USPTA SoCal Line Calls Q1 2024

USPTA SoCal LINE CALLS

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1st Quarter 2024

1sth Qtr 2024 NEWSLETTER

President's Message Hello Southern California Professionals, Happy New year to all of our great USPTA SoCal Professionals!

I hope our newsletter finds you healthy and busy spreading tennis throughout Southern California.

It’s been a busy year for us all, and my hope is that you have all the teaching you can handle.

(CONTINUED)

President's Message

We had a great representation from Southern California at this years World Conference. We saw our very own Simon Paek receive the esteemed Alex Gordon Professional of the year award as best in the country! If you know Simon as I do, you understand that this is a well deserved award to a dedicated father, husband and authentic professional. We are so fortunate to have Simon within the SoCal division!

(CONTINUED)

President's Message

Simon was presented with this award at our USPTA World Conference this past September in Orlando. Our conference attendance was quite large tis year with many of you making the journey across the country to invest in your careers. It warmed my heart to see so many of you in Florida. It was great to hang out at our division party. This year we shared our get together between 4 different divisions, and we rocked Top Golf!

(CONTINUED)

President's Message

Keep an eye out for this year’s World Conference announcement as it will make it’s way back to Southern California next September.

This was a special time in our associations history as we also had the opportunity to wish John Embree a final farewell as he will be retiring at the end of the year. Exciting things await us all under the new leadership of newly appointed CEO Brian Dillman.

(CONTINUED)

President's Message

Recently Brian and I met over a zoom call, and I really like his vision for our association.When he reached out to me, I began a short list of questions that I’d like to ask. First question was his vision for our association moving forward? His goal will be to enlighten coaches on the benefits of being a certified professional. Not only for the obvious (insurance) reasons, yet ours is the oldest and most esteemed educational association in the business.

(CONTINUED)

President's Message

He went on to share that he wants an industry wide respect & appreciation for what we do. Secondly, I wanted to get a feel for our future with, of without the USTA. Brian has a longtime relationship with the USTA, and a current District President for Illinois, and he feels strongly that the associations will be working closely as we move into the future. We are the educators, and we can work alongside the (USTA) tennis providers. That was (CONTINUED)

President's Message

encouraging to hear.Welcome Brian!!

With the popularity of Pickleball, I then asked how we are doing creating the curriculum and pathway for certification of pickleball professionals.

By the time you are reading this, we should have a process in place to certify non-USPTA professionals into the world of pickleball (PB). Right now pickleball is like the wild wild west. Our certification (like in tennis) will be the (CONTINUED)

President's Message

best in class. Again, Simon Paek is at the forefront as our PB Coach Developer.

One of my last questions for Brian was would he come out to California for our Division Conference May 18th & 19th.

He looked at the calender, move a few things around then agreed to spend the weekend with us this May at the picturesque Peninsula Racquet Club in Rancho Palos Verdes. This is a super opportunity for you to meet our association’s CEO. If you can carve (CONTINUED)

President's Message

out some time to invest in yourself, I promise you a great time with other like-minded professionals. Please come and attend!

I’d like to thank John Embree for his guidance as I have navigated my role as your president. His advice and support has helped me get through my term over the past two years. Volunteering on this board for over 12 years has meant so much to me both personally, and (CONTINUED)

President's Message

professionally and I could not have made it as smoothly if it weren’t for special mentors along the way. We wish John the best on his next chapter in life and thank him for all his efforts and sacrifice along the way. I am honored to return for the next Two years before I fade off to make room for new leadership on your board. For now though, your Board of Direction is busy planning the next two years of educational and fun opportunities for (CONTINUED)

President's Message

you and me.

We have much to look forward to here within our SoCal Division as we have brought on new energetic doers to your Board of Directors as well. Over the past two years we have brought new life to this division, and the best is yet to come.

We’d like to welcome Christina Sanders as our new District 3 President.

