Overall participation in Junior Sanctioned Tournaments was down slightly by approximately six percent in 2009 not including the Summer Sectionals.  With the inclusion of the ITA Summer Sectionals, participation was up by almost 30 percent.  Our district hosted the Summer Sectionals in 2009 which rotates every third year to various districts in our section and determines the endorsement spots for juniors who represent our Section at Summer Nationals.

The Utah District added three new junior sanctioned tournaments for a total of 34 junior tournaments being offered in 2009.   Utah was well represented in the three sectional tournaments with 37 percent of all medals at the Snowball, 30 percent at Summer Sectionals and 31 percent at the Great Pumpkin being awarded to Utah Players.  Our Utah Junior Tennis Foundation annual fundraiser held in June and was widely supported by the tennis community and was very successful in raising additional funds to help promote and support additional Junior programs and participation. 

We changed our Team Utah program this year in an effort to place more emphasis on our top juniors to give them additional practice time together and to play sets among each other.  A lot of the top players tend to get isolated and we are trying to get them to play with each other.  The committee reviewed and adopted a new definition of a junior challenger player.  Challenger tournaments are for a novice junior player who have not won an open tournament in any division and have not won more than two challenger tournaments in their age appropriate division.

The committee meets regularly during the year and contributes many hours volunteering at the various tournaments.  They are very committed group of volunteers and truly caring about the development of our Utah junior players. 

2009 Youth Recreation & Competition Committee Members – Nick Smith, Rich Bohne, Kayelynn Bastian, Marcia Panuzio, Paula Vernon, Sam Macfarlane, Marce Miles, Joe Cowley, Debbie Robb, Janice Smith, Julie Sweet, Beverly Taylor, Cindi Pearce and Shonnie Hays .  Staff: Robin Wise.

Adult Recreation & Competition Committee - J. Larry Erickson, Chair

In 2009 the committee continued to work on increasing league participation, league regulations, solutions for the indoor court shortage, as well as resolve league grievances.  The committee also has proposed a “mid-season qualifier” for the USTA Adult summer League.  This qualifier would allow those teams who may be out of the running an opportunity to qualify for a spot in the 2010 Adult League District Championships.  A pilot event has been proposed for the 3.5 level and would be offered in 2010.  The committee is hopeful it will make for a more exciting and competitive District Championships.   

Overall growth in 2009 league play demonstrated a 5% increase in the number of teams participating and a 9% increase in the number of players.  In 2008 there were 386 teams and a total of 4563 players who participated in league; in 2009 there were 407 teams and 4944 players participating, with the majority of the increase coming from USTA Combined Mixed Doubles, World Team Tennis,  USTA Senior, Super Senior, and Fall Indoor League.

Also in 2009, Jane Waterstradt, Tennis Service Representative organized a Women’s Open League – “Bringing Out the Best”.  42 former Junior, Ex-Collegiate, Teaching Professionals and top High School players had a good experience in the league, which ended with a party at Liberty Park, complete with refreshments and hoodies for all.  It’s exciting to see these ladies playing organized league tennis.

The Committee continues to support incentives for those captains with “zero defaults”  during league play.  Over $8,000.00 was distributed back to the captains whose teams had no defaults.  This program is successful in protecting league revenue, while improving the quality of league play. Incentives are also distributed to those  facilities, captains, teaching professionals that introduce “new” 2.5MW, 5.0MW, Senior and Super Senior teams to league play. The committee members are:  Ann Harris, Marilyn Burrell, Shawna Paterson, Kate Sturgeon, Charlene Peterson, Terry Miya, Terry Bogucki, Jill Bruderer, Kathy Cameron and April Blessing.  Staff: Fritz Heinecke

Marketing & Fundraising Committee—Jon Monk, Chair

2009 was another great year for the Fundraising Committee. Even with a recession and general downturn in giving, the fundraiser was able to net $12,144.  Utah Tennis had a successful year with a good committee, new format and new goals for the Junior Tennis Foundation.   This year’s event was very successful with a new agenda, great attendance and a new revenue record for our nonprofit Foundation. The 2009 16^th Annual Jan Dowse Memorial Junior Tennis Fundraiser held at the Cottonwood Country Club was again well attended and the committee was able to secure some wonderful door prizes for attendees and items for the auction. The number of attendees was down slightly from last year with 108 participants compared to 115 in 2008. A special thank you goes out to Mike Cooper for hosting the event and serving as the master of ceremonies.

