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February 2006
Volume 34 Number 2 $5.00
OUTLOOK
Special Section:How the TIA is helping your business
OUTLOOK
2006Whats in storefor the newyear?
Whats in storefor the newyear?
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DEPARTMENTS
R S I F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 6Contents
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 3
Contents
4 Our Serve13 Stringing Business14 The Master Pros
16 Science
INDUSTRY NEWS
7 Builders upbeat onU.S. court construction
7 Top stars to playTennis Channel Openin Vegas
8 Wilson launchesEvolution footwearline
8 James Blake signs 7-year deal with Prince
8 Chang joins newChampions Cup Series
8 Community Tennisworkshop set for
Hollywood
9 Tecnifibre introducesTflash 290 racquet
9 SlingHopper signsBollettieri
10 TIA plans major CardioTennis promotion
10 PTR Symposium setfor February
12 Campus Championshipsexpands to all sections
18 String Playtest: Tecnifibre Multifeel 1652 Ask the Experts54 Tips and Techniques
56 Your Serve, by Charlie Hoeveler
21 Serve It Up!New TIA initiatives offer more services tokeep your business moving forward.
22 Lets Grow This Business!President Jim Baugh says the TIA has the tools,programs, and services to help grow your business.
23 Moving ForwardThe TIA and its industry partners are working toincrease player participation and retention.
26 Getting to the Heart of CardioWith the official launch of Cardio Tennis,opportunities abound for heart-pumpingfitness on U.S. courts.
28 Welcoming ProgressThe Tennis Welcome Center initiative willcontinue strong into 2006.
28 Strength in NumbersGrowing Tennis 50/50 helps boost participationacross the U.S.
TIA Special Section
29 Web ChemistryTennisConnect.org is making it easy to servicemembers and increase play frequency.
30 Market KnowledgeThe extensive research available from theTIA will help you increase your business, andyour profits.
32 Economic LeverageThrough benefits and services with TIAaffinity partners, you can reduce costs andexpenses, and more.
33 Net AdvantagesEnhanced websites for the tennis industryprovide news, trends, and information tohelp you build your business.
34 Support Your IndustryThe TIA has membership levels to suit your needs.
35 Join the TIA Today!Help grow the game and your business.
37 A Winning YearBolstered by gains across the board, the newyear looks to be a winner for your business.
38 Popular AppealWhether high fashion or high performance,tenniswear is hitting the right notes.
42 Get Your KicksIn footwear, companies are cutting the weightwhile upping the quality.
44 Frames of ReferenceManufacturers have perfected their techniquesand are offering better products.
48 If You Build It...Court builders, coming off a busy 2005, areoptimistic that 2006 will bring more of the same.
50 Tied UpThe newest racquet strings offer something forevery player.
Outlook
2006
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n early December, I spent three days with people who
may well comprise the most important group involved
in tennis in the U.S.the members of the American
Sports Builders Association. These are the people who
build and repair the courts that all our businesses
depend on.The ASBA (formerly called the U.S. Tennis Court & Track Builders Asso-
ciation) met in Tampa for its annual Technical Meeting and Trade Show.
At first blush, you may not think seminars on engineering net-post foot-
ings, or building concrete slabs for indoor facilities, or maintaining grass
courts, can be all that exciting. But for people involved in many aspectsof tennis, whether construction-related or not, these presentations are
extremely informative. In part, its because of the excellent faculty that
the ASBA assembles for its meetings. But also, the presentations are inter-
active, and theres much to learn, both from presenters and peers, no
matter how long youve been in the business.
This year, the keynote speaker was Dr. Jim Loehr, the chairman, CEO,
and co-founder of LGE Performance Systems, which specializes in help-
ing people reach their full potential or, as he calls it, full engagement.
Ive heard Loehr speak before, and he is truly amazing, but even I was a
little skeptical that the 350 hardened court and track builders in the room
would be fully engaged in the presentation. Was I ever wrong. For two
hours, Loehr simply captivated the audience.
Over the last two years, under the chairmanship of David Marsden of
Hanover, Mass., the ASBA has experienced much growth and change. At
the end of the ASBA meeting, Marsden turned over the gavel to a new
chairman, Gerry Wright of Raleigh, N.C. Working with many committed
volunteers, along with a very competent and caring staff (Executive Vice
President Carol Hogan, Association Coordinator Cynthia Jordan, and
Financial Manager Judy Mellendick), Wright will no doubt continue the
cycle of growth for the ASBAand for the sport, as well.
If youre not familiar with the ASBA, visit the groups website,www.sportsbuilders.org. If youre a court builder and not a member of
the ASBA, you really should consider joining. From court awards, to con-
tinuing education, to construction standards and guidelines, to court
builder certification, and much moretheres so much good stuff going
on here, it would be a shame for you to miss out on it.
Peter Francesconi
Editorial Director
Our Serve
Building the Future(Incorporating Racquet Tech and Tennis Industry)
Publishers
David Bone Jeff Williams
Editor-in-Chief
Crawford Lindsey
Editorial DirectorPeter Francesconi
Associate Editor
Greg Raven
Design/Art Director
Kristine Thom
Assistant to the Publisher
Cari Feliciano
Contributing Editors
Cynthia Cantrell
Rod Cross
Kristen DaleyJoe Dinoffer
Liza Horan
Andrew Lavallee
James Martin
Mark Mason
Chris Nicholson
Mitch Rustad
Drew Sunderlin
RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY
Corporate Offices
330 Main St., Vista, CA 92084
Phone: 760-536-1177 Fax: 760-536-1171
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.racquetTECH.com
Office Hours: Mon.-Fri.,8 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific Time
Advertising Director
John Hanna
770-650-1102, x.125
Apparel Advertising
Cynthia Sherman
203-263-5243
Racquet Sports Industry (USPS 347-8300. ISSN 0191-
5851) is published 10 times per year: monthly January
through August and combined issues in Septem-
ber/October and November/December by Tennis
Industry and USRSA, 330 Main St., Vista, CA 92084.
Periodicals postage paid at Hurley, NY 12443 and addi-
tional mailing offices. February 2006, Volume 34,
Number 2 2006 by USRSA and Tennis Industry. All
rights reserved. Racquet Sports Industry, RSI and logo
are trademarks of USRSA. Printed in the U.S.A. Phone
advertising: 770-650-1102 x 125. Phone circulation and
editorial: 760-536-1177. Yearly subscriptions $25 in the
U.S., $40 elsewhere. POSTMASTER: Send address
changes to Racquet Sports Industry, 330 Main St.,
Vista, CA 92084.
4 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
I
RSI is the official magazine of the USRSA, TIA, and ASBA
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ttendees and exhibitors alike
were upbeat about the tennis
business at the American Sports
Builders Associations 2005 Technical
Meeting and Trade Show, held Dec. 4 to 6,
in Tampa. About 350 tennis court and
track builders, designers, and product
suppliers registered for the meeting, thelargest attendance in decades, according
to meeting organizers.
Generally, court builders
report increased business in
2005 and are optimistic about
2006 (see page 42). Weve
seen a gradual resurgence of
interest in tennis, says Mark
Brogan of Pro Sport Construc-
tion of Devon, Pa., and I
expect it to continue.
In 2005, we had our high-est volume in resurfacing and
repair, adds Richard Zaino of
Zai no Te nni s Courts of
Orange, Calif. The economy
is still pretty good here and
interest rates are low. If 2006
is like 2005, Ill be happy.
The annual meeting
broug ht toget her court
builders, court surfacing man-
ufacturers, court products
companies, and others for seminars on
court construction and maintenance and
related issues, such as marketing, billing
customers and getting paid, and more.
Court contractors also could take the test
to become a Certified Tennis Court
Builder. And a trade show attracted more
than 40 exhibitors.
The ASBA also installed new officers
and directors. Gerry Wright (above, left)
of Court One, Raleigh, N.C., is the new
ASBA chairman, replacing David Mars-
den (above, right) of Hanover, Mass.
Gordon Pierce of Cape & Island Ten-
nis & Track, Pocasset, Mass., is the new Tennis
Division president; Ron Nemeth of Hillsdale,
Mich., was elected president of the Associ-
ate/Affiliate Division; and John Schedler is the
president of the newly formed Turf Division. Re-
elected as secretary-treasurer is George Todd Jr.
of Welch Tennis Courts, Sun City, Fla.
Newly elected members of the board of direc-tors are: Pete Smith of the CourtSmiths, Toledo,
Ohio; John Graham of DecoTurf, Andover, Mass.;
Aaron McWhorter of Sports Turf Co., Whites-
burg, Ga.; and Steve Wright of Trans Texas Ten-
nis, Houston.
