Tennis NSW has announced it will launch a new tournament series for elite players across Sydney and Surrounding regions this week, utilizing the Universal Tennis Rating (UTR) System.
The Tennis NSW State Series will commence on July with Gosford Tennis Centre (GTC) to be the first venue to host this event. The State Series will enable competitive match play opportunities for the top 32 tennis players in New South Wales, with prizemoney on offer.
The event is the first of its kind in NSW to utilise the UTR system, known as the most accurate global index of tennis skill available to players. UTR rates every tennis player regardless of age or gender, enabling players to understand their level of skill and tournament organizers to ensure that players are suitably matched.
Over 1.6 million players from across 200 countries have a UTR, including Australia’s very own World No.1 Ash Barty.
The Tennis NSW State Series will operate out of various affiliated clubs and venues across Metropolitan Sydney and Surrounding regions over coming months, with each match having $45 prizemoney on offer.
Tennis NSW CEO Lawrence Robertson said his team had worked tirelessly in recent weeks to put something in place for high performing tennis players. “We have been watching the growth of UTR for some time and now feels like the right time to make full use of it in delivering a new competitive experience for our players across NSW”.
The NSW State Series NSW State Series events will not have any age eligibility restrictions in place. Eligibility will be solely on a players UTR being within the parameters of 10+ for Men and 8+ for Women.
The NSW State Series events have been established to cater for competitive tournament play incorporating limited draw sizes, venue compliance against the NSW Government Public Health Orders and in line with the current Tennis NSW Community Play Guidelines.
Reporter: Ross Barry