Matthew Jones has worked his way into the executive position as (CONTINUED)

President's Message

division Secretary. I know Christina will fill Matt’s shoes as a great volunteer and leader to her fellow professionals.

We hope you will feel inspired to serve others, as tennis as provided so much to us all! We are always looking for self-motivated individuals to volunteer and serve SoCal. We as your board are hard at work planning your conference set for May 2024.We hope to break attendance records and inspire each other to continue to be the best coaches in the business. This is your career and you get (CONTINUED)

President's Message

out what you put in to it. We hope you’ll attend and make racquet sports better than ever here in Southern California.

That is just a tidbit of the news from me. I invite you to read through our newsletter and learn more of the happenings in your division. I hope to see you on the courts very soon.

Wishing you all the best, Scott.

SoCal Division Newsletter Table of Contents President's Message Pro Spotlight Coach Developer’s Corner Seeking Speakers Embrace the New Teaching Adults Social Events New District Pres Benefits Reminder Giving Back Corner and MORE!

#usptasocal

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

USPTA SoCal Division SPOT LIGHT Professional: Stephen Loreto, By Simon Paek, Regional Vice President.

1.Name – Stephen Loreto Place of work (Tennis/Pickleball (PB), REG VP o r o t h e r l i n e o f w o r k ? )

City of Mission Viejo Tennis and Recreation Centers, Mission Viejo, CA (Tennis), IMI Critical Engineering, (continued)

"START WHERE YOU ARE. USE WHAT YOU HAVE. DO WHAT YOU CAN." (ASHE)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

1.Rancho Santa Margarita (Senior IT Administrator) 2.How long have you been a USPTA Member, since January 2019 3.How long have you been teaching tennis and or PB, Teaching since 2018 (Tennis) 4.Family, kids, etc. Wife REG VP

Luz; daughters Alysea (19), 2nd year at UC Berkely; Magda (16), Junior at CVHS, and Quintina, 6th grade at FNMS. (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

Now let’s get to know

Stephen in 10 questions: 1.Favorite Tour Player and why? Rafa Nadal, who is a very hard-working player and knows how to handle adversities. I admire his heavy topspin forehand which I am trying to emulate and optimistic that I can do in the future.

2.Teach Tennis and PB? I

REG VP t e a c h t e n n i s s i n c e I w a n t t o share my love and passion for the game. I can also live and tell all the good experiences (and challenges) that I gained in playing the (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

sport. My goal is to teach

students good characters in addition to tennis, so they can carry these characters with them in life.

3.Teaching Philosophy? My teaching philosophy is to instill to the students that knowing and learning the fundamentals of tennis and doing so with fun and hard work can yield to better

REG VP r e s u l t s i n t h e f u t u r e .

4. Recent favorite teaching moment? It happened about a month or so ago when one of my students was having difficulty getting to the short balls. (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

So, I demonstrated to her

some of the techniques that I used to get to these balls. I broke down the processes with her and emphasized that if I can get these balls at my age (which was about 40 yrs older than hers) then she should be able to get them as well and with ease.

By demonstrating to her how it was done was the

REG VP t u r n i n g p o i n t o f h e r b e i n g able to get them now.

5. Future plans? My plan is to continue gaining knowledge, more in-depth (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

experience, and getting better at teaching tennis and hopefully Pickleball as well before I retire. After retirement, I will continue to pass on the knowledge, skills, and experience to others and hopefully instill good characters to all my students on and off the

REG VP

court.

6. Favorite Shot, My favorite shot is the topspin lob. (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

7. If you could be doing anything other than teaching tennis or PB, what would you be doing for work? I am already doing two of the things that I love the most, working in IT and teaching tennis. If I was not teaching tennis, I would probably be teaching something else like

REG VP

information technology or computer sciences subjects.

8.Favorite Quote, Have FUN but Play HARD is my personal slogan.

(continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

9. If I could change the

world, I would…. Make it mandatory to spread LOVE and live in harmony with one another.

