extends over several years or isexpected to result in benefits extendingover a period of years.

Lobbying Expenses: When it comesto promoting the interests of your store,pro shop, facility or business, lobbyingexpenses directed toward influencingfederal or state legislation are generallynot deductible. However, this prohibitiondoes not generally apply to in-houseexpenses that do not exceed $2,000 fora tax year. Lobbying expenses pertainingto local legislation are, of course,deductible.

The cost of public service or otherimpartial advertising, such as advertisingdesigned to encourage the public to reg-ister to vote, are also deductible. But, nodeduction may be claimed for theexpense of advertising in political pro-grams, or for admission to political fund-raising or inaugural functions and similarevents. This includes admission to a din-ner or program if any part of the pro-ceeds of the event directly or indirectlygoes to a political party or a political can-didate.

Website Development Costs:Although the IRS has not issued formalguidance on the treatment of websitedevelopment costs, informal, internalIRS guidance suggests that one appropri-ate approach is to treat these costs likean item of software and depreciate themover three years. It is equally clear thattaxpayers who pay large amounts todevelop sophisticated sites have beenallocating their costs to items such as

ithout marketing or advertis-ing, no one will know yourbusiness exists. Fortunately,

a marketing strategy doesn’t have tomean multimillion-dollar TV commer-cials. After all, there are plenty of waysto market a retail store, tennis facilityor your teaching business—and a vari-ety of tax deductions to help make thatmarketing and advertising more afford-able. Include entertainment in youroperation’s marketing strategy and taxdeductions will also underwrite the funside of promoting your business.

Advertising, as well as marketing,can mean the continued life of anybusiness affected by the economy,competition or other factors outside thecontrol of the operation’s owner ormanager. Because there are manyaspects to both advertising and market-ing, it is not surprising that the expen-ditures related to these activities fallwithin several sections of the tax regu-lations.

Advertising ExpensesAll too often, one of the first expensesreduced or cut by many troubled busi-nesses is the most basic of expendi-tures—advertising costs. This is adoubly short-sighted strategy given thenecessity of advertising in bad timesand the fact that Uncle Sam, in theform of tax deductions, will often pick-up a portion of those advertisingexpenses.

Advertising expenses encompasseverything from expenditures for busi-ness cards, brochures, fliers, prizes andcontests, new product or service launchcosts and other promotional activities.Generally, advertising, marketing andother selling expenses are immediatelytax deductible as “ordinary and neces-sary” business expenses—but notalways.

W

Spreading the Word You can take tax deductions for advertising and marketing yourbusiness, including certain entertainment expenses.B Y M A R K E . B A T T E R S B Y


present at the meal, and (2) a deductionwill not be allowed for food and beverageto the extent that such expense is lavishor extravagant under the circumstances.

50% Limitation Rule: The amountallowable as a deduction for meal andentertainment expenses is generally limit-ed to 50% of such expenses. The 50%rule is applied only after determining theamount of the otherwise allowable deduc-tions. For instance, the portion of a mealthat is lavish or extravagant must first besubtracted from the meal cost before the50% reduction is applied.

Giving is Often AdvertisingAnother form of advertising is giving gifts.Deductions for business gifts, whethermade directly or indirectly, are limited to$25 per recipient per year. Items clearlyof an advertising nature that cost $4 orless and signs, display racks or other pro-motional materials given for use on busi-ness premises are not gifts.

A tennis business that provides cus-tomers or prospective customers with anitem that might be considered either agift or entertainment will generally bene-fit from the entertainment write-off,

ignoring the $25 limit. Of course, if theoperation gives a customer packagedfood or beverages that are to be usedlater, they are considered gifts.

To spur sales, many retailers frequent-ly give away small samples. Under thetax rules, the cost of the samples can bededucted immediately—if the samplesare purchased separately from the prod-ucts being sold. If purchased separately,their cost is an ordinary and necessarybusiness expense. However, if the itemwas included in inventory, it cannot bededucted twice. It will already be part ofthe cost of goods sold.

The tax rules clearly label the majorityof advertising and marketing costs asimmediately tax deductible albeit withsome restrictions or limits. Obviously, toget the maximum benefits from advertis-ing and marketing expenditures or toreap the cost-cutting deductions oftenrequires the help of qualified profession-als.

Whether help includes advertising ormarketing professionals or is limited to aqualified tax professional, the decision ofwhether to advertise or market your busi-ness’s products or services should be a“no brainer,” good times or bad. w

Jan/Feb 2004 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 23

that span everything from press releasesand networking at a Chamber of Com-merce meeting to sponsoring a contest toholding special events.

However, no deduction is allowed fordues paid to any club organized for busi-ness, pleasure, recreation, or other socialpurposes—even if membership is used topromote your racquet sports business.Fortunately, this disallowance does notextend to trade or professional organiza-tions, or public service organizations(such as Kiwanis and Rotary clubs).

EntertainmentA tennis retailer or facility operator isallowed a deduction for business enter-tainment, so long as there is a direct rela-tionship between the expense and thedevelopment or expansion of the busi-ness. Remember, however, special limitsare imposed on the deduction of busi-ness-related entertainment, meals andgift expenses.

First and foremost, no tax deductionis allowed for the cost of entertainingguests at nightclubs, sporting events, the-aters, etc., unless that cost is either:Directly related to the active conduct of atrade or business, or for entertainmentdirectly before or after a substantial andbona fide business discussion associatedwith the conduct of that trade or busi-ness.

The business discussion must be theprincipal aspect of the combined enter-tainment and business and must repre-sent an active effort by the tennisbusiness operator to obtain income orother specific business benefit. However,if a meal expense directly precedes or fol-lows a substantial and bona fide busi-ness discussion (including a businessmeeting at a convention or tradeshow), then it is deductible if it isestablished that theexpense was associat-ed with the active con-duct of a trade orbusiness. The retailer oroperator must, of course,be able to substantiate theexpense.

There are two additionalrestrictions placed on thededuction of meal expenses:(1) meal expenses generally arenot deductible if neither the businessoperator nor the operator’s employee is

Mark E. Battersby is a tax advisor and freelancewriter in Ardmore, Pa., who has specialized in taxand finance topics for more than 25 years.

