President’s Report by James Zug
Last month the USCTA gathered for its annual general meeting. The venue was Tuxedo Park, which was hosting the World Masters. The meeting was very robust, with representatives of the other three national governing bodies and many members of the USCTA.
My president’s report:
The state of the U.S. Court Tennis Association is strong. We have 1,089 members, the most we have ever had. This is remarkable. If you had said a quarter century ago that we’d have almost eleven hundred members in 2019, no one would have believed it.
Many clubs’ membership rolls have grown or stabilized, even those who have gone through a transition. We would like to see many more women playing—just 9.7% of our membership is female. But we are seeing growth in juniors—twenty years ago it would have simply been unimaginable to count sixty-five juniors in our midst. And finally collegiate players. Having six members from Georgian Court University is a robust symbol of our growth in Lakewood and the long-awaited and sought-for institutionalization of tennis at GCU. Many thanks to Bill McLaughlin and the Preservation Foundation for their visionary work there, for Rich Moroscak who manages the initiative and the pros—Robbie Whitehouse, John Lumley, James Asher and Neil Smith—who run the program. And thanks to Mike Gooding for helping realize the old dream of having Salve Regina University get on court as well.
Do note that for 2020 we are raising our regular annual dues to $95 and our overseas dues to $75. We are mostly just catching up with inflation, having not raised the dues in nearly two decades. Many thanks for Jane Lippincott, Ken Forton and Gary Swantner for managing our membership rolls and processes. Our somewhat antiquated and cumbersome membership system reminds me a little of what Winston Churchill said in the House of Commons in November 1947: “Many forms of government have tried and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government—except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”
We are striving to provide an enormous amount of value for your dues. We have revised the national championship medals and changed the system by having all medals engraved in advance; this will save each club the financial and logistical hassle of having to get them engraved themselves. We are launching an online USCTA merchandise shop, so you can proudly sport our wonderful logo and promote the game and the Association. We have a great initial selection, ranging from water bottles to car decals, as well as the usual gear for on-court sartorial splendor. You should note that we also have a few rare examples left of the famous, limited-edition 2015 Annual Dinner shirts; they are selling for the supportive price of $250.
Led by the indefatigable Ken Forton, we are tightening up the back-end of the Association—D&O insurance, child abuse policies and protecting our trademarks. We have also revamped the website, and the communications committee, led by Gary Barnes, plans great things for 2020.
The committee structure is vibrant. We’ve undergone some transitions: in the past two years, more than half of our committees have had new chairs step in. Many thanks to Tim Chisholm (Pro Rep), Suzy Schwartz (Professional Committee), Peter Vogt (Membership), Arthur Whitcomb (Handicap & Ranking) and Jim Wharton (Tournament Policies), all of whom served the Association so well. A few committees are brand-new or resuscitated. I point out in particular the Senior Committee, which has been revived and run with great efficiency by Steve Hufford—Steve in particular has beautifully managed the World Masters; the International Committee, which hasn’t done much of anything, frankly, but eagerly awaits instructions under Jeremy Wintersteen; and the Ad-Hoc Club Partnership Committee, where Jeremy does actually do something, an incredible amount of work, in fact, in raising funds to support our professionals and enable our clubs to host national tournaments.
Jeremy also manages the Bathurst Academy, one of our most high-achieving committees, and guided the 2019 Bathurst, being played right now in Chicago. Like with the top professionals, our top amateur play is a real shop-window that exposes and promotes the game. We are thrilled to see the improvement with our best players. The focus on excellence is fantastic. This past year the Bathurst Academy hosted two training weekends, one in Philadelphia and one in Chicago. One Bathurst player wrote: “The two weekends we spent together, one in Philly and one in Chicago, were amazingly helpful in identifying our strengths and weaknesses. It’s easy to plateau or even backslide in this game, so knowing what to work on in practice is crucial. Keeping the pressure on with these training weekends has been invaluable for our consistency and our camaraderie.” In the past thirty years, we have only won two matches in the Bathurst Cup (in 1994 and 2004, both times beating France). This week we have a good chance of capturing a third victory.
Our positive relationship with the Preservation Foundation is paramount. We work together on many projects large and small. We are glad to have John Motz joining our Player Development Program steering committee, to further lend a hand in planning and executing that critical project. Many thanks to Bill McLaughlin, Jane Lippincott and the entire Foundation board, who are such supportive partners as we work together to grow the game.
In conclusion, court tennis is in the best place it has ever been in the U.S.—and we are only just beginning.
Officers & At-Large Board Members for 2019/20
President James W. Zug, Jr.
First Vice President Vernon Peterson-Cassin
Second Vice President Dacre Stoker
Secretary Mary A. Livingston
Treasurer Kenneth J. Forton
Membership Secretary Gary J. Swantner
At Large Board Members
William S. Barker
Kenneth J. Forton
Mary A. Livingston
Adrian Kemp
Suzanne H. Schwartz
Dacre Stoker
Gary J. Swantner
J. Gregory Van Schaack
Jeremy R. Wintersteen
James W. Zug, Jr.