10. What do you like most about the USPTA, Getting the value of education, knowledge, and

meeting

respectable people (coaches) in the industry. Proud to be

REG VP a U S P T A m e m b e r .

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Stephen over the last 2-3 years. I can attest to his passion for our great sport (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

as well as his dedication to continuing his education and gaining

knowledge and experience.

Stephen is a mainstay at our World Conferences and loves not just the educational component of the conference, but also the networking and personal connections that REG VP h e m a k e s t h e r e – t r u l y

someone who invests in his lifelong love for TENNIS. Well done and keep up the great work, Stephen!

END

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

Coach Developer’s (CD)

Corner by Simon Paek, So Cal Division Coach Developer My fellow CD, Dave Hagler and I recently held a Level 2 Workshop at iTennis Cerritos in November with 11 Professionals. Below is a group photo, please help me welcome all of them into the

REG VP U S P T A f a m i l y !

The following are the Tennis and Pickleball Certification Workshop Dates for 2024 – you can always refer to them on the uspta.org

(continued)

REGIONAL VP

(continued)

SIMON PAEK

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

website for a full list of all dates: Tennis Level II Workshop Dates: Feb. 24-26 @ iTennis Cerritos

June 1-3 @ iTennis Cerritos Oct. 19-21 @ iTennis Cerritos Pickleball Workshop Dates:

REG VP 1 1 : 3 0 a m – 3 : 3 0 p m f o r a l l dates unless specified: Jan. 13 @ iTennis Cerritos Mar. 23 @ Mission Viejo Country Club (MVCC) (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

May 18 @ Peninsula Racquet Club 8 am – 12 noon (before the beginning of our Division Conference) Aug. 31 @ iTennis Cerritos

REG VP

Oct. 5 @ MVCC Nov. 9 @ iTennis Cerritos END

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

USPTA SoCal Division Job Listing, by Simon Paek, Regional Vice President.

By now, I’m sure some of you out there in the Division have seen a recent Facebook and or Instagram posting of USPTA Professionals being sought to work a tennis camp

REG VP

during the BNP Paribas Tournament out in the Desert.

As a service to our SoCal Division Members, we are happy to post job opportunities. (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

This great idea comes from

one of our own, Mr. Chuck Melkent, Director of Tennis at Los Angeles Country Club. Thanks for this great idea, Chuck!

If any of our division members are ever seeking Tennis or Pickleball Professionals, please reach out to either Chad

REG VP K a w a h a r a , o u r 2 n d V i c e President @ skippy10s@yahoo.com or our awesome ED, Carlos Cruz-Aedo @ carlos.cruzaedo@uspta.org. (In addition to (continued)

REGIONAL VP

SIMON PAEK

you posting at uspta.com

Post-A-Job tab.) Something you can do directly to get your information out there quicker is to tag #usptasocaldivision in any of your social media postings. By doing so, anyone following our division’s social media platforms will get it right

REG VP

away.

In this vein, please follow USPTA SoCal Division in your social media of choice at #usptasocaldivision.

END

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

Hello SoCal Members!

A Year at a Glance…

Greetings to all you amazing teaching professionals! What a memorable and productive year for the USPTA SoCal division.

We offered almost a

1ST VP

dozen district educational events between our six districts in 2023, and our board is finalizing our

(continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

district events for 2024 as we speak. As of right now, we have over fifteen events already scheduled throughout the SoCal division.

Please visit our Instagram page @usptasocal in the 1ST VP

weeks to come for details about district events in your area. (continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

Here are some of the district events in 2024 that are already scheduled (some dates and locations still TBA): District 1: 3/18 Calabasas, 6/2 Ventura College, 9/7 Santa Maria, 11/2 Santa Barbara 1ST VP

District 2: February, Bakersfield District 3: TBA District 4: TBA

(continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

District 5: 2/12 Riverside, 4/15, 8/12, 9/14, 11/11 District 6: Feb 5th, May 6th, September 9th, December 9th Please contact your district president for more details on how to 1ST VP

attend and/or get involved. All district event attendees will receive continuing (continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

education credits, which will go towards their required number of credits to stay in good standing.