F O O T W E A R

Compared to tennis racquets, which many consider tobe the stars of the inventory, shoes are much morethe solid journeymen of tennis sales. They are low

markup, with a lifetime measured from months for seriousjuniors to a year, maybe two, when donned by casual-play-ing seniors. Everybody who walks into your store either willneed a new pair of kicks now, or very soon. Describing the opportunity, Adidas America tennis cate-

gory manager David Malinowski advises, “You can displayeight to 10 shoes in the space it takes to display one shirt.Footwear can be the milk in your store pulling customers allthe way into the back, or it can be the window dressing. Itcan go behind the counter or above the apparel.”Wherever you place footwear in your store, however,

they will rarely be a sexy or easy sale. Unlike racquets, thereare few internet forums arguing the virtues of tennis shoes.There are no demo programs to excite customers. Even as shoe prices rise due to increases in material and

manufacturing costs, overall retail unit sales are flat. The lat-est figures by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Associationare that overall athletic footwear shoe sales in the U.S.treaded water—from $12.952 billion (with tennis shoesmaking up $157 million of that) in 2007 to $12.608 millionin 2010 (with tennis shoes again adding $157 million).Bottom line: Selling shoes in this marketplace essentially

is a zero-sum game, with one store or pro shop’s hit indicat-ing another’s shot off the frame.

BUILDING REPEAT BUSINESSBut store owners and shoe manufacturers are doing whatthey can to move footwear, keeping in mind that—sinceshoes will wear out—a good relationship with your cus-tomer will mean repeat sales.In addition to having prominent, clean-looking shoe dis-

plays, MP Tennis owner Mike Pratt says store staff needs tobe ever-attentive. One tactic is to encourage staff to seewhat model customers are wearing when they walk in andask if they would consider the latest version. Most of all, hesays, “Don’t let customers serve themselves, [and] oncethey find their size, just keep the styles coming.” Pratt, whose 1,000-plus square-foot store in a Tampa,

Fla., strip mall has a wide-ranging clientele, is adamant thatcompetition is everywhere. “If people perceive you to bemore than internet, you won’t be successful,” he says.Stringing is the higher-margin money-maker for his storeand he uses visits to his two busy stringers to draw cus-tomers toward the shoes. He also has televisions tuned totennis and rugs in that part of the store to make the area ascomfortable for those waiting as for the person trying on thenewest models. Additionally, he features a program offering10 percent off shoe and 20 percent off clothing with a rac-quet restringing.Another possibility for increasing sales is to take every

advantage of point-of-purchase promotions. Mickey Maule,

24 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY April 2012 www.racquetsportsindustry.com www.racquetsportsindustry.com

KICKING ITUPShoes are the ‘journeymen’ of tennis equipment. Butsooner or later, every player will need a new pair.B Y K E N T O S W A L D

KICKING ITUP

April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 25www.racquetsportsindustry.com www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Babolat’s national sales manager, cites thecompany’s “Giant Shoe” as the most efficientin-store promotion he has seen. The compa-ny includes pictures of the latest shoes withinthe shrink wrap on racquet handles; in thepast has offered a racquet/shoe discountedpurchase; and this coming season highlightsa reusable bag as a gift with shoe purchase.However, even as the company amps up itssocial media strategy to drive players intostores, a seductive temptation for puttingplayers in the shoe-sale frame of mind willlikely continue to be the size 22 Babolat shoedisplay that draws some people into storesjust to take a picture.

GETTING THE RIGHT FITFor Adidas’s Malinowski, the favorite promo-tion was that of a teaching pro (admittedly,Adidas-sponsored) new to an area whooffered a free lesson for anyone who pur-chased a pair of Barricades or adiZeros froma particular shop. “The word spread,” saysMalinowski, “and the pro had to offer severalone-hour clinics to cover all of the people thatcame in and bought shoes. The shop didn’tlose any margin and the pro got to show offhis teaching skills, which turned into manyreturning customer for both the shop and theteaching pro.” Despite the success, Malinows-ki acknowledges, “Promotions on footwearare difficult, as the most important thing is toget the right-fitting shoe.”And getting players into the right-fitting

shoes almost always takes an educated staff.Richard Flores, owner of First Serve, a 4,200-square-foot store open since 1989 in SanAntonio, encourages his employees to quizeach other about product features and even“sell” each other during slow times. He alsostresses the importance of asking customersquestions and listening to their answers tofigure out what they are really looking for ina shoe.Flores teaches that, “People want to be

engaged … [shoe] customers are not drivenby the technology story. They are driven byother things, but technology helps justify theprice. [In fact,] shoes aren’t sold just becausethey are on sale, they have to address specif-ic needs. Needs trump a markdown.”According to Prince VP of sales–footwear

Kevin Adametz, the basic “needs” for tennisare, “fit, fit, durability, and then looks.” Thechallenge, he says, is for manufacturers andretailers to find the right balance for eachplayer between a shoe’s durability and its

weight, which once again calls to the fore theimportance of having a knowledgeable staffto guide players through the shoe-buyingprocess. Comparing a racquet purchase to a

shoe sale, Adametz compares selectinga new stick for most consumers tobuying a car, where they do theirhomework and shop dealers andprices. On the other hand, a shoe isnot something a player throws inhis/her bag and keeps once thereplacement is in hand, and so thementality is very different. “A shoewears out and you know it willwear out,” he says. (As an addition-al note in considering what to stockand sell, keep in mind that the life-time of a tennis shoe is shorter forjuniors, who often ride their shoesharder even as they grow out of themsooner.)

THE FASHION ANGLEBut even before a player’s newest shoeswill wear out, there are fashion concernsthat consumers are keeping in mind. Cur-rently, shoe manufacturers are addingmany more splashes of colors—particu-larly among junior styles. Also, there aresome primarily black footwear as a con-trast to the traditional and much moreprevalent basic white.The trend of the last few years suggests

increasing consumer acceptance of greatercolor. “People are always looking for thenext hot style and brand,” says Head/Penn’sNorthern regional sales manager, JohnTranfaglia. “We are seeing bold colors anddesigns in the marketplace. Taking risk indesign and color to stand out ‘on the wall’is seen now in every season.”The problem, of course, is that to the

extent that fashion comes into play, select-ing “the wrong” colors does leave a shopopen to problems with inventory … andthere are far fewer offers by manufacturersof minimum advertised price reductions forshoes than racquets and many fewer overallthan in the past to rely on. The standardadvice is to order conservatively regardingsizes and fashion, as you can always special-order if you sell aggressively. Ultimately, shoes are a necessary back-

bone of a store’s inventory, but it is a founda-tion offering that does not come cheap. Theymay be low margin and somewhat utilitarian,but selling them will never be boring. w

R A C Q U E T S


When it comes to selling racquets, the frame’s specs cantake you only so far. The customer then has to get it out onthe court.

MAKING APLAY DATEMAKING APLAY DATE

You need your customers to buy new rac-quets. And racquet manufacturers needyou to sell their frames. But in a world

where consumers are more and more tight-fistedwith their dollars, you need to make sure you’regetting the right racquets into your customers’hands.

While price generally is a factor with recre-ational players, if they find a frame that trulyworks for them, they’ll most likely shell out.But if the frame they purchase ends up notworking for their game, they’ll have wastedtheir money. If you can’t match up your cus-tomer with a frame that works, that playermay well decide to take his business else-where, and the one thing you can’t afford tolose in today’s economy is a customer—anycustomer.

