Publisher's Notes June 2024

QUICK NOTES

SERENA, DON’T DO IT!

Major U.S. publications were all abuzz on May 21 with catchy headlines like “Serena Williams Teases Tennis Return in Viral Message” (Newsweek).
My response: Don’t do it, girl. You’re 42. You’ll play against women 20 years younger than you. You achieved everything you set out to do. For me, you are the greatest tennis player America ever produced. Don’t do it!

Oncourt Offcourt Celebrates 30 Years in Business

Kalindi Dinoffer wrote: “This month (May) is extra special because it is our 30th anniversary month! We wouldn't be here without you so thank you from the bottom of our hearts.” Congratulations, friends! Tennis would be so boring without you and your exciting products!

Difference between UK and USA in tennis news

UK: All we’re hearing from the UK is new courts constructed or old courts refurbished. Just check out this typical article: Mansfield park tennis courts reopen after renovation.

USA: All we’re hearing is the conversion from tennis courts to Pickleball courts, Pickleball noise, the closing of tennis clubs, and the USTA making more space available for Pickleball and Padel at the National Campus. And then there is the USTA Southern California section celebrating the closure of 16 perfect tennis courts. Most of them recently resurfaced, with good lighting for night play. Weird.

I’m not saying the LTA is better than the USTA because I don’t know them too well. But I know what I’m reading in the news. Wouldn’t it be nice to live in England (again) and play tennis there?

Shout-out to Dutch Wheelchair Tennis Player and World #1 Diede de Groot

24th Annual San Diego Tennis Fest

Where else in the U.S. can you see over a thousand tennis fans come together and get free clinics from 60 USPTA teaching pros on a Sunday afternoon run by 50 volunteers?
Pat and I manned a booth and promoted my company Conga Sports to a lot of enthusiastic tennis fans. Check out the legends who happened to stop by. From left to right: David Wagner, Charlie Pasarell, Rosie Casals. No introductions are needed. If you don’t know these three people, you don’t know tennis.
Overall, it was a fantastic event organized by the San Diego District Tennis Association. Check out the photos here.

RecycleBalls Reward

I’m proud of what we have achieved to date at Conga Sports. Recycled 4,200 tennis balls and received the 3000+ Badge. Thank you, RecycleBalls!

MAIN TOPIC

The Perfect Racket

Why I’m so outraged at the US Open ticket prices? Because the little guys who can’t afford tickets are still paying for them.

Just to remind and inform our new readers that I laid out the case for the US Open being family unfriendly and way too pricey for the average tennis fan in our March issue when we were still called Tennis Club Business: Tournaments for adults only - the dirty little secret of the tennis event industry (The Illusion That Expensive Tournaments Will Help Tennis Grow)

I concluded: “Tennis tournament organizers find themselves in a challenging predicament. With the average age of tennis enthusiasts increasing each year, there is a lack of younger individuals being drawn to the sport in sufficient numbers to foster its growth. High-end sponsors are primarily interested in targeting older individuals and business professionals due to their higher discretionary income. Consequently, these demographics are more likely to purchase expensive tickets and indulge in overpriced food options. Conversely, children and younger individuals often struggle to afford to attend main draw matches. It is reasonable to assume that tournament owners are aware of this dilemma and can envision a future where the older generation fades away, leaving empty stadiums devoid of spectators. Large numbers participating in the Free Fan Week and Kid's Night events will not be sufficient to prevent the tournaments from facing financial difficulties.”

My takeaway was that events like the US Open are not able to grow tennis. Most events make the owners money with no concern for tennis' growth. The US Open only makes sure the USTA and the sections survive another year. Shame, really.

This month I want to briefly dive a little deeper into one aspect of the entire topic, tax write-offs.

During my research, I found that to attract a wealthier audience, the USTA positioned the US Open as an exclusive event where children are not present during main draw matches, catering instead to companies interested in purchasing expensive tickets for their executives and clients. This arrangement is further enhanced by the USTA's nonprofit status, allowing ticket purchases to be tax-deductible.

