For years, the Incline VIllage General Improvement District Tennis Complex has catered to the large senior crowd in Incline Village and Crystal Bay.

This year, while that devotion to the older population continues, there’s a new group of people to which district tennis staff wants to encourage.

That group is the youth of Incline and Crystal Bay, a genre that is being encouraged , said Director of Tennis Billy Knight.

“There’s one thing we have to realize, and that’s that this is our future; kids are our future,” Knight said. “This is what tennis is going to be, so now is the time to get these kids in here. If you look at our high school team, the Reno schools kill them every year. We haven’t been developing players over the years like we should, so we really want to embrace that this year.”

While the Tennis Center has had a few courts open already in May, the official opening at the Tennis Center kicks off Monday. Morning times run from 8 a.m. to noon, with afternoon times running until 6 p.m. For detailed rate information, visit www.ivgid.org.

Indra Winquest, IVGID’s recreation sports manager who recently got the promotion also to oversee tennis, said a number of new programs are taking place this year to cater to a younger crowd.

One of the biggest programs is free junior tennis (12 and under) for Incline/Crystal Bay residents in the afternoon. Another promotion Winquest hopes will be utilized are free family Sundays, which allows resident families to play for free on Sundays.
The drive this season is to continue to serve the older population, while also giving kids more incentive to play tennis.

“I think the foundation is there to really push tennis in the right directions,” Winquest said. “We’ve catered to the older population for a long time, but I think we’ve suffered with the development of kids. Tennis gives them game for life, and we want to provide that this summer.”

The decision of giving kids free tennis time in the afternoon was easy to make, considering the center is not as crowded in the afternoon.
“We figure, if we got slow time in the afternoon, give it to ‘em,” Knight said. “Only good can come out of it.”

A number of events and classes are planned this year including a wheelchair tennis tournament, youth tennis camps, cardio tennis and a professional exhibition event.
The center also plans to enroll an adult beginner class for the first time, which would run from 6 to 7 p.m. every Monday and Wednesday at the center.

“We’ll keep it running as long as they keep coming,” said Nick Saadi, one of the center’s four tennis professionals.

The grand opening to the 2008 tennis season takes place May 26 (Memorial Day) at the Tennis Center. For information on the grand opening, to reserve court times at any point this season or to inquire about pro shop rates, call the Tennis Center at (775) 832-1235.

Billy Knight
Director of Tennis
Billy begins his fourth season with IVGID as Head Teaching Professional and third year as Director of Tennis Operations. A Chicago native, Billy attended Southern Illinois University, Carbondale and earned a degree in physical education. He played college baseball and later professional hockey, many years ago.
Billy is USPTA certified Pro 1 and has coached North Tahoe boys varsity tennis and many of the areas top players and juniors,
During the past few seasons Billy has worked with ATP touring pros, Paul Goldstein, Wayne Odesnik, Alex Bogomolov and Glenn Weiner. Billy is currently the personal racquet stringer for many top touring pros, at selected tour events, including James Blake, Sam Querrey, Mikhail Youznhny and Amalie Mauresmo.
Billy offers a devoted, technical, strategic and personal teaching approach to all skill levels and abilities. He is available for private, semi-private, group lessons and clinics.
He has been an Incline resident for 26 years. Billy is married to LeAnn and has a son Tyler.

Jonathan Cooper is Lake Tahoe School’s Athletic Director and full-time physical education teacher. He is a New Englander to the core: He grew up in Concord, N.H. and did his undergraduate work at the University of Vermont at Burlington, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in education and completed his teacher-licensing program with a specialty in physical education.
At UVM Jon was captain of the men’s tennis team, its Most Valuable Player, its representative at the 2002 NCAA leadership conference, and he also was a 2003 America East All-Conference player.
Jon is a USPTA Certified Tennis Pro, and has worked the past 12 summers teaching tennis in New Hampshire, Vermont and Northstar at Tahoe before joining the IVGID tennis staff.

Kimberly begins her 12th year at the Tennis Complex as an instructor in the popular children’s tennis programs.
Kim previously taught at the Lakeshore Athletic Club in Chicago. She is a graduate of Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa., where she earned a four-year varsity letter as a scholarship player.

Nick begins his third season at the Tennis Complex as Senior Tennis Host and Teaching Pro. He is a USPTA and USPTR certified instructor who brings both a high level of energy and excitement with his lesson plans and activities. Nick was previously the Director of Tennis for the Hayward Area Parks and Recreation Department and brings more than 20 years of competitive playing knowledge, which he picked up playing varsity tennis for Mission College.