So, bottom line, you need to do everythingyou can to ensure your customer picks theframe that will best help their game. How doyou do that? Well, one good way to start is touse our Racquet Selection Map starting onpage 28 to help you narrow down exactlywhat your customer is looking for.

Next, though, you need to keep in mindthree things when it comes to helping yourcustomer find the right frame: Demo, demo,demo.

Bruce Levine, the general manager ofCourtside Racquet Club in Lebanon, N.J., whocoordinates racquet playtesting for Tennismagazine and Tennis.com, says a player con-sidering a new frame needs to hit with it oncourt—multiple times.

“Players need to test-drive the racquet tomake sure it will help their game and feelright to them,” Levine says. Encourage yourcustomers to playtest the racquet on everypart of their game, hitting every type of shotthey can. One way to help convince players todemo a frame is to apply demo fees to the

purchase price once your customer decideson what to buy.

Levine recommends that you encouragecustomers and players to demo racquets infour stages:w First, “They should go out and smack theball around with their friends, which willgive them a general feel for how the racquetplays,” he says. “But it most likely won’t bea true feeling for the frame, because you’llbe hitting in a pretty comfortable situation.”

w Second, Levine says, “Tell players to take aclinic or private lesson with the racquet tosee how it performs in a situation in whichthey’re uncomfortable.” A clinic or lessonwill mean working on new and differentskills, or trying to improve on skills the play-er already has.

w Third, your customer should use the racquetto play an opponent that he typically beats.“If your player doesn’t win, he may give youthe racquet back and determine it’s not thebest for his game,” Levine says. “But if theplayer has an easy time of things, well, that’sgood, and sort of what you should haveexpected to happen, because your customerusually beats the other player anyway.”

w Fourth, “Your customer should play againstsomeone he is evenly matched with or whogives him a very difficult time on the court.”If there is a clear, positive difference in yourcustomer’s game, then that might be theright racquet for him or her.“When a customer thinks he’s found the

right racquet for them, he should go out andplay with it once more, just to make sure,”Levine says. “After all, it doesn’t do your busi-ness any good to sell people on the wrongpiece of equipment for them. Ensuring thatthey have the right racquet for their gamesmakes you a more credible tennis retailer, andhelps to bring you repeat business.” w

What Else toConsider?Become as knowledgeable aspossible on racquets and tech-nologies, Levine says. Takeevery opportunity to go overthe details provided by racquetmanufacturers, and to questionyour sales reps about theirproducts. And make sure youget your staff in on the educa-tion, too. Also, know the threemain types of racquets:w Power, or “game-improve-

ment” frames: Generallylighter, stiffer and powerful,with large head sizes. Theyappeal to players with short-er swings.

w Control, or “player’s,” frames:Generally heavier in weight,more flexible, with a smallerhead size. These appeal tobetter players.

w “Tweener” frames: Blendingpower and control, theseframes appeal to intermedi-ate to advanced players look-ing for more maneuverability.

And don’t forget the impor-tance of strings—especiallybecause strings mean highmargins and repeat business.“Don’t sell a customer a fancystring if they don’t need it,”Levine says. “Sell them theclosest string to gut they canafford and that fits their styleand their level of play.”


1. Power/Control (columns). (formula = lengthindex x headsize x flex x swingweight) ÷ 1000.Length index calculation: 27" = 1.0, 27.5" = 1.05;28" = 1.1, etc.2. Maneuverability (rows). RDC (BabolatRacquet Diagnostic Center) swingweight units.3. Racquet ID. The number in the grid correlatesto the accompanying racquet list. 4. Headsize. Midsize and midplus (≤104 sq. in.)have no indicator. Oversize (105 -117 sq. in.) = •. Superoversize (≥118 sq. in.) = :. 5. Length. x = extended length. Standard length(27") racquets have no indicator.6. Flex (RDC). a = < 60; b = 60-64; c = 65-69; d= 70-74; e = > 74. The higher the number, thestiffer the racquet.7. Company. Coded by number and color. Seeaccompanying racquet list on the following pages.

8. Racquet Quadrants and the Center of theRacquet Universe. The center of the racquet universeis located at the intersection of the two red lines.Approximately half the racquets lie to the right and left,and half above and below these lines. The lines dividethe racquet universe into four color-coded quadrants –clockwise from top left: (1) quick power, (2) quick con-trol, (3) stable control, (4) stable power. These charac-terizations provide a general vocabulary for comparingracquets. 9. Racquet Finder List. The racquet list accompany-ing the map identifies all the new racquets and givesadditional information. For a complete list of all currentframes on the map, go to RacquetSportsIndustry.com.The map provides specific (very narrow ranges, anyway)swingweight, flex and power statistics, and general sizeand length characteristics. The racquet list specifies thelength and size and further specifies weight, balance,and price.

How To Use It1. Ask questions. What are you looking forthat your current racquet does not provide?What do you like most and least about your cur-rent racquet? What are the strengths and weak-nesses of your game? 2. Locate current racquet on map. If theracquet is not in the list, take measurements.3. Locating potential racquets. Dependingon the answers to the above questions, draw animaginary arrow (a wide or skinny one) fromyour present racquet in the desired direction forpower and maneuverability.4. Narrowing the field. Shrink the choicesusing the length, headsize, and flex codes tomatch customer preferences. 5. Selecting racquet demos. Once the choic-es are narrowed, locate the racquets by numberin the racquet list.

RACQUET SELECTION MAP KEY

Babolat 7 AeroPro Drive Cortex GT Roland Garros 100 27.00 316 11.15 33.50 13.19 70 326 2282 $17911 C Drive 102 102 27.00 282 9.95 35.90 14.13 69 310 2182 $18912 C Drive 105 105 27.00 278 9.81 35.50 13.98 66 303 2100 $18913 Drive Z Lite (S.C. Tech) 100 27.00 269 9.49 35.20 13.86 69 288 1987 $16918 Pure Drive + Cortex GT (Dark Blue) 100 27.50 315 11.11 33.50 13.19 73 324 2483 $18519 Pure Drive 107 Cortex + GT (Dark Blue) 107 27.00 296 10.44 33.80 13.31 68 299 2176 $18520 Pure Drive Cortex GT (Dark Blue) 100 27.00 318 11.22 33.90 13.35 71 325 2308 $18521 Pure Drive Lite Cortex + GT (Dark Blue) 100 27.00 297 10.48 33.40 13.15 70 303 2121 $18522 Pure Drive Roddick + GT (Dark Blue) 100 27.50 330 11.64 33.30 13.11 73 337 2583 $18923 Pure Drive Roddick GT (Dark Blue) 100 27.00 336 11.85 33.00 12.99 75 335 2513 $189

New Racquets from April 2011 to March 2012Racquet Headsize Length Weight Weight Balance Balance Flex Swingweight Power Retail (in2) (in.) (gm) (oz) (cm) (in.) (RDC) kg x cm2 Formula Price

BABOLAT 877-316-9435 • www.babolat.com

Our exclusive Racquet Selection Map enables you tohelp your customers choose the perfect racquet forthem quickly and easily, with the features and per-

formance they want. The map on the following page presents the entire perform-

ance racquet universe on one grid that instantly locates eachracquet compared to every other in terms of power, control,and maneuverability. Simply locate the specs of your cus-tomer’s current racquet on the map, then move outward inlarge or small increments in the direction of the customer’s pri-mary preference—relatively more or less power, control ormaneuverability. Once you’ve zoomed into an approximate

location on the grid, you can narrow down the racquet’s feelattributes by choosing from length, size, and flex specs codedinto the racquet number.

