Letters from October 2026

Re: Kylie McKenzie vs USTA lawsuit

Thanks for the update on the Kylie McKenzie lawsuit.

All the money spent on this lawsuit could have been avoided if the USTA was a competent governing body.

What has the USTA learned?  Lawyer up when you are incompetent.

Just think about how much grassroots tennis could be improved if the money from the lawsuit was invested in improving access to the sport.

Re: Tennis Industry Structure

Last issue, you talked about the structure of the tennis industry.  That is great. It is really important. The industry does not understand things like supply chain or workforce issues.

From an academic perspective, tennis is not an industry. Most industries can be described by one or two North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes. Tennis is a cluster - a cluster of businesses from various NAICS codes. Some might not be so nice, and they would just call it one big cluster xxxx.  

If you tried to draw an organization chart of the tennis industry, it would closely resemble the weeds in the empty lot next door.  This is why USTA can get by with being the industry bully.  The problem is they don't know how to deal with the weeds in the empty lot next door.

That is why it is important to address the structure and hold their feet to the fire when they are off track.

There was a great picture in the recent issue of some classless jackasses in a photo with a USTA Coaching banner at the recent RSPA conference in Dallas.  If the conference had been in Salem, they could have been burned at the stake.

Thanks for holding their feet to the fire.

Re: Joe Thompson Passing

Joe's funeral and reception were uplifting; it was great to see what a great job he did raising his kids.  It was great to think about all he did for tennis 

From a tennis standpoint, the issues with the USTA were mentioned politely. 

There were 15 to 20 USPTA pros there.  It was nice to see them again.  They did a lot for tennis. A bond was built between them that does not exist between the pros today.  I don't think a pro under the age of 50 was in attendance.  That speaks to how divided the organization is.  What is going to happen in the next four to five years when the old farts move on? 

There were several meaningful conversations with past national presidents. In a nutshell, some are not pleased with what has happened to the USPTA and how it has been destroyed.  It started with the move from Houston - need I say more?  

The answer will come as soon as the dues notices go out. 

Re: PTR Coach Developers Resigned As a Group

A couple of years ago, pickleball let the tennis industry determine how pickleball pros will be certified and that they will be certified by "tennis" pros.

Today, they are probably thinking they would have been better off having the ASCRS (American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons) do certifications for pickleball rather than the PTR and PTA.

Re: PTR Top Leadership Not Fond Of Dennis Van der Meer

It's sad that they don't care about Dennis's legacy. All they care about is their own greed.

Julie Jilly is all that is left from back in the day. If she leaves, the ship is completely lost.

Dan Santorum should come back to save the PTR from total ruin. He was beloved by everyone. Known him since 1981. Still remember when he went down to take the week-long TU from Dennis.

The Commish***
Everywhere, USA
Pronouns: They/Them

Reminder (1): The (original) Commish has been writing for us off and on since June of 2021. Here is the first article: You CAN Fool Most of the People All of the Time. Over time, we allowed all readers submitting Letters to the Editor to remain anonymous and post them as The Commish.

We have defined The Commish since then as follows:

The Commish is not just one single person; it is a real and true thought experiment of many different entities. That's also why The Commish has no preferred pronouns, and you can call The Commish anything, and any way you want. Makes no difference to The Commish. 

The Commish lives in the minds of all tennis professionals, tennis players, and tennis organizers- everyone with a clear and logical thought process. 

Reminder (2): Rich Neher is NOT The Commish!