Mississippi Gulf Coast Sports Commission and the Coast Tennis Associations announced that the Gulf Coast will play host to the States largest tennis tournament.
The Coastal Tennis Associations (CTA) of the Mississippi Gulf Coast have partnered with the Mississippi Gulf Coast Sports Commission (www.msgcsc.org) to secure the 2010 USTA Mississippi Adult Tennis Championship June 10-13, 2010.
“This is the first time this event has left Jackson, MS and it is the first chance for the Gulf Coast to highlight our commitment to major events such as the Mississippi Adult Tennis Championship,” stated Scott Ratcliff, Executive Director of the Sports Commission.
1,200 or more players are scheduled to participate in this three day event with an estimated 1.5 million dollar economic impact to the region. The USTA Mississippi Adult Tennis Championship was first approached by Lance St. Amant, Chairman of this year’s Championship, along with Jackson County CTA as well as Harrison County & Hancock County CTA. “It started as just an idea but the CTA’s of the Gulf Coast pulled together and decided that we would bid on this event,” Championship Chairman, Lance St. Amant said. “This is the biggest tennis tournament in the State of Mississippi and has become quite an undertaking to bring all of the components together but believe me it has been a concerted effort by the people of the Gulf Coast to make it happen.”
A multitude of tennis facilities across the Gulf Coast will be utilized for the event with Bayou Bluff in Gulfport, the Biloxi SportsPlex, Treasure Oaks in Ocean Springs and Singing River Yacht Club in Pascagoula serving as Host sites for the Championships.
With this event as an Officially Endorsed event of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Sports Commission, marketing and sponsorship packages were produced to effectively bring this event to the public and private sector to make it a success. Over $25,000 has been raised to insure the quality of the event to the players but also to the sponsors of the event through advertising and marketing. The committee has set a goal of $40,000 for the event to reach its fullest potential. Call Lance St. Amant for sponsorship information at (228)218-9503.
Louis Peters, President of the Mississippi Tennis Association and long time resident of Ocean Springs assisted the tournament committee to bid on this event for the Coast. “I believed that we had everything that the USTA required for the Coast to host the event but it was the collective efforts of the facilities, the CTA’s and the Sports Commission that ultimately secured this event for 2010 & 2011,” Peters said. He went on to say, “With the passion we have seen from the people involved it will be hard for Jackson, MS to get it back.”
Lance St. Amant agreed with Peters, “If we can hold this event to level we have envisioned I can see this event as a yearly event and the Mississippi Gulf Coast as the home of this prestigious event for a long time. The goal is to put our self in position to bid on a Regional event that Mobile, Al hosted which had an $8 million dollar economic impact to their area just this year.
“Once again the Sports Commission looked at this event as a catalyst to bigger and better events for our area. Now with the right plan in place the Mississippi Gulf Coast tennis community has certainly put the Coast on the map as a viable tennis venue,” stated Ratcliff.
For more details, and to learn how to enter, contact the Mississippi Gulf Coast Sports Commission at 228-276-1713 or online at www.ustamississippi.org to get more information on the event.