Next, look up the racquet(s) by number in the accompany-ing table. Note, though, that the table on these pages lists everynew performance racquet that came out in the last 12 months.If the racquet you find on the grid is not in one of these charts,you’ll find it online at www.racquetsportsindustry.com, wherewe have the complete list of every racquet that is currently onthe market, both the newest and the older models.

Your customer will now have a handful of “choice-cus-tomized” demos. And you’ll have a satisfied customer.

RACQUETSELECTIONMAP


RACQUETSELECTIONMAP

R A C Q U E T S



Racquet Headsize Length Weight Weight Balance Balance Flex Swingweight Power Retail (in2) (in.) (gm) (oz) (cm) (in.) (RDC) kg x cm2 Formula Price

Bolt 30 Bolt 100 100 27.00 326 11.50 32.60 12.83 72 325 2340 $21531 Bolt 98 98 27.00 343 12.10 34.00 13.39 74 362 2625 $215 Boris Becker 33 Delta Core London Tour 93 27.00 329 11.61 32.10 12.64 61 310 1759 $17035 Delta Core NYC 100 27.25 321 11.32 33.00 12.99 67 311 2136 $180 Donnay no data37 Formula no data avaialble at print time $29938 X Black 94 94 27.00 342 12.06 31.90 12.56 60 318 1794 $29940 X Blue 94 94 27.00 339 11.96 32.35 12.74 64 320 1925 $29941 X Blue 99 99 27.00 334 11.78 32.00 12.60 63 313 1952 $29943 X Dual Gold 94 94 27.00 324 11.43 32.30 12.72 68 312 1994 $24944 X Dual Gold 99 99 27.00 326 11.50 33.00 12.99 67 324 2149 $24945 X Dual Platinum 94 94 27.00 340 11.99 32.00 12.60 66 312 1936 $24946 X Dual Platinum 99 94 27.00 334 11.78 31.70 12.48 66 304 1886 $24947 X Dual Silver 99 99 27.00 319 11.25 32.75 12.89 67 307 2036 $24948 X Dual Silver Lite 99 99 27.00 299 10.55 33.35 13.13 68 298 2006 $24954 XP Dual 102 102 27.00 308 10.86 32.80 12.91 64 307 2004 $24955 XP Dual Lite 102 (Black) 102 27.00 288 10.16 33.50 13.19 65 294 1949 $24956 XP Dual Lite 102 (White) 102 27.00 289 10.19 34.30 13.50 60 303 1854 $249 Dunlop 57 Biomimetic 100 90 27.00 326 11.50 32.20 12.68 64 307 1768 $19961 Biomimetic 200 Tour 95 27.00 347 12.24 32.50 12.80 62 335 1973 $17964 Biomimetic 400 100 27.00 313 11.04 33.10 13.03 71 313 2222 $16965 Biomimetic 400 Lite 100 27.00 284 10.02 33.90 13.35 71 294 2087 $15966 Biomimetic 400 Tour 100 27.00 327 11.53 31.70 12.48 71 307 2180 $17972 Biomimetic 600 Tour 102 27.00 315 11.11 33.00 12.99 69 318 2238 $17973 Biomimetic 700 110 27.25 272 9.59 34.50 13.58 67 294 2221 $179 Gamma 75 RZR 100 100 27.00 305 10.76 34.00 13.39 76 311 2364 $20076 RZR 100T 100 27.00 333 11.75 33.90 13.35 76 342 2599 $20077 RZR 110 110 27.25 290 10.23 36.00 14.17 68 318 2438 $22078 RZR 98 98 27.00 319 11.25 32.50 12.80 66 341 2206 $18079 RZR 98T 98 27.00 345 12.17 32.50 12.80 66 341 2206 $180 Head 85 Youtek IG Instinct MP 100 27.00 310 10.93 32.60 12.83 71 306 2173 $17086 Youtek IG Instinct S 102 27.00 279 9.84 34.70 13.66 72 294 2159 $16087 Youtek IG Prestige Mid (INNEGRA in throat) 93 27.00 343 12.10 32.20 12.68 67 315 1963 $20088 Youtek IG Prestige MP (INNEGRA in throat) 98 27.00 342 12.06 32.10 12.64 66 314 2031 $20089 Youtek IG Prestige Pro MP (INNEGRA in throat) 98 27.00 344 12.13 32.50 12.80 67 320 2101 $20090 Youtek IG Prestige S 98 27.00 316 11.15 33.00 12.99 67 310 2035 $17091 Youtek IG Radical MP (INNEGRA in throat) 98 27.00 322 11.36 33.70 13.27 64 330 2070 $19092 Youtek IG Radical OS (INNEGRA in throat) 107 27.00 322 11.36 33.00 12.99 60 321 2061 $19093 Youtek IG Radical Pro (INNEGRA in throat) 100 27.00 331 11.68 33.00 12.99 65 336 2184 $19094 Youtek IG Radical S 100 27.00 293 10.34 33.00 12.99 67 284 1903 $170 Pacific 114 X Fast Pro 100 27.00 315 11.11 33.40 13.15 69 313 2160 $210 Prince 130 EXO3 Hornet 100 100 27.00 292 10.30 35.00 13.78 70 319 2233 $149131 EXO3 Hornet 110 110 27.00 291 10.26 35.00 13.78 68 309 2311 $149136 EXO3 Rebel 95 (Yellow/Black) 95 27.00 342 12.06 32.10 12.64 62 337 1985 $189137 EXO3 Rebel 98 98 27.00 316 11.15 33.00 12.99 60 324 1905 $189138 EXO3 Rebel Team 98 98 27.00 299 10.55 34.10 13.43 58 316 1796 $169

DUNLOP 800-768-4727 • www.dunlopsport.com

GAMMA 800-333-0337 • www.gammasports.com

HEAD 800-289-7366 • www.head.com

PACIFIC 941-795-1789 • www.pacific.com

New Racquets from April 2011 to March 2012 (Cont.)