Remaining on the board are: Sam Fisher,
Fisher Tracks, Boone, Iowa; Alex Levitsky, Global
Sports & Tennis Design Group, Fair Haven, N.J.;
Brion Rittenberry, Kiefer Specialty Flooring, Lin-
denhurst, Ill.; Mike Vinton, The Vasco Group,
Massillon, Ohio; David Nielsen, Leslie Coatings,
Indianapolis; Randy Futty, Lee Tennis, Char-
lottesville, Va.; and Marsden, as past chairman.
For more information, visit
www.sportsbuilders.org or call 800-501-ASBA.
I N D U S T R Y N E W SI N D U S T R Y N E W S
R S I F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 6
I N F O R M A T I O N T O H E L P Y O U R U N Y O U R B U S I N E S S
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 7
Top Stars to Play 2006Tennis Channel Open in VegasThe U.S.s top player,Andy Roddick,
joins other top Americans RobbyGinepri, James Blake, and Bob andMike Bryan in playing The Tennis Chan-nel Open, to be held Feb. 27 to March5 in Las Vegas, the Tennis Channelannounced in December.
Also committed to play the event areChiles Fernando Gonzalez, SpainsTommy Robredo, Belarus Max Mirnyi,Belgiums Xavier Malisse, BritainsAndyMurray,Australias Mark Philippoussis,and Americans Mardy Fish and VinceSpadea.The 2006 Tennis Channel Openwill take place at the new Amanda &Stacy Darling Memorial Tennis Center.
Im looking forward to playing, saysRoddick. The excitement of the cityshould be a tremendous draw for guyson the tour, and The Tennis Channels
plan to build a tennis-festival atmos-phere is a great idea thats going to bea lot of fun to visit each year.
The Darling Memorial Tennis Centeropened in the fall with 23 courts,including a 2,400-seat stadium courtthat will expand to 3,300 seats duringthe event. In the future, the 40-acrecomplex will eventually include twosmaller stadium courts.
Tennis Channel Founder and PresidentSteve Bellamy plans to build a Tennis-palooza around the mens pro event.Plans include mens, womens, and
juniors tournaments, surrounded byother events that feature both ama-teurs and professionals. Founded in1986, the ATP tournament was previ-ously held in Scottsdale, Ariz.The net-work held programming rights forthree years prior to its acquisition ofthe event in 2005.
Tennis Channel Open tickets can bepurchased by calling 888-826-8497 orvisiting www.tennischannelopen.com.
A
Builders Upbeat on U.S. Court Construction
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F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 6
INDUSTRYNEW
S
Wilson Launches EvolutionFootwear Line
Wilson is launching the Evolution shoe line, which the
company says is the first line designed to meet the
specific needs of players as their game evolves. The
line includes eight styles engineered to fit the body mechan-
ics and court style of beginning, intermediate, and advancedplayers, the company says.
The Evolution footwear concept utilizes Wilsons revo-
lutionary shoe technology to offer incredible performance
on the court in a system that complements your game and
style of play, says Todd Fisher, Wilsons global director of
footwear. The Evolution line makes it easy for a consumer
to find footwear that matches their specific needs to what-
ever level of tennis player they are.
In a statement, Wilson says it developed the line taking
into account six principles: cushioning, stability, breathabil-
ity, light weight, toe drag, and outsole
radius.The Backdraw and Challenger,
the entry-level shoes in the
line designed for
recreational
players, fea-
ture added
cushioning and
stability in the rear
of the shoe, since most
beginners typically
hit the ball
standingupright, with
m os t of t heir
weight shifted to
the back of their
heels. The womens Chal-
lenger includes interchangeable color inserts.
The Wildcard and Qualifier (above, blue), for intermedi-
ate players, feature a centrally positioned ventilated stable
wrap and extended toe drag for aggressive play. The cen-
tralized cushioning, support, and stability compensate for
improved footwork and development of an all-around
game, says Wilson.
Advanced players who have an explosive game look for
superior cushioning, stability, toe drag, and breathability,
says the company. The Tour, CF2, and Open (above, red) are
the high-performance shoes in the Evolution line, designed
for serious players. Features include stable wrap systems,
three layers of cushioning that work independently of each
other, Duralast rubber outsoles, and 180-degree toe-drag
protection.
For light workouts and warm-ups, the line includes the
ETF (Eat the Fuzz) model, a shoe with an adjustable Velcro
strap.
Prices range from $30 to $130. Visit www.wilson.com
for more information.
8 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
James Blake Inks7-Year Deal WithPrince Sports
James Blake, whose personal
and professional comeback in
2005 made headlines beyond
the tennis world, has joined Prince
Tenniss Touring Professional Team
with a global, multi-faceted seven-year deal.
The partnership involves Blakes collaboration with
Princes research and development experts to develop a rac-
quet featuring O Technology, which Blake will use on the pro
tour. The new racquet will launch in 2006 as part of Princes
line of O3 racquets, according to the company.
"We are privileged and proud that James chose Prince to be
his brand of equipment, says Prince Sports CEO George
Napier. He embodies the values our Team believes in.
The deal is more than just a racquet endorsement, says
Blake. Prince is tapping my knowledge to help with product
design, as well as some cool marketing initiatives focused on
junior development. They are also enthusiastically supportingvarious charitable organizations that are important to me."
Chang Joins Champions Cup Series
Former champion Michael Chang will play in the new Cham-
pions Cup Series event in Boston to be held April 27 to 30.
Boston will be the second event on the 2006 Champions Cup
Series, a collection of tennis events in the U.S. featuring some of
the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30.
Chang joins Jim Courier, John McEnroe, Mats Wilander, andPat Cash for the Boston event, with three other players to be
named later. Each event in the series will feature an eight-man,
round-robin match format.
The Champions Cup Series is presented by InsideOut Sports
and Entertainment, a company started by Courier. Other Cham-
pions Cup Series events will be in Naples, Fla., March 10-13;
Memphis, Oct. 5-8; and Houston, Nov. 9-12. To compete in the
series, players must have reached at least a Grand Slam singles
final, been ranked in the Top 5 in the world, or played singles on
a winning Davis Cup team.
For tickets to Champions Cup Series events, call 978-443-
9006, or v isi t www.cham pionscupte nni s.com or
www.ticketmaster.com. Prices start at $15.
2006 CTDW in Hollywood
The 2006 USTA Community Tennis Development Workshop
will take place at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Holly-
wood, Calif., Feb. 3 to 5. The workshops and seminars are
designed to educate, encourage, and inspire tennis leaders and
coordinators, who deliver tennis at the grassroots level.
For more information on the CTDW and to register, visit
www.usta.com/communitytennis. For hotel reservations, contact
800-HOTELS-1.
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I N D U S T R Y N E W S
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 9
TIA In New Digs
The Tennis Industry Association
has moved offices. The new
address, for deliveries only, is 117
Executive Center, Hilton Head Island,
SC 29928. Correspondence should
still be sent to P.O. Box 7845, HiltonHead Island, SC 29928. Phone
remains 843-686-3036.
Tecnifibre Introduces
Tflash 290
Tecnifibres newest
frame, the Tflash
290, is designed
for net zone play-
ers looking for amaneuverable rac-
quet with which to
attack the net. Texal-
ium Reinforcements
in the graphite frame
provide torsion stability
to improve accuracy, says
the company, while enhanc-
ing feel for more control and
dampening vibration. The rac-
quet has a 100-square-inch,
open-string-pattern head andweighs 10.2 ounces. For more
information, contact Tecnifi-
bre at 877-332-0825 or visit
www.tecnifibre.com.
Travel to See the Pros
If your members are looking for a get-
away to see the pros in action, Grand
Slam Tennis Tours offers travel pack-
ages to the upcoming Davis Cup match
in California in February, the Pacific Life
Open in Palm Springs and the Nasdaq-
100 Open in Miami in March.
The three-night Davis Cup package
(Feb. 9 to 12) at the La Jolla Beach &
Tennis Club includes courtside tickets to
all three days of matches for the U.S. vs.
Romania tie. Price is $1,595 per person,
double occupancy.
Package prices for the Pacific Life
Open (March 9-19) start at $1,395 per
person. Packages for the Nasdaq-100
start at $1,495. Call 800-289-3333 or
visit www.grandslamtennistours.com.
Bollettieri To UseSlingHopperSlingHopper Inc. announces thatNick Bollettieri is using the Sling-Hopper Drill Bag to help feed tennisballs to his students. SlingHopper Drills Bags
are a genuine teaching tool, Bollettieri says. Itenables the coach to move to any position forfeeding or rallying without any delay. SlingHop-per products are distributed through GammaSports and Gamma distributors. For information,call Gamma at 800-333-0337 or visitwww.gammasports.com.
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F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 6
INDUSTRYNEW
S
10 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
TIA Plans MajorCardio Promotion
Plans are being finalized for a major
national consumer promotion for
Cardio Tennis in 2006, according
to TIA President Jim Baugh. We needto break through the clutter with the
consumer, which is what our national
promotion will do, Baugh says. Our
early progress has been fantastic, but
Im confident that we can add more
quality sites and more consumers. We
want Cardio Tennis to be a major part
of our sport and help grow participation
and revenues for pros and facilities.