District 1 (President- Karl Akkerman, ka10s@verizon.net) *Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties

1ST VP

District 2 (President- Kevin Finkelberg, finkelbergtennis@gmail.co m) *San Fernando Valley and Kern County

(continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

District 3 (PresidentChristina Sanders, christinasanderstennispro @gmail.com) *LA, Suburb Cities, and Beach Cities

District 4 (PresidentAisling Bowyer, abowyer@peninsularacqu etclub.com) *South Bay to North Orange County (continued)

1ST VP

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

District 5 (PresidentGabriel Jacob, tennislesson4u@hotmail.c om) *East LA County, East Orange County, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties District 6 (President1ST VP

Tim Ludeke, timludeke@gmail.com) *South Orange County (From Anaheim to Newport Beach)

(continued)

EVAN 1 S T V P PARRY *RESOURCES FOR YOU*

Check out UTR Sports Junior Team Tennis at: www.UTRsports.net (iTennis Riverside juniors competed in the SoCal regional championship match) Sincerely, Evan Parry USPTA Elite Professional

1ST VP

USPTA SoCal Division, 1st VP

(END)

"START WHERE YOU ARE. USE WHAT YOU HAVE. DO WHAT YOU CAN." (ASHE)

PAST PRESIDENT MIKE GENNETTE "SPEAKING"

Ever Thought of Speaking at a USPTA Conference?

By Mike Gennette, USPTA If you have ever thought about throwing your hat into the ring to become a speaker at one of our conferences or at a local district event, then please let us know. We are building a speaker

GENNETTE@CALLUTHERAN.EDU

list and would like to bring in some new voices

(continued)

PAST PRESIDENT MIKE GENNETTE "SPEAKING"

and perspectives.

At the USPTA SoCal division we have always prided ourselves with being able to offer great speaker lineups for our members and guests at our events. And lately you have seen some new speakers at our events. We want to continue to bring you the best speakers with fresh cutting edge presentations. So if you happen to have a unique presentation that you would like to share with us, then please contact me at totaltns@gmail.com and let me know a little bit about your

GENNETTE@CALLUTHERAN.EDU

background and potential topics that might be of interest to our members.

(continued)

PAST PRESIDENT MIKE GENNETTE "SPEAKING"

Here are a few ideas for topics: Anything doubles and for all levels High Performance training Strategy, stats, patterns Physical fitness for tennis Mental training for tennis Club management / career development Technical / stroke production Video analysis Team coaching Ideas for club events /

GENNETTE@CALLUTHERAN.EDU

calendar building Pro shop management

(continued)

PAST PRESIDENT MIKE GENNETTE "SPEAKING"

Social media & other tech skills for tennis coaches and managers Stringing racquets Experiences on the pro tour Games and drills Best practices for lessons and professionalism If you feel that you have unique experience in any of these areas or have some other unique topics that would benefit our membership, then please let us know and maybe you too can be a speaker at a future event!

END

GENNETTE@CALLUTHERAN.EDU

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

On Sunday, August 13th, I attended the funeral of Mr. Sukhdev Singh Dail.

I met the gentleman I knew as Sukhi uncle at about the age of 19. His son and I played tennis and many a time, we'd play hit and giggle doubles with Sukhi uncle

TREASURER:

and another older gentleman. Uncle Sukhi

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

would give me chiropractic care for

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

free, whenever I'd have (continued)

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

have injuries, because I was his son's friend, I suppose.

He had the most gentle touch, as he'd treat me without popping my joints.

As time passed, I found out he was one of the original artists at Hanna Barbera and made many of the cartoons generations grew up watching, before becoming a chiropractor. The sculpture

TREASURER:

he is standing beside, in the image, is one of his creations and can be seen at the beach

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

in Laguna.