DONNAY 800-264-0509 • www.donnayusa.com


BOLT 877-430-2658 • www.boltadvance.com

PRINCE 800-2TENNIS • www.princetennis.com

BORIS BECKER 866-554-7872 • www.borisbecker.com

Racquet Headsize Length Weight Weight Balance Balance Flex Swingweight Power Retail (in2) (in.) (gm) (oz) (cm) (in.) (RDC) kg x cm2 Formula Price

144 EXO3 Tour Team 100 (16x18) 100 27.00 303 10.69 34.00 13.39 66 324 2138 $189145 EXO3 Warrior 100 100 27.00 315 11.11 33.10 13.03 68 323 2196 $189146 EXO3 Warrior Team 100 27.00 300 10.58 35.00 13.78 69 328 2263 $189 Solinco 156 Tour 10 98 27.00 342 12.06 31.60 12.44 72 310 2187 $189157 Tour 7 98 27.00 300 10.58 32.20 12.68 70 290 1989 $189158 Tour 8 98 27.00 327 11.53 31.00 12.20 67 297 1950 $189 Tecnifibre 67 159 Rebound Pro (VO2 Max) 95 27.00 308 10.86 33.00 12.99 71 307 2071 $199163 T Fight 325 VO2 Max 95 27.00 334 11.78 32.00 12.60 70 319 2121 $199 Volkl 178 Organix 5 100 27.13 274 9.67 34.50 13.58 68 291 2004 $190181 Organix 8 (315g) 100 27.00 331 11.68 32.20 12.68 74 321 2375 $185182 Organix 9 98 27.00 324 11.43 32.50 12.80 66 309 1999 $205183 Organix V1 MP 102 27.00 294 10.37 33.50 13.19 64 296 1932 $220184 Organix V1 OS 110 27.50 302 10.65 34.00 13.39 67 317 2453 $220192 Team Blast 115 27.50 273 9.63 35.50 13.98 70 308 2603 $180193 Team Speed 102 27.00 275 9.70 33.00 12.99 66 278 1871 $100194 Team Tour 100 27.00 292 10.30 34.30 13.50 66 311 2053 $189 Wilson 213 BLX Envy 100 27.00 283 9.98 34.00 13.39 63 297 1871 $130214 BLX Five 103 27.25 276 9.74 37.00 14.57 24 320 811 $260215 BLX Juice 100 100 27.00 316 11.15 32.80 12.91 74 318 2353 $220216 BLX Juice 108 108 27.25 294 10.37 34.00 13.39 73 317 2562 $220217 BLX Juice Pro 96 27.25 334 11.78 32.25 12.70 66 332 2156 $220218 BLX One 118 27.50 278 9.81 37.00 14.57 75 325 3020 $310219 BLX Pro Limited 110 27.50 262 9.24 37.00 14.57 64 303 2240 $130222 BLX Pro Staff Six One 100 100 27.00 302 10.65 32.75 12.89 67 295 1977 $230223 BLX Pro Staff Six One 90 90 27.00 354 12.49 31.80 12.52 67 325 1960 $230224 BLX Pro Staff Six One 95 95 27.00 331 11.68 31.80 12.52 65 302 1865 $230225 BLX Six One Ninety Five (16x18) 95 27.00 349 12.31 31.50 12.40 68 334 2158 $210226 BLX Six One Ninety Five (18x20) 95 27.00 343 12.10 32.00 12.60 68 329 2125 $210227 BLX Six One Team (16x18) 95 27.00 299 10.55 33.90 13.35 66 312 1956 $210232 BLX Tour 95 95 27.00 305 10.76 34.00 13.39 67 326 2075 $220236 Steam 100 27.25 312 11.01 33.00 12.99 68 319 2223 $220 Yonex 238 E Zone Xi 100 100 27.00 317 11.18 33.00 12.99 72 311 2239 $199239 E Zone Xi 107 107 27.00 298 10.51 34.10 13.43 71 309 2347 $199240 E Zone Xi 115 115 27.25 272 9.59 37.00 14.57 68 326 2613 $199241 E Zone Xi 98 98 27.00 327 11.53 32.60 12.83 66 322 2083 $199242 E Zone Xi Lite 100 27.00 297 10.48 33.90 13.35 70 305 2135 $199243 V Core 100S 100 27.00 314 11.08 33.20 13.07 71 310 2201 $189244 V Core 95D 95 27.00 336 11.85 32.10 12.64 67 328 2088 $189245 V Core 98D 98 27.00 318 11.22 32.90 12.95 68 312 2079 $189246 V Core Team 98 27.00 297 10.48 34.50 13.58 65 311 1981 $189

TECNIFIBRE 877-332-0825 • www.tecnifibre.com

VOLKL 866-554-7872 • www.volkl-tennis.com

WILSON 800-272-6060 • www.wilson.com

YONEX 800-44-YONEX • www.yonexusa.com

SOLINCO 310-922-7775 • www.solincosports.com


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

One thing that seems clear, from years ofrunning stories about the soft-court win-ners of the Racquet Sports Industry/Amer-

ican Sports Builders Association DistinguishedFacility-of-the-Year Awards, is that Florida has somesort of lock on winning facilities. The 2011 winners,while fewer in number than in past years, continueto bear that out: three of the four facilities shownhere are in Florida.

The lone non-Florida winner is the New OrleansCity Park/Pepsi Tennis Center—a new, large facilitythat in fact has 10 soft courts and 17 hard courts.Construction was delayed for over two months dueto substantial rainfall and poor soil conditions. Dueto the high level of ground water, metal casingswere installed 14 feet deep for the concrete lightpoles to meet local wind load requirements of 130mph.

The soft courts for the New Orleans project aredescribed as “modified” HydroCourts. The cityrequested that vent pipes for the HydroCourt sys-tem not be at the net line, but next to the court curband outside the principal playing area. The projectalso included fencing, lighting, a clubhouse, sitedrainage, landscaping and installation of back-boards at the ends of a practice court.

The Tennis Center at Fish Hawk Ranch is newconstruction in a private development and consistsof a battery of four courts and a standalone court.The project included player seating and shade nearthe courts, a pro shop, restrooms and spectatorviewing areas.

Another new facility is the four-court Tennis Cen-ter at The Quarry Beach Club, also in a new privatedevelopment. The project, a three-court battery anda single court, included fencing, lighting, cabanas,player seating and spectator viewing areas. Duringconstruction, crews hit an unexpected layer of rockin the subsurface area, which required additionaltime to be removed.

The Boca Raton Tennis Center, a public facility,was the lone upgrade of an existing center. The fourexisting asphalt courts were converted to fourHydroGrid courts, utilizing the same footprint. Theexisting fencing and lighting was left in place.

For quality soft-court facilities, few places seemto rival the Sunshine State. —Peter Francesconi w

These outdoor facility winners are excellentexamples of soft-court construction.

For details on the 2012 Outstand-ing Facility-of-the-Year Awards,contact the ASBA at 866-501-ASBA or [email protected],or visit www.sportsbuilders.org.

FEATS OF CLAYFEATS OF CLAY

Tennis Center at Fish Hawk RanchValrico, Fla.(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts Inc.No. of Courts: 5Surface: Har-Tru Sports HydroblendLights: LSI CourtsiderSubsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGridWindscreen, Nets: Welch TennisNet Posts: J.A. Cissel


These outdoor facility winners are excellentexamples of soft-court construction.

April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 33 www.racquetsportsindustry.com

Tennis Center at The Quarry Beach ClubNaples, Fla.(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts Inc.No. of Courts: 4Surface: Har-Tru Sports HydroBlendLights: LSI CourtsiderSubsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGridWindscreen, Nets: Welch TennisNet Posts: J.A. Cissel

Boca Raton Tennis CenterBoca Raton, Fla.(Nominated by Welch Tennis Courts Inc., Sun City, Fla.)General & Specialty Contractor: Welch Tennis Courts Inc.No. of Courts: 4Surface: Har-Tru Sports HydroBlendSubsurface Irrigation: Welch Tennis HydroGridNets: Welch TennisNet Posts: J.A. Cissel

New Orleans City Park/Pepsi Tennis CenterNew Orleans, La.(Nominated by American Tennis Courts Inc., Mobile, Ala.)Specialty Contractor: American Tennis Courts Inc.No. of Courts: 10 clay (17 hard)Surface: Har-Tru Sports HydroBlend (soft); World Class Athletic Surfaces (hard)Subsurface Irrigation: Har-Tru Sports “Modified” HydroCourtNet Posts: Edwards Classic RoundCenter Straps: EdwardsBackboards: Bakko Backboards


gut. Being Italian, there is always plentyolive oil hanging around our kitchen. Idampened a paper towel with the oliveoil, and used it to coat the gut. It workedbeautifully! I was able to install the gutwithout the screeching violin sounds andwithout damaging friction burn. Thestring plays great and I still get lots ofball grab! 5 sets of Dunlop Explosive 16 to:Mark Campanile, MRT, Northbrook, IL

Editor’s note: It’s probably a good idea tocheck that your clamps are clean aftertreating the string in this manner.

REEL STORAGE

I discovered these retail display hookscome in handy when you want to dis-play to your customers what string youstock on reels and also add a profession-al touch to your stringing work area.They comfortably hang on the lip of yourmachine's tool tray, allowing for easyaccess, organization, and viewing byyour clients. They come in a variety oflengths accommodating from 2-5 reels.You can even secure them with a cabletie. Retail fixture stores sell them forabout $1.00 each, but I purchased mineat a CD/DVD store that was going out ofbusiness and paid 10 cents each.5 sets of Tourna Big Hitter Blue 17 to:Eduardo Ramirez, North Halden, NJ

MARKING THE TIE-OFFS

I am new to stringing and only string halfa dozen frames a month for friends andmyself. I didn't like counting grommetsto find the correct tie off points, so I cut alittle pointed piece of white tape that Istick on the frame in the knot locationsbefore I cut out the strings. I know expe-rienced stringers find these tie offs easily,but this is an easy visual aid that makesthe stringing job go faster for me.5 sets of Babolat Revenge 16 to:Lars Topelmann, Portland, OR

GUT = PASTA?I use a combination of polyester and gutwhen stringing my own racquets. Theother day I wanted to test a new poly.After installing the poly mains, I waslooking through some miscellaneousstrings for a set of natural gut for thecrosses. As luck would have it, I found aset that must have been 20 to 25 yearsold. As I began installing the crosses Inoticed that, although the gut was inbasically good condition, it was verysticky. Something had happened to thecoating and trying to weave the crossessounded like someone taking his first vio-lin lesson. Wanting to avoid morescreeching sounds and the possibility ofdamaging the natural gut, I knew I need-ed to find something to lubricate the gutin hopes of cutting down on the friction. Iconsidered some synthetic lubricants butI wasn’t sure how such substances wouldreact with the natural gut.

After more thought, my search ledme up to my kitchen pantry where Ifound what I was seeking: Extra VirginOlive Oil. It’s natural, and I was quite cer-tain it would cause no ill effects to the

Tips & Techniques

TIGHTENING THE OUTER LOOP

When tying off poly, often the outerloop will not be flush against the framedue to the stiffness of the string. I solvethis problem by pulling the tie off tailwith a starting clamp first until the outerloop is nicely bedded in. Then, I pullupward on the tie off tail to kink thestring at the inside of the grommet.When I then tie off, the string hasalready been “trained” to go where Iwant it to go.5 sets of K-Gut Pro 17 to:Sam Chan, MRT, Victoria, Australia

Editor’s note: This is especially helpful onHEAD racquets with CAP system grom-met, to ensure that the outer loop hassnapped down into the groove and isseated correctly before tying off.

—Greg Raven◗


Readers’ Know-How in Action

Tips and Techniques submitted since 1992by USRSA members and appearing in thiscolumn, have all ben gathered into asearchable database onwww.racquettech.com the official member-only website of the USRSA. Submit tips to:Greg Raven, USRSA, 330 Main Street, Vista,CA 92084; or email [email protected]

? Ask the Experts

WHICH GEOMETRIC IS BEST?

WITH ALL THE NEW STRINGshapes available (such as triangu-lar, square, hexagonal, pentago-

nal, octagonal, etc.), which one enhancesspin the most? I see more manufacturersare also twisting their shaped strings,does this help?

SPIN DEPENDS ON A LOT OF fac-tors, many of them having little to

do with the shape or twist of the string.The variety of configurations of “spin”

and “rough” strings implies that — at thevery least — different string profiles workdifferently for different players. Lookingonly at the configurations you mention,some manufacturers offer geometricstrings with sharp corners (the “corner”being where one facet of the string transi-tions to the adjacent facet), while others

round the corners. In addition to the puregeometrics, there are textured strings,where wraps or extruded sections of stringextend beyond the diameter of the basestring. One string that in popular mythgenerates otherworldly spin is an entirelydifferent type of geometric, in that it isactually slightly oval instead of cylindricalin cross-section; that is, with no corners atall. Also, each geometric you mention hasa longitudinal shape; some strings have lat-eral features that are promoted as generat-ing more spin.Clearly, creating a string that generates