Baugh also says a recent TIA survey
of more than 250 Cardio Tennis sites
will help shape future plans for the
program. We received some great
input from our sites, he says. We
know we will grow even more in 2006
with some of the plans we have. An
executive summary of the site research
is available at
www.Partners.CardioTennis.com.
Bollettieris Random Act of KindnessMakes Dreams Come True for 4 Juniors
Legendary coach Nick Bollettieri made the dreams of four young New York ten-
nis players come true during the holidays when they each were granted schol-
arships to the IMG/Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida.
Bill Mountford, the director of tennis at the USTA National Tennis Center in
Flushing Meadows, N.Y., says it all came as a complete surprise. Back in June, Nick
was at the NTC to run a corporate tennis clinic for a Wall Street firm, says Mount-
ford. Before the event, he was walking around the field courts and saw students
in our six-week junior summer tennis camp, which was just beginning. Complete-ly unsolicited, Nick stopped at several courts to lecture and encourage the young
players.
Afterward, Bollettieri approached Mountford and offered the scholarships for
four young students and challenged the USTA NTC coaching staff to "find" the most
deserving players. One selection criteria that Bollettieri suggested was to choose
players who might not otherwise be exposed to such an opportunity, says Mount-
ford. Nearly six months later, on Christmas Day, Jillian Santos, Willie Griffin, Car-
olina Koladzyn, and Wie Cheng Lin were on their way to the Academy.
I feel indebted to Nick for this random act of kindness, says Mountford. Nick
Bollettieri's ripple effect on the tennis community has touched everyone involved
in our sport. He has provided four young players from New York with a gift they
will always cherish. His kindness has truly inspired.
PTR Sets Symposium
The 2006 PTR International Tennis Symposium and $25,000 Championships will
be Feb. 18-24 on Hilton Head, S.C. Register by Feb. 10 for $325 for PTR mem-
bers, $395 for nonmembers. After Feb. 10, its $375 and $425. The deadline for
tournament entry is Feb. 3.
For more information or to register, call 800-421-6289 or visit www.ptrtennis.org.
Sportwall Survives Hurricane WilmaDespite the large tree limb that Hurricane Wilma deposited on the Sportwall 1200installed at the Mariner Sands Country Club in Stewart, Fla., the Sportwall was fullyoperational after the October storm. Another Sportwall, installed at the MarcoIsland YMCA, also escaped unscathed and in working order. For more informationon Sportwall, visit www.sportwall.com or call 800-695-5056, x. 125.
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I N D U S T R Y N E W S
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 11
Croatias Goran Ivanisevic and the SlovakRepublics Miloslav Mecir are the 2005 recipients of the Davis
Cup Award of Excellence, presented by the International Tennis Hall of
Fame and the International Tennis Federation. The award was presented on
Dec. 4, during the Davis Cup World Group Final between Croatia and the Slo-
vak Republic.
Dunlop squash player Amr Shabana won his second World Championshiptitle in three years with a win over Australias David Palmer. It was his ninth
Professional Squash Association title. Shabana plays with Dunlops Ice Custom
Elite racquet, which the company says will now become the Amr Shabana Sig-
nature Series frame.
Eric Won is Head/Penns new district sales manager for California. Won, from Foster City,Calif., will cover northern California and northern Nevada.
Two Tecnifibre players ended the year ranked World No. 1 on the mens and womens squashtours. Both Thierry Lincou and Vanessa Atkinson use Tecnifibres Carboflex squash racquets and
the companys 305 green squash string.
Head Team Elite program members Donald Young of the U.S. and Viktoria Azarenka ofBelarus are the 2005 ITF Junior Boys and Girls World Champions, respectively. Young,
at 16, is the youngest player ever to claim the year-end No. 1 ITF junior ranking. He
uses the Head Liquidmetal Radical MP.
U.S. pro Paul Goldstein made history in Boston in November bywinning a record 26th title on the USTA Pro Circuit.
P E OP L EWATCH
L E T T E R S
A Heartfelt ThanksHaving written about the gameof tennis for more than 30 years,it wasnt clearuntil a recentexperiencehow close and caring
this community is.
Because of a pre-existing situa-tion (I became a diabetic when Iwas 7), I am unable to acquireindividual health insurance. Forthe past decade (or more), myright hip, due to years of tenniscompetition, coaching, and run-ning, had deteriorated to the
point where I was unable to takea normal step. Pain was a con-
stant companion.
During Roland Garros in 2005,writer Michael Mewshaw, notic-ing my distinctive stride, askedabout the situation. When Iexplained the no insurance, no
surgery problem, he said hewould get something done. Afterdiscussing the issue with BudCollins, (who had his hip surgeoncontact a doctor in my home ofSouthern California to see if hecould help me), and U.S. TennisWriters Association President Liza
Horan, along with USTWA boardmembers Peter Francesconi, JimMartz, Andre Christopher andBob Larson, a solution appeared.
On Dec. 13, I had my right hipreplaced in Brawley, Calif. GeorgeFareed, the former US Davis Cupteam doctor and a close friend,arranged to have Dr. ChristopherLai, an associate, do the surgery.
Thanks to the assistance providedby the Kirby Family Foundationrun by Michael and Linda Mew-
shaw, along with the support ofthe USTWA board, as well as Drs.Fareed and Lai, I will be up andwalking better than ever in 2006.
My deep, heartfelt appreciationgoes out to all of you.
Mark Winters
We welcome your letters and comments. Please
email them to [email protected] or fax
them to 760-536-1171.
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F E B R U A R Y 2 0 0 6I N D U S T RY N E W S
12 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
> USPTA members now can auto-matically connect to Head/Penns
online management system by sign-
ing up online when they go to
www.uspta.com. Once logged in,
members can place orders, updatetheir information, and more.
> The USTA has named Philadel-phias Arthur Ashe Youth Tennis and
Education the National Level 1
National Junior Tennis League Chap-
ter/Program of the Year for 2005.
The award is given annually to the
countrys top NJTL Chapter for
demonstrating continued excellence
in youth tennis programming.
AAYTE was recognized for its recent
NJTL Summer Program, which was
operated at 65 public parks and
playgrounds for more than 6,000
kids.
> The four USTA Pro Circuit venuesaffected by the hurricanes in
Louisiana are expected to return to
the Circuit in 2006, says the USTA.
The first event will be a womens
$25,000 tournament in Hammond,
La., the week of March 7, followed
by a $50,000 womens event in
Lafayette starting April 24. The
mens $50,000 Challenger in Cov-
ington looks to return in September,
and the $15,000 mens Futures in
Baton Rouge will take place the
week of Oct. 23.
> Head has revamped its look for2006. Visit www.head.com to check
out the new use of colors, photog-
raphy, and emotion in the graphics.
> The Tennis Channel Open in Las
Vegas, held Feb. 27-March 5, willsponsor a World Stringing Cham-
pionships on March 3. The compe-
tition is for anyone who thinks they
can record the fastest time stringing
a racquet. Winners will receive
prizes and/or prize money. Register
online at www.tennischannelopen
.com/events for $20, or register on
site at the Darling Memorial Tennis
Center for $30.
SHORT SETS Campus ChampionshipsExpands To All Sections
The 2005-2006 year marks the first
time all 17 USTA sections will host USA
Tennis on Campus Championship
events.
Interest generated by the annualNational Championship has led more ten-
nis-playing college students to create
sports clubs on campuses across the coun-
try over the past few years, says Glenn
Arrington, the USTAs product manager for
College Tennis. And the competition and
camaraderie witnessed by campus coordi-
nators at the national event led to the
growth in the number of sectional champi-
onships.
The Tennis on Campus program fea-
tures co-ed recreational and intramuralplay in World TeamTennis format. Through
the USTAs partnership with the WTT, sec-
tion coordinators will receive help from
WTT Director of Competition Elaine Wing-
field, who will attend and help run the
inaugural tournaments of some of the
USTA sections.
The 2006 USA Team Tennis National
Campus Championships will be held April
20-22 at the University of Texas in Austin.
The 2005 national event attracted a record
47 schools and was won by Texas A&M, for
its third title in four years. For more infor-
mation about the 2006 competition, visit
www.usta.com. Upcoming USA Team Ten-
nis Section Campus Championships are:
* Caribbean, Feb. 25-26, Centro de Tennis
Honda, Bayomn, Puerto Rico
* Eastern, TBD
* Florida, March 4-5, University of South
Florida, Tampa, Fla.
* Hawaii Pacific, March 4-5, Central Oahu
Regional Park
* Intermountain, TBD
* Mid-Atlantic, March 11, Tournament Cen-
ter College Park
* Midwest, March 10-12, University of Wis-
consin
* Missouri Valley, Feb. 18-19, Drake Uni-
versity, Des Moines, Iowa
* New England, TBD
* Southern, TBD
* Southern California, Feb. 11-12, UCLA
* Southwest, Feb. 17-18, Randolph Tennis
Center, Tucson, Ariz.
* Texas, March 4-5, Texas A&M
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YOUR finances
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 13
Flaunt Your Customization By
Creating a Racquet Service CenterM
ost tennis retailers know that rac-
quet stringing is their highest profit
category, yet it is often relegated
to second-class status in the shop lay-
out. The stringing machine is crammed
into an out-of-the way corner, or even in
a back room completely out of sight.
Instead of hiding your stringing opera-
tion, flaunt it! Make the stringing opera-
tion the center of attention in your pro
shop or store. Create adequate room forthe stringing machine or machines, as
well as space to perform all racquet ser-
vice tasks.
Creating a Racquet Service Center
will project a professional image for your
entire operation. Whether your RSC is in
the front corner of the shop or in a large
defined area will depend on the size of
your overall space, but dont be stingy.
Having a professional-looking space for
racquet service will draw attention to the
operation and increase your business, andof course, your bottom line.
If your stringing machine is old or out-
dated, consider investing in a new mod-
ern machine. Often equipment purchases
like stringing machines are not considered
as investments, but they should be. A
quality machine will last for several years.
Considering the potential revenue pro-
duced by this one piece of equipment
makes it a no-brainer. Spending $2,000 to
$5,000 on something that can make you
a tenfold return in short order is a goodinvestment by anyones standard. If your
shop strings more than a dozen racquets
a week, a professional-quality stringing
machine is definitely an investment, and a
worthwhile one at that.
Another worthy investment to consid-
er is diagnostic equipment. The Babolat
Racquet Diagnostic Center is the ultimate
in this category, but if your budget cant
handle one, at least consider an accurate
scale and a balance board. If you have a
good scale and balance board, consider
Of course, this only works if you pro-
vide quality work and great service. No
matter how much glitz you show, if you
dont back it up with quality, it wont last.
Make sure that every racquet that comes
through your shop gets the very best ser-
vice possible. If you are not already a Mas-
ter Racquet Technician, consider taking
the necessary steps to earn that designa-
tion. If you have other technicians, have
them certified as well.
Establishing your shop as the place to
go for racquet service will pay huge divi-
dends. Q
adding a swing-weight scale such as the
AccuSwing from Alpha.
Even with a minimal amount of equip-
ment, by utilizing the calculators and
other tools available at
www.RacquetTech.com (for U.S. Racquet
Stringers Association members), you can
perform all sorts of analysis on your cus-
tomers racquets. And, in addition to daz-
zling your customers, youll be offering
them services that they likely cant get
from your competitors.By establishing a Racquet Service Cen-
ter in your shop and offering a complete
menu of services, you will separate your-
self from the rest of the competition. Not
only will it increase your racquet service
business, it will also lend credibility to your
overall operation, especially your racquet
sales. By establishing your operation as
the racquet experts in your area, cus-
tomers will rely on your expertise in buy-
ing racquets, as well as having them
serviced.
BUSINESS
B Y B O B P A T T E R S O N , M R T
Bob Patterson of Birming-ham, Ala., owns PlayersChoice Tennis and the rac-quet customization com-pany Racquetmaxx. Herecently was named RSIs2005 Stringer of the Year.
stringing
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THE master pros
Its All About LearningTo make the grade as a teaching pro, Ken DeHart says never miss
an educational opportunity.
Throughout his career, 57-year-old Ken
DeHart of San Jose, Calif. has sought
to make learning tennis fun and sim-
ple for players of all ages. Just as effective
in growing the game, his colleagues say,
is the expertise and enthusiasm he imparts
to his fellow teaching professionals
through
seminars delivered
worldwide on the
strategic and men-
tal aspects of the
sport.
RJ Tessier, direc-
tor of certification
for the USPTA, says
DeHart is a popular
speaker whoseentertaining
demonstrations of
100 Drills in an
Hour (many of
which he invented),
how to teach large
groups, and the
psychology of com-
petition are repeatedly requested at indus-
try events.
Ken is an accomplished player, and
hes still in the trenches teaching day today. That experience adds a lot of credibil-
ity, Tessier says.
Julie Jilly, vice president of operations
for the PTR, also has special knowledge of
DeHarts dedication to the game; DeHart
hired her when he was the PTRs execu-
tive director in 1985. Even then, Ken was
this very nice, down-to-earth man who
loved being on the court, Jilly says. His
forte is helping people with their game;
hes just a great ambassador of the
sport.
DeHart became a PTR member in
1977, before the organization was even a
year old. He is also a national PTR clinician
and tester, and a longtime speaker at the
organizations annual symposium. If you
look at all his accolades, Jilly adds, its
amazing he has time to do as much as he
does.
Aside from being a player, teacher,
coach, speak-
er, and men-tor, DeHart
was the first
person to earn
Master Profes-
sional ratings
from both the
USPTA and
PTRand is
still one of only
six teaching
pros in the
world to haveaccomplished
that honor.
Its very spe-
cial to be iden-
tified by your
peers as one of
the elite peo-
ple in the ten-
nis industry,
DeHart says, though I started out on
such a small scale that I still dont see
myself at that level.DeHart was introduced to tennis
halfway through his freshman year at
Campbellsville College in Kentucky, when
he and the rest of the cross-country team
ran by some tennis courts. I had never
seen tennis played before, DeHart recalls.
I went right out to K-mart, bought a Wil-
son racquet for $14.95 and a can of balls,
and decided to become a tennis player.
In his sophomore year, DeHart con-
vinced his roommate to try out with him
for the tennis team. We didnt know you
B Y C Y N T H I A C A N T R E LL
14 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
had to be good, he recalls with a laugh.
Instead of a place on the team, the coach
said he could hit with the players and
pick up balls at practices. Impressed with
DeHarts work ethic, she offered him a
position as secretary of the physical edu-
cation department through which he
helped teach phys-ed classes, coach the
womens tennis team, and travel with the
mens tennis team. He also continued
playing, earning a spot on the team in hisjunior year. The following year, he was
named the teams most valuable player.
After graduating in 1971 with a triple
major in business, physical education, and
history, DeHart went on to earn a mas-
ters in education from Western Kentucky
University while coaching tennis, bowling,
This is the third of six installments
on the teaching pros who hold Mas-
ter Pro certifications from both the
PTR and the USPTA.
DeHarts Tips
for SuccessQ Embrace change. Ken DeHart continues to
look for ways to grow the gameand is
currently touring the nation to help other
teaching pros do the same by offering
Cardio Tennis at their facilities. Never
miss an opportunity to add variety to your
programming, which could attract a new
audience.
Q Reduce unforced errors: Throughout his
career, DeHart has worked to transform
weaknesses into strengths by refusing togive in to fear of either success or failure.
"Focus on the present," he says,
"because that's all any of us can really
deal with at any given moment."
Q Never stop learning. Seek the advice of
experienced fellow pros, and take the
time to pursue educational opportunities
through organizations like the PTR and
USPTA. Your time is valuable, but so is
the experience of learning best practices
from industry leaders.
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table tennis, and track. After returning
to Campbellsville to teach high school
and college tennis, he met teaching pro
Thay Butchee who helped him get a
job interview for the director of tennis
position at an eight-court facility in
Nashville.For three years, I went over
[Butchees] house just about every
night and asked him what he had
taught that day. And for three years, I
taught that same thing the next day,
DeHart says. I always thought, if I ever
knew that much, it would be so amaz-
ing.
Many would argue that DeHart has
achieved that aspiration. Hes taught all
ages and skill levels at clubs in
Nashville, Tempe, Atlanta, Los Angeles,and now San Jose, where he is director
of tennis at the seven-court San Jose
Swim & Tennis Club. A USA Tennis
High Performance coach, he also con-
ducts Cardio Tennis demonstrations
and USTA workshops for recreational
coaches.
As one of the 20 Wilson Premier
Advisory Staff Members, DeHart travels
and speaks to tennis pros across the
country about drills, teaching certifica-
tion, and mental toughness. He alsoserves as associate editor of the Tennis
One website (www.tennisone.com)
devoted to tennis instruction, and is a
prolific writer who co-wrote the Inter-
national Book of Drills with PTR
founder Dennis Van der Meer.
During tax season, DeHart helps his
wife and father-in-law run one of the
largest income-tax practices in northern
California. Hes also a collector, having
accumulated about 1,800 tennis rac-
quets, 2,000 books on the sport, andmemorabilia including the 1924 trophy
commemorating Armys win over Navy.
More teaching pros should take
advantage of all the educational oppor-
tunities offered [by the PTR and
USTPA]. I hear people say they cant
take the time off, but the way I see it,
how can you not? DeHart says. Even
if you get just one new idea, it will help
you teach better and your players will
learn faster. Tennis will get even bigger
and be more fun for everyone. Q
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science
hen Crawford Lindsey and I were
writing Technical Tennis, our biggest
single problem was to find a mean-
ingful word or phrase to replace Apparent
Coefficient of Restitution, or ACOR. This is
the technically correct phrase used to
describe how well a ball bounces off a sta-
tionary racquet. The average tennis player
would probably tune out if we used that
phrase.
We eventually decided to call itRebound Power, or RP, which was sug-
gested by Howard Brody. In any case,
catchy name or not, why would anyone
care how well a ball bounces off a racquet
that is not being swung at the ball? The
answer is that the power built into the
racquet needs to be carefully distinguished
from the power that a player can get out
of it.
When players talk about racquet power,
they usually have in mind the power that is
built into the racquet by the manufacturerusing whatever technical tricks they can
come up with, such as an improved string
suspension system or some clever way of
constructing the frame. When manufactur-
ers design a new racquet, they might take
an existing frame, modify it in some way,
and end up with a racquet that they hope
will be a better, perhaps more powerful ver-
sion of the original. How would one test the
racquet to see if it is more powerful or not?
The obvious way would be to serve a ball at
a fixed racquet speed and use a radar gun
to see if the ball is served any faster with the
modified racquet. If it is, then the modified
racquet is indeed more powerful.
A simpler test is to fire a ball at a sta-
tionary, freely-suspended or hand-held rac-
quet and see if the ball bounces off the
racquet any faster. This test is simpler
because it is easier to measure the speed of
a ball than to measure the speed of a rac-
quet. A problem with measuring racquet
speed is that different parts of the racquet
travel at different speeds. Another problem
is ensuring that the racquet is swung at the
same speed each time. In fact, both tests
are entirely equivalent and yield the same
answer. In a stationary racquet test, one
measures the speed of the incoming ball
and the speed of the outgoing ball. The
ratio of these two speeds (speed out/speed
in) is rebound power (RP). It is a number
that doesnt involve the player or his ability
to swing the racquet. The RP is a measure
of the power built into the racquet. In gen-
eral, heavy racquets have a bigger RP thanlight racquets, so an increase in RP without
an increase in racquet weight is an indica-
tion that the manufacturer has come up
with an improved, more powerful design.
DETERMINING
REBOUND POWER
Crawford had the hopeful idea that it
would be nice to measure the RP of every
performance racquet on the market and
publish the results each year in RSI. The
problem is that it takes several hours tomeasure the RP properly, taking the aver-
age of perhaps 5 or 10 bounces at each of
several different spots on the strings. It is a
lot simpler to calculate the RP using other
measured properties of a racquet. The RP
can be calculated quite accurately for an
impact in the middle of the strings, but RP
calculations are less accurate at other
impact points since it is difficult to estimate
energy losses due to frame vibrations. This
is not a problem in the middle of the
strings because the frame doesnt vibrate
at all for such an impact. I measured the RP
in the middle of the strings for 5 radically
different racquets and got the same
answers as the calculated values, demon-
strating that it is easier to calculate the RP
than measuring it and the answer will be
the same, at least for impacts near the mid-
dle of the strings.
Using these formulas (which can be
found in The Physics and Technology of
Tennis), I calculated the RP for an impact
16 cm from the tip of the 268 different rac-
quets listed in the March 2004 and March
2005 issues of RSI. The results are shown in
Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 shows a graph of
RP vs. racquet weight. The points on the
graph are scattered all over the place, but it
is clear that the RP for heavy racquets is gen-
erally larger than the RP for light racquets, as
expected. A tennis ball bounces higher off a
heavy slab of concrete than a light sheet of
paper. The RP for a concrete slab is about
0.75, as specified by the rules of tennis. The
RP for a hand-held racquet, when the ballimpacts the middle of the strings, varies from
about 0.31 to about 0.43. In Figure 1 the
points are scattered all over the place
because the RP depends mainly on the
weight of the head rather than the weight of
the whole racquet. Two racquets of the
same weight will have different values of RP
if one is head- heavy and the other is head
light. The head heavy racquet will have a
larger RP, so it has more inbuilt power. If
both racquets are swung at the same speed,
the ball will come off the head-heavy racquet
faster.
AMAZING RESULTS
Figure 2 shows RP vs. swingweight for all
racquets. The result is simply amazing.
Instead of having the 268 dots scattered all
over the place, the dots line up perfectly
Figure 1: Calculated values of RP at a point
16 cm from the tip of the racquet, vs. rac-
quet weight, for 268 different racquets.
W
Raw Racquet PowerThe secret of racquet power revealedsweetspot power depends
almost entirely on swingweight! B Y R O D C R O S S
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along four different curved lines. The four
curves correspond to different racquet
lengths. All racquets of the same length lie
on the same curve, with short racquets hav-
ing a bigger RP than long racquets. The
result in Figure 2 shows that any two rac-
quets of the same length and the same
swingweight will have exactly the same RP,
regardless of their weights and regardless of
their balance points. The inbuilt power of a
racquet in the middle of the strings therefore
depends only on the length and swing-
weight of the racquet, and on nothing else.
There is a simple reason that long rac-
quets have a smaller RP. In order for a long
racquet to have the same swingweight as a
short racquet, weight has to move out of
the head and relocated closer to the han-
dle. Since RP is determined mainly by
weight in the head, a long racquet must
therefore have a smaller RP than a shortracquet (at any given swingweight).
The inbuilt power can be increased
slightly by reducing string tension, but it
was assumed in Figures 1 and 2 that all rac-
quets had the same stringbed stiffness
when calculating the RP. In other words,
the string tension was adjusted for every
racquet to compensate for differences in
head size and string pattern so that the
stringbed stiffness would be the same. This
was not done on an individual basis.
Rather, it was assumed in the calculations.
The RP for impact points away from the
middle of the strings might tell a different
story, but it wont be a radically different
story. If a racquet has a large RP in the mid-
dle of the strings, then in principle it should
be large everywhere else over the
stringbed. However, it wont be propor-
tionally larger because there are other fac-
February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 17
tors to consider when a ball impacts away
from the middle of the strings. Impacts
near the tip and throat result in frame
vibrations that act to reduce the RP com-
pared with that of an infinitely stiff rac-
quet. Consequently, if two racquets have
the same length and swingweight, then
the stiffer of the two will have a higher RP
near the tip and the throat (but they willhave the same RP in the middle of the
strings).
Impacts away from the long axis, near
the edge of the frame at the 3 and 9
oclock positions, cause the racquet to
twist around the long axis, which also
results in a lowering of the RP. In this case,
if two racquets have the same length and
swingweight, then the one with the high-
er twistweight will be the most powerful
on impacts towards the sides of the frame.
There is plenty that a manufacturer can do,
apart from increasing swingweight, to
increase the inbuilt power of a racquet
outside of the middle of the strings.
Whether or not the result is a racquet that
feels good in the hands of a particular play-
er is a completely different story. There is
no way that I can calculate the feel of a
racquet. It just doesnt compute. Qrd
Figure 2: Calculated values of RP at a point
16 cm from the tip of the racquet, vs. swing-
weight, for the same racquets as those in
Fig. 1.
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20/6018 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY February 2006
ing the test, at
3.5, 5, 6, 9, 18 (two), 20, 22 (two), and
40 hours. Average normal string longevity
for these playtesters is 19 hours. Average
normal string longevity for the entire
playtest team is 32 hours.
CONCLUSION
Lovers of soft multifilaments have reason to
be excited about the introduction of Tecnifi-
Tecnifibre Multifeel 16
string PLAYTEST
Tecnifibre Multifeel 16 is a solid-core sin-
gle-wrap multifilament string, which
according to Tecnifibre offers durability,
dynamic performance, and comfort at an
excellent price-to-value ratio.
The durability comes from the central
monofilament, which comprises 20 percent
of the total volume of the string. Surround-
ing the central monofilament are 985 com-
posite filaments arranged in bundles,
lending Multifeel what Tecnifibre calls
dynamic performance. As you would expect
from Tecnifibre, the assembled central
monofilament and multifilament wraps areimmersed in polyurethane to bind every-
thing together. This polyurethane infusion
accounts for another 20 percent of the total
volume of the string, and increases comfort
by reducing shock and vibration. Finally,
Multifeel has an anti-abrasion coating of Sil-
icone Pyrogene Lubritec (SPL).
Tecnifibre hopes Multifeel will appeal to
players currently using strings by other man-
ufacturers in the mid-price range, offering
quality in a string with 45 percent better
durability than the most popular perfor-mance synthetic strings, while introducing
them to a true Tecnifibre string, made
with its patented manufacturing process.