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

(continued)

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

TREASURER:

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

(continued)

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

This was a man that had so many interests, yet one of his greatest passions was Tennis. He brought people from all walks of life together on a Tennis court.

He wasn't a pro, neither was he an exceptional tennis player.What Sukhi uncle was can best be described as a people person. He'd listen

TREASURER:

intently to what one had to say; and his responses were never flippant, rather, they were always well thought out. He was kind, and

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

wanted the best for all (continued)

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

around. The proof of the "good" life he led was in the funeral parlor. There were people that were not related to him that flew and drove in from all around. The amazing part was the number of people that he'd met through tennis. I know I would love to be able to touch as many lives as he

TREASURER:

did, in a positive way, as he did, in my career as a coach and mentor. I believe Sukhi uncle probably introduced more people to the game he

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

loved, than many tennis (continued)

RAJEEV DATT

TREASURER

“IN MEMORY”

professionals, for the simple reason that he played tennis recreationally for several decades. If it were up to me, I'd grant him an honorary USPTA membership posthumously, for how many folks he recruited into becoming tennis players. I'm going

TREASURER:

to keep missing this gentle soul and know he's found his peace within the pearly

Rajeev Datt (310) 795-6866

rajeevdatt05@gmail.com

gates.

INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM

END

MATT SECRETARY JONES “Let's Get Together” Let me first start off by saying greetings to all.

I hope that 2024 is SECRETARY

Matt Jones 323-842-5592 mattjtennis@mail.com

treating you all well and your year is a prosperous one. As 2024 gets into full swing, I hope that this quarter has brought with it much success and happiness to you, your families and your tennis!

(continued)

MATT SECRETARY JONES As your district president, it is my responsibility to represent our region and its members that live within it.

In order to do so, one of my major goals is for me to get SECRETARY

Matt Jones 323-842-5592 mattjtennis@mail.com

to know all of you. As many of you know, a great way for us to get to know each other, is by hosting educational events within our district so that we can all come together and meet and greet, all while earning those much sought after continuing educational credits. Stay tuned and (continued)

MATT SECRETARY JONES check those emails and social-media for upcoming events, both in our district and beyond!

Lastly, it is my pleasure SECRETARY

Matt Jones 323-842-5592 mattjtennis@mail.com

to extend an open invitation for you to reach out and contact me any time to offer my assistance and answer any questions regarding your membership and tennisrelated inquiries!

END

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

District 1 news Hello Pros! 2024 promises to be a fabulous and prosperous new year.

All numbers in tennis and Pickleball are looking up and up.

Our Distric will be very

DISTRICT 1:

busy this year and I want to add a few more activities. We are hosting at least 4 events and if you would like to get involved

President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

to promote an event at your club just

(continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

contact me. I would be happy to help out. One thing we would like to promote is all your charity events. So send me your dates and we will make things happen to put more folks at the event.

We can do a kids day or something innovative.

Another program that National has put out there is

DISTRICT 1:

our Junior Professional program to train and get young professionals trained and motivated to make this

President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

their calling as a professional. Contact me to find out more. As you know

(continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

our average age of tennis pros is getting up there and we need to backfill to get some new young pros lined up. We have Career and Leader Mentoring Programs to put your name on the map. Every year we nominate one or two pros awards for these efforts.

So contact me to help you get Local, state and National Recognition. (continued)

DISTRICT 1: President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

We are also launching the USPTA Premier Club list that gets your club recognition for its outstanding trained and USPTA certified staff.

This communicates to your members and prospective members that

DISTRICT 1:

your facility has the best trained certified professional staff in the business. You can advertise this in a custom

President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

banner or plaque in your (continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

Pro Shop that we will give to you free (that meet the base criteria). Contact me right away to get on this list and receive a banner or plaque.

Here are some "save the dates" you need to put on your calendar now. More detail will come out very soon to directly from me, uspta.com, and other communication channels.

