Summer Opportunities
I hope your summer is off to a great start. I look forward to seeing the improvement your tennis game makes between now and the start of next season.
As you know, there are many opportunities over the summer to take lessons and participate in camps and group training sessions. If you need help finding those kinds of opportunities, let me know, and I can help connect you.
Opportunities to LEARN
Lancer Tennis Summer Camps
We are again offering our summer tennis camps. They will be offered June 29-July 2 for players entering 3rd grade-12th grade at the SME HS Courts. The elementary school and middle school groups will focus on tennis skill development while the high school groups will focus on doubles skill development. The cost of the camp will be $70 and registration is available on Bound - Camp Registration. Bound asks all parents to create an account before registering and paying.
Youth Camp:
Entering 3rd-5th Grade - 8:30-9:45 a.m.
Entering 6th-8th Grade - 10:15-11:45 a.m.
HS Doubles Academy:
Girls - Entering 9th-12th Grade - 1:00-2:30 p.m.
Boys - Entering 9th-12th Grade - 2:30-4:00 p.m.
Opportunities to COMPETE
PLAY WITH TEAMMATES
I’ve always believed that having players at 3 different levels compared to you to compete against is a great way to work on your game: 1) A player who you beat most of the time you play; 2) A player who beats you most of the time you play; 3) A player who you are even with most of the time when you play. Reach out to teammates and get together and play.
FIND AND PLAY IN A LEAGUE - KCJTL and JTT
Many area clubs and even the Prairie Village Parks and Recreation have league teams. The two most common organizations in this area are KCJTL teams and USTA JTT teams. Often, these groups have at least a practice and a match each week.
PLAY KC SUMMER SLAM EVENTS
Starting about 10 years ago, several MO high school coaches got together and decided to start a tournament series that offered both singles and doubles for players who wanted to continue to compete in the summer.
Over the years, it has grown to include multiple levels of play. You can self-select: Varsity, JV, and Novice levels. You can also play singles, doubles, and mixed doubles. If you are unsure which level to play, reach out, and I can help you decide. A solid rule of thumb is that if you played in multiple varsity matches or are hoping to play varsity next year, you should sign up for varsity.
You can find the KC Summer Slam schedule and register for events online: https://sites.google.com/a/lsr7.net/kc-summer-slam-series/kcss?authuser=0
Kansas City Summer Slam Events usually use the following weekly schedule:
TUESDAY:
Varsity Boys Singles / JV Boys Singles / Varsity Girls Doubles / JV Girls Doubles / Novice Girls Doubles
WEDNESDAY:
Varsity Girls Singles / JV Girls Singles / Varsity Boys Doubles / JV Boys Doubles / Novice Boys Doubles
THURSDAY:
Varsity and JV Singles - Boys and Girls Semifinals and Finals / Novice Boys Singles / Novice Girls Singles / Mixed Doubles
FRIDAY OPTION:
“Rain-Out” Date / “Catch-up” Date
Kansas City Summer Slam Events:
Hornet Slam - June 2/3/4 - Liberty HS / Staley HS
Tiger Slam - June 9/10/11 - Warrensburg HS - boys / Sedalia HS - girls
St Joe Slam - June 9/10/11 - Noyes courts St Joe - singles / Savannah HS - doubles
Liberty Slam - June 16/17/18 - Liberty HS / Staley HS
Summit Slam - July 7/8/9 - Lee’s Summit North / Lee’s Summit / Lee’s Summit West
Scholarship Slam - July 14/15/16 - Staley HS / Oak Park HS
Jaguar Slam - July 21/22/23 - Blue Springs South / Lee’s Summit North / Lee’s Summit West)
Noland Road Slam - July 28/29/30 - Truman HS / Chrisman HS
PLAY USTA TOURNAMENTS
The USTA offers a range of events throughout the year. You need to be a USTA member to enter their tournaments, but USTA junior memberships are free. USTA membership link.
USTA tournaments are classified by level. You earn ranking points based on your performance at each tournament. At the higher levels, registration is limited, so players with more ranking points are more likely to have their registrations accepted. USTA tournaments are also based on age group. For example, if you are 15 or 16, you need to compete in 16U tournaments. You can compete up age groups. For example, a 14-year-old could play 16U or 18U tournaments or a 15-year-old could play 18U tournaments. Link to a searchable USTA tournament schedule. You can adjust the location and level for events. We are in the Missouri Valley section and the Heart of America district.
Here are the levels of USTA events (starting at the lowest level):
Junior Circuit - These tournaments are non-elimination and are for players just starting to compete in tournaments.
L7 - These tournaments are local, non-elimination, and often use a shorter match-format (frequently, one set to 6).
L6 - These tournaments are often local and double-elimination. Main draw is 2 out of 3 sets with a supertiebreak instead of the 3rd set.
L5/L4/L3 - These tournaments tend to be regional (Missouri Valley - KS, MO, IA, NE, OK) and require ranking points to be accepted into the field. Each level has progressively higher ranked players.
L2/L1 - These tournaments are national and have high-level and highly ranked players in the fields.
PLAY ITA SUMMER SERIES Events
The ITA Summer Series is a group of events hosted primarily by college coaches on college campuses. You can find more details on the ITA website, and I’m happy to share what I know as well. You will need an ITA Player Membership to compete in the events. The events are considered OPEN, which means high school players, college players, and adults can apply to participate. They are designed for college players and high school players interested in competing at the college level.
Here’s a link to their website - https://wearecollegetennis.com/ita-summer-series-info/
There are between 9 and 12 events around the country each week. There are several in our area:
June 13-15 - Washburn University (Topeka, KS) - Singles
June 19-21 - Wichita State - Singles and Doubles
June 19-21 - Drake University (Des Moines, IA) - Singles and Doubles
July 10-12 - Southwest Baptist (Bolivar, MO) - Singles and Doubles
July 17-18 - Bethel College (North Newton, KS) - Singles and Doubles
July 18-20 - Grinnell College (Grinnell, IA) - Singles and Doubles
July 24-26 - Central College (Pella, IA) - Singles and Doubles
July 24-26 - Drury University (Springfield, MO) - Singles and Doubles
GET OUT AND ENJOY THE GAME, ENJOY THE PROCESS OF IMPROVING, and ENJOY THE COMPETITION. I hope to see you on the courts this summer.