The USTA recognizes that the coronavirus has been affecting different parts of the country in different ways and with different timing. Because of that, it will be possible for people to return to playing tennis safely in some cities and states sooner than in others.
At present, stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders have been lifted or modified in some communities, and some are phasing tennis back in as a safe, or in certain cases, an “essential,” activity.
Beginning June 1, the suspension of USTA Sanctioned products and events noted below will now be at the discretion of the USTA Sections and local health authorities. These USTA Sanctioned products and events include:
• Adult and Junior Tournaments
• USTA League
• USTA Junior Team Tennis
• USTA Social Leagues
• Team Challenge
• Team Tournaments
• USTA School Programs
• Tennis on Campus
• Wheelchair Tennis
The safety and well-being of all players and event personnel remains the first and foremost consideration of the USTA. All players should check their USTA Section homepage to determine when these USTA Sanctioned products and events will resume and under what conditions. In all cases, the USTA highly recommends that all players and facilities adhere to the “Playing Tennis Safely” guidelines, as well as all local health and safety regulations when returning to play.
Please note the additional national suspensions below that are still in effect across the country:
All Category 1 and Super Category 2 National Adult Tournaments with an ITF status, all ITF Junior events, all Adults Category 2 and Category 3 tournaments, all Wheelchair L1 - L3 events, and all USTA Pro Circuit events will align with the same calendar as the ITF and be suspended through July 31. The ATP has also suspended events through July 31, while the WTA has suspended select events in July. In addition, the USTA has made the decision, separately, to cancel the 2020 National Clay Court Championships scheduled for July 11-19, and which would have taken place in seven cities across three states.
“The impact of COVID-19 has been felt across the tennis landscape, and it is our goal to ensure that the sport is able to be played in a safe and healthy fashion at the parks and facilities throughout the country once the pandemic subsides,” said Patrick Galbraith, Chairman of the Board and President, USTA. “One of the greatest aspects of this game is that it fosters a true community, and we look forward to the time when we can return to our local courts and use tennis to unite us all, once again.”
The determination has also been made to suspend the calculation and publication of the National Standings List (NSL) for Adult, Junior and Wheelchair play until further notice. The NSL published on March 18 will serve as the most current until tournament competition resumes.
In addition, to ensure that play taking place at local facilities will be the focus once the pandemic subsides, the following events will be canceled for 2020:
• USTA League National Championships
• USTA Junior Team Tennis National Championships
• USTA Junior Intersectional Team Championships
• USTA Zone Team Championships
• USTA National Team Championships
For more information on the cancellation of the USTA League National Championships and USTA Junior Team Tennis National Championships, please visit the FAQ.
The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y., is currently closed to the public. The facility’s Indoor Tennis Center was converted to a temporary hospital for COVID-19 patients, while Louis Armstrong Stadium was utilized as a commissary to facilitate the creation of meal packages that were distributed to patients, workers and New York City school children.
The USTA National Campus, located in the Lake Nona District of Orlando, Fla., will reopen to the public on June 8 following a comprehensive and systematic readiness assessment and sanitization process. Click here for more information.
Any patron who wishes to cancel participation in a scheduled activity should contact the specific location for refund information. These policies will be in effect pending additional guidance or directives from each local governmental agency and the CDC. The USTA will continue to monitor and assess conditions to make future determinations about all activities at these facilities.
* The USTA Medical Advisory Committee includes: Dr. Brian Hainline, Chief Medical Officer of the NCAA and USTA Board Member; Dr. Brian Daniels, MD, Orthopedics and Sports Medicine at Nemours Children's Hospital in Orlando, Fla., and Medical Director, US Open; Dr. Mark Kovacs, Senior Director of Sports Science and Health, Cleveland Cavaliers; Dr. Bernard Camins, Medical Director for Infection Prevention at Mt. Sinai; Mike Rodriguez, USTA Senior Director and US Open Security.
Latest Playing Tennis Safely: Player Tips and Recommendations, May 15, 2020
Here are the latest player tips and recommendations from USTA for playing tennis safely. Download in English. Download in español.
USTA Southern Junior Team Tennis Section Championships Canceled
The 2020 USTA Southern Junior Team Tennis Championships, set for Aug. 14-16, 2020, in Macon, GA, have been canceled.
USTA Southern Closed Junior Championships Rescheduled
The USTA Southern Closed Junior Championships have been rescheduled. The BG 18s, 16s, 14s and 12s will be played July 30-Aug. 5 in the same locations as originally planned. The BG 10s East will run Aug. 1-3 in the same location. Dates and location for the BG 10s West have not been determined.
2020 USTA League, Combo Doubles Section Championships, Tri-Level Canceled
USTA Southern Board of Directors announced the cancellation of its 2020 USTA Adult League championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 18. The six events were scheduled between late July and early December in six cities.
The 2020 Tri-Level Sectionals has also been canceled. The status of the 55 & Over, 65 & Over Mixed Doubles Championships will be determined by USTA Arkansas.
USTA Southern Director of Adult Tennis & Human Resources Chris Walling added, “This was not an easy decision and one that was ultimately decided on by what is best for our players. The health and safety of our players was the number one priority. Additionally, one of the many items we looked at was what our players told us. In a recent USTA Southern League survey with over 13,000 responses, an overwhelming majority of our players made it clear that they wanted to focus on local league options and were not comfortable with team events with more than 300 players in attendance.”
2020 Southern Ozaki Junior Cup Canceled
On behalf of the USTA Southern Junior Competitive Committee and Junior Department staff, we want to thank you for your continued support through these trying times in 2020. We regret to announce the cancellation of the 27th Southern Ozaki Junior Cup for 2020. It will resume in 2021.
This decision has been most difficult and heartbreaking. As you know, the safety of the players, coaches, parents and volunteers is our top priority.
For three decades, Southern juniors have often cited the event as one of their most enjoyable and memorable experiences of junior tennis. With the added safety regulations for the players, coaches, parents, volunteers and staff that would have been required in 2020, we decided against conducting an event that didn’t match the positive experiences of years past. USTA Southern looks forward to holding it in 2021. Thank you.
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