2024

DISTRICT 1: President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

March 18 Calabasas 25K Challenger Tournament Kids day and speaker.

(continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

May 18-19 Southern California Division Conference Peninsula Racquet Club June 2 Ventura College Kids Day and speaker Sept 7-9 Santa Maria Open Kids Day September 15-19 USPTA World Conference at the Westin Rancho Mirage Golf Resort Spa

DISTRICT 1: President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

(continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

November 1 Santa Barbara (TBD) Speaker Last thing I wanted to bring to your attention is Pickleball certification. As a member you can be certified very quickly and it is very inexpensive. It should be on your

DISTRICT 1:

credentials as this sport is on a straight up curve in the field of racket sports.

Take advantage of your membership to get this

President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

(continued)

DISTRICT 1!

KARL AKKERMAN "EMBRACE THE NEW"

added on to your exiting membership.

Contact me on any of the above or anything new to get engaged in your organization. I am here to help you.

Karl Akkerman USPTA Elite Professional USPTA District President 1 END

DISTRICT 1: President: Karl Akkerman 805-302-7523 INFO@MARTINPARKESTENNIS.COM ka10s@verizon.net

DISTRICT 2!

KEVIN FINKELBERG

""SUPPORTING COACHES"

Hello, District 2!

I hope you have had a great start to the year.

After returning from our recent board retreat, I know we have a big year ahead. A few save-the-dates for the whole division would DISTRICT 2:

be: May 18-19 for our

President: Kevin Finkelberg USTPA SoCal Division 661-367-0511 finkelbergtennis@gmail C o n f e r e n c e @ P e n i n s u l a .com Racquet Club (LA) (continued)

DISTRICT 2!

KEVIN FINKELBERG

""SUPPORTING COACHES"

September 23-26 for the USPTA World Conference @ Rancho Mirage (Coachella Valley) These SoCal events are an excellent opportunity to get your USPTA education credits and network with other SoCal coaches. More details on each are to come.

DISTRICT 2:

We plan to host our local District 2 events on the 3rd

President: Sunday (roughly) of every Kevin Finkelberg 661-367-0511 other month. I encourage finkelbergtennis@gmail everyone to attend our first .com (continued)

DISTRICT 2!

KEVIN FINKELBERG

""SUPPORTING COACHES"

September 23-26 for the USPTA World Conference @ Rancho Mirage (Coachella Valley) These SoCal events are an excellent opportunity to get your USPTA education credits and network with other SoCal coaches. More details on each are to come.

DISTRICT 2:

We plan to host our local District 2 events on the 3rd

President: Sunday (roughly) of every Kevin Finkelberg 661-367-0511 other month. I encourage finkelbergtennis@gmail everyone to attend our first .com (continued)

DISTRICT 2!

KEVIN FINKELBERG

""SUPPORTING COACHES"

event on Sunday, January 21, at 1:00 pm @ CSUN. This will be an opportunity to come out and meet all of our local District 2 pros and share some drills on the court. We will have food and refreshments as well. Your attendance also enters you into our DISTRICT 2:

raffle to win a case of balls at the event.

President: Please get in touch with me Kevin Finkelberg 661-367-0511 with topics you are finkelbergtennis@gmail interested in for this .com (continued) coming

DISTRICT 2!

KEVIN FINKELBERG

""SUPPORTING COACHES"

year and if you have a topic you are passionate about sharing with the rest of the pros. Last year, one of our District 2 pros, David Schwartz, ran a fun and informative workshop on "Clay in LA." We are looking to do more fun workshops like that this year.

Please keep an eye out on our

DISTRICT 2:

website for upcoming District 2 workshops. Hope to see you all in January for our first

President: meet and greet event!

Kevin Finkelberg 661-367-0511 finkelbergtennis@gmail K e v i n F i n k e l b e r g .com District 2 Board Member END

WWW.PLAYMATETENNIS.COM

CHRISTINA DISTRICT 3!

