200601 racquet sports industry
TRANSCRIPT
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January 2006
Volume 34 Number 1 $5.00 2006 USRSASTRING SURVEY
Our exclusive rankings, and
handy poster, will help you and your customers pick the right strings
2006 USRSASTRING SURVEY
Our exclusive rankings, and
handy poster, will help you and your customers pick the right strings
FACILITY OF THE
YEAR AWARDSSPRING WARM-UPS
SHOULD YOUR FACILITYHAVE A DEFIBRILLATOR?
THE INCH THATCHANGED TENNIS
BREAK THE CHAIN INCOURT FENCING
FACILITY OF THE
YEAR AWARDSSPRING WARM-UPS
SHOULD YOUR FACILITYHAVE A DEFIBRILLATOR?
THE INCH THATCHANGED TENNIS
BREAK THE CHAIN INCOURT FENCING
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he latest findings of the annual Tennis Participation Study
show that 24.7 million Americans are playing tennis, the
most since 1992 and an increase of 1.1 million players, or
4.1 percent, versus 2004. And possibly more important for ten-
nis retailers and facilities, the study found that the number of fre-
quent players is up 8.8 percent from a year ago, to 5.2 million.
The boost in tennis participation is the latest in a string of
good news for the sport that includes increases in racquet and
ball sales and increases in viewership of tennis on TV.
Industry watchers were quick to praise the efforts of many
groups involved in tennis for coming together to help boost par-
ticipation in the U.S. “The collaborative efforts across the entireindustry are growing the game and positioning tennis for further
growth,” says Kurt Kamperman, the USTA’s chief executive of
Community Tennis.
“With all of the tennis constituents—includ-
ing manufacturers, retailers, teaching profes-
sionals, the TIA, and the USTA—focused on a
single goal, the sport is growing,” adds Jim
Baugh, president of the Tennis Industry Associ-
ation.
This is the fourth year of the massive Tennis
Participation Study, sponsored by both the TIA
and the USTA. More than 25,500 American
households were contacted for the study,
which is designed to quantify tennis par-
ticipation throughout the U.S. and to
identify opportunities to increase partici-
pation. The study, conducted by two
independent firms, The Taylor Research
& Consulting Group and Sports Marketing
Surveys, is the largest participation sur-
vey in sports.
For retailers and facility
managers, the increase in fre-
quent players is particularly
good news, since frequent
players—defined as those
who play 21 or more times a
year—are often described as
the “heart of the tennis mar-
ket.” These are the players,
says Baugh, who spend the
most on equipment, string-
ing, court time, lessons, etc.Going hand-in-hand with
the rise in frequent players is
an increase in the frequency
of play, called “total play
occasions,” which is driven
by the most avid tenins players. Total play occasion
rose 14 percent in 2005 and was up 23 percent ove
the past two years.
And in other good news for the industry, player retention ha
improved over the last two years, with 80 percent of players con
tinuing with the sport in 2005 versus 74 percent in 2004.
“We are seeing healthy indicators across the board in thsport as more people play tennis, more racquets are purchased
and more interest develops in the game,” says Baugh.
Many credit heavy investment by the USTA
in both initiatives to grow the game and in expo
sure for the sport as keys to the increase in par
ticipation. The USTA has funded, and continue
to fund, initiatives such as Tennis in the Parks
Tennis Welcome Centers, USTA League Tennis
and school and college tennis, along with majo
advertising campaigns for recreational and pro
fessional tennis, such as the US Open and U
Open Series.
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 J A N 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
TKey Findings o
the 2005 StudyQ 24.7 million America
are playing tennis, thmost since 1992 and4.1 percent increase 2004.
Q 5.8 million new playepicked up the game i2005.
Q There were 5.2 milliofrequent players in 2versus 4.7 million in2004.
Q Total play occasions wup 14 percent in 200the second straight ythe category increase
Q Player retention also
improved for the secstraight year, with 80cent of players continin the sport in 2005, sus 74 percent in 200
Racquets Sales Are UpQ Sales of junior racquets increased
20 percent in 2005, while sales of adult frames were up 14 percent.
Q Over the past two years, racquetshipments are up 29 percent inunits and 18 percent in dollars.
Q Premium racquet sales increased48 percent in 2005.
Tennis Participation Increases by 1.1 Million
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J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 6
I N D U S T R Y N E W
S
Wilson W6 Racquet Named“Editor’s Choice” by Tennis
Wilson’s new W6 racquet, designed specifically
for women, was named an “Editor’s Choice” in the
November/December 2005 issue of Tennis magazine.
The W6 is part of the new W line and uses Wilson’s nCode
technonogy.
Wilson says the nine racquets in its W line are engi-
neered to enhance a woman’s game with a unique con-
struction for increased power,
strength, and con-
trol and added
comfort fea-
tures. W rac-
quets have an
oval head shape
with longer main strings
for a larger sweetspot and a
new throat design offering greaterstrength and stability, the company says. The
racquets also feature distinctive cosmetics.
The nCode technology uses nano-sized silicon diox-
ide crystals to permeate the voids between carbon fibers in
the frame, resulting in added stability, strength, and power,
says Wilson. For every purchase from the W line, Wilson
makes a donation to the Breast Cancer Research
Foundation.
TTC Open Moves to Las Vegas
The 2006 Tennis Chan-
nel Open, a men’s
ATP pro event that
starts the week of Feb. 27,
will move to Las Vegas.
The tournament, founded in 1986, had been held in Scottsdale
Ariz. The move to Las Vegas marks the return of top-level pro
tennis to the region after a two-decade absence. Andy Roddick
has commtted to play the event.
The Tennis Channel Open will take place at the new Darling
Memorial Tennis Center, which features a 40-acre complex
with 23 courts, among them a 2,400-seat stadium court tha
will expand via bleachers to a 3,000-3,500 capacity during the
event. The grounds also include space for two additional
smaller stadium courts, which are currently being planned.
“The vision is to create a sort of ‘tennispalooza,’ an annua
tennis destination with tournament action and other tennis
related entertainment activities, and televise the heck out o
it,” says TTC Founder and President Steve Bellamy. “Las Vega
is providing resources and efforts toward this end, and after an
exhaustive selection process we’ve decided that the city pres
ents the best opportunity to build something spectacular tha
people are going to travel to experience each year.”
The Tennis Channel, which purchased the tournament from
IMG in February, says it plans to expand the event into a mul
tifaceted gathering unique to the tennis and sports-venue cal
endars. Plans currently entail an annual, 10-day event with
men’s, women’s, and juniors tournaments, surrounded by
ancillary events that center on tennis and the lifestyle of its
enthusiasts. This in turn would be supported by a number o
entertainment offshoots, including other sports events, the TTCsaid in a statement.
Dunlop Has New Management
Dunlop Sports has combined the ownership of the Dunlop
brand and the management of the Dunlop business. The
new arrangement, under London-based Sports World
Group Ltd., consolidates former licensing agreements into the
new Dunlop structure.
Dunlop, now operating as a fully integrated business, will
centralize its U.S. and Canadian racquet sports and golf units
under new management in Greenville, S.C. The new structure
will distribute product from its new Greenville and Ontario,
Canada, warehouses.
Dunlop Sports in
North America will
be known as Dun-lop Sports Group,
Americas (DSGA)
and will be led by Vice President and General Manager Robert
Sameski and Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Ken
Daiss. Rounding out Dunlop’s leadership team are Steven
Zalinski, Dunlop’s director of sales–racquet sports; Chuck Pee-
bles, director of sales–Canada; Stephen Hall, director of mar-
keting–racquet sports; and Paul Balfour, director of
sales–national accounts and special markets.
New contact information for Dunlop Sports Group,
Americas is: 116 South Pleasantburg Drive, Greenville, SC
29607; phone 800-768-4727, fax 800-766-8379.
PTR Members to ReceiveEmail Publications Free
Starting Jan. 1, full PTR members will receive Bob Lar-
son’s Daily Tennis and Tennis Celebs for free. Regular sub-
scriptions to the two publications would normally total
$144.
Daily Tennis, covering tennis news with sections such as
Tennis Business News, Pro Tour News, College News, and
Classified Ads, is delivered every business day via email.
Tennis Celebs is a weekly e-publication that reports on all the
big names in the game, including an Appearing Soon sec-
tion that lets readers know where their favorite players can
be spotted in exhibitions, clinics, or pro-ams.
“With Daily Tennis and Tennis Celebs, PTR members will
have the most current information available in the indus-
try,” says PTR CEO Dan Santorum. “I believe that these will
help PTR members be better tennis teachers.”
For more information on the publications, visit www.
dailytennis.com.
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I N D U S T R Y N E W
Prince Introduces T9 Roadster Tennis Shoe
The new Prince T9 Roadster tennis shoe features
advanced moisture-wicking and quick-drying technolo-
gies to help keep players’ feet dry, says Prince Sports.
“The T9 combines an aggressive new look with
advanced wick-away technology for a lightweight
performance shoe that makes the play-
er look as cool as their feet feel,”
says James Lin, product manager
at Prince. “The Roadster is avail-
able in adult and junior sizes for
the player that appreciates a
lightweight performance shoe that
does not require a break-in period.”
The T9 Roadster is part of Prince’s
T-Series designed with a combination
of breathable synthetics and AIRmesh,
featuring forefoot lock-down overlays to
ensure stable footing, says the compa-
ny. The T9 was constructed for players seeking speed and agility on the court, with
the added benefit of a moisture-wicking, moisture-management system for comfort.
The shoe is available in men’s, women’s, and junior sizes and comes in two color-
ways for each gender. The adult shoes feature the PRC 1000 outsole compound that
provides a six-month outsole wear guarantee. Visit www.princesports.com for more
information.
PTR Launches PTR on Campus
T
he PTR has launched a new program to encourage college students to consider a
career in tennis teaching and coaching. PTR on Campus makes PTR certification
and membership available and affordable to full-time college students who areplaying for their school, are competing in USA Team Tennis on Campus, are majoring
in recreation, or who were high school tennis players with 4.0 NTRP.