Many new accolades were noted for local junior tennis players, notably high school players in 2009.  The Foundation, in the past, has assisted and acknowledged individual USTA competitors and players; this year the Foundation invited high school players, many are USTA competitors, and teams showing outstanding sportsmanship, athleticism and scholastic achievements.   This year’s fundraiser acknowledged High School teams and players for their accomplishments:  Wilbur Braithwaite Award– Timpview High School; Kathy Rothfels & Luceen Sullivan Award- Alta High School; Lee Hammel Award– Matt Cowley – Woods Cross High School; Ruby Hammel Award–  Paige Miles - Juan Diego Catholic High School. The Jan Dowse Scholarship was awarded to Chas Foote, a very talented tennis player and an exceptional student. Utah Tennis thanks all sponsors and donors for their financial support for our leagues, tournaments and fundraisers. 

Thanks again to the hard working 2009 Committee Members; Jon Monk, Chair, Bev Taylor, Mike Cooper and, of course, Linda Vincent and Fritz Heinecke, Utah Tennis staff.  We also thank all those who took time to sell tickets for the special drawing; more than 1,500 were sold for the 2009 event.

Community Development Committee—Ric Hammond, Chair

The Community Development Committee, along with UTA staff and volunteers, supported several Block Parties during the month of May, which is designated by the USTA as Tennis Month. These events are free for participants of all ages and generally run for a 3-hour time block. Free tennis instruction, games, on court activities and refreshments provide for a fun-filled atmosphere geared toward building interest in tennis for

all ages.

The first Block Party was scheduled to be held at Mt. Ogden Park in Ogden May 2 under the direction of Kevin Smith. Unfortunately, the event was rained out but we plan to schedule again next year.

The next Block Party was in Logan Utah on May 9. This event was again under the direction of Kevin Smith who partnered with the Cache Valley Tennis Association and Utah State University.  Mike Cooper, UTA Board President, also assisted with this activity. On hand to film the Block Party was “At Your Leisure,” which is a local outdoors recreation program that airs weekly on Channel 4 and specializes in promoting and filming outdoor activities in Utah. The great benefit we received from their involvement was the segment on Tennis and the Block Party that was broadcast on ABC channel 4 later on. It provided wonderful exposure and awareness for tennis in Utah!

The next Block Party was May 16 at the West Valley City Family Fitness Center. There were 75+ people; mostly youth in attendance. Several new USTA membership applications were distributed which hopefully resulted in some new members joining the USTA. Valerie Custer of the WVCFFC provided the leadership for this event. She was assisted by Charlene Johnson, Larry Erickson and Ric Hammond.

Clearfield hosted a Block Party May 30 under the auspices of Kevin Smith and Steve Vorasane from the Wasatch Community Tennis Association. They were supported by Clearfield Recreation and several other volunteer instructors. Perhaps the most successful Block Party of the year was at Glendale Park May 30 where 100+ were in attendance. Linda Vincent, Susan Daynes, Liz Grayston and Jane Waterstradt were on hand to provide help and support for the on- and off-court activities.  The club has amazing support from club members and their families who provided one of the best meals ever. No one went hungry and everyone had a wonderful time. 

Another event of note was the South Jordan Community Tennis Association’s one-day tournament in September. Approximately 100 participants were at this activity. Several City dignitaries were also on hand and spoke to lend their support and credence to the annual event. Jane Waterstradt and Ric Hammond were also on hand representing Utah Tennis. Both were asked to say a few words. It’s also exciting to note that approval has been granted to construct several covered courts in South Jordan. Needless to say there is great excitement in the community as they have built a strong base of tennis players.