SANDERS “NEED PROMOTIONS?”

Happy Holidays USPTA District 3 members!

My name is Christina Sanders, and I am so excited to be on the USPTA SoCal Board representing the amazing tennis pros of District 3.

My tennis career began in the desert of Las Vegas, NV, but brought me to Los Angeles in 2019. Since settling into my new district, I’ve had (CONTINUED)

CHRISTINA SANDERS DISTRICT 3 PRESIDENT (702) 334-8810 CHRISTINASANDERSTE NNISPRO@GMAIL.COM

DISTRICT 3: LOS ANGELES & IMMEDIATE SUBURBS; BEACH CITIES (MALIBU TO MARINA DEL REY)

CHRISTINA DISTRICT 3!

SANDERS “NEED PROMOTIONS?”

CHRISTINA SANDERS DISTRICT 3 PRESIDENT (702) 334-8810 CHRISTINASANDERSTE NNISPRO@GMAIL.COM

(CONTINUED)

DISTRICT 3: LOS ANGELES & IMMEDIATE SUBURBS; BEACH CITIES (MALIBU TO MARINA DEL REY)

CHRISTINA DISTRICT 3!

SANDERS “NEED PROMOTIONS?”

the privilege of meeting and working with so many fantastic and established pros. What an impressive group of members we have down here!

I look forward to bringing my years of coaching experience and my passion for networking to my new position here on the board of Southern California.

With 2024 on the horizon, I’m sure we are all busy fitting in as many lessons and clinics as we can, but we can’t forget to (CONTINUED)

CHRISTINA SANDERS DISTRICT 3 PRESIDENT (702) 334-8810 CHRISTINASANDERSTE NNISPRO@GMAIL.COM

DISTRICT 3: LOS ANGELES & IMMEDIATE SUBURBS; BEACH CITIES (MALIBU TO MARINA DEL REY)

CHRISTINA DISTRICT 3!

SANDERS “NEED PROMOTIONS?”

get our own tennis and networking in! I will be hosting our first USPTA District 3 event at The Ritz Carlton in Marina del Rey on Sunday January 21st.

Mark your calendars and bring your racquets for some tennis playing, snacks and drinks, and some great speakers.

Event flyer will be sent out soon!

(CONTINUED)

CHRISTINA SANDERS DISTRICT 3 PRESIDENT (702) 334-8810 CHRISTINASANDERSTE NNISPRO@GMAIL.COM

DISTRICT 3: LOS ANGELES & IMMEDIATE SUBURBS; BEACH CITIES (MALIBU TO MARINA DEL REY)

CHRISTINA DISTRICT 3!

SANDERS “NEED PROMOTIONS?”

If you are a pro with events or workouts that you would like promoted or supported by your district president, please send me the details and I would be happy to help.

Happy New Year, Christina Sanders END

CHRISTINA SANDERS DISTRICT 3 PRESIDENT (702) 334-8810 CHRISTINASANDERSTE NNISPRO@GMAIL.COM

DISTRICT 3: LOS ANGELES & IMMEDIATE SUBURBS; BEACH CITIES (MALIBU TO MARINA DEL REY)

WWW.TENNISWAREHOUSE/USPTA

AISLING BOWER

DISTRICT 4!

"SOCIAL EVENTS"

Hello fellow Coaches!

I want to start off by acknowledging a fabulous coach that won the “coach of the Year” for our district. Please join me in congratulating James Skuratofsky! James is located in Huntington Beach.

I sincerely hope you all had a wonderful 2023.

END

AISLING (ASH-LING) BOWYER

GENERAL MANAGER PENINSULA RACQUET CLUB 310-541-2523

GABRIEL DISTRICT 5!