To further understand what this means, consider that most of the expensive tickets are being sold to people who can write the entire expense off.
Examples:

• Companies buy tickets (often entire blocks of tickets) to reward their employees and entertain their clients. It is reasonable to assume that many of the ticket holders never played tennis in their life and don’t intend to start playing anytime soon. None of this helps grow tennis.

• The USTA makes tickets available so that sections can reward staff, board members, sponsors, vendors, and clients. None of this helps grow tennis.

• The USPTA, PTR, ITA, ITF, vendors, and other industry organizations make tickets available to reward staff, board members, and others. None of this helps grow tennis.

• Tennis teaching professionals may be able to write the entire US Open trip to New York off, especially when they also attend concurring meetings and conventions.

So, the USTA pays no taxes on $500M and a good portion of ticket sales is subsidized by the taxpayer. Isn’t that almost like we are paying them with our taxes to pay no taxes so they can pay their executives high six and seven-figure salaries and benefits and first-class/charter travel? Isn’t that the perfect racket? What do you think?

TONGUE-IN-CHEEK

I don’t know what to think of this USTA news item: The inaugural “Hit to be Fit Day,” held on May 19 as part of National Tennis Month, brought more than 3,000 players and tennis beginners to courts around the country. The flagship event was hosted at the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla., with 105 participants and 14 tennis coaches on 16 courts. About 200 other sites around the country also held Hit to be Fit events that day, too.

Hmmm, how desperate is the USTA to celebrate an event that has 105 participants at the National Campus on 16 courts? And the other 200 sites have on average 15 participants? Wow! On the same day, the San Diego Tennis Fest had over 1,000 participants, 72 coaches, and 60 volunteers. I wonder why this article didn’t mention the San Diego event. Has the USTA already written that district off after the SoCal section defunded it for no reason?

HILARIOUS!

I found this on YouTube and could not resist posting it here. I bet the guy learned the line-calling rule from USTA Adult League players in Southern California!

Sent in by The Commish* 

“I wonder if they worked with PTR and USPTA to put this together. If PTR and USPTA were on their ‘A game’ the ITA proposal would have all three names on it. I am sure the ITA likes it this way - keep the other two out of their hair.”

The Commish continued about USPTA and PTR: 

“Lew Sherr said he wanted 80,000 qualified pros. I saw the following on FB. I am sure she is enthusiastic and has the best of intentions.  This is not a criticism of her. She states that she is USTA Net Generation Certified.  Hopefully, this is the first step to her becoming a PTR or USPTA pro.”

“What prompted the Free PTR Workshop for Level 1?  Lew Sherr and 35 by 35? Is the USPTA getting its act together? Is PTR suffering without Dan and the resurgence of the USPTA? All kinds of wonderful theories to contemplate. 

The Commish had some observations reading the May issue of Racquet Sports Industry magazine:

Is it the official publication of the USTA or was this issue taken from Babylon Bee? The article about Dan Santorum was underwhelming. Ironically, an article about the USPTA getting back its accreditation was adjacent to it. Similarly, the article about Ramona Husaru was lackluster. This is a major promotion, particularly for a woman in the tennis industry. I didn't realize she was working on her PhD. 

I struggled to read the article by Lew Sherr and was not able to finish it. He has diarrhea of the mouth, no common sense, and no credibility. Sad. I say the USTA needs a competent leader.  

Even worse is the advertorial "Planning for the Future."  The author quoted or misquoted a USTA official who said there were no indoor courts in Boulder, Colorado. That is a blatant lie. This is an ad for USTA consulting services. Based on feedback from those who have used it, the services are worthless.

Something Positive About The USTA

I applaud the USTA’s participation in this mental health campaign organized by the Ad Council: Star Athletes Share Their Mental Health “Rituals,” Encouraging Fans to Prioritize Their Mental Health (11 Professional Sports Leagues and Organizations Join Forces with the “Love, Your Mind” Campaign this Mental Health Awareness Month)

And a short video: