APTA struggles with balance between amateur and professional play

APTA struggles with balance between amateur and professional play.

At the Annual Meeting, APTA President Mike North reflected on the issue:

The key question is this: How should the APTA cope with growth and commercialization? These are the conclusions I have come to: There should be a clear-cut division between commercial and non-commercial activities within the APTA.

Commercial activity should continue to come under the aegis of the APTA board so that the “sound development of the game” can be controlled, but, because of the time demands, the APTA office should be split into two function areas, with the commercial headed by a second paid Executive Secretary. There should also be a separation of commercial and non-commercial tournaments, with the tournaments, at least initially, held on the same weekend at the same location, as is being done at Cleveland this year. This has been shown to be a major concern of the WPTA members, of whom over half wished the tournaments to be split in this way. This is a necessary development if the sport is to become a major commercial sport.

Source: Paddle Talk, Vol. 2 No. 2 (December)