The Chalk Art Festival at The Gateway provided an opportunity for hundreds of kids to try tennis, many for the first time! Although it was a rainy, drizzly day, it didn’t dampen the spirits of the youngsters who enjoyed the experience, over and over again!! Utah Tennis partnered with Sport Court that layed down a Quickstart 36’ court used for the tennis demonstrations and lessons. 

We have attempted to establish some advocacy for Community Tennis Associations. By strengthening the CTAs, we believe we can provide the impetus to move them forward with facilities and a growing base of tennis players, especially youth.

Several Quickstart workshops were held during the summer. St. George, Layton, Cottonwood Heights and Lehi were hosts for these events. Frank Adams from Colorado who is a USTA National Trainer conducted several of the workshops.

The UTA Board committed significant dollars to support local communities/facilities in their desire to expand and offer additional programs as well as assist in establishing a Community Tennis Associations in their area. Grants were also made to support individuals, communities and parks to promote and grow tennis participation. Grants ranged from $500 to $1500 and were awarded to North Canyon, Coach Mike’s, Syracuse City Recreation, Heber Valley Tennis Association, Wasatch Community Tennis Association, West Valley City Recreation and the Tongan Tennis Club.  Again, we welcome the opportunity to fund grants for equipment and programs and to assist individuals as an investment in the future growth of tennis. We hope to continue to aggressively promote funding opportunities in 2010.

2009 Community Development Committee Members Include:  Jean Greenwood, Kevin Smith, Ken Harris, Russ Edman.  Staff Members: Linda Vincent, Liz Grayston and Jane Waterstradt, USTA Intermountain Utah District Tennis Service Representative.

Communications & Public Relations Committee—This committee works to promote the game of tennis to the community and help grow USTA membership in Utah.  The committee also helped to promote and coordinate the advertising campaign for the “Tennis Welcome Centers” and the events in May to kickoff Tennis Month with advertising and news stories on the radio, television, in local newspapers and curbside bill boards.  This committee will continue to work to improve communication between Utah Tennis and facilities, membership, potential membership and special activities to promote and grow tennis participation.  The committee also helps coordinate the award nominations for the Utah Tennis Association’s Annual Meeting.  2009 Communications & Public Relations efforts were coordinated by Linda Vincent, Executive Director and Charlene Johnson who assist Utah Tennis Association with Public Relations & Communication. 

Grievance Committee — Chair  Mike Cooper

The committee has the primary responsibility for resolving grievances and complaints filed by Members in connection with the leagues, tournament and programs sponsored by the Association.  It is also the job of the Grievance Committee to balance the interests of the person who is the subject of the grievance, his or her teammates, and very importantly, other players who may be impacted by the complaint or incident .  It is absolutely critical that if at the time of the incident that complaints be directed to local umpires or the tournament desk for immediate handling.  Parents are advised to restrain themselves in connection with their children’s matches and to resort to appropriate remedies.  All players and spectators are expected to adhere to The Code and rules of tennis and demonstrate good sportsmanship so that  everyone can have a fun and enjoyable experience on and off the court.  2009 Grievance Committee Members:  Mike Cooper, Leeza Evensen, Ken Harris, Cheryl Jameson; Staff  Members: Linda Vincent, Robin Wise and Fritz Heinecke.

2009 MEMBERSHIP STATISTICS

USTA Individual Membership—Junior & Adults

The Intermountain Tennis Association, as of December 31, 2009, is the 8^th largest section in the United States with 38,838 members, just behind Southern California.  Much of the Section and District’s funding from the USTA is based on percentage of overall membership.  It is also imperative that ITA maintain a strong presence in memberships because endorsement spots for national junior play is based on a percentage of our total membership.  Utah is the second largest district in the Intermountain section with 5812 members as of December 31, 2009 and comprises 15 percent of the total membership among the six states that comprise our section.   As of December 31, 2009 total membership was up slightly with just over a one percent increase compared to last year. 

USTA Organization Membership

USTA Organization members include CTA’s, Schools, Tennis Service Organizations, Private & Public Tennis Facilities and Commercial Clubs.  Org membership saw an increase of 14% in 2009 with 65 Org members as of Dec 31, 2009 compared to 57 Org Members in 2008.