Multifeel is available in 16 (1.30 mm) in
natural only. It is priced from $9 per 40-foot
set, and $120 per 660-foot reel. For more
information or to order, contact Tecnifibre
at 877-332-0825, or visit www.tecnifibre
.com. Be sure to read the conclusion for
more information about getting a free set
to try for yourself.
IN THE LAB
The coil of 16-gauge Multifeel measured 40
feet 2 inches. The diameter measured 1.31-
1.32 mm prior to stringing, and 1.25-1.27
mm after stringing. We recorded a
stringbed stiffness of 71 RDC units immedi-
ately after stringing at 60 pounds in a Wil-
son Pro Staff 6.1 95 (16 x 18 pattern) on a
constant-pull machine.
After 24 hours (no playing), stringbed
stiffness measured 66 RDC units, represent-
ing a 7 percent tension loss. Our control
string, Prince Synthetic Gut Original Gold
16, measured 78 RDC units immediately
after stringing and 71 RDC units after 24
hours, representing a 9 percent tensionloss. Multifeel added 15 grams to the
weight of our unstrung frame.
The string was tested for five weeks
by 31 USRSA playtesters, with NTRP rat-
ings from 3.5 to 6.0. These are blind tests,
with playtesters receiving unmarked strings
in unmarked packages. Average number
of hours playtested was 25.3.
As noted by our playtesters, installing
Multifeel is comparable to working with
other strings. The SPL coating makes
weaving the crosses easier, without leavingexcess lubrication on your hands or equip-
ment. Blocked holes were no problem.
One playtester broke his sample during
stringing, five reported problems with coil
memory, none reported problems tying
knots, and one reported friction burn.
ON THE COURT
Tecnifibre strings are known for their com-
fortable playing characteristics, so it is not
a surprise that Multifeel scored highest in
Comfort with our playtest team, rankingseventh overall out of the 99 strings we
have playtested to date. Of the six strings
that ranked better than Multifeel, two
were other Tecnifibre strings (X-One
Biphasestill in first placeand 515 Gold
Prestretchedwhich is no longer avail-
able), and two were natural gut hybrids.
Multifeel is more than a comfortable
string, however, as it also ranks well above
average in Playability, Power, Control,
Touch/Feel, and Spin Potential. Thats
right, even though Multifeel is not
designed to be a power string, the mem-
bers of our playtest team felt as though
they were getting plenty of pop from this
test sample.
Playtesters using racquets with head
sizes above 98 square inches were slightly
more excited about Multifeels durability
than those using racquets with head sizes
98 square inches and less. On the other
hand, playtesters with the small head-size
racquets were wild about Multifeels other
characteristics.
Ten playtesters broke the sample dur-
EASE OF STRINGING(compared to other strings)
Number of testers who said it was:
much easier 1
somewhat easier 6
about as easy 18
not quite as easy 6
not nearly as easy 0
OVERALL PLAYABILITY
(compared to string played most often)Number of testers who said it was:
much better 1
somewhat better 6
about as playable 12
not quite as playable 7
not nearly as playable 4
OVERALL DURABILITY(compared to other strings
of similar gauge)
Number of testers who said it was:
much better 2
somewhat better 6
about as durable 11not quite as durable 10
not nearly as durable 1
RATING AVERAGESFrom 1 to 5 (best)
Playability 3.6
Durability 3.2
Power 3.4
Control 3.6
Comfort 3.8
Touch/Feel 3.6
Spin Potential 3.6
Holding Tension 3.2
Resistance to Movement 3.0
8/8/2019 200602 Racquet Sports Industry
21/60February 2006 RACQUET SPORTS INDUSTRY 19
This string plays really nice. It seems to be easy on my arm and I havemuch better than average control. The string doesn't last as long as my
usual string, but given the much better control I would be likely to use it
myself and offer it to my control-oriented players who don't have a problem
with string breakage. Overall, an excellent string. 4.0 male all-court player using Yonex RDX 500 MP strung at 63 poundsLO (Wilson Sensation 16)
I knew I would like this string when Ipulled it out of the package. It has the
look of a softer synthetic, but the dura-
bility of a less-forgiving string. While
there is more tension loss than expected,
it still plays better than others. This is a
good string for those hard on strings,
but still wanting to control the ball with
good feel. I highly recommend thisstring.5.0 male all-court player using Wilson
nSix-One 95 strung at 60 pounds LO
(Wilson NXT Tour 17)
Great string. It has a gut-like feel. Solid on volleys, able to hit moder-ate spin, great feel on groundstrokes. Really like the playability of this
string. I would consider using it regularly.4.5 male all-court player using Wilson n5 strung at 63 pounds LO (Wilson
Reaction 16)
I feel this is an excellent 16-gauge string, providing as good feel andcontrol as my normal 17-gauge string. I was concerned about the fraying on
the sweet spot, but it did not seem to effect playability or longevity.4.0 male all-court player using Head Flexpoint 6 strung at 62 pounds
CP (Gamma ESP 17)
I am impressed with this string's elasticity. It has a nice feel and is
easy on my arm. The string also has nice durability given its superiorfeel. I would rate this one of the better
strings I have playtested.4.5 male all-court player using Wilson H
Tour strung at 60 pounds CP (Wilson
NXT 15L)
This string has great playability. Itholds tension very well and I am able to
feel the ball coming off of the strings.
Power generation is easily accomplished
and not forced. The only downside tothis string is that it does not resist move-
ment well, and the strings fray very
quickly in the sweet spot. The bigger
concern for me is tension maintenance,
and here this string held up well.5.0 female baseliner with heavy spin using Prince Shark strung at 58
pounds CP (Dunlop Max Comfort 16)
Great playability string with huge spin potential. Durability wasdecent. Broke after five hours, but I usually break strings after three
or four hours. Overall, it is a pretty good, soft string.5.0 male all-court player using Wilson nSix-One 95 strung at 58pounds CP (Wilson Synthetic Gut 16)
For the rest of the tester comments, USRSA members can visit RacquetTECH.com.
Nice soft string.Excellent feel. Actually reminds me of
gut. Very easy string to work with. Excel-
lent ball control. Also like the sound of
the ball striking the string. Excellent con-
trol while volleying with this string."
5.0 male all-court player using Babolat Zylon
strung at 52/50 pounds CP (Various 16 or 17)
(Strings normally used by testers are indicated in parentheses.)
bre Multifeel. Comparing the results of Multifeel playtest
against those of some of its best-selling competitors
shows that Multifeel is equal to or better than others in
its price range, especially in the Comfort category.
Multifeels strong showing among playtesters using
racquets with head sizes of 98 square inches and less,indicates that it might be a great starter string to
introduce a player to Tecnifibre strings, perhaps later
moving them to NRG2 or X-One Biphase.
This does not mean that players with larger racquets
are left out, though, as playtesters with these racquets
appreciated the playability, control, comfort, and spin
potential, and Multifeels dynamic response might be
good for taming the power in an over-size racquet with-
out resorting to the higher tensions that can sometimes
aggravate arm problems.
If you think that Tecnifibre Multifeel might be for
you, fill out the coupon to get a free set to try.
Greg Raven Q
FREE PLAYTEST STRING PROGRAMTecnifibre has generously offered to send a free set of Multifeel 16
to USRSA members who request it.To get your free set, just cut out (or copy) this coupon and mail it to:
USRSA, Attn: Tecnifibre Multifeel 16 String Offer,
330 Main Street, Vista, CA 92084or fax to 760-536-1171
Offer expires February 15th, 2006One set of free string per USRSA membership
Offer only available to USRSA members in the USFREE! Tecnifibre Multifeel 16!
Offer expires February 15th 2006Name:
USRSA Member number:
Phone:
Email:If you print your email clearly, we will notify you when your sample will be sent.
TESTERS TALK
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To: Partners for Profitable Growth
The Tennis Industry Association, formerly known as the American Ten-nis Industry Federation, has a more than 30-year history. But I hope
you can see and feel the progress all of our combined efforts have
made during the past few years. In 2005, total participation went up
over 1 million players, frequent players have increased for two straight
years with a 14 percent growth, and equipment sales are growing, too.
I am proud of what wehave accomplished. And, to top this off, in an SGMA study, tennis
is the only traditional sport to show growth in the past six years!
The words abovepartners for profitable growthare really the foundation for our goals.
We are looking at all ways to make the many partners in our sport grow their profitabili-
ty through many TIA tools, services, and programs.
In this special section, you will learn about many of the things we are doing. More impor-
tant, there are many TIA tools or services that will increase the profitability of retailers,facility operators, manufacturers, etc.
While the TIA is considered the research source
in tennis research, weve developed many new prod-
ucts and services that will increase profitability for
many of you quickly! For anyone who pays credit-
card processing fees, you have to look at TIA Mer-
chant Card Services on page 32. Doing any shipping?
