Huntsville Tennis Center Staff

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Director of Tennis, Joc Simmons, returns a serve during a match.

Text Box: JOC SIMMONS – DIRECTOR OF TENNIS USPTA CERTIFIED LEVEL 1 Hi, I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Joc Simmons and I’m the Director of Tennis at the Huntsville Tennis Center. I personally invite you to experience all we have to offer. First of all, let me give you a little personal background. I grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and started playing tennis at the age of nine. I made nationals in boys 12’s, 16’s, and 18’s. My first two years of college, I played at the University of Oklahoma winning a team, singles, and doubles Big Eight Championship. From there I transferred to Mississippi State University where my college career really took off. 1994 my doubles partner and I were crowned 1994 NCAA doubles champion and an All-American status in singles. By winning the national championship, my partner and I received a wild card bid into the 1994 US Open! Wow what an experience! After college, I decided to try the pro circuit and made the finals in two out of my first four tournaments and reached a world ranking of #690. I knew this was not the path for me and decided to stop my competitive tennis career. 1997 was the year when I started teaching tennis/managing as my profession. I am in my 10th year of running a facility. I will be starting my 3rd year at Huntsville Tennis Center this upcoming April. Huntsville Tennis Center opened May 10th 2005. Since then, the tennis center has had a huge level of tennis participation for all ages, players, and all skill levels. We were just honored with the 2006 Tournament of the Year for the state of Alabama. We host USTA adult team tennis with well over 200 teams annually. Drill groups for all ages, and levels occur 10 months out of the year. Public recreation play is popular any time. Tournaments for adults and children are also scattered throughout the year. We look forward to a successful 2007. Thank you for your support and I can’t wait to see you out on the court!

* Tani Deaton: Clubhouse Supervisor

Email: Tani@huntsvilletenniscenter.com

* Johnny Yarbrough: Assistant Manager

* Clubhouse Assistants:

Dale Gibbons, Andrew Noble, Michael Bryan

* Part-time Assistants:

Brent Goodbrake, Drew Rogers, Lynne Abernathy, Payne Mullins

• Jon Newby: Maintenance Supervisor

Email: jon@huntsvilletenniscenter.com

* Cory Wheeler: Maintenance Staff

* Mark Kennedy: Maintenance Staff

* : Maintenance Staff

Text Box: Michael Shires—Head Professional USPTA CERTIFIED LEVEL 1 Michael Shires has been involved with teaching tennis for the past 20 years to all levels and ages. He is a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association. Michael has taught in FL, MA, VA, AR, TX and AL. He has also been published in many tennis teaching publications. Michael was awarded in 2003 District 18 USPTA “Professional of the Year” and in 2007 he was awarded “Florida District President of the Year”.

Joc Simmons—Director of Tennis

Tani Deaton—Clubhouse Supervisor