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Universal Tennis Junior Circuit events are new to the scene and players are lining up to register, including 11-year-old Ania Zabost (UTR Rating 4.95). Ania is a top Level 4-6 player in Southern California and according to her mother, Alexandra Zabost, she is looking forward to participating in more Universal Tennis events.
“We love Universal Tennis,” Alexandra Zabost said. “Universal Tennis is more creative with their accomplishments. Ania has dozens of trophies, but she loves getting things like gift cards.”
Junior Circuit consists of three seasons (Spring, Summer, and Fall) structured in round-robin draws based on gender and UTR/Level. Each season consists of qualifying tournaments leading up to an end-of-season regional tournament and players must compete in 2 qualifiers to be eligible for the regional tournament.
At the conclusion of the three-season, there will be a Universal Tennis Junior Circuit Championship in November, held at various locations based on UTR levels.
The Benefits of Playing Universal Tennis Junior Circuit
More traditional organizations typically don’t allow gift cards or cash prizes, but Universal Tennis Junior Circuit encourages tournament directors to think outside of the box.
Along with keeping the juniors motivated with different awards, another perk of playing Junior Circuit is the option for coaching during matches.
“As a parent, the coaching aspect is my absolute favorite,” Zabost said. “Young players need encouragement sometimes, even if you’re not actually coaching them, but simply comforting them during a tough match.”
Coaching isn’t allowed at all events, but Ania’s long-time coach and tournament director, Tim Schnaible, thinks it can be beneficial and it brings more innovative options to the game.
“There are a couple of things that we did differently on the Universal Tennis platform, coaching at certain events is one of them,“ said the Match Tough Tennis Academy pro. “I wasn’t sure how it was going to work, but we had dedicated umpires on every court and it surprisingly took away many issues. Not to mention, it also helps the young players develop and become better competitors.”
Innovative Opportuntiies for Tournament Directors
As a tournament director, Schnaible also appreciates the opportunities the Universal Tennis platform brings to his overall business. He has already started running Junior Circuit events and hopes to increase the cadence from two events a month to every weekend by summertime.
“The people running Universal Tennis are very progressive in their thinking,” Schnaible said. “That entrepreneur aspect of the platform allows me to host more events and make them more memorable.”
To see a list of upcoming Junior Circuit events in your area, click here.