Melissa McCorkle Grows Tennis In Tulsa

To honor their 100th anniversary in 2020, the USTA Missouri Valley is recognizing 100 deserving recipients with the Gold Star Award. This award recognizes contributions that recipients have made in growing the game of tennis in their community.

USTA Oklahoma’s Melissa McCorkle was named a Gold Star award winner for her work in local leagues and LaFortune Tennis Center.

McCorkle began her tennis journey at nine years old taking group lessons in the public park setting. 

“I loved learning the technique of the game and spent a lot of time just watching good players at the park in my neighborhood.”

From the beginning, she was hooked. The good sportsmanship from teammates and opponents alike, character-building, tennis fashion, fun means of exercise, and the opportunity to find strong role models caused the young athlete to fall in love with the game from the start. 

After college, McCorkle became involved in USTA Leagues and has been a huge influence in the success of multiple USTA Oklahoma leagues. 

“She is the trailblazer nationally for 2.5 and 3.0 league growth,” said Alyssa Stelmach, Section Leagues Manager. “She has captured and maintained hundreds of players and is an example for beginner leagues nationwide.”

McCorkle believes that her passion for the game is why she’s been so successful at the 2.5 level. 

“I learned early on in my teaching that it was more about just getting players playing quickly and that will get them locked into the game,” McCorkle said. “Of course, the technique is important for those adults starting a little later in life, but things don't have to be perfect to play the game.