Happy New Year from USTA St. Louis

Happy New Year to the St. Louis tennis community!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. At this time, it is good to take a few moments to reflect upon all that was accomplished in the past year. I am very happy to report 2022 was a fantastically successful year for USTA St. Louis and tennis players in the area. We achieved many new records and initiatives within our very broad tennis portfolio, including:

— Adult leagues are at record levels. We are utilizing better than 95 percent of available court capacity. The 2.5 women’s team Ward Stars won USTA Nationals!

— We sanctioned a record number of junior tournaments and had record participation levels. Our Level 5 and higher junior tournaments featured full draws and attracted players from across the U.S. We had players travel to our tournaments from as far away as California, New Jersey, Florida and Michigan.

— Dwight Davis Tennis Center had record play for the second straight year. We are excited the Dwight Davis facility is growing tennis for everyone: USTA tournaments and leagues, World TeamTennis, UTR events, college, high school, Junior Team Tennis, clinics, clubs, day camps and walk-on recreational play. Primetime weekday evening hours were often sold out on 18 courts during the outdoor season.

— We have reestablished indoor Junior Team Tennis due to increased demand. Our JTT program is one of the best in the country.

— We provided grants for more than $76,000 in outreach and equipment to the St. Louis tennis community, which is a record number. These grants and equipment help make St. Louis tennis more inclusive, accessible and fun for everyone, which is a key priority for our organization.

— We hired a fantastic new executive director. Megan Kovacs is a great resource for all aspects of our portfolio.

As busy and successful as 2022 was, we are even more excited about 2023. Our leadership is completely aligned on our priorities and opportunities to continue to grow all aspects of tennis in the entire St. Louis area. We look to build upon our record 2022 results.

On behalf of the USTA St. Louis district board and management, our sincere hope is everyone has a very prosperous and wonderful 2023! Stay safe and we will see you on the courts!

John Kelly

USTA St. Louis President