The TIA has lined up great discounts with freight com-
panies through our TIA Freight Savings program on
page 32. If you operate a tennis facility, you have to
look at TIA TennisConnect.org on page 29. This soft-
ware package is the best way to service your players
or members.
And, of course, theres the research. We offer a ton
of research to guide your business. For Tennis Retail-
ers or Facility Operators, wouldnt it be great to know
how your peers are running their business compared
to yours? Look on page 30 for more information. And
we offer multiple research projects with both retailers
and consumers.
Finally, one of the key things we focus on to grow
everyones profitability is to increase tennis participa-
tion. We are continuing our momentum on key grow
the game initiatives, Tennis Welcome Centers and
the new Cardio Tennis. Both these programs are pro-
ducing results.
Please take time to read through this section and
see how the TIAs products and services can help you.
And thanks for being a great part of our sport.
Jim Baugh
TIA President
Lets Grow This Business!
CONTENTS
23 The TennisCampaign
26 Cardio Tennis
28 TennisWelcome
Centers28 Growing
Tennis 50/50
29 TennisConnect
30 MarketResearch
32 EconomicLeverage
33 Online Access
34 Support YourIndustry
35 Benefits ofMembership
36 Join Today!
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Steve Bellamy
The Tennis Channel
Dave Bone
USRSAMax Brownlee
Babolat
Kevin Callanan
International Management Group
Rick Devereux
IHRSA
Brian Dillman
Wilson Sporting Goods
Steve Dunlap
The Sports Authority
Doug Fonte
Prince Sports Group
Don Galliers
SportMaster
Chris Gaudreau
Racquet Koop
John Graham
DecoTurf
Dave Haggerty
HEAD/Penn Racquet Sports
Tim Heckler
U.S. Professional Tennis
Association
Kurt Kamperman
U.S. Tennis Association
Ilana Kloss
World TeamTennis
Debbie Mitchell
K-Swiss
Mike Wilson
Vlkl
Dale Queen
Your Serve Tennis
Dan Santorum
Professional Tennis Registry
Gene Scott
Tennis Week
Victor Taylor
ATP
John Welborn
Lee Tennis Products
Jeff Williams
Tennis Magazine
Steve Zalinski
Dunlop Sports Group Americas
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The past two years have been an incredibly productive
time for the tennis industry, as the Tennis Campaign
continues to help the game grow and help the com-
mercial success of the industry. Through the unified efforts of
many people and organizations, we're now seeing positive
resultsand growthin many areas of the sport.
The USTA, manufacturers, organizations, teaching pros,
retailers, tournament directors, and others have all come
together to support tennis through the creation and execution
of a variety of initiatives. All these programs are designed togenerate more interest in tennis, bring more people into the
game, retain them in the game, and, importantly, bring more
business to retail shops, tennis facilities, and to all parts of our
sport.
But there is still plenty of work to do for the Tennis Cam-
paign. If theres one thing the tennis industry has learned over
the years, its that, just like a tennis match, things change and
evolve constantly. Programs need to be reshaped, strategies
need to be refined, priorities need to be readjusted. The sport
is dynamic, and so is the industry that supports it.
Frequent PlayerIncrease LeadsGrowth in Many AreasResults from the massive 2005 Tennis Participation Survey
show that the number of total players has increased. But per-
haps more important for your business, the number of fre-
quent players has increased, too.
Frequent players, defined as those who play 21 times or
more a year, is at 5.2 million, up from 4.75 million the previ-
ous year, or almost 10 percent. Whats more, frequent play-
ers increased more than 14 percent in the past two years! The2005 survey lists the total number of players at 24.72 million,
up more than 1 million new players.
Our combined efforts over the past three years have real-
ly started to pay off, says TIA President Jim Baugh. It took
time to turn this sport around, but now we have added over
600,000 frequent players in the past two years. We realized
frequent players are a major driver to our sport. We have
also added 1 million total players in the past year, equipment
sales are up, dealer confidence is up, and the number of pro-
fessional tennis fans is up. Everything is starting to click. We
are on a good roll, and not just in one area.
The increase in frequent players is extremely important,
continues Baugh, because they are the heart of the recre-
ational market. They buy the equipment, book the lessons
and court time, and are our best and most vocal fans of the
sport.
Baugh says TIA research with former frequent players has
given the industry a roadmap to what will influence them to
recommit to tennis or increase their play. The positive influ-
ence of teaching pros cant be overlooked, he says. Players
who take lessons to improve their skills stay in the game.
And, they have so much influence on other parts of ourgame.
Also influencing frequent play, according to former fre-
quent players, is organized team and league events, which
help keep players engaged.
Cardio Tennis StartsCapturing a New MarketWhile tennis continues to grow through traditional programs
such as leagues, Tennis Welcome Centers, and expanded
parks program, Car-
dio Tennis isexpanding tennis in
a new market.
The largest
growth segment of
sport or recreational
activities is the fit-
ness areas, says
Baugh, referring to
activities such as
treadmills, elliptical
trainers, and spin-
ning, and to fitnesscenters such as
Curves. This seg-
ment is huge. There
are over 56 million
Americans engaged
in fitness activities
on a serious basis,
and it is growing.
Traditional sports as
a whole are not
growing. But, now
with Cardio Tennis,
B Y P E T E R F R A N C E S C O N IThe TIA and its industry partners are working to increase playerparticipation and retention for the benefit of all.
Moving ForwardMoving Forward
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we have a new way to play tennis and attack this fitness
market.
The creation of Cardio Tennis stems from research indi-
cating that many people view tennis more as a recreational
activity and less for fitness. In fact, TIA research shows that
only one in four non-tennis players see tennis as a fitness
activity. Cardio Tennis will attract the fitness-minded partici-pant to our game, says Baugh. And we know from early
results of the program that Cardio Tennis is also giving existing
players a new way to enjoy our sportwhile getting a great
workout, too. Cardio Tennis helps frequency of play as well.
The official consumer rollout of Cardio Tennis took place in
August at the US Open, with health and fitness expert Denise
Austin as the spokesperson. Cardio Tennis is a great way to
exercise, she says. You
dont really realize that an
hour has gone by and
youve just had a great fat-
burning workout. And
youre improving your ten-
nis skills, too.
The TIA, in developing
the program, sought teach-
ing pros with a knowledge
of tennis exercises. Car-
dio Tennis is really going
to revolutionize the game
because we can attract
people from the fitness
industry, says Dr. Sophie
Woorons, director of ten-
nis at Performance Tennis
at Brookstone Meadows in Anderson, S.C.
With Cardio, the goal is to get a participants heart pump-
ing between 65 percent and 85 percent of its maximum heart
rate. For a typical program, each pro will have six to eight par-
ticipants on court. Specific Cardio Tennis drills and exercises
last only minutes, then its on to the next sequence. Instructors
are encouraged to introduce their own drills to the lineup, too.
This program will constantly evolve and grow, says Baugh.
Throughout 2005, the TIA staff, including Cardio Tennis
Manager Michele Krause, and a Cardio Tennis Speakers Team
presented 25 workshops across the country to more than 900
tennis teachers, including training sessions and on-court
demonstrations.
Currently, 1,000 sites have signed up to be official CardioTennis locations. For more information, visit www.Partners.
CardioTennis.com.
Tennis in Public ParksOne key to the Tennis Campaign is buildingand rebuild-
ingtennis in the public parks. Research shows that parks
are by far the No. 1 place where Americans play tennis, fol-
lowed by play on courts at
schools and colleges. More
than 70 percent of all ten-
nis played in the U.S. is
played in public facilities.With this compelling
figure as the backdrop, the
USTA, in concert with the
National Recreation and
Park Association and other
groups, has orchestrated a
Tennis in the Parks Initia-
tive to enhance public ten-
nis facilities and improve
their program offerings.
The revitalization of ten-
nis in our public parks iscritical to the growth strategy for tennis, says Franklin R.
Johnson, USTA chairman of the board and president.
In 2005, the USTA provided resources to more than 1,300
public parks, investing at least $1.8 million in the initiative.
That USTA investment served as a catalyst for more than $10
million in additional funds raised in local communities to fund
public-park tennis projects.
Work continues in the public-park arena. Despite more
than two-thirds of all tennis being played on public facilities,
fully two-thirds of all teaching pros work in private or com-
mercial facilities.
Increasing the number of pros in parks is a key to increas-ing participation, says Kurt Kamperman, the USTAs chief
executive of Community Tennis. Were working closely with
the NRPA to put more pros into public parks.
Tennis Welcome CentersAs the Tennis Welcome Center program enters its third year,
it is indeed alive and well and welcoming more and more peo-
ple to tennis. The initiative, started in 2003, was the largest
grassroots effort ever launched in the sport.
