Tim McAvoy APTA President (2009-2012)

Tim was the 34th President of the American Platform Tennis Association (APTA) and served in that capacity from May 2009 through April 2012.

From an organizational perspective, Tim formally created a Committee structure for the Board to operate within, where a Committee Chair led every key APTA initiative and that Chairperson (and team of Board members/volunteers) was the champion of that initiative. This structure allowed every Board member to be an active member of the Board, lead an area of the sport in which they were interested and stay focused and organized on all projects in our sport. Committees ranged from ‘Grow the Game’, Rules, Platform Tennis Magazine, Branding, Seniors and more.

Tim focused his Presidency on ‘Growing the Game’ and the three primary Committee’s committed to this cause were:

Grow the Game Committee: Chaired by Peter Lauer, the Board provided over $150,000 in grants over those three years to help facilities get new courts/improve existing ones.

Clinic and Exhibition Committee: This initiative allowed the APTA to provide free clinics and exhibitions in areas where the Board felt they would most help grow local programs. Each of the three years, the APTA provided over 10 free events to locations that ranged from Arapahoe, CO, to Kansas City, MO, Toronto, Ontario, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and many places in between. Thousands of local players over the three years were treated to PPTA pros giving free instruction and displaying amazing talent in the exhibitions all with the sole purpose of trying to help local facilities grow the game in their area.

APTA Junior Tour Committee: Tim transitioned the Viking Junior Tour into the APTA Junior Tour effective September 2009. The APTA Jr. Tour provided over 14 different junior tournaments culminating in the Jr. National Championships held each January. Exposing children to a fun platform tennis experience increases the odds they may come back to our sport after college and hundreds of kids participated in these events each year with the Jr. Nationals having over 200 participants alone! This was a strategic way to grow the game for generations to come.

The final commitment made by the APTA Board under Tim’s leadership was a commitment to a computer based APTA interclub league system that will allow APTA member leagues to schedule, track results and share information free of charge, compliments of the APTA. This interclub interface system was committed to in the Spring of 2012.

Source: Personal communications from Tim McAvoy, 2012