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Course Description

The University of Florida has partnered with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to provide tennis and racquet sports professionals with an educational curriculum focused on developing the business and leadership competencies required to successfully manage a tennis and racquet sports operation.

Completion of the UF Director of Racquet Sports Certificate Course will enable a professional who is already certified at a qualifying level to become a "Certified Director of Racquet Sports" by the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) and Professional Tennis Registry (PTR).

Success in business depends on many factors, including: a unique and differentiated value proposition for the customer; a strong internal business culture; a prudent business plan; a passionate, connected and disciplined team; an intentional marketing strategy and proper capitalization. Yet, even when all these attributes are present, the single greatest influence on whether a business will be successful and, therefore, profitable for the long haul depends on its leader. Leaders, especially great leaders, and, therefore, great racquet sports directors, are the single most important influence on any club or tennis business’s ability to succeed. The racquet industry’s most difficult challenge is identifying, cultivating, and putting in place qualified leaders.

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 created challenges to the tennis/racquets industry, initially, but it ultimately, provided a boost to participation numbers by a significant amount. The challenge the racquets industry now faces is to sustain the interest of these new or returning players for the future, to continue to bring more people into the game of tennis (the USTA has a goal of 25M players by 2025) and drive continuous growth in racquet sports participation over the next century. The racquets industry also must manage the growing landscape of complementary racquet sports that are being included in programs at clubs around the US and the world, including pickleball, padel, POP, platform and touchtennis. To meet the challenge, the industry must build a reserve of tennis professionals who are fully capable of leading and managing a tennis/racquets business, and driving participation and profits to further grow the business. The demand today is not only for teaching professionals, but also for individuals who are capable to act as leaders.

To solve the industry leadership challenge, in 2019, a committee of industry leaders began considering the important components of education necessary for success in the role of Director of Racquet Sports. That committee, led by Len Simard, Scott Shultz (USTA) and John Embree (USPTA) consisted of successful USPTA-certified and PTR-Certified Directors of Tennis and Racquet Sports from around the country along with educational advisor Stephen Tharrett. The committee's work created a curriculum that became the foundation for the online courses UF began teaching in 2021.

The Director of UF’s Professional Tennis Management program and courses is former Gator NCAA All-America Kim Bastable. In addition, education is provided by respected industry consultant Doug Cash, a financial expert with 40+ years of racquets industry club management and leadership experience.

Notes

The mid-term and final exams in the course, designed by the members of the Racquet Sports Director Certification Committee and external educational advisor, include multiple choice questions that cover the content brought forward in the curriculum. To successfully complete the course, candidates need to achieve a score of 70% or better on all quizzes and exams.

The program is self-paced. There are no assignment deadlines. It is estimated that a student will complete the program in 8 months, by investing 4 hours each week. Students have 1 year to complete the course.

Upon satisfactory completion, the candidate will receive a certificate designating them as having successfully completed the course. Candidates must then present that proof of completion to the USPTA (www.uspta.com) or PTR (www.ptrtennis.org) to receive their designation as a “Certified Director of Racquet Sports” if they are otherwise qualified.

"Certified" Directors of Racquet Sports are required to keep their membership with USPTA and PTR current.

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Application

Name
Director of Racquet Sports Certificate Course
Enroll Now - Select a section to enroll in
Section Title
Director of Racquet Sports Certificate Course
Type
self-paced
Dates
Start Now, you have 365 days to complete this course once enrolled.
Delivery Options
Course Fee(s)
Dir of Racquet Sports.1 non-credit $2,395.00 Click here to get more information
Drop Request Deadline
2 days after enrollment
Transfer Request Deadline
2 days after enrollment
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