“extra” spin involves more than just shape,texture, or even twist. The same goes forchoosing a string when seeking additionalspin.Our testing indicates that the most

important string-related factor in spin off ofthe string bed is the string bed stiffness.You can increase the string bed stiffness

with higher tension and/or stiffer (less elas-tic) string, for example. Of course, eachchange in string bed stiffness generallyresults in some change in stroke produc-tion, too. And part of stroke productioninvolves the expectations the player has ofthe outcome of his stroke. This introducesa feedback loop into the decision process,making the already difficult procedure ofchoosing a string decidedly non-linear.One good thing about the expectation-

result feedback loop is that it can work foryou when recommending a “spin” stringfor a customer. If the customer seesyou’ve installed an aggressively geometri-cal or textured string with a lot of twist init, he might believe he’s getting more spinon his strokes regardless of the actual spin,as long as the ball is landing in the courtsomewhere.This is good because there are other

aspects that make it difficult to determineempirically the string with the most spinfor any given player.w Increasing tension to stiffen the stringbed may not feel good to the player, oreven lead to pain or injury.

w Increasing the string gauge mayincrease string bed stiffness, or it maylower it, depending on string construc-tion and stringing technique.

w Even when comparing two strings of thesame diameter — one geometric or tex-tured and one not — there are unac-counted-for variables because measuringthe diameter of a geometric is not thesame as measuring a cylindrical string.

w The string that produces the most spinmay need to be straightened betweeneach shot, which some players hate witha purple passion.

w Your player may not even be usingmatched racquets or, for that matter,racquets from the same manufacturer,so whatever string and tension youchoose for one racquet almost certainlyisn’t going to be optimal for his otherracquets.

w And just in case you thought the selec-tion process was going to be easy, itmay turn out that the ideal spin string


Your Equipment Hotline

Q

A

for your customer needs to berestrung fresh every other day tostay ideal.The bottom line is that choosing a

geometric string for a customer is a lotlike choosing any other type of string.It’s going to involve trial and error,because unless your customer is willingto use the string most commonly usedby pros on the tour, and drop his rac-quets off for restringing every day,there are a lot of options out there.

POLY TENSION REDUCTION

WITH THE NEW SOFTER co-polyester strings on the market,do we still need to reduce ten-

sion 5 to 10 percent from syntheticstrings?

RECOMMENDED REFERENCEtension reductions when switch-

ing from nylon to poly strings have asmuch to do with attempting to matchbefore-and-after comfort as they dowith easing the transition of the string

bed response of a softer nylon to that of astiffer polyester. (If you’ve been in the busi-ness long enough, you may remember thatone poly manufacturer made the astonish-ing claim that a 20 percent tension reduc-tion was necessary because its poly heldtension so much better than nylon.)However, because of the complexities of

string composition, reducing tension tomatch two very different string types is nec-essarily simplistic. After the transition peri-od, your customer may very well choose toincrease or decrease tension further for the

next restring. Plenty of players use a "stiff"poly at the same reference tension theypreviously specified for “soft” nylon.The short answer is that while tension

reductions may be valid for the first trial ofa poly by a player who has been using natural gut or nylon string, the final tensionchosen by that player may be much different. —Greg Raven w

We welcome your questions. Please send them to Racquet

Sports Industry, 330 Main St., Vista, CA, 92084; fax: 760-

536-1171; email: [email protected].


QA


String Playtest

EASE OF STRINGING (compared to other strings) Number of testers who said it was:much easier 0somewhat easier 4about as easy 18not quite as easy 10not nearly as easy 2

OVERALL PLAYABILITY (compared to string played most often)Number of testers who said it was:much better 1somewhat better 5about as playable 8not quite as playable 17not nearly as playable 3

OVERALL DURABILITY (compared to other strings of similar gauge)Number of testers who said it was:much better 5somewhat better 12about as durable 15not quite as durable 2not nearly as durable 0

RATING AVERAGESFrom 1 to 5 (best)Playability 3.2Durability (14th overall) 4.4Power 3.5Control 3.7Comfort 2.9Touch/Feel 2.9Spin Potential (7th overall) 3.9Holding Tension 3.6Resistance to Movement (13th overall) 4.1

Ruff Code is a textured monofila-ment polyester string made usingTecnifibre’s Biphase and Thermo-

core processes. According to Tecnifibre,the Biphase process, which it has used inmanufacturing its multifilament strings,prestretches the string for durability(without reducing diameter) and gives itits surface texture to improve spin. TheThermocore process involves using tem-perature control during the manufactur-ing process to soften the string’s structurefor shock reduction and vibration. Theresult, according to Tecnifibre, is a perfor-mance polyester with superior tensionmaintenance and exaggerated spin.

Tecnifibre developed Ruff Code forplayers who are experienced with theperformance of polyester strings who arelooking for additional spin in a texturedstring.

Ruff Code is available in 16 (1.30mm) and 17 gauge (1.25 mm) in silveronly. It is priced from $14 for sets of 40,and $210 for reels of 660 feet. For moreinformation or to order, contact Tecnifi-bre at 888-TFTennis (888-838-3664), orvisit tftennis.com. Be sure to read theconclusion for more information aboutgetting a free set to try for yourself.

IN THE LABWe tested the 16-gauge Ruff Code. Thecoil measured 40 feet. The diametermeasured 1.31-1.34 mm prior to string-ing, and 1.25-1.26 mm after stringing.We recorded a string bed stiffness of 73RDC units immediately after stringing at60 pounds in a Wilson Pro Staff 6.1 95(16 x 18 pattern) on a constant-pullmachine.

After 24 hours (no playing), string bedstiffness measured 67 RDC units, repre-senting an 8 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. In lab testing, PrinceSynthetic Gut Original has a stiffness of217 and a tension loss of 11.67 pounds,

while Tecnifibre Ruff Code 16 has a stiff-ness of 263 and a tension loss of 18.26pounds. Ruff Code added 17 grams to theweight of our unstrung frame.

The string was tested for five weeksby 34 USRSA playtesters, with NTRP rat-ings from 3.5 to 6.0. These are blindtests, with playtesters receivingunmarked strings in unmarked pack-ages. Average number of hours playtestedwas 26.4.

Out of the package, Ruff Code is wirywith a fair amount of coil memory. Thiswasn’t a problem until we reached the lastfew crosses. Because the texture is below


the surface of the string, there is nodrag on the mains when installing thecrosses.

No playtester broke his sample dur-ing stringing, six reported problemswith coil memory, two reported prob-lems tying knots, and one reported fric-tion burn.

ON THE COURTOur playtest team agreed with Tecnifi-bre about the Spin Potential of RuffCode, rating it 7th best of the 162strings we’ve playtested to date forpublication. In addition, our playtestersrated Ruff Code highly enough for it tobecome the 13th best string we’ve test-ed for Resistance to Movement, and14th best for Durability. They weren’tdone there, though. Their ratings showRuff Code to be excellent in the Powerand Control categories, and well aboveaverage in Tension Retention. As aresult, Tecnifibre Ruff Code 16’s overallaverage score is excellent, as well.

Four playtesters broke the sampleduring the playtest period, one each at7, 10, 13, and 16 hours.