A PTR on Campus Workshop was tested last year with the University of Wash-
ington women’s tennis team’s players, coaches, and former players and is now
rolling out nationwide. PTR on Campus will run from September through June and
be held at various universities around the country, including, Alcorn State, Brigham
Young, Colorado, Furman, Harvard, Ouachita Baptist, South Alabama, and South
Carolina State. More colleges and universities are being considered and added to
the program every week.
“There is a big void in the number of younger people teaching tennis today,” says
Dan Santorum, PTR’s CEO. “PTR on Campus addresses this issue and will help
ensure a younger generation of tennis teaching professionals will continue to growthe game.”
In an effort to grow the game, college students are offered the opportunity to
learn to teach tennis, obtain liability insurance, and maintain PTR membership at
prices most students can afford. In exchange, students are asked to give back to
their communities by providing 10 hours of free tennis lessons.
Through the education provided by the PTR on Campus program, students who
teach tennis can help pay their tuition, supplement their income, or save for the
future. In addition, they will be prepared for a full or part-time career in tennis if
they choose.
For further information regarding specific places and dates, college student dis-
counts, or to host a PTR on Campus Workshop, contact PTR Director of Develop-
ment Geoff Norton at 800-421-6289 or 843-785-7244 or email [email protected].
Sports InterActive GivesRetailers Web Store
Sports Inter-
Active is
helping deal-
ers create “an
effective websitestrategy, which
will dramatically
increase their
business,” says
founder Her b
Sweren, a former
Prince executive.
Sports InterActive is a web develop
ment and e-marketing company tha
among other things, provides tenni
clubs, pro shops, and specialty retailer
with online sales capabilities through an
“Online Tennis Mall.” Only dealers with
a retail storefront qualify for the Onlin
Mall component, and dealers receive
20 percent net margin for every sale on
the online mall. Order fulfillment is pro
vided by Fromuth Tennis.
“Most people agree that online sale
have become more of a traditional reta
outlet, so retailers have to find a way t
compete with that,” says Sweren. “Wit
Sports InterActive, anyone with a seri
ous tennis business now has everythin
needed to truly harness the commercia
power of the internet.”
Sports InterActive sites are powere
by the TIA’s TennisConnect.org sof
ware. A subscription to the Sports Inter
Active Premium SI Package for $89
month or the Specialty Dealer packag
for $79 a month will also include Ten
nisConnect.org, which allows facilitie
to create and manage their own web
sites, stay in touch with their members
schedule court time, match player
online, and more.Dealers purchasing a Sports InterAc
tive website become members of th
TIA and gain access to other benefit
offered to TIA members. For more infor
mation on Sports InterActive, contac
Sweren at 410-358-1304 or ema
[email protected], or vis
www.sports-interactive.net.
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I N D U S T R Y N E W S
USPTA Installs NewNational Board of Directors
Ron Woods, the former executivedirector of the USPTA Texas Divi-sion, is the new
president of the USPTA’snational board of direc-tors. Woods, along withother national boardmembers, were installedduring the 78th USPTAWorld Conference onTennis, held in Septem-ber in Marco Island, Fla.
The new board will serve until Sep-tember 2007. In addition to Woods, theboard is comprised of: First Vice Presi-dent—Harry Gilbert; Vice Presidents—Tom Daglis, Randy Mattingley, PaulaScheb, and Mark Fairchilds; Secretary-Treasurer—Tom McGraw; Past Presi-dent—David T. Porter.
The board manages the USPTA’saffairs between meetings of the largerUSPTA executive committee, whichincludes the board, three past nationalpresidents and elected leaders fromeach of USPTA’s 17 domestic divisions.Board members are nominated by acommittee comprised of executive com-mittee members, and may be individu-ally opposed in a general membership
election.
Andy RoddickCalendar Hits ShelvesFor die-hard Andy Roddick fans, thenew 2006 Andy Roddick Calendar isavailable, featuring the tennis star infull-color, glossy photos on courtsthroughout the world. The calendar,
which retails for $13.99, will be dis-tributed worldwide through majorbookstores, office supply stores, andcalendar and gift stores, as well asonline at www.jfturner.com andwww.andyroddick.com.
• Mike Levy is the new chief marketing officer at
the International Tennis Hall of Fame. He joins the Hall of Fame
from the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies, where he was senior vice president
of sales and marketing.
• Prince Sports has promoted Matthew Haley to regional vice president of
the Southern Region.
• For the second time in three years, brothers Bob and Mike Bryan finished
the year as the No. 1 doubles team on the ATP circuit. The Bryans, who won
the 2005 US Open doubles championship, have captured at least five titles a
year for four straight years. They’ve won 26 career titles together.
• Malaysian squash star Nicol David (above) won the British Open in October, less than two
weeks after signing with Prince Sports and switching to Prince’s O3 Tour squash racquet.
• Florida's Diana Srebrovic and UCLA's Ben Kohlloeffel captured the singles titles at the Inte
legiate Tennis Association National Indoor Championships at the Racquet Club of Columbus
Ohio. Collecting the doubles titles were Ohio State's Scott Green and Ross Wilson and Stan
ford's Alice Barnes and Anne Yelsey.
• Americans Chase Buchanan of Columbus, Ohio, and Brittany Augustine of El Segun-
do, Calif., overcame every challenge presented by fellow Head Team Elite members
at the second annual International Head Team Elite Cup held at the Sanchez-
Casal Academy in Barcelona, Spain. Both Buchanan and Augustine play
with the Head Flexpoint Radical MP. The International Head Team
Elite Cup brings together over 100 young tennis players
from more than 30 countries.
P E OP L EW A T C H
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J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 6I N D U S T R Y N E W S
Wilson to Distribute Luxilon Strings
Starting in 2006, Wilson Racquet Sports will bethe exclusive worldwide distributor of Luxilon
products. Belgium-based Luxilon makes monofil-
ament strings and other products. More than 800
tour pros use Luxilon, and it is the official string of the
ATP and WTA tours. Luxilon also is the official stringer
at several international events.
“Our partnership with Luxilon gives Wilson the
opportunity to leverage the strength of both brands
at retail,” says Brian Dillman, vice president of Wil-
son Racquet Sports. “Our extensive global distribu-
tion network through the Wilson and Amer Sports subsidiaries and distributors wil
play a major role in both companies’ future success.”
Luxilon products include strings for tennis, badminton, and squash. The compa
ny is the official stringer at the Nasdaq-100, China Open, Tennis Masters Cup, ATP
Junior Gold, and Luxilon Junior Cup.
In a statement, Wilson says the Luxilon string designations fit with Wilson’s cur-
rent strategic initiatives to increase its stringing presence at professional and ama-
teur tennis tournaments worldwide. In November, Wilson announced it will be the
official stringer at the US Open beginning in 2006.
The Luxilon portfolio includes high-tech string product lines such as Big Banger
which is used by more than 60 percent of the ATP Top 100 players and about 30 per-
cent of the WTA Top 100 players. Luxilon will continue to manage the string business
in brand strategy, promotions, and product development under the direction of Bob
Daelmans.
For more information, visit www.wilson.com.
Classic Turf Offers“4 Days to Playability”
Classic Turf Co.’s recent court
installation in Atlanta demon-
strates what company Founder
and President Tumer H. Eren says
is his product’s “four days toplayability.”
“The prefabricated Classic Turf
surface can be put down in four
days,” says Eren. “Weather permit-
ting, if you start an installation on
Monday, you’ll be applying the lines
on Thursday afternoon, and the
court will be ready for play on Fri-
day morning.”
Classic Turf recently was used
for the rooftop court at the Waverly
luxury condominiums in Miami.For the Atlanta installation in Sep-
tember, Eren says that once the
cracks in the original court were
filled and the uneven spots were
leveled, the cushioned Classic Turf
rubber mat was glued to the base
on Monday. Joints were scraped
and leveled on Tuesday, and the
first coat of acrylic was put down.
Color coating was applied on
Wednesday and Thursday, along
with the playing lines.
“The Classic Turf technology
allows the contractor to install the
3/8-inch prefabricated Classic Turf
System over the new or prepared
surface in four days, making the
tennis court playable,” says Eren.
“This technology saves a lot of time
for the contractor and the owner.”
Those interested in seeing a step-
by-step installation should visit
www.classicturf.org.
The patented rubber cushion
surface, which reduces joint stressfor players, is waterproof and
breathable, Eren says, and speed of
play can easily be adjusted and cus-
tomized to suit the customer.
“We’ve installed more than 3.5 mil-
lion square feet of Classic Turf
worldwide,” says Eren. “And we
guarantee that the surface won’t
crack.”
For more information, contact
Classic Turf at 800-246-7951 or
LaserFibre Offers New Line of Grips and Overgrips
LaserFibre reports fast growth in sales of its new TourFit TwinTone grips. Tim Sulli
van of LaserFibre says the TwinTone has been “outselling conventional grips at th
rate of 4 to 1,” with customers even removing stock grips from newly purchased
frames to install a matching TwinTone grip.
TwinTone is available in 16 color combinations, to
match and accent the racquet cosmetics. Not only can
teams and leagues match colors, the grip itself featuresa patented stitched, hidden hem that combines two
grips, providing added strength and a new comfortable
feel and texture than a conventional grip, says the
company.
Also new in LaserFibre’s line of grips is the Pro
Stock Series, a premium performance grip designed to
provide comfort, moisture absorption, and extra shock
absorption. And the TourFit Series of replacement
grips and overgrips is designed to enhance feel for the
contours of the racquet handle.
Both the TourFit and Pro Stock series feature Laser-
Fibre’s Advanced HydroTac Technology, which thecompany says creates millions of micro pores in the
polyurethane grip surface and utilizes moisture to
increase the tackiness of the grip. “The more a person perspires, the more the grip
grips back,” says the company, adding that the design also allows for quick evapora
tion of excess perspiration.
Suggested retail prices for Pro Stock grips is $8.99; for TourFit TwinTone grips
$9.99; for TourFit grips, $7.99; and for TourFit overgrips, $5.99. For more informa
tion call 888-895-2350 or visit www.laserfibre.com.
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I N D U S T RY N E W
Tennis Service RepsSpread Across the U.S.
The new Tennis Service Repre-
sentative program got off to a
fast start in the fall. As of mid-
November, nearly 50 TSRs had been
hired by the USTA sections.
The Tennis Service Reps areunder the direction of Mark McMa-
hon, the USTA’s new national man-
ag er for TSRs, and wil l be a
“national sales force for tennis.”
The idea is for the TSRs to be well-
versed in programs and resources
available, so they can then assist
local providers in growing the game
at the grassroots level and increase
tennis participation.
To reach a TSR in your area,
contact your USTA section. Thenew TSRs, listed by section, are:
Caribbean: Carlos Torres, Cristina
Cruz
Eastern: Wayne Martin
Florida: Trina Singian, Matt Graham,
Rene Grifol, Kelly Tucker, Dede
Allen, Jeff Davis, Shelly Licorish-
Bynum, Janet Sprague, Susie Bessire,
Cheryl Rivera, Cathy Nordlund
Hawaii-Pacific: Madeleine Dreith
Intermountain: Susan Burke, David
Dunson, Chris Harris
Mid-Atlantic: Michelle Grover, Lynn
Gertzog, Susan Cook, Joe Wills,
Jamaane Jahi, Jamal Hicks
Middle States: Jeff Barger, Kelle Cun-
ningham, Justin DePietropaolo
Midwest: Steve Kakavetsis, Sue
Selke, Eric Nelson, Jim Amick
Missouri Valley: Jane Waterstradt,
Jodi Gordon, Connie Robertson, Dan
Bratetic, Laura Puryear
New England: Jeff Graham, Nakita
Zaharov
Northern: Hayley ShibleyNorthern California: TBD
Pacific Northwest: Gail Benzler,
Adam Rogers, Al Thomerson
Southern: Kevin Theos, Karen
Zuidema, Bill Dopp, Jason Miller, Bill
Phillips, Patrick Tibbs, Julie Oshiro-
Kenton
Southern California: Alison Roell,
Diane Brooks
Southwest: Gary Druckman
Texas: Eric Clay, Amanda Shaw,
Cindy Benzon, Laura Gilbert, Sal
Castillo, Simon Menchaca
Osborn Heads Up SalesDivision at Prince Sports
Charles Osborne is the new vice
president and USA national
sales manager for Prince
Sports, the company announced in
November.
Osborne will be responsible for
the national sales organization,
excluding key accounts. The region-
al vice presidents, with responsibil-
ity over the sales territories in the
West, North Central, and Southeast
regions, will report directly to him.
“Prince has had a great year,
from a sales and growth stand-
point, and Charlie has been an inte-
gral part of this since his arrival in
May,” says Prince Sports USA Pres-
ident Doug Fonte. “We look forward
to his continued success as he leads
the company in 2006 and beyond.”
Osborne joined Prince in May as
the regional vice president of the
North Central region, after nearly
20 years at Wilson Sporting Goods.
Squash Star FormsInitiative to Grow the Game
Canadian-born squash pro Jonathon Power
has formed a new squash marketing and
development initiative, SquashPower
(www.squashpower.com), to promote growth
in youth and adult squash. The newly
formed company’s mis-
sion is to edu-
cate, grow, and
empower the
squash community through educational pro-
grams, competitive growth, and player empow-
erment.
According to the World Squash Federation,
the game is played in more than 140 countries
by more than 20 million players. In the U.S.,
growth at the junior level has jumped 125 per-
cent over the past two years. Forbes Magazine
has rated the sport No. 1 for overall health andfitness. In Massachusetts, squash is one of the
fastest growing college and high school sports
of all time.
Jonathon Power has won 32 Professional
Squash Association Tour titles and is ranked as
the No. 2 player in the world. He is the most
successful squash player in North America.
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J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 6I N D U S T RY N E W S
Competitors Work Together to SolveCommunity’s Court Problems
The owners of the 100-condominium
Gran Liden Community in Sunapee,
N.H., needed help with their two hard
courts. They were in bad shape, with
cracks that kept coming back. Over the
life of the 35-year-old courts, the condo
owners and players had resorted to what
turned out to be short-term fixes. Now,
they wanted a permanent solution.
The community’s tennis players, all
over the age of 40, wanted a softer, more forgiving surface than hard courts
provided. Plus, they didn’t want to incur the costs and down time that might
come from tearing up the old asphalt and preparing the site.
“Clay was their first choice, but community members felt they weren’t
ready to invest in the equipment and annual maintenance costs that would be
required,” says Rick Burke of NGI Sports. “Also, they felt they would need to
add staff to continually work the clay to keep it playable.”Gran Liden turned to Arch Weathers of New England Rec Surfaces for help.
Weathers, who had worked on the community’s surfaces throughout the years,
contacted Bill Rompf, the tennis director at the International Tennis Hall of
Fame in Newport, R.I. A year earlier, the Hall of Fame had used a new prod-
uct, Nova’ProClay, to overlay an old asphalt court and provide a clay surface
for players.
Weathers thought Nova’ProClay was just what the Gran Liden players were
looking for. Even though the area licensee for the product was a local com-
petitor, John Lineberry of Lineberry Tennis, Weathers called him to discuss the
Gran Liden project. Then they both met with the community’s board of direc-
tors.
“We described the Nova’ProClay concept, which the board seemed to graspquickly,” says Weathers (above, right, with Lineberry). It was determined that
a thin, crushed-stone, pie-shaped overlay would be placed on top of the exist-
ing asphalt to decrease the slope and buffer the deteriorated surface. A light
sprinkler system would be installed. Then the Nova’ProClay base with 10 tons
of Har-Tru finish would be placed over the rock wedge.
“Now, they don’t need a roller, and there is no lengthy down time in wet
weather,” says Burke. “The courts are usable virtually year-round, and best of
all, they have a real clay court finish to play on.”
For more information, contact NGI Sports at 800-835-0033 or
[email protected], or visit www.novagrass.com.
Völkl Adds TwoFrames to BB Line
Völkl Sport America continues its newest
product line of frames designed by for-
mer champion Boris Becker with the
new BB1 and BB5 racquets, both available
Feb. 1. The frames join the previously
released BB10.
The BB1, weighing 9.0 ounces unstrung
is the lightest frame in the BB series. It also
has the largest head size, at 112 sq. in., andthe thickest beam width, at 29 mm., making
it the most powerful
racquet in the BB
range, says Völkl.
The company says
the racquet is ideal
for recreational
players 3.0 NTRP
and higher. Sug-
gested retail is
$160.
The new BB5combines an oversize
(105 sq. in .) wi th a
maneuverable swing
weight at a very afford-
able $130 suggested retail.
The frame, which weighs
9.4 ounces, also is for play-
ers at the 3.0 or higher
level.
For more information,
call 603-298-0314, email
[email protected], or visitwww.volkl.com.
PTR Symposium Feb. 18-24
The 2006 PTR International Tennis Symposium and $25,000 Championships
will be Feb. 18-24 on Hilton Head, S.C. The Symposium schedule includes
more than 40 presentations, a trade show, dinners, an awards
banquet, and more.
Register by Feb. 10 for $325 for PTR members,
$395 for nonmembers. After Feb. 10, it’s $375
and $425. Prices do not include Profession-
al Development Courses or tournaments
fees. The deadline for tournament entry
is Feb. 3. For more information or to
register, call 800-421-6289 or visitwww.ptrtennis.org.
New Flare-ItReshapes Grommets
Flare-It LLC introduces a product fo
grommet maintenance and repair that i
designed to “stop string damage before
it happens,” says the company. Flare-I
Grommet Wizard, which can be used on altypes of racquets, flares and re-shape
grommets to remove pressure points tha
can damage string. It also
wil l help keep newly
installed grommet strips
or individual repairs in
place. For USRSA mem-
bers, the introductory
price is $19.95 per unit.
Contact 502-329-7800 or
visit www.flare-it.com.
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> Prince Sports’ O3 Technology received the
Popular Science “Best of What’s New”
Award, which recognizes top new products
and technologies. Best of What's New
awards are presented to 100 new products
and technologies in 12 categories: Auto
Tech, Aviation & Space, Cars, Computing,Engineering, Gadgets, General Innovation,
Home Entertainment, Home Tech, Personal
Health, Photography and Recreation.
> Tecnifibre has a new partnership with
Bridgestone for its tennis ball business and
ball factory in Thailand. The new company,
Bridgestone-Tecnifibre, says it expects capac-
ity at the Thailand factory to double within
two years to reach 24 million balls.
> Ashaway Racket Strings has introduced its
new Racket Strings Catalog, highlightingmore than 40 different strings for tennis,
badminton, squash, and racquet-
ball. The catalog also introduces
Ashaway's new Power Filament
Technology, or PFT, for badminton,
a proprietary design that creates a
unique filament surface layer to reduce string
movement and increase durability. For a copy
of the catalog visit www.ashawayusa.com.
> Head has relaunched www.head.com
with a new, cleaner look. The site features a
racquet advisor and includes information ontouring pros and all Head new products.
> Former world No. 1 player Jim Courier and
his company, InsideOut Sports and Entertain-
ment, are launching the Champions Cup
Series, a collection of U.S. tennis events fea-
turing tennis greats over the age of 30.
Events are slated for Naples, Fla., March 9-
12; Boston, April 27-30; Memphis, Oct. 5-8;
and Houston, Nov. 9-12. Visit
www.insideoutlive for more information.
SHORT SETSI N D U S T R Y N E W
> The La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club in La
Jolla, Calif., will be the site of the 2006
Davis Cup first-round match between the
U.S. and Romania, Feb. 10-12. Three-day
series ticket prices range from $90 to
$375, with VIP packages available. Call
888-484-USTA.
> O2Athletics is the new Midwest sales
representatives for Reebok and Tecnifibre,
covering Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, Ken-
tucky, Ohio, Missouri, Kansas, Wisconsin,
Michigan and western Pennsylvania. It
also represents Viking Athletics. Contact
Dave Ohlmuller, 847-283-0247 or ohl-
> The USTA board of directors recently
approved an investment to help keep the
Pacific Life Open in the U.S. The USTA will join other investors, including Tennis-
magazine owners George Mackin and
Robert Miller, in a planned buyout of
IMG’s 50 percent interest in the tourna-
ment.
> The USPTA Texas Division’s Southwest
Tennis Buying Show will be Feb. 10-11 at
The Woodlands Marriott Hotel and Con-
vention Center, at The Woodlands, Texas.
> Mercedes-Benz and the ATP have
extended their sports marketing partner-
ship another three years, through 2008.
Mercedes-Benz started its partnership as
the Official Car of the ATP in 1996. The car
company provides transportation at many
of the ATP’s 64 tournaments in 31 countries.
> The first USTA National Husband &
Wife Senior and Super Senior Grass Court
Championships, sponsored by The Tennis
Channel and Campbell’s, will be at Mis-
sion Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage,
Calif., March 6-12.
Bälle de Mätch is Official Apparel of Copper Bowl
Southern California-based Bälle de Mätch is the official apparel of the Copper Bowl
junior tournament. The event takes place in Tucson, Ariz., in January and attracts
more than 1,000 juniors every year.
“We are proud to be associated with this event, which will give us tremendous vis-
ibility with the best kids of all age groups from all over the country,” says Bälle de
Mätch co-owner and partner John Embree. The Copper Bowl is a USTA-sanctioned
Level III tournament on the National Junior schedule and attracts ranked boys and
girls 12’s to 18’s from around the world.
Bälle de Mätch apparel will be worn by the staff of the Copper Bowl and will be sold
on-site. It is also the Official Team Uniform of the Texas Tennis Coaches Association,
the Official Apparel Supplier for Orange County Tennis Association. For more infor-
mation on Bälle de Mätch, call 800-356-1021.
Vegas to HostCardio TennisFeeding Shootout
T
he USPTA will conduct a new
nationwide competition to find th
best tennis ball feeders in theU.S. The competitions, to be
held at e ach
USPTA division
convention dur-
ing the coming
year, will feature
Ca rd io Tenn is
Feeding Shootouts
among members of the USPTA. The win
ner from each division will be eligible t
compete in the national Shootout at th
USPTA World Conference in Las Vegas iSeptember.
The competition will allow teachin
pros to demonstrate the accuracy an
speed of their feeds for 60 seconds. Pro
will be asked to feed tennis balls in
specific pattern to three targets set up a
a net. Each pro will feed balls from
teaching cart while standing behind th
middle of the baseline, and the objectiv
is to get as many balls as possible into
the targets in one minute.
The pro who feeds the most balls int
the targets will be declared the Divisio
Shootout Winner and will go on to com
pete in the National Shootout at th
2006 USPTA World Conference, which i
set for Sept. 16 to 23 in Las Vegas. Th
Division Feeding Shootout winners wi
receive two cases of Pro Penn tenni
balls and round-trip airfare to the Worl
Conference.
USPTA President Ron Woods, is excit
ed about the Feeding Shootout. “We se
the Feeding Shootout as a great way t
highlight the art of feeding and to con
tinue to elevate USPTA’s focus on th
growth of Cardio Tennis,” he says. “Com
petitors from all USPTA divisions will b
competing to be named the best feede
in America.”
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O U T S T A N D I N G F A C I L I T Y - O F - T H E - Y E A R A W A R D S
RSI and the ASBA bring you the best in tennis court construction.
We have again joined forces with the American Sports
Builders Association to bring you examples of excel-
lence in court construction.
Each year, based on entries submitted by an ASBA mem-
ber, whether a contractor, designer, or supplier, the associa-
tion selects outstanding tennis facilities that meet the
standard of excellence determined by the judging committee.
For the 2005 contest, 25 courts or tennis facilities were
deemed to be outstanding by the panel of judges. Two, how-
ever, were chosen for special honors: the Princeton Universi-
ty Tennis Complex in Princeton, N.J., was named the Tennis
Facility of the Year, and the indoor facility at Sunset Athletic
Club in Beaverton, Ore., was selected as the MultipurposeIndoor Facility of the Year.
The Princeton Tennis Complex, completed in July 2005,
added 15 new courts to the existing eight-court facility. The
new courts are in two groupings, one for faculty and alumni
use and the other for students. The student grouping is made
up of two court batteries of four and five courts, with a spec-
tator plaza between them. The faculty grouping is made
up of two three-court batteries, one of soft courts and
one of hard.
Between the two student batteries is a historic pavil-
ion that was relocated and reassembled from another
location on campus. The pavilion includes a water foun-
tain, emergency communications, and spectator areas
on two levels. The tight site conditions made it necessary
to use retaining walls rather than sloped landscaped
areas.
The Sunset Athletic Club indoor multipurpose facility
was an upgrade to the existing structure and included
three new indoor tennis courts, basketball courts, climb-ing wall, running track, and cardio and exercise rooms.
The high winter water table meant that an underground
drainage moat had to be built to direct water to a filter
and storage tube 4 feet in diameter and 400 feet long.
The project was completed in the winter of 2005.
—Peter Francesconi
Head of the Class
Princeton University TennisComplex, Princeton, N.J.Architect/Engineer: GLOBAL SPORTS & TENNISDESIGN GROUP, FAIR HAVEN, N.J.
Specialty Contractor: SPORTSLINE AND ALL STARTENNIS COURT CO.
Surface: CALIFORNIA PRODUCTS CORP.
Lighting: COURTSIDER SPORTS LIGHTING
Windscreens: J.A. CISSEL
Head of the Class
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For details of the 2006 Outstanding Tennis Facility Awards, contact the ASBA at 866-501-ASBA or
Q Chippewa Resort Tennis Facility, Manitowish
Waters, Wis. (Munson Inc.)Q Emory University Indoor Tennis Facility, Atlanta
(Lower Bros.)
Q Green Valley Country Club, Lafayette Hills, Pa.(Pro-Sport Construction)
Q Heathrow Country Estates Tennis Facility, Sorren-to, Fla. (Fast-Dry Cos.)
Q Lake Jovita Golf & Country Club, Dade City, Fla.(Welch Tennis Courts)
Q Lion’s Paw, Oakley, Utah (Welch Tennis Courts)
Q Oaks at Boca Raton Tennis Center, Boca Raton,Fla. (Welch Tennis Courts)
Q Ottawa Township High School, Ottawa, Ill.(Global Sports & Tennis Design Group)
Q Palencia Tennis Center, St. Augustine, Fla.(Welch Tennis Courts)
Q Residential Court, Gywnedd, Pa. (Pro-Sport Construction)
Q Residential Court, Harbour Island, Eleuthera,Bahamas (Fast-Dry Cos.)
Q Residential Court, Lemon Heights, Calif.(Zaino Tennis Courts)
Q Residential Court, Miami (Fast-Dry Cos.)
Q Residential Court, Norwell, Mass.(Boston Tennis Court Construction Co.)
Q River Oaks Country Club, Houston(Welch Tennis Courts)
Q Roxiticus Golf Club Tennis Facility, Mendham, N.J.(The Racquet Shop)
Q Sacred Heart Schools Tennis Facility, Atherton,Calif. (Beals Alliance Inc.)
Q Sandhills Community College Athletic Complex,Pinehurst, N.C. (Court One)
Q Sebastian Municipal Park Tennis Facility, Sebast-ian, Fla. (Fast-Dry Cos.)
Q St. George’s Senior Boys’ School, Vancouver, B.C.(Ocean Marker Sport Surfaces USA)
Q University of Alabama Outdoor Tennis Facility,Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Lower Bros.)
Q University of Hawaii at Monoa Tennis Complex,Honolulu (Applied Surfacing Technology)
Q Vanderbilt University Outdoor Tennis Facility,Nashville, Tenn. (Lower Bros.)
Taking the Prize In addition to the Princeton University Tennis Complex and the Sunset Athletic Club, these 23 locations were cho-
sen by the 2005 panel of judges for the ASBA as outstanding examples of court construction. You’ll read more about them in upcoming issues of
Racquet Sports Industry. (The nominating company is in parentheses.)
Indoor Multi-Purpose Facility at
Sunset Athletic Club, Beaverton, Ore.Specialty Contractor: ATLAS TRACK & TENNIS,TUALATIN, ORE.
Surface: CALIFORNIA PRODUCTS CORP.
Curtains/Divider Nets: M. PUTTERMAN & CO.
Tennis Nets: EDWARDS, DIV. OF COLLEGIATE PACIFIC
Other Supplier: ROBBINS INC.
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2 0 0 6 S T R I N G S U R V E Y
What string is best for your customer? It’s a tricky question to
answer, since there are so many different strings out therethatallhaveuniquecombinations of benefits. Butonceagain,
we’ve gone right to the experts, the thousands of U.S. Racquet Stringers
Association members,and asked them to rate strings in three categories:
playability, durability, and com-
fort.
Our 29th annual string sur-
vey, which is on the poster
inserted into this issue of RSI,
is a compilation of survey
questionnaires sent in Sep-
tember to 2,500 randomly
selected U.S. members of the
USRSA (no chain stores).
Recipients were given a list of
every string on the market
and asked to rate the ones
they are familiar with from 1
to 10 in each of the three cat-
egories. Then an average
score was calculated for each
string in each category.
For a string to qualify for a
rating, the respondent must
have strung at least 20 sets of
that string in the past year.
This 20-set minimum ensures
that respondents are rating a
string they know something
about and that has some
vitality in the marketplace. For
some businesses, 20 sets may
represent 20 percent of their
total business, and for others,
1 percent. Some businesses
may only sell 20 sets of the
string; others may sell 500.
Each ranking, however, car-ries the same weight, and all
are included in the total sum and average for that string. We
added the scores from each respondent to obtain a sum for
that string, then divided the sum by the number of respon-
dents who rated it.
To ensure that strings with a reasonable breadth of distrib-
ution are included, each string must be rated on at least 12
questionnaires. We feel
that having at least 12
respondents allows us to
include enough strings by
enough manufacturers,
including smaller market
share companies. Too
high a number will mean
the survey results will only
include the top two or
three manufacturers.
Remember, the cate-
gory scores for each string
are averages of all the
respondents’ rankings for
a given string. Often,
these averages are very
close; the differences
between rankings can be
mere hundredths of a
point. Though only onestring can claim the top
spot in a category, many
of the strings close to
each other in ranking are
of equal stature. In prac-
tice, each of these strings
is one of the best of its
niche.
Hang our String Survey
poster in your shop and
let your customers deter-
mine which strings maybest help their games.Q
Brand 2006 2005 2004 2002/3 2001 2000Wilson 23.2 22.0 21.9 23.8 21.6 30.5
Gamma 20.4 22.9 24.7 25.6 25.9 27.2Prince 19.8 19.6 19.8 19.2 20.7 23.7Head 9.4 7.7 7.4 7.3 4.0 7.0Babolat 9.3 7.2 7.1 6.1 6.9 6.3Tecnifibre 4.5 4.8 4.1 4.1 4.7 3.4Luxilon 3.6 3.4 3.0 - - -Ashaway 2.0 1.6 1.8 1.7 2.2 <1.0Gosen 1.6 1.8 1.9 1.9 3.2 1.4Forten 1.2 2.3 2.6 2.6 3.5 0.5Alpha 0.9 1.0 - - - -Kirschbaum 0.8 0.8 - - - -TOA 0.8 0.4 - - - -Dunlop 0.6 1.2 1.1 - - -
Klip 0.6 0.9 - - - -Others 2.3 2.3 4.6 5.2 4.4 -
Most Responses by Brand(percent)
Gauge 2006 2005 2004 2002/3 2001 200016 64.6 62.0 62.4 61.9 58.9 54.817 24.5 28.2 23.1 26.2 27.0 31.816L 4.6 3.8 4.3 2.8 1.5 -
15L 3.8 4.3 5.7 5.9 7.8 11.118 1.9 1.3 1.4 1.8 2.9 0.915 0.6 - 0.5 - 0.8 0.817L - 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.619 - - 1.7 0.4 0.4 -18/17 - - 0.5 0.4 - -
Most Responses by Gauge(percent)
Our exclusive rankings, based on responses by USRSA members,will help you pick the right strings for your shop.
USRSA Members’
Choice Awards
USRSA Members’
Choice AwardsOur exclusive rankings, based on responses by USRSA members,will help you pick the right strings for your shop.
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hen selecting a tennis club, potential members expect to
size up tennis courts, ball machines, locker rooms, and
other amenities. However, there is additional equipment
to consider: automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and other
medical gear.
“Just by the nature of the sport—where people can go from
complete rest to full-out activity, with some not exercising any
other way—there are going to
be some [cardiac] problemson a tennis court,” says
Stephen Tharrett, a former
senior vice president at Dal-
las-based ClubCorp and cur-
rently an e dit or of the
American College of Sports
Medicine’s Health/Fitness
Facility Standards and Guide-
lines.
When the publication’s
third edition is published in
April 2006, according toTharrett, it will recommend
the inclusion of AEDs in all
fitness centers, with the
intended effect of transform-
ing what has been a growing
trend into an industry standard. By 2010, he predicts installing
AEDs in sports facilities will be legislated beyond the current
states of Illinois, Rhode Island, New York, Maryland, and
Louisiana. An AED is a computerized medical device that can
recognize whether a person’s heart rhythm requires an electric
shock, and uses voice prompts, lights, and text messages to tell
the rescuer how to deliver one.
W“It’s a natural part of a facility’s duty of care to its members,”
says Tharrett, noting that AEDs are joining traditional safety mea-
sures such as first aid kits, CPR-trained personnel, and even oxy-
gen masks for members experiencing difficulty breathing. “As
long as you provide appropriate training on modern equipment
that is serviced regularly, these devices are absolutely in mem-
bers’ best interest.”
As the national tennis director and
regional manager of two Tennis Corp.of America (TCA)-owned tennis clubs
in the Kansas City area, Ajay Pant says
he sets an example for his staff by par-
ticipating in emergency training
offered to all TCA employees.
“There’s a certain way you have to
push down on the abdomen when
doing CPR, and it took me a while to
get it,” Pant admits. “I’m the guy in
charge and it would have been easy for
me to let it go, but I held up all pro-
ceedings until I got it right. I wanted tosend the message that there can be no
shortcuts when safety is involved.”
In addition to CPR, according to
Pant, TCA clubs also train staff on
AEDs, first aid and infant CPR at facili-
ties with nurseries. Tennis pros who work with members out-
doors during the summer are taught to look for heat illness
symptoms such as hot, dry skin, change in skin color, hyperven-
tilation, and confusion. If a teaching pro suspects heat exhaustion
or sunstroke, for example, Pant says the lesson is immediately
ended (with the fee waived) so the member can be taken inside
for treatment.
B Y C Y N T H I A C A N T R E L L
HeartStart Onsite DefibrillatorPhilips Electronics
Emergency medicaldevices, such asdefibrillators, arereassuring to clubs
and their members.
Finding the Right
Treatment
Finding the Right
Treatment
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“We train our staff on what to
look for because even when you ask
a member how they’re feeling, they
may say they’re fine,” says Pant.
“We adhere to strict policies, but we
believe our members appreciate it.”
Ed Brune, general manager and
tennis director of the IndianapolisRacquet Clubs, says the company’s
two facilities both have first aid kits,
with an employee in charge of keep-
ing each one fully stocked. He also
recently purchased an AED for each
site.
“I’ve been studying defibrillators for
two or three years, waiting for some-
thing to come along that’s easy to use
and cost-effective,” says Brune, noting
that the local fire department conducted
the training for his key employees. Withincreasing publicity surrounding AEDs—
not to mention about one-quarter of the
Indianapolis Racquet Clubs’ 3,000 mem-
bers over 50 years of age—Brune says it
was simply time to make the devices
part of the clubs’ standard equipment.
Ville Jansson, sports club manager at
Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho
Mirage, Calif., says his ClubCorp-owned
property is equipped with an AED, oxy-
gen, and first-aid kits containing antisep-
tics, sports injury-related bandages, and
“everything imaginable” at both the tennis and golf portions of
the property. The company strives for 100 percent employee
training in safety procedures including
AED usage, he says.
“It’s peace of mind for our mem-
bers,” says Jansson, a former ATP tour-
ing pro with 10 professional
tournament wins. “AEDs are coming
down in cost so these days, you see
them in a lot of places. It makes sense
for us to have them, too.”
Ron Woolard, the national director
for Athletics & Tennis at Dallas-basedClubCorp, says Mission Hills Country
Club is one of 79 ClubCorp sites that
were equipped with AEDs in 2002.
The investment of purchasing the
devices, servicing them, and dedicat-
ing employee hours to repeated certifi-
cations can be significant, Woolard
says. AEDs can range in price from
about $2,000 to $3,000, he notes, and
companies may opt to pay an addi-
tional monthly fee of approximately
$200 per site for an outside vendor to
keep AEDs in working order with
fresh pads and batteries, and alert
them to staff whose certifications are
set to expire.
“Though presently it is not legislat-
ed that clubs be equipped with AEDs,
ClubCorp felt because of the potential
of saving a life, that this initiative wasworth the investment for the compa-
ny,” says Woolard.
Helen Durkin, director of public
policy for the Boston-based Interna-
tional Health, Racquet and Sportsclub
Association (IHRSA), cautions clubs
and members alike from believing that
AEDs will save every life since they are
most beneficial in cases of sudden car-
diac arrest, where the heart actually stops
beating. Liability is another common con-
cern for clubs, she says, since GoodSamaritan laws for businesses have not
yet been enacted in all states.
“IHRSA is working hard to ensure that
all states that require AEDs provide ade-
quate coverage so these businesses aren’t
subject to liability by using these devices
or not using them,” says Durkin, noting
that 25 percent of IHRSA member clubs
surveyed in 2000-01 already had AEDs in
their facilities.
Durkin also notes that studies have
indicated that 85 percent of sudden car-
diac arrest cases occur in the home or hospital, with only the
remaining 15 percent spread out across airports, businesses,
jails, dialysis centers, gaming establish-
ments, golf courses, homeless shelters,
large industrial sites, nursing homes,
physician offices, shopping malls,
sports complexes, streets and high-
ways, trains and ferries, urgent care
centers, and utility trucks.
“There are plenty of club owners
who have gotten AEDs and tell stories
of how they’ve been used to save lives,
but in the case of an emergency, clubsshould still call 911 and follow their
first-aid protocol in case it’s not sudden
cardiac arrest,” Durkin says. For their
part, she adds, members shouldn’t
panic and cease exercising because
they’re afraid their heart will give out
on the tennis court.
“AEDs can be useful devices to have
on hand,” Durkin says, “but I’m con-
cerned that all this legislation is going
to perpetuate the idea that exercise is
more dangerous than it is.” Q
Where to Get AEDsA prescription was once required to purchase an
AED, but now the devices are offered over the
counter. Royal Philips Electronics offers two over-the-
counter models: the HeartStart OnSite Defibrillator
and the HeartStart Home Defibrillator.
For more information about AEDs, contact manufac-
turers such as the following:
Q Cardiac Science (www.cardiacscience.com)
Q Medtronic (www.medtronic.com)
Q Philips Medical Systems (www.medical.philips.com)
Q Zoll Medical (www.zoll.com)
Training is provided by manufacturers as well as by
the American Red Cross and American Heart Associa-
tion. Neither organization recommends one device
over another. For training information, contact your
local American Red Cross chapter or the American
Heart Association’s Heartsaver AED program at 1-
877-AHA-4CPR (1-877-242-4277).
