The world’s top tennis professionals and experts and over 225 avid adult tennis players from over 30 US states and four foreign countries have come together for the second annual United States Tennis Congress (USTC). The sold-out training event kicked off Friday at the Hilton Tucson El Conquistador Golf and Tennis Resort in Tucson, AZ following the inaugural U.S. Tennis Congress in 2013.
Heralded as the most innovative event to hit the tennis industry in years, The Tennis Congress provides avid adult players with an inspiring, intensive, in-person opportunity to learn from the world’s best coaches and experts. As with the inaugural event, the second annual U.S. Tennis Congress program consists of cutting-edge education and training and features over 350 workshops, seminars and on-court classes on all aspects of player development - technique, strategy and tactics, tennis-specific fitness and conditioning, injury prevention, nutrition, and the mental game. Importantly, each Tennis Congress event is fully customized around the priorities and goals of the individuals who take part, whether players are new to the sport, intermediates, or seasoned high-performance competitors.
Tennis Congress founder P.J. Simmons, a serious recreational player and self-professed “tennisaholic” who didn’t start playing until his late 30s, explains the reason for its momentum: “The Tennis Congress model validates the fact that like me, there are countless adult players who are ready to be treated like serious athletes. Our mission is to continue to help more adults experience the kind of comprehensive, cutting-edge training previously reserved for elite junior athletes and professionals in order to fast-track their progress and fulfill their dreams.”
The diverse Tennis Congress faculty is a veritable who’s who of global industry experts, and includes Olympic Silver medalist Emilio Sanchez, seven former World #1 players, several former Top 100 players, leaders from the tennis world's top professional tennis organizations, the top online instructors in the tennis industry, and three of the world's 10 dual PTR/USPTA Master Pros. Faculty members with expertise in everything from stroke mechanics to strategy to sports psychology to nutrition use video, whiteboards, movement drills, fitness equipment, and other modern tools and techniques to create an unprecedented learning opportunity for players. Bios on the Tennis Congress faculty of world-class experts which represent six continents can be viewed here.
2014 USTC faculty member, Olympic silver medalist and two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist, Tim Mayotte, shares his thoughts: “The Tennis Congress has emerged as the premier forum for adult amateur player development. Having participated as faculty in the inaugural event as well, I’m thoroughly impressed by the commitment and resolve of these athletes to become the best players they can be.”
Helping The Tennis Congress advance its mission to “raise the bar” for avid adult recreational player development worldwide are 2014 U.S. Tennis Congress Official Sponsors HEAD Penn, Tennis Express, Clif Bar & Co., Fivesky and Own the Zone. Founding Partners include the International Tennis Performance Association (IPTA), Professional Tennis Registry (PTR), United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) and Tennis Industry Association (TIA).