JACOB, MSPE “MORE EDUCATION”

We had two events at Arroyo Seco Racquet Club, one in November and the other in December. At the first event we had two awesome presenters. Brian Teacher spoke about his career on the tennis circuit and about some of the players with whom he worked and what he did to help improve their games. In addition he spoke about a few of the current players on the tour and what he would recommend to improve their games. Brian (continued)

GABRIEL DISTRICT 5!

JACOB, MSPE "GIVING BACK"

also talked about his teaching app (Full Court Tennis), which is designed for teaching professionals to conduct virtual tennis lessons anywhere in the world. The next speaker was Genya Trosman who presented on-court doubles drills with point construction, ball placement, court positioning and movement. What a fantastic time on the court!

In December at the second event, John Letts gave a presentation on pickleball. (continued)

GABRIEL DISTRICT 5!

JACOB, MSPE "GIVING BACK"

John covered the basic fundamentals, court positioning, ball placement and stroke development along with some pickleball drills; we had a great time.

The next District 5 pro gettogether is scheduled for Monday, February 12th at 11am at iTennis Riverside at Andulka Park. Evan Parry will be presenting “Drills for Groups, High School Coaches, and College Teams”. Look forward to seeing you there. (continued)

GABRIEL DISTRICT 5!

JACOB, MSPE "GIVING BACK"

As always, if you have a topic you would like to see presented at our district events or if you would like to give a presentation at an event, let me know and we can put it together. If you have information you would like to share in the next newsletter, contact me and I will be happy to get it in by next quarter.

I’ll catch you on the court at our next event!

(END)

TIM LUDEKE

DISTRICT 6!

"TIPS"

Hello District 6 Pros, I have a tip that might help your players who are struggling with their tosses.

I call it a “catchable” toss. After releasing the toss the player leaves his/her arm up in

(continued)

TIM LUDEKE

DISTRICT 6!

the “trophy position.”. If she is able to catch the toss without moving her arm/hand that means the toss was in the right place.

If after catching the toss the player turns his/her palm down and drops the ball it should land just a little bit inside the baseline.

This helps players keep their heads up and their shoulders tilted so they can cartwheel and reach up to make contact with the serve instead of rotating and pulling down and pushing the serve. This also (continued)

TIM LUDEKE

DISTRICT 6!

gives the player a toss target which helps create a consistent toss.

District 6 will have another educational event in January or February. Please check your email for updates regarding the date of the event. The theme of these events is “teaching strokes that are typically difficult to teach.”

(continued)

TIM LUDEKE

DISTRICT 6!

Previous events have focused on the topspin serve, slice backhands, and one-hand backhand volleys. These are typically difficult shots for players to learn.

These events are primarily for pros who work with adult players who want to move up to a higher level or junior players who want to be on their high school varsity teams, but any pro is welcome to attend.

END

REMINDER

REMINDER: USE YOUR MANY BENEFITS INCLUDING THIS ONE:

NEW COACHES PIPELINE Do you know anyone who wants to become a coach or perhaps is

Carlos Cruz-Aedo already coaching yet SoCal Executive Director not certified yet?

TEXT @ 310-567-7349 or email carlos.cruz-aedo@uspta.org T h e n p l e a s e h a v e t h e m contact me to apply for

a joint USTA SoCal and USPTA SoCal newcoaches pipeline. They can learn the process and many benefits!

HAVE 2 MINUTES??

KINDLY TAKE JUST A COUPLE OF MINUTES TO UPDATE YOUR USPTA.COM PROFILE AS NEEDED (EMAIL, PHONE NUMBERS, CLUB, CITY, ETC.) THIS HELPS US TO BETTER CONNECT WITH YOU ON IMPORTANT MATTERS THAT HELP YOU AND YOUR CAREER PLEASE.

THANKS TO YOUR USPTA NATIONAL ENDORSEES

"THAT'S ALL FOLKS" CONTINUE TO LET US KNOW HOW YOUR USPTA SOCAL CAN HELP! EMAIL, TEXT, & CALL:

"CARLOS.CRUZAEDO@USPTA.ORG"

310.567.7349