ZOLL AED PlusZOLL Medical Corporation
PowerHeart AED G3Cardiac Science
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The Master Pros:
Delivering aQuality Experience
ost head tennis professionals will confront tough chal-
lenges at some point in their careers. At times they’ll face
sagging membership, over-budget court repairs, staff
shortages, cranky bosses. But one of the most demanding tasks
a head pro can undertake is
one that few actually ever
will: launching a new tennisfacility.
In 2000, Lexington
County, S.C., had no tennis
program. And the area still
didn’t even have a home for
public tennis, as their prized
21-court Lexington County
Tennis Complex (LCTC)
wasn’t due to open until the
following summer. Then
came Jorge Andrew, hired
to be the facility’s first tennis director.
“Opening a new facility is difficult—you’re really starting
from scratch,” says Dan Santorum, CEO and executive director
of the PTR. “Getting the people to come is obviously a challenge,
but once they get there you have to make sure they have a quali-
ty experience. That’s one of the things Jorge excels at—making
sure that everybody that comes to his facility has a quality expe-
rience and is eager to come back.”
Andrew, designated a master pro by both the PTR and the
USPTA, was raised in Caracas, Venezuela. He played for and cap-
tained the Venezuelan Davis Cup team, and reached No. 76 in
the world rankings in the late 1970s. He later worked as a tennis
director at clubs in Venezuela and Florida before being tapped
for his post in Lexington County.
From six months before the LCTC opened, Andrew was
already planning the details for what would quickly become one
of the most successful tennis programs in the southern U.S. One
of his primary goals was to relentlessly find new players and
make them stay.
“We have beginner clinics that start every four weeks,”
Andrew says. “Then we try to put those beginners right into the
leagues. Officers of the Lexington Area Tennis Association are
right at the facility, so in just a few minutes we can get you all
the information you need, sign you up over the internet, put
you in a league and you’re ready to play.”
The strategy has worked. In just four years, the num-
ber of league tennis teams at the LCTC has increased from
20 to 45. Impressive numbers? That’s just for the adults.“Our most successful program is the After School Ten-
nis Club,” Andrew says. “It has three levels. At level one,
we give them a racquet and a can of balls. Level two, it’s a
little more advanced lessons. Level three, they play match
es every Friday. After that, we start to encourage them to
play tournaments.” The after-school club has a consistent
attendance of 50 to 80 kids per four-week session.
Other junior play at the LCTC includes the Junior Chal-
lengers, which exclude all players ranked in Top 25 in 10-
and-under, and the Top 50 in other divisions. “We host
tournaments like that so that our people who started here
can develop here,” Andrew says. As for those top-rankedplayers? They can still compete in the ITF World Junior
Championships, which the LCTC hosts in November.
“People ask me all the time, ‘How can we get a pro-
gram going—do we need more junior programs, do we
need to have more courts, do
we need to spend more
money?” says Jeff Hawes, first
vice president of the USPTA
Southern Division. “The answer
is that first and foremost you
need to have a leader. You
need to have somebody who is
dynamic in their personality,
dynamic when it comes to pro-
moting, dynamic when it
comes to their teaching skills.
And Jorge definitely has all
those traits. That’s what makes
him stand out in this industry.
“Jorge is one of the best pro-
fessionals in our association.
Lexington County wasn’t even
on the map until he got there,
and he made an impact just by
getting people involved.” Q
B Y C H R I S N I C H O L S O N
This is the second of six installments on the
teaching pros who hold Master Pro certifi-
cations from both the PTR and the USPTA.
Creating aQuality Experiencfor PlayersQ Develop programs to cater to ev
age group and every player leve
Leave no one behind.
Q At the end of beginners’ classes
don’t let those new players go—
try to get them signed up in
leagues, where they’ll have fun
with their new skills and keep
playing tennis.
Q Make the facility attractive in ev
way possible: Keep it clean and
well-decorated, and make sure
everything is in working order.
M
For pro Jorge Andrew in South Carolina, it’s all about getting peopleinvolved—and coming back for more.
Delivering aQuality Experience
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he 2006 USTA Community Tennis
Development Workshop comes to
Hollywood, Calif., Feb. 3 to 5 with a
full slate of workshops and seminars
designed to educate, encourage and
inspire tennis leaders and coordinators.
For teaching pros, facility and park man-
agers, and anyone else whose mission
and livelihood involves getting more peo-
ple playing the game, if you could go toonly one workshop this year, this just
may be the one you should attend.
The annual CTDW, in the opinion of
many who have attended previous work-
shops, is one of the most useful events
for those who actually deliver tennis at
the grassroots level. For those involved in
tennis programming—whether at a Com-
munity Tennis Association, park and rec
program, private facility, school, or
more—the opportunity to expand your
knowledge, and your business, at the
CTDW is a worthwhile investment.
Last year, the event brought nearly
700 people from around the country to
Destin, Fla. The USTA has now realizedthe value of what the CTDW is able to
provide, and the impact that it can have
on tennis participation, and so the orga-
nization has been pumping more
resources into the conference.
Workshop sessions address every-
thing from customer relations,
to how to teach tennis to vari-
ous groups, to building positive
relationships, to starting a non-
profit organization, how to deal
with volunteers, and much
more. This year, there also will
be “pre-workshop sessions” (at
additional cost) that are all-day
bonus sessions that go in-depth
on various topics, such as pro-
posal writing and developing a
fundraising plan.
And again the CTDW will offer “Court-
side Consultants,” allowing attendees to
sign up for a 25-minute slot to discuss
their organization with experienced con-
sultants and featured speakers.
There also will be an exhibit area and
a “Great Idea Gallery,” along with an
evening Awards Banquet. The theme for
this year’s CTDW is “Heroes Among Us,”
designed to honor those who have
shaped community tennis around the
country. This year, the CTDW will feature
discounted registration for CTAs and
National Junior Tennis League Chapters
and Programs.
How to FixYour GameAt the 2006 CTDW, you’ll find people, seminars and ideas that can help your business—and help the game grow.
T
For more on the CTDW, visit
www.usta.com/communitytennis. Q
CTDW Registration and HotelThe USTA has different registration plans for the CTDW.
For the full workshop, individual registration is $295 before
Jan. 6 and $350 after. For more information on the CTDW,
or to register, visit www.usta.com/communitytennis.
Room rates for workshop registrants at the Renaissance
Hollywood Hotel are $155 per night and must be booked
directly with the hotel by Jan. 2. Contact 800-HOTELS-1,
323-856-1200 or www.renaissancehollywood.com.
Wanted: Great Ideas Do you have a “great idea” for tennis? At the CTDW, the USTA
wants to feature great ideas. To submit one, visit www.usta.com/communitytennis.
Keynote SpeakerJim MacLaren
Keynote speaker for the
2006 CTDW is the inspi-
rational Jim MacLaren,
who received the Arthur
Ashe Courage Award
during the 2005 ESPYs,
given to athletes who
embody a toughness of spirit and never-give-up attitude. MacLaren also spoke at the 2005
Tennis Teachers Conference in August in
New York to a very enthusiastic audience.
MacLaren was involved in two would-be
fatal accidents. The first, at age 22, resulted
in the loss of his left leg; the second, 10
years later, left him an incomplete quadri-
plegic. Each time, Jim has used sheer force of
will and awe-inspiring courage to come
back—the first time to become the fastest
amputee athlete in the world, and now, as
an individual with an amazing story to share
How to FixYour Game
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science
The modern game of tennis is played at a
furious pace compared with the old days
when everyone used wood racquets. Just
watch old film from the 1950s and you
will see that the game is vastly different.
Ken Rosewall and Lew Hoad barely broke
into a sweat. Today’s game has players
grunting and screaming on every shot,
calling for the towel every third shot, and
launching themselves off the court with
the ferocity of their strokes. The differ-
ence is obviously due to the change from
wood to graphite racquets, which hap-
pened during the late 1970s and early
1980s. Everyone concluded that graphite
racquets were much stronger, lighter, and
more powerful, while the players them-
selves somehow became taller, stronger,
and fitter. How else could the game have
changed so drastically?
RACQUET WIDTH, SPIN,
AND POWER
The real reason for the change is moresubtle. It’s because racquets got wider.
Wood racquets were always 9 inches
wide and 27 inches long, so players could
check the 36-inch height of the net by
putting one racquet on top of another.
Today’s players can’t do that. Most rac-
quets are still 27 inches long, but they are
now 10 to 12 inches wide. They are also
lighter, which means they are less power-
ful, but it also means that players can
swing them faster, which they need to do
just to get back the power they lost when
they became lighter.
When players started swinging their
racquets faster, they noticed an interest-
ing effect—they generated more topspin
on the ball. A ball with topspin dives
down more steeply into the court after it
passes over the net compared with a ball
without spin. Players noticed that the ball
went in more easily, despite the fact that
the ball was hit at about the same speed
as with their old wood racquets. So they
started hitting the ball even harder, which
made the ball spin faster, and it still went
in. Not only that, the added swing veloci-
ty wasn’t resulting in mis-hits, due to the
larger sweet zone and extra inch or two of
frame clearance.
So what did they do next? The extra
frame clearance allowed players to start
swinging upwards at the ball to get even
more spin, and they rotated the racquet in
their hand to a Western grip in order to
swing at even steeper angles to the ball.
That grip gave them problems with their
backhand, so they had to grip the handle
with the both hands to tilt the frame back
into a vertical position. The faster they hit
the ball, the faster it spun, and the faster
it spun, the harder they could hit it. That’s
why players today usually have both feet
off the ground when they hit the ball, and
it’s why they need to grunt and scream.
Players were given an inch in the
1970s and they took a mile. The ball now
spins 4 or 5 times faster than it did before
the 1970s. An increase in just one inch
allowed an amazing increase in spin due
to steeper, faster swings and a tilting of
the racquet forward by up to 5 degrees,
all without clipping the frame. An exam-
ple will make this very clear.