The TWC initiative came about through the combined
efforts of the TIA, USTA, teaching professionals, and many
other industry partners. Industry support and exposure (on
TENNIS IS GROWING WHILE OTHER TRADITIONALSPORTS STRUGGLE
SGMA research showing the net participation % change from 1998-2004
Activity % Change Activity % Change
Badminton - 35 Ice Skating - 21
Baseball - 21 Racquetball - 46
Basketball - 19 Roller Skating - 25
Bicycling - 5 Skiing - 15
Camping - 2 Soccer - 12
Fishing - 14 Softball - 23
Football* - 31 Swimming** + 1
Golf - 14 Tennis + 8
Hunting - 9 Volleyball - 17
Ice Hockey - 31* touch; other forms not tracked in 1998 **Statistically insignificant change
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What the
Industry is
Saying About The
Tennis Campaign
Never have the
major associa-tions within the
industry worked
together as they
are now. Relation-
ships that were
once adversarial are now har-
monious and mutually benefi-
cial.
Franklin Johnson,
Chairman of the Board and
President, USTA
Most indicators
point to a resur-gence in tennis
right now, thanks
in part to industry-
wide cooperation.
Recent tennis ini-
tiatives like Tennis in the
Parks, Cardio Tennis, Tennis
Welcome Centers, and the
TSRs should continue to
increase participation num-
bers.
Dan Santorum,
Professional Tennis Registry
Tennis gained
more than 1 mil-
lion players last
year. This is proof
that the tennis
campaigncoordi-
nated through the
TIAis working, and it is
great news for everyone in
tennis.
Tim Heckler,
U.S. Professional Tennis Asso-
ciation
The TIA is the
glue that keeps
everyone working
together on the
tennis campaign.
From the recent
good news in the
industry, its clear that were
moving in the right direction
for our sport.
Dave Haggerty,
HEAD/Penn Racquet Sports
racquet hangtags, tennis ball cans, shoe box
inserts, etc., along with signage at the US
Open and US Open Series) has resulted in a
record number of hits on
www.TennisWelcomeCenter.com during
2005.
Consumers go to the TWC website, input
their ZIP code, and find facilities and parks intheir area that offer introductory tennis pro-
gramming where they can easily Learn to
Play Tennis . . . Fast! A toll-free nationwide
customer-service telephone line was added in
2005, too.
The website underwent a number of
improvements and enhancements that have
made it easier for consumers to find the infor-
mation they need and for facilities and parks
to disseminate pertinent details. For instance,
in addition to basic information about a TWC
location and details on introductory pro-grams, the TWC has the opportunity to pro-
vide information on all its programs,
appealing not just to beginners, but to all
players as well. The website also allows for
feedback on programs to be sent to the
TWCs.
The Tennis Welcome Center renewal
process for 2006, with new benefits and fea-
tures, is already under way. For information,
visit www.Partners.TennisWelcomeCenter.com.
TSRs: A SalesForce for TennisNew to the Tennis Campaign is the Tennis
Service Representative program. Serving as a
national sales force for tennis, TSRs are
being hired by the USTA sections, with sup-
port from the USTA national office, to assess
the tennis needs of communities and to help
people to do their jobs in the most efficient
way possible, says Mark McMahon, who is
the USTAs new national manager for the
TSRs.
As of January, nearly 70 TSRs had been
hired by the 17 USTA sections and charged
with helping to connect local tennis providers
with resources to grow the game at the grass-
roots level. The number of TSRs will vary
depending on the needs of the sectionslarg-
er sections generally will have more TSRs.
The TSRs will be supported by a combina-
tion of USTA national and section funding andwill report to their own sections. The national
USTA office has committed $12 million over
the next three years to the program, says the
USTAs Kamperman.
Raising TennisAwarenessHow do you elevate tennis in the recreational
choices that people have? Thats the key
question that the TIA and many others in this
business are working to answer.The visibility of the sport continues to
receive a huge boost through advertisements
on TV and in publications. Special sections on
the health benefits of tennis were inserted
into a dozen different consumer magazines in
2005, and increased TV coverage of both the
US Open Series of summer pro tournaments
(more than 200 hours broadcast) and the US
Open itself (more than 140 hours) brought
the sport to millions of viewers.
Expect to hear more about USTA Junior
Team Tennis (formerly called USA Team Ten-nis for Youth). Were going to reposition
Team Tennis, to elevate the program to true
league status to increase participation
among young players, says Kathy Francis, the
USTAs managing director of marketing for
Community Tennis. Also being targeted by
industry initiatives in 2006 will be the approx-
imately 28 million lapsed players in the U.S.
The TIA is very fortunate to have the
USTA as our main partner, says TIA Execu-
tive Director Jolyn de Boer. Wilson, Head,
and Prince are the major TIA Participating
Partners, along with Babolat, Vlkl, and other
leading manufacturers who are contributing a
percentage of their sales to help fund our
efforts. Nearly 80 percent of TIA revenue
goes directly back into grassroots programs
and industry research. We applaud their com-
mitment to our sport!
Through the united efforts of all the orga-
nizations and companies involved in tennis,
the sport is gaining in visibility and aware-
ness. If the recent past is any guide, that
should translate into greater participation.
It seems these industry initiatives may be
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Cardio Tennis is sweeping the nation. Approximately
1,000 facilities in the U.S. have made themselves Car-
dio Tennis sites, offering this new form of tennis that
keeps the heart rate up, the feet mov-
ing, and the calories disappearing.
With 5- to 10-minute warm-up
and cool-down phases, the sub-
stance of the workout is 30 to 50 min-
utes of drill- and play-based exercisesdesigned to keep each players heart rate in an elevated yet
healthy range. Cardio Tennis is all about variety, and thats
what I love about it, says Cardio Tennis spokesperson and fit-
ness guru Denise Austin (below), who participated in the
unveiling of the program at the 2005 US Open.
And while improving the health of the nation, the program
will have the same effect on the health of the game. Were
going to grow the game with Cardio Tennis, says TIA Presi-
dent Jim Baugh. There are 56 million people in America that
are involved with fitness activities found in health clubs and
fitness classes on a frequent basis. If we just attract 1 percent
of those people to Cardio Tennis, we willincrease tennis frequent player base by
over 10 percent.
Cardio Tennis has something for
everyone, and players of all ability lev-
els can share the court. Greg Moran,
director of tennis at the Four Seasons
Racquet Club in Wilton, Conn., says his
Cardio Tennis classes have attracted
existing and new players, and have
brought former players back. And,
he says, the programs official web-
site, www.CardioTennis.com,
has been helping drive
business. By simply
entering their ZIP
Code on the
website, players
can find Cardio
Tennis classes at
facil it ies near them.
Weve got new people com-
ing to the club, says Moran.
We get several responses
each week from area
towns.
Meadow Creek Tennis and Fitness in Lakewood, Colo., cur-
rently offers five Cardio Tennis classes a week. Its bringing
a nice, healthy, younger group into the club, people who are
coming into their own and will
probably be tennis players for a
long time, says club owner Adam
Kahn. Its really hitting the audience
we want it to hit. People are really enjoy-
ing the workout that theyre getting.Cardio Tennis also is making money for pros and facilities.
David Oom, the director of tennis of the new, six-court MVP
Sportsplex in Grand Rapids, Mich., says his Cardio Tennis pro-
gram is on track to bring in about $40,000 to $45,000 in rev-
enue in the first year.
We started Cardio Tennis when the club opened in March
2005, with 16 participants in two classes, Oom says. By Jan-
uary, we had about 75 people in seven classes, and we expect
well have about 100 participants by March 2006. Oom
charges $15 per person per class and utilizes a lot of live-ball
drills and competitive games.
Oom credits word of mouth, along with a club staff that isknowledgeable about the program, as the main reasons peo-
ple have signed on to Cardio Tennis. Right now, Cardio Ten-
With the official launch of Cardio Tennis, opportunities forheart-pumping fitness on the courts abound across the U.S.
Getting to the HeaGetting to the Hea
B Y K R I S T E N D A L E Y
Survey Says: Cardio Tennis Is
A Hit With Sites and ParticipantsRecent survey results of Cardio Tennis participants and sites
show extremely positive reactions to Cardio Tennis. More
than 250 Cardio Tennis sites responded to a 50-question
survey. Highlights include these findings:
Q Sites with Cardio Tennis for at least 3 months have doubledtheir participant rates.
Q 61 percent of all sites say they will expand their program
offering in 2006.Q The average facility indicates Cardio Tennis has expanded
their revenues by 10 percent.
Q 92 percent of all sites will continue with Cardio Tennis in2006.
Q 60 percent of participants say Cardio Tennis is a betterworkout than their normal fitness routine (26 percent say it
is about the same).
Q 85 percent say Cardio Tennis is more fun than their normalfitness activity (15 percent say Cardio Tennis is the same).
Q 80 percent say Cardio Tennis is a better workout than tradi-tional tennis.
Q 92 percent