From the Editor: Wilson Supports Grassroots Regional Tennis
Posted on September 18, 2007JAX Tennis Magazine debuted in March 2007 with our definition of a "grassroots tennis" effort -- a magazine to draw the tennis community together, to raise participation in tournaments, leagues, junior and public parks tennis.
Beginning with our Sept. 2007 back cover, Wilson Sporting Goods has pledged their support as an anchor advertiser and grassroots tennis supporter. You may have heard of them. The man and woman who raised the trophies last month at the US Open, Roger Federer and Justine Henin, were wielding Wilson sticks in Flushing Meadows. They also received some good pub in 2000 when Tom Hanks had a best bud named Wilson in the movie Cast Away. As Will Ferrell might say, they're kind of a big deal. And that's why we appreciate them putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to growing tennis and supporting a regional tennis publication -- albeit a publication with 25,000 readers in one of the hottest tennis demographics in the United States.
The Northeast Florida region hosts approximately 60 country clubs, tennis resorts and clubs, including the likes of the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club (voted the top tennis resort in the country), the ATP Headquarters and Amelia Island Plantation, home of the WTA Tour Bausch & Lomb Championships. Again, kind of a big deal.
Wilson Racquet Sports General Manager Jon Muir oversees Wilson's racquet sports business on a global level, but he pays attention to tennis at grassroots levels too. He wants to know why tennis is booming in North Florida, why Jacksonville has the largest junior league participation in the state, why adult tournaments are having record turnouts -- why why why? (for a few reasons, see this issues article on the Northeast Florida Professional Tennis Association). Reasons for the tennis boom are debatable, but in Florida you also have to recognize the hard work of local USTA Florida-sponsored CTAs (Community Tennis Organizations) such as our regional First Coast Tennis Foundation.
Northeast Florida's large number of tennis charity events is also a strong indicator of the region's love of the game (and giving). Their success shows that North Floridians can transform their passion for tennis into a powerful tool for the community. The proceeds from the annual Garber Automall Men's Pro Tennis Classic pro-level Futures event are donated locally to The J.P Hall Children's Charities and the MaliVai Washington Kids Foundation. The Linda's Legacy event at the end of September and the SenioRITA in October both benefit cancer research and awareness, and are two of the bigger events leading into October, which is recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Wilson is here in our community, helping the Linda's Legacy event with tennis balls, and they have also contributed more than $1 million to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Wilson does on the national level what RITA (Research is the Answer) founder Chuck Jantz has done for breast cancer research donations in Jacksonville.
Again, why is there such a strong tennis community here in North Florida? Is it the weather? The abundance of tropical fruit? Having a new, local tennis magazine pointing players toward leagues, tournaments, events and issues doesn't hurt. But 60 percent of magazines fail in their first year, and 80 percent fail by their fourth year. JAX Tennis is determined to beat the odds. Support from manufacturers and tennis institutions such as Wilson go a long way in this regard at the grassroots local level.
See you on the courts,
Richard Vach
Publisher, JAX Tennis Magazine
Northeast Florida's Tennis Source
This editorial appeared in the October issue of JAX Tennis Magazine, Northeast Florida's Tennis Source, www.jaxtennismagazine.com. Contact: publisher@jaxtennismagazine.com
Beginning with our Sept. 2007 back cover, Wilson Sporting Goods has pledged their support as an anchor advertiser and grassroots tennis supporter. You may have heard of them. The man and woman who raised the trophies last month at the US Open, Roger Federer and Justine Henin, were wielding Wilson sticks in Flushing Meadows. They also received some good pub in 2000 when Tom Hanks had a best bud named Wilson in the movie Cast Away. As Will Ferrell might say, they're kind of a big deal. And that's why we appreciate them putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to growing tennis and supporting a regional tennis publication -- albeit a publication with 25,000 readers in one of the hottest tennis demographics in the United States.
The Northeast Florida region hosts approximately 60 country clubs, tennis resorts and clubs, including the likes of the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club (voted the top tennis resort in the country), the ATP Headquarters and Amelia Island Plantation, home of the WTA Tour Bausch & Lomb Championships. Again, kind of a big deal.
Wilson Racquet Sports General Manager Jon Muir oversees Wilson's racquet sports business on a global level, but he pays attention to tennis at grassroots levels too. He wants to know why tennis is booming in North Florida, why Jacksonville has the largest junior league participation in the state, why adult tournaments are having record turnouts -- why why why? (for a few reasons, see this issues article on the Northeast Florida Professional Tennis Association). Reasons for the tennis boom are debatable, but in Florida you also have to recognize the hard work of local USTA Florida-sponsored CTAs (Community Tennis Organizations) such as our regional First Coast Tennis Foundation.
Northeast Florida's large number of tennis charity events is also a strong indicator of the region's love of the game (and giving). Their success shows that North Floridians can transform their passion for tennis into a powerful tool for the community. The proceeds from the annual Garber Automall Men's Pro Tennis Classic pro-level Futures event are donated locally to The J.P Hall Children's Charities and the MaliVai Washington Kids Foundation. The Linda's Legacy event at the end of September and the SenioRITA in October both benefit cancer research and awareness, and are two of the bigger events leading into October, which is recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Wilson is here in our community, helping the Linda's Legacy event with tennis balls, and they have also contributed more than $1 million to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Wilson does on the national level what RITA (Research is the Answer) founder Chuck Jantz has done for breast cancer research donations in Jacksonville.
Again, why is there such a strong tennis community here in North Florida? Is it the weather? The abundance of tropical fruit? Having a new, local tennis magazine pointing players toward leagues, tournaments, events and issues doesn't hurt. But 60 percent of magazines fail in their first year, and 80 percent fail by their fourth year. JAX Tennis is determined to beat the odds. Support from manufacturers and tennis institutions such as Wilson go a long way in this regard at the grassroots local level.
See you on the courts,
Richard Vach
Publisher, JAX Tennis Magazine
Northeast Florida's Tennis Source
This editorial appeared in the October issue of JAX Tennis Magazine, Northeast Florida's Tennis Source, www.jaxtennismagazine.com. Contact: publisher@jaxtennismagazine.com