FIVE TIMES THE SPINWhen a ball bounces off the court it
acquires topspin, even if it had no spin
before it hit the court. In fact, it spins
faster than most players can generate
themselves when they hit a topspin
return. In order to return the ball with top-
spin, a player needs to swing the racquet
both forwards and upwards and fast
enough to reverse the direction of the
spinning ball. If the player doesn’t reverse
the direction of the spin, then the ball will
be returned with backspin—it is still spin-
ning in the same direction but traveling in
the opposite direction back over the net.
Suppose, for example, that the ball
spins at 3,000 rpm (50 revolutions/sec)
after it bounces off the court. That is a
typical amount of spin when a ball hits the
court at around 30 or 40 mph. Returned
with a wood racquet, a player won’t be
able to swing up at a very steep angle
without clipping the frame. He will still be
able to reverse the spin, but he will get
only 200 rpm or so of topspin by swing-
ing the racquet upwards fairly rapidly at
about 20 degrees to the horizontal. A
change in spin from 3,000 rpm back-
wards to 200 rpm forwards is a change of
3,200 rpm, which is a relatively big
change, but it is only enough to return
the ball with a small amount of topspin.Now suppose the player switches to a
10-inch racquet and swings up at 30
degrees to the ball. The player can do that
and can also tilt the racquet head forward
by about 5 degrees, with even less risk of
clipping the frame than with a 9-inch
wood racquet being swung at 20 degrees
with the head perpendicular to the
ground. In this way, the player will be able
to change the spin by about 4,000 rpm
instead of 3,200 rpm, with the result that
the spin changes from 3,000 rpm of
backspin to 1,000 rpm of topspin. The
result is therefore a factor of five increase,
from 200 rpm to 1,000 rpm, in the
amount of topspin. That’s an amazingly
big effect considering that the racquet
increased in width by only one inch, or by
only 11 percent.
WHY WIDTH MATTERSA 9-inch wide racquet swung with the
strings in a vertical plane has about 8
inches of string in the vertical direction
and about one-half inch of wood above
and below the strings. A 10-inch racquet
swung in the same way has about 9 inch-
es of string in the vertical direction. The
ball is just over two and one-half inches in
diameter, so 3.1 balls can fit across a 9-
inch racquet and 3.5 balls can fit across a
10-inch racquet. If the 10-inch racquet is
tilted forward 27 degrees, then the
strings extend 9 inches diagonally and 8
inches vertically, as shown in Figure 1. The
racquet can therefore be swung upwards
at 27 degrees or tilted forward by 27
The Inch ThatChanged Tennis Forever B Y R O D C R O S
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degrees, and it will then present to the
ball exactly the same area of string as a 9-
inch racquet. No one tilts the racquet for-
ward by as much as 27 degrees, but they
now swing up into the ball at angles of
30 degrees or more to generate topspin.Tilting the racquet head forward slightly
generates even more topspin.
Giving a player an extra inch of width
allows the player to swing up at a steep-
er angle or faster or both. In that case the
ball slides further across the strings, so
you really do need that extra inch. A
change in 4,000 rpm rather than 3,200
rpm is therefore not surprising given the
extra speed, angle, and tilt made possi-
ble by the extra one inch of width.
Going from a 10-inch to an 11-inch
racquet does not deliver another huge
increase in topspin. The reason is that if
players tried to increase the upwardspeed of the racquet any more than they
do now, the ball would sail over the
baseline. They can do that for a topspin
lob, but the forward speed of the rac-
quet and the ball remains relatively small
for a topspin lob. An 11-inch racquet will
work better for topspin lobs but not for
any other shot. On the other hand, 9-
inch racquets were only just over the
limit of being able to generate any top-
spin at all. Give a 9-inch graphite racquet
to a player today and the result would be
some serious clipping of the frame every
few shots, though perhaps not as many
as “old-timers” might expect since mod-ern players are so practiced and skilled at
steeper swings.Q
Further details are described in the new book “Technical Tennis: Racquets, Strings,Balls, Courts, Spin, and Bounce” by Rod Crossand Crawford Lindsey, available from book store web sites or from the publisher at www.racquettech.com.
27
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Klip Lightning scored well above average
in Playability and Power, no matter which
way you string it, and with nylon in the
mains and gut in the crosses it scored we
above average for Holding Tension and
Resistance to Movement. In every othercategory, Lightning scored above average
Klip Lightning 16string PLAYTEST
Lightning is one of Klip’s “Pro Doubles”
(hybrid) strings, combining its Legend nat-
ural gut with its Excellerator nylon.
Klip’s Legend natural gut is 100 per-
cent Australian top grade gut. Excellerator
is a high-end multifilament, with 30 per-
cent more fiber than most other multifila-
ments, due to a unique bonding of the
filaments that uses less glue, providing
more of a gut-like feel.
According to Klip, Lightning is designed
for players looking for the power and com-
fort of natural gut, at a fraction of the price.
Lightning is available in 16 and 17 in
natural only. It is priced from $20. For more
information or to order, contact Klip at 866-
554-7872, or visit www.klipstrings.com. Be
sure to read the conclusion for Klip’s special
offer to USRSA members.
IN THE LAB
We tested the 16-gauge Lightning “both
ways,” that is, with the gut in the mains
and Excellerator nylon in the crosses, and
with the Excellerator nylon in the mains andthe gut in the crosses. We recorded a
stringbed stiffness of each string combina-
tion immediately after installation at 60
pounds in a Wilson Pro Staff 6.1 95 (16 x
18 pattern) on a constant-pull machine, and
then retested after 24 hours (no playing).
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 per-
cent tension loss. See the table for our mea-
surements of the 16-gauge Klip Lightning
we playtested. Lightning added 15.5
grams to the weight of our unstrungframe.
The string was tested for five weeks
by 65 USRSA playtesters, with NTRP rat-
ings from 3.5 to 6.5. These are blind
tests, with playtesters receiving unmarked
strings in unmarked packages. We
instructed one team to install the gut in
the mains, and the other to install the
nylon in the mains.
We found Klip Legend natural gut
slightly dry-feeling and slightly rough, as
always, and the Excellerator about normalfor a multifilament nylon. It is slick enough
that it glides with little friction against the
natural gut, and there is virtually no coil
memory. Our playtesters, however, report-
ed a bit more trouble installing Lightning
than Klip’s Screamer natural gut hybrid
(see RSI June 2005), which means our
playtesters found that installing Klip Light-
ning is comparable in difficulty to
installing Klip X-Plosive (see RSI January
2005).
ON THE COURT
Once again, these playtests show that
adding a little natural gut to the mix
results in a satisfying playing experience.
EASE OF STRINGING Gut M’s Nylon M’s
(compared to other strings)
Number of testers who said it was:
much easier 0 0
somewhat easier 5 4
about as easy 21 9
not quite as easy 10 13
not nearly as easy 1 2
OVERALL PLAYABILITY(compared to string played most often)
Number of testers who said it was:
much better 1 7
somewhat better 8 5
about as playable 13 5
not quite as playable 9 8
not nearly as playable 3 3
OVERALL DURABILITY(compared to other strings
of similar gauge)
Number of testers who said it was:
much better 3 4
somewhat better 19 6
about as durable 5 7
not quite as durable 4 6
not nearly as durable 3 4
RATING AVERAGESFrom 1 to 5 (best)
Playability 3.5 3.6
Durability 3.6 3.4
Power 3.5 3.6
Control 3.5 3.6
Comfort 3.4 3.3
Touch/Feel 3.2 3.2
Spin Potential 3.3 3.2
Holding Tension 3.2 3.6
Resistance to Movement 3.3 3.7
Legend natural gut Excellerator nylon
Coil measurements 20’ 21’3”
Diameter unstrung 1.33-1.34 mm 1.31-1.32 mm
Diameter strung 1.28-1.30 mm 1.25-1.26 mm
RDC stringbed stiffness new 76 78
(gut mains, nylon crosses) (nylon mains, gut crosses)
RDC stringbed stiffness after 24 hours 70 72
(gut mains, nylon crosses) (nylon mains, gut crosses)
Tension loss 6 RDC 6 RDC
Tension loss % 7.89% 7.69%
Average playtest duration 19.57 hours 17 hours
(gut mains, nylon crosses) (nylon mains, gut crosses)
Gut mains/ Nylon mains/nylon crosses gut crosses
Broke during stringing 3 1
Excess coil memory 8 6
Difficulty tying knots 5 2
Friction burn 2 5
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“ This string has just the right amount of pop. Very lively without being
springy. A 17 gauge in this string would be fantastic for spin/touch players.
The 16 gauge used in this test showed no signs of wear during the test.”4.5 male all-court player using Völkl Tour 10 strung at 62 pounds CP (Tec-
nifibre NRG2 17/18)
“ Obviously, this is a natural
gut/synthetic hybrid. I have never
played with the gut in the mains
and the nylon in the crosses, so
this is a new experience for me.
And you know what? It is awe-
some! Although my racquet feels a
lot more head-heavy, the power
and touch are well worth it.”6.0 male all-court player using
Völkl C10 Pro strung at 63 pounds CP (Gamma Live Wire XP 17)
“ Great hybrid with all the prop-
erties that I like: Comfort, control,
and playability. When you hit a groundstroke, you can count on the ball
going where you aim. I would recommend this to other high-NTRP
players.”5.0 male all-court player using Head Liquidmetal Radical strung at 57
pounds LO (Prince Synthetic Gut 17)
“ This is a very good string. The feel, the ball grab, and the control are
outstanding. The cross strings started to fray a bit, but the strings hold ten-
sion very well and really don’t seem to move all that much. I am eager to
learn the name of this string.”5.5 male serve-and-volleyer using Wilson Pro Staff Blitz strung at 59
pounds CP (Natural gut 16 or 17)
“ I am very impressed with this string. It is overall one of the best
playtest strings I have received. Right from the beginning the control,
comfort, feel, and spin potential were better than my normal string.
