Mission Hills Country Club, in Rancho Mirage, California, recently became the inaugural recipient of the United States Tennis Association’s Feature Facility of the Year award. After completing a rigorous application process, Mission Hills was selected as the first ever recipient of the award as well as one of four clubs across the nation to be recognized as a Large Private Outstanding Facility of the Year.
The Feature Facility of the Year award signifies that Mission Hills is the top tennis facility in the nation, including public and private venues, has shown exceptional design and amenities, and has enhanced the game of tennis in the local area.
Members of the Mission Hills tennis staff accepted two prestigious awards from the president and chair of the USTA during ceremonies that took place at the USTA Semi-Annual meetings early in September in New York City. When inviting the team to the awards, Jeremiah Yolkut of the USTA said, “Mission Hills is the first ever recipient of this portion of the Facility Award program. This honor is extremely special and your team should be proud.”
While ClubCorp is primarily known for its golf and business clubs, the company is also the largest owner of tennis clubs in the world with 60 clubs offering tennis programs and, combined, housing more than 600 grass, hard, and clay courts. Blazing the trail in the tennis industry alongside Mission Hills, locations such as Braemar Country Club in Tarzana, California; The Clubs of Kingwood near Houston, Texas; The Hills of Lakeway Golf Club in Austin, Texas; and Hunter’s Green Country Club in Tampa, Florida, have pioneered pivotal programs including the USTA’s QuickStart program. QuickStart, an exciting new play format for learning tennis, is designed to bring kids into the game by utilizing specialized equipment, shorter court dimensions, and modified scoring, all tailored to age and size. It is divided into two different levels — ages 8 and under and ages 10 and under. It is a fast, fun way to get kids into tennis and keep them playing.
Many of our clubs have fun and creative activities and programs, from junior programs and tournaments to ladies’, men’s and interclub leagues, that allow the whole family to enjoy tennis. For beginners, East Lake Woodlands in Oldsmar, Florida, has the only USTA-sanctioned Rookie Tournament, which prepares beginning and novice players for the USTA Tour.
Brookhaven Country Club in Dallas, Texas, ClubCorp’s largest tennis club with 41 courts and 15 full-time USPTA-certified instructors, has a tennis academy that has produced more than 100 kids who have gone on to play at Division 1 schools on tennis scholarships.
In Tampa, Hunter’s Green Country Club has a highly-competitive couple’s group and, in 2009, they were the only club in the nation to send three teams to the USTA Team Champions in Daytona, Florida, including the Ladies 3.0, Ladies 3.5 and Men’s 3.5 teams.
Braemar Country Club in Tarzana, California, recently started a “Back in the Game” initiative that provides an hour-long clinic for players who have not played in awhile to brush up on their skills. They also offer a “Quick Fix” clinic that teaches various techniques to improve your game.
In Austin, Texas, The Hills of Lakeway has leveraged their status as a premier tennis club to coordinate a charity event on Nov. 8, 2009, benefitting Children of Fallen Soldiers. Pete Sampras and Todd Martin will have an exhibition match at the club to raise funds and awareness for this worthy cause.
Many of our clubs also invite new members to take part in a complimentary 30-minute tennis lesson to become more acquainted with the courts, the staff and the programs that they can indulge in as a member of the ClubCorp network. We invite all of our members and their guests as well as prospective members to learn more about the tennis programs in their respective areas and take part in what is a growing passion throughout the country. Our commitment to growing the tennis community is just getting started.
