NEWS

Dear APTA members,

We never stop working and playing here at the American Platform Tennis Association! I wanted to share our best initiatives and provide a wealth of data for this season on the courts.

• APTA membership grew modestly at 36,000 members; we’ve doubled our numbers in the last 8 years.
• There were about 300 APTA sanctioned tournaments; about a fifth of our membership played in one of these tournaments.
• Team Nationals garnered a record number of teams, with over 1,000 men and women playing in New Jersey and Chicago. 
• We held 11 PTI National events this season, offering players of all levels a shot at a national title.
• The APTA Tour held 19 events and raised $350,000 of prize money at the tournament level, up $125,000 from last season.
• Seven Junior tournaments were held in all the major markets this season—over 150 players descended on New Jersey at Junior Nationals. The semis and finals of most age groups were live-streamed. 
• We launched PTI2, greatly improving the accuracy and responsiveness of our ratings and making it possible for tournament directors and league leaders to facilitate fun, competitive play at all levels of the game. 
• Our IT capabilities continue to go the extra mile, supporting hundreds of league leaders, tournament directors, and players across the country. These capabilities include membership, registration, tournament administration, member and player communication, and scoring.
• Our video content output has continued to generate enthusiasm around our sport and exposed it to thousands of new viewers, many of whom have never heard of platform tennis before: one video found purchase with the padel community and reached over 1 million viewers on social media.
• We live-streamed 21 events, nearly 1 every weekend, enabling members to enjoy and share their favorite Tour players’ matches throughout the season.
• We are proud to have partnered with Volley again as our primary sponsor for the APTA Tour and APTA Cup.
• We welcomed Corient as our Wealth Management Sponsor for the APTA Tour; truly the beginning of an excellent relationship.
• This past season, $103,000 in grants and loans were awarded. Over the last six years, $665,000 has been awarded to public-access, low-fee     facilities across 25 projects in support of the construction, rehabilitation, and relocation of 49 courts.

One of my favorite parts of the “job” is witnessing the enthusiasm and commitment of the many volunteers, players, tournament directors, and league leaders around the country when I attend Tour tournaments, Team Nationals, and local events. Every facet of the game interests me—PTI, prize money, personal goals, stadium seating, ball bounciness, counting hits, etc.

A highlight of my season was defending my Team Nationals title with the Deuce Canoes. While unsuccessful (this year), it was fantastic to gather our team, play with new and former opponents, and share stories with fellow platform tennis nuts.

Completing my first year as President of the Board, I continue to be humbled by the commitment of our small but very capable APTA team. From our full- and part-time staff, who I assure you are still “passionate volunteers” to the Tour Directors, umpires, and Live Streaming commentators to the volunteers coordinating and organizing league play and platform tennis programs across the country, we have a very special community. I believe that comes directly from the fact that it is largely administered and run by people who love to compete while, importantly, compete with a strong sense of camaraderie. This is demonstrated by the exceptional sportsmanship universally valued and consistently seen in platform tennis.

Thank you to all our APTA teammates—I love this sport!

Best, Demian