The durability also exceeded my normal string’s.”4.0 male all-court player using Head i.X5 OS strung at 55 pounds CP
(Wilson NXT 16)
“ Excellent string! It has durability
and feel.”5.0 male all-court player using Pro
Kennex 7g strung at 63 pounds LO
(Prince Polygut 17)
“ The gut section of this string is
the key. It has great feel and good
power. I would buy this great
combo.”5.0 male all-court player using Wil-
son nCode strung at 63 pounds LO
(Wilson NXT 16)
“ An outstanding combination!
Exceptionally quiet during play. I am particularly impressed by the
lack of movement despite the low tension I use. The wear is obvious-
ly better than an ‘all gut’ stringing, but the response is as good as or
better than any gut I’ve used. This could be a very fine string for a
wide range of levels and ages. I can easily see senior players using
this string, especially if they haven’t used gut before. The synthetic
crosses seem to crisp up the feel even at low tensions. Great teaching
string, too!”5.0 male serve-and-volleyer using Pro Kennex K15 PSE strung at 44
pounds LO (Gamma Durablast 16)
For the rest of the tester comments, USRSA members can visit RacquetTECH.com.
“This was an excellenttwo-piece string. The mains
seemed to be natural gut, so I was excited about
playing with this sample. Unfortunately I put a
kink into the mains while stringing and it broke
after 1 hour of playing time.”
4.0 male all-court player using Gamma Diamond Fiber
M6.5 strung at 70 pounds LO (Tecnifibre NRG2 17)
(Strings normally used by testers are indicated in parentheses.)
strung either way, so that in overall
scores, Lightning with nylon mains was
well above average, while with gut mains
it was above average.Just as impressive, Lightning with
nylon mains garnered an impressively high
average vote for playability compared to
our playtesters’ favorite strings, while
Lightning with gut mains really impressed
our playtesters for durability, compared to
other strings of similar gauge.
TESTERS TALK
CONCLUSION
In playtest after playtest, our testers indi-
cate that there is a lot to like in Klip’s
natural gut hybrids. This may not be sur-prising, given how well natural gut plays,
but one interesting aspect is that Klip’s
natural gut hybrids seem to offer superior
performance whether configured with
the natural gut in the crosses, or in the
mains.
As Klip points out (and it bears
repeating), this superior performance
comes at a discount compared to using a
full set of natural gut. This discount
comes not only in the form of the initialpurchase price, but also in terms of the
increased longevity of a hybrid set com-
pared to a pure natural gut string job.
And, depending, on how ill-at-ease you
are stringing natural gut, there’s also the
time benefit that comes from the often
faster installation of a synthetic compared
to the natural gut.
If you think that Klip Lightning might
be for you, Klip is offering USRSA mem-
bers a special deal: Buy three sets, and get
the fourth set free. —Greg Raven Q
Gut mains/nylon crosses Nylon mains/gut crosses
Average playtest duration 14.75 hours 19.24 hours
Broke during play 8 7
Break hours 1, 4, 4, 5, 13, 20, 35, 36 4, 7, 7, 7.5, 9, 10, 12
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t h e E X P E R T Sask
POWER PADS
I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT the
dampeners that are used at thethroat of racquets. Not the regular
dampener on the stringbed, but material
that is placed between the frame and string
at the holes. What is the purpose of these
dampeners, and where do you get the
material?
THESE “DAMPENERS” ARE called
“power pads.” They are usually made
of sections of rawhide, although you can
use rolled-up scraps of leather grips or inner
tube, depending on howprofessional you want the
installation to look. If you
don’t have a leather store
nearby, or an old, heavy-
duty leather belt that you
can cut up, Grand Slam
Stringers
(www.grandslamstringers.com) sells strips
of leather that are just the right thickness,
already cut to width.
Power pads are typically used in two
locations on the racquet. The first is—as
you’ve noticed—inside the throat, on the
center mains, where they are said to
change the feel of the racquet, ostensibly
due to a very small amount of “give” com-pared to having the string on a hard, solid
grommet strip. This is probably where the
“power” appellation comes from.
The second location is on the first two
holes outside of the throat, where the
mains have to go through the frame at a
sharp angle. Here, the power pads are
most beneficial because they increase the
radius around which the string must bend,
reducing breakage.
It’s worth noting that there are manu-
facturers offering power-pad-like benefitson select frames, such as Yonex with its
Muscle Power grommet system, and
Babolat with its Woofer system.
Because the leather used in power
pads is virtually always a different color
than the frame of the racquet, use a per-
manent marker to tint the leather
to match the frame prior to instal-
lation.
SWINGWEIGHT
I’M CONFUSED ABOUT swingweight.Let’s say I have two different racquets,
one of which weighs 320 grams and has
a swingweight of 300, and one that
weighs 300 grams and has a swingweight
of 320. Which is going to feel heav-
ier, the lighter racquet with the
higher swingweight, or the heavier
racquet with the lower swingweight?
Q
A Q
A
Your Equipment Hotline
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SWINGWEIGHT IS A measurement of racquet
performance that is often ignored by play-
ers—assuming they even know about it in
the first place—because it seems complicat-
ed, and it is difficult for the average person
to measure. However, it can have a greater
impact on how a racquet “feels” in play
than the “pick-up weight,” which is what
you feel when you grab a racquet by thehandle and hold it horizontally.
A typical tennis stroke involves swinging
a racquet around a point of rotation that is
itself also moving. That is, you are both
rotating the racquet, and “translating” it
through the air. (You “translate” the racquet
without rotation on a punch volley, for
example: The entire racquet moves forward
but the head does not rotate relative to the
grip.)
When swinging your two racquets
around a fixed point of rotation, the one
with the higher swingweight will feel heav-
ier. When translating your racquets, the rac-
quet with the higher mass will feel heavier.
For strokes that involve rotation and transla-
tion, you will feel a combination of swing-
weight and mass, although the amount of
the contribution of the mass will depend to
an extent on the angle at which you are
holding the racquet relative to the court sur-
face.
Keep in mind that racquet balance also
changes as you change weight and swing-
weight. For racquets weighing the same, the
higher the swingweight, the higher the bal-
ance point will be, as you can see in theaccompanying table. In your case, the lighter
racquet with the higher swingweight has
close to even balance, while the heavier rac-
quet with the lower swingweight is head
light.
If you want to delve more into swing-
weight and effect of other racquet character-
istics, check out our books, Technical Tennis
and The Physics and Technology of
Tennis.
360-DEGREE ROTATION
WHY DO SOME STRINGING
machines have the tension head so
high that it’s in the way, so you can’t
rotate the racquet 360 degrees?
WHEN YOU PULL TENSION ON the string
with the tension head at the same level as
the stringbed, you don’t have the friction
of the string rubbing against the grom-
met. The lower the friction, the more
accurately the string can be tensioned.
This is why on some of the more expen-
sive electronic machines, the tension head
actually rises up to the level of the
stringbed during the tensioning process,
lowering again after tensioning to allow
racquet rotation.
If you want to get really technical, you
also get some tension loss due to the
“cosine effect,” which comes from the
difference in angle between the string and
the angle at which you pull the string,
which is whatever angle there is between
the edge of the frame and the tension
head. Stringing machines with the tension
head at stringbed level, and those with
tension heads that rise up during tension-
ing, pull with less angle between the
stringbed and the tension head, reducing
both the friction and the cosine effect, for
greater accuracy.
—Greg Raven Q
Q
A
Wt (gm) Swingweight(kg•cm2)
Bal. (cm)
300 289 32.7
300 299 35.0
300 359 37.3
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form. This log includes make, model, and
condition of the frame. Also in the log we
list the string manufacturer, string gauge,
string length, string type, the stringing
machine used, the reference tension, and
finally the stringbed stiffness, which we
measure immediately after each string
job. For our own records, we note the
frame dimensions before the racquet isloaded in the stringing machine and after
the job is completed.
Once the customer specifies a
stringbed stiffness, we can consult our log
and arrive at an approach that yields
results within a point or two of the cus-
tomer’s desired stringbed stiffness. Our
string jobs are guaranteed to please the
customer. We probably have less than 1
percent come back. Other shops should
be able to do the same!
5 sets of Prince Premeir with SoftFlex
16 to:
Dr. Carl Love, Albany, OR
—Greg Raven Q
Tips and Techniques submitted since 2000 by USRSA mem-
bers, and appearing in this column, have all been gath-
ered into a single volume of the Stringer’s
Digest—Racquet Service Techniques which is a benefit of
USRSA membership. Submit tips to: Greg Raven, USRSA,
330 Main St., Vista, CA 92804; or email
STRINGER’S GLOVES
I don’t like using pliers on tie-off knots. I
tried wrapping the string around my
forefinger twice, but quickly learned that
is a mistake. So I tried a leather work
glove, which is loose fitting and slips on
and off with ease. I have a better feel on
how much I need to pull to cinch up the
tie off, and I think it's faster than usingpliers. Right-handers can even sell the
extra glove on Ebay as a “left-handed
racquet stringer’s glove,” and vice versa.
Wilson US Open Club Bag to:
David Haskins, CS, Modesto, CA
HELP YOUR STARTING KNOT
The knot at the start of the cross strings,
when two-piece stringing, can some-
times get pulled into the grommet when
you tension the first cross string. This
especially happens if you're using a 17-or 18-gauge string. Before you apply
tension, place a starting clamp on the tail
of the knot. You'll find you won’t lose
half the knot in your grommet, and
you’ll have better tension accuracy on
the first cross string.
Gamma T-Shirt & Hat and 5 sets of
Gamma Zo Power 16L to:
Mike Trinchitella, Mahopac, NY
MARKETINGTRACKING STRINGBED
STIFFNESS
I find that serious tennis players are begin-
ning to realize the importance of a rac-
quet's stringbed stiffness. As Crawford
Lindsey noted in the February 2005 RSI,
there are two problems with establishing a
universal stringbed standard: The cost of
an instrument to measure stringbed stiff-ness, and difficulty stringing an unfamiliar
racquet with an unfamiliar string to hit a
target stringbed stiffness.
The cost issue is not so bad, as there
are now stringbed testing instruments on
the market that cost less than a high-end
racquet. As for the second issue, we don’t
have a problem with it in our operation.
We keep a log on each string job we per-
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