CONCLUSIONWith high scores in the five “durabilitystring” categories plus its high score inthe Power category, Ruff Code 16 defi-nitely delivers on Tecnifibre’s promisesfor this string.

If you think that Tecnifibre RuffCode might be for you, fill out thecoupon to get a free set to try.

—Greg Raven◗

Tecnifibre Ruff Code 16

April 2012 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 39

FREE PLAYTEST STRING PROGRAM

Tecnifibre will send a free set of Ruff Code 16 to

USRSA members who cut out (or copy) this coupon

and send it to:

Offer expires 15 April 2012 • Offer only availableto USRSA members in the US.

Name:

USRSA Member number:

Phone:

Email:

If you print your email clearly, we will notify you

when your sample will be sent.


USRSA, Attn: Tecnifibre String Offer

330 Main Street, Vista, CA 92084

or fax to 760-536-1171, or email the info

below to [email protected]

“ This is an arm friendly poly withexceptional spin and control.”4.5 male all-court player using BabolatAeroPro Drive strung at 60 pounds CP(Gamma Professional 17)

“ This polyester is more comfortablethan its peers. The bite is excellent.”4.0 male serve-and-volley player usingBabolat Pure Drive strung at 58 poundsCP (Wilson NXT 16)

“ Great tension maintenance. Volleyshave a crisp feel. Comfort is high.”4.0 male all-court player using PrinceTriple Threat Viper strung at 55 poundsLO (Gamma TNT2 Ruff 16)

“ This string is comfortable andplayable from the very first hit. It offersan outstanding blend of power and con-trol.” 4.0 male all- court player usingPrince EXO3 Blue strung at 55 poundsCP (Gamma TNT2 Touch 16)

“ The extra spin is noticeable, especial-ly in an open pattern.”4.5 male all-court player using WilsonBLX Pro Open strung at 59/61 pounds LO(Gosen Polylon/ Gosen OG Sheep Micro17)

“ Great control! Big swings produceexplosive spin. Some players may want adampener as the sound is not ideal.”6.0 male all- court player using WilsonnBlade strung at 56 pounds CP (PrinceBeast XP 17)

“ This is definitely a high-end copoly. Ithas tons of control. Power is high, butthe feel gets worse after ten hours.”4.5 male all- court player using BabolatPure Storm Tour GT strung at 55 poundsCP (Babolat RPM Blast 16)

“ While spin is really easy to produceand control is quite high, this string doesnot rise above the bulk of playable polys

For the rest of the tester comments, visitwww.racquetsportsindustry.com.

TESTERS TALK on the market.” 4.5 male all-court playerusing Volkl C10 Pro strung at 50 pounds LO(Tecnifibre Black Code 18)

“ While durability and control are pre-dictably high, nothing about this poly grabsmy attention.” 4.5 male all-court playerusing Prince EXO3 Tour (18x20) strung at53/56 pounds LO (Prince Synthetic GutOriginal 16)

“ No matter what the situation or headspeed, this string has uncanny spin control.The exceptional feel and precision compen-sate for the low power on volleys. Teachinglessons is a pleasure because of the abilityto manipulate pace, trajectory, and depth.Players who like to hit kickers and spinserves will definitely enjoy this one.” 4.5male all-court player using Wilson BLX SixOne Tour strung at 50 pounds LO (LuxilonAlu Power/Wilson NXT Tour 16L/17)

In the 2012 Australian Open men’sfinal, the standard of play betweenSerbia’s Novak Djokovic and Spain’s

Rafael Nadal was both brilliant and dra-matically entertaining. Very little sepa-rated the two players as each pushed toovercome the other. And finally, after 5hours and 53 minutes, it ended withDjokovic defending his title with a 5-7,6-4, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5 win—the longestGrand Slam final ever.

But, is a nearly 6-hour match toolong in today’s game? Could it even bedangerous for the players?

I watched the final with tenniscoach Nenad Simic, who also is a for-mer longtime boxing referee. “Itbecame apparent to me early in thefourth set that both players, although inexcellent physical condition, started tohave either breathing or balance prob-lems as their wavering unsteadinessincreased and their balance dimin-ished,” he told me. “They clearlyshowed signs of weakening both physi-cally and mentally. Had it been a box-ing match, I simply would not haveallowed it to continue—I would havestopped it long before 5 hours and 53minutes.

“Tennis is supposed to be a sport ofskill,” he continued. “Endurance cer-tainly comes into it, but it is a subsidiaryfactor. I understand these two playersare in their prime and as such are look-ing for adventure in the challenge, plusthe possible excitement of winning.However, in the final analysis, they


continuous. Let’s reduce the 90-secondchangeover rule to 60 seconds.

w Insist that the 20-second rule betweenpoints be controlled more stringently bythe on-court umpire, which would auto-matically bring excessive toweling,bouncing of balls before serve, etc.,down to a minimum.

w Eliminate excessive deuces. How aboutonly one advantage per game? Shouldthe game not be won by the time thesecond deuce arrives, it would lead toan automatic “sudden-death” situation.This also would prevent the long, unin-teresting, time-consuming defensivebaseline rallies that produce three, four,five or more deuces per game. Plus, italso may encourage players to thinkmore aggressively in order to win the“sudden-death” point quicker.

w All the Grand Slams should promote acompulsive “tie-breaker” in the fifth set,replacing the “extended two gamesahead” that caused that marathon first-round Wimbledon match in 2011between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut,which spanned three days and ended70-68 in the fifth set.I’d be very interested in hearing your

views on limiting the length of matches. w

Your Serve


Too Much of a Good Thing?A former champion says a Grand Slam match lasting nearly 6 hours is too long—and too dangerous for theplayers.

We welcome your opinions. Please email comments to [email protected].

B Y A N G E L A B U X T O N

Angela Buxton, a former world No.5 whowon the Wimbledon and French Openwomen’s doubles titles in 1956 with AltheaGibson, operates a Tennis Consultancy bothin the U.S. and the UK. She can be contactedat [email protected].

must be protected. We must avoid anyon-court tragedy at all costs.”

While protecting the players is ofcourse primary, another considerationconcerns the TV schedule. TV networksaround the world faced the inconve-nience of having to either alter theirprogram scheduling to accommodatethe entire match, or cut away and missbroadcasting the conclusion—deprivingfans of a thrilling and important GrandSlam final.

Then there are the tennis fansaround the world, who also had tochange their Sunday arrangements ifthey wished to witness the eventual out-come, which by the see-saw nature ofthis match did not reveal itself until thevery end. I believe most fans probablydid watch to the end, probably whilealso complaining that it was a very long“sit” and wishing it could have some-how been shorter.

So, how can pro tennis acceptablylimit the length of matches withoutdiminishing their emotional powers anddrama? Here are some suggestions:w The rules say play is supposed to be

'How can pro tennisacceptably limit thelength of matcheswithout diminishingtheir emotional powers and drama?'

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