DORS CERTIFICATION
CERTIFICATION HELPS PROS PREPARE FOR A DIRECTOR OF RACQUET SPORTS ROLE
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Kim Bastable, UF Director of Professional Tennis Management
ome jobs are easier today than they were 40 or 50 years ago due to the advent of technology, new tools and the ease of communication. But in the world of racquet sports, the job of director has become much more complicated. Back in 1969, the person who directed the tennis program at my club used his car for his office, stored his tennis balls on-court in a trash can and taught me to volley while I, at six years old, wielded a sawed-off, wooden racquet. There was no 10-and-under tennis, no graduated equipment and no social
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ADDVANTAGE MAGAZINE
media. The club’s Sunday afternoon interclub tennis match was played without supervision; a club-member captain ran the show. Players brought their own drinks and their own balls. The role of directing the tennis program back then was just not that complicated. Today, demands for the position, which is now often called the “Director of Racquet Sports,” range from everything concerning hiring and training staff, erecting air structures, managing build projects and hanging windscreens to running programming, events and instruction for players from age three to 93 in a variety of complimentary racquet sports such as pickleball, padel, plat-
form, POP, SPEC and touchtennis. Oh, and did I mention that parents expect report cards for skill progress, want a birthday party for little Jimmy and will tell the general manager if the director isn’t quickly responsive to their request for ice in the coolers and someone to help squeegee on Court Four? Until recently, new directors had to figure it out while on the job. Now, learning on the job has been a challenge since current directors and assistants have 40+ hours of work. There is little extra time for mentoring sessions. The good news is that in 2021, a very clear educational path emerged to help a person feel equipped to move from on-court to the director of racquet
JUNE 2023