RAISE A RACKET AND CELEBRATE!

Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been awarded third place in the USTA’s 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest. As a result, the City of Richmond will be the recipient of a $25,000 grant from the USTA.

The ceremony took place today during the U.S. Open and plenty of Richmonders travelled to New York to be a part of the excitement in the Arthur Ashe Stadium. Officially representing Richmond were Eric Perkins, RTA Vice President, and The Honorable Ellen Robertson, Vice President of Richmond City Council. The other two finalists were Atlanta, GA, awarded $50,000 for second place, and Charleston, SC, awarded $100,000 for first place.

Eighty-two cities around the country vied for the USTA funds in this competition, so the RTA is proud to have created the video application that secured one of these coveted awards. The RTA anticipates meeting with Richmond City officials in the coming months to allocate the funds, which will go to support community tennis programming and tennis facilities in our area.


Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the summer. We want to give special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped in this endeavor to bring tennis to the forefront of our community.



Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA. 



So, raise your rackets in a salute to Richmond—officially now the thrid Best Tennis Town in America!

Richmond Junior Circuit Masters Tournament Held Aug. 21

On August 21, The Country Club of Virginia hosted the Richmond Junior Circuit Masters Tournament.

The Masters tournament is for the top 8 players in the RJTC standings in each age group. Players competed throughout the summer in 10 tournaments and received points for each match that they played.

At the end of the series, the top 8 players were invited to compete for the Masters Championship.

Congratulations go out to the players listed below for qualifying for the tournament as well as the winners of the Masters Tournament! Way to go!

Boys 8
Alaister Burke
Michael Zuccaro
Hatcher Butterworth
Harrison Janney
Jacob Kalman
Christopher Shiflett
Link Hammerschmidt
Sachin Sanjay
Winner Alaister Burke

Boys 10
Nathan Zhao
Dorsey Ducharme
Andrew Partington
Spencer Whitaker
William Hobbs
Alston Hackney
Joshua Kalman
Shaan Kapadia
Winner Dorsey Ducharme

Girls 10
Jessica Wills
Claire Davis
Casey Carnohan
Kendall Cray
Anna Soffin
Katie Bauduc
Reilly Phelps
Winner Jessica Wills

Boys 12
Grant Sarver
Michael Wagner
Jacob Stern
Joseph Brown
Wil Venitz
Ben Manspile
Andrew Carey
Daniel Hennig
Winner Grant Sarver

Girls 12
Anne Miller
Rachel Partington
Caroline Hare
Anna Ransone
Madeleine Burke
Erin Farleigh
Winner Erin Farleigh

Boys 14
Patrick Reagan
Andrew Reed
Logan Healy
Grant Rabalais
Parker Allen
Jeremy Price
Michael Darr
Nicholas Grandpre
Winner Patrick Reagan

Girls 14
Ellie White
Olivia Wilson
Lilly Ellick
Elizabeth Dudley
Allyson Kearns
Eleanor Manspile
Jordan McFee
Kara Adams
Winner Lilly Ellick

See photos

Worthams Win National Mother/Daughter Event

National USTA Senior and Open Mother/Daughter Grass Court Championships, New Port, RI

Lindsey Wortham and her daughter Ginny Wortham of Richmond, VA have won the National Senior Mother/Daughter Grass Court Championships at the International Tennis Hall of Fame Tennis Center in New Port, RI.
They defeated Myra and Myra Alyne O’Dell of Kingsport, TN for the title.
The local mother/daughter pair may win another Gold Ball in the Open Division of the Mother/Daughter event, also being played there, as they play their last match Saturday, and are the favorites to win the event.
The Gold Ball is the USTA trophy for winning a USTA National event, and winning one is the dream of any tennis player. Winning two Gold Balls at the National Grass Court event will be a fantastic achievement for the Richmonders.

We did it!!

Thanks to all of you, the RTA is pleased to announce that Richmond has been confirmed as one of the top three finalists in the 2010 Best Tennis Town in America contest sponsored by the USTA. The other two finalists are Atlanta, GA, and Charleston, SC. All three cities will all be participants in a special awards ceremony during the U.S. Open in September (date and time to be determined) where the Best Tennis Town 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners will be officially announced. At best, we will return from NYC with the Best Tennis Town title and $100,000 for Richmond tennis. But with 2nd place receiving $50,000 and 3rd receiving $25,000, we are delighted with our success no matter the final outcome.

Many thanks are owed to all of the RTA volunteers, city officials, and tennis clubs who campaigned so feverishly over the past two weeks, with special thanks to the local media outlets and organizations (local network affiliates, sports radio, Richmond Times Dispatch, Richmond Sports Backers, Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of Richmond, Retail Merchants Association, and others) who helped bring tennis to the forefront of our community.

Thanks also to the power of social media networking and the Internet, we enjoyed the support of the USTA/Mid-Atlantic Section, USTA/Virginia, the Washington Kastles World Team Tennis organization, and community tennis associations and clubs from around the nation---from the Canyon Creek Women’s Racquet Club in Dallas, TX, to the Roseville Community Tennis Association in Granite Bay, CA.

Be sure to check this site in the coming weeks—we’ll post the date and time for the ceremony once we have the information. Meanwhile, please join the RTA in spreading the great news for tennis in Richmond!

MacDonalds Winner and Runner-up vote for Richmond!

McDonalds Clay Court Championship women's singles winner Petra Rampre (top) and runner-up Anna Mamalat (bottom) vote for Richmond as the best tennis town. Don't forget to cast your vote for Richmond!

VOTE NOW for Richmond, the Best Tennis Town!

Richmond has been named one of the top ten finalists in the USTA's Best Tennis town contest. Voting runs from July 16 - July 26. Be sure to vote and tell all your friends to vote! Visit besttennistown.com/ to vote and read more , and read the press release here.

Best Tennis Town!

We find out soon if we are one of the lucky 10! Get ready to vote starting July 16! Get your friends ready to vote! We are down the home stretch! Visit besttennistown.com to vote and see finalists.