T2Tennis and Ultimate Tennis Merge
Combination Creates the Largest Flex League Organization in the US
ATLANTA – June 4, 2013 - Ultimate Tennis and T2Tennis announced today that they have merged, creating the largest tennis flex league in the United States. With over 100,000 members and operations in seven states T2Tennis and Ultimate Tennis provide organized tennis league play to more players than any other organization except the United States Tennis Association (USTA). The merger will allow the new combined company to focus on improving the players experience, new league offerings and geographic expansion.
“As the two pioneers in tennis flex leagues, it was natural that sooner or later we would join forces, “said Joel Ballantyne, founder of T2Tennis. “This combination will allow us to continue to improve the players experience and expand the “flex league” concept to other areas.” Scott Nunn, founder of Ultimate Tennis added, “Until we invented flex leagues not much had been done in the last 30 years to improve the recreational tennis players league experience. With our league play innovations and focus on a web based delivery model, we have significantly improved the players ease and convenience of playing organized competitive matches.“
Ultimate Tennis and T2Tennis are the industry leaders in providing organized flexible format tennis leagues. Flex leagues match players of equal skill levels into playing divisions using a flexible match scheduling system. This format is specially designed to meet the demands of today’s busy lifestyle by providing competitive match play for those with limited playing time. Seasons consist of 5 to 7 matches and top players in each division may continue playing for city championships. Schedules, directions to matches, standings and statistics are all on-line.
The new combined organization currently offers leagues in Atlanta, Tampa, Sarasota, Ft. Myers, Charlotte, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Leagues offered include singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Both T2Tennis and Ultimate Tennis have been active in promoting tennis at the grass roots level with special leagues for junior players, the support of local pros and the support of 100’s of tennis charity events.
“I am excited about the new opportunities ahead for our organization, “said Ballantyne. “In our existing markets this merger will improve the players experience by providing shorter drive times, more variety, and even more balanced competition.” Added Nunn, “I am looking forward to continuing the innovation of tennis for our players, developing new league products and expanding our footprint into new cities.”
About Ultimate Tennis
Ultimate Tennis created the flex league concept in 1990 in Tampa, Florida. Ultimate Tennis initially offered adult singles league play and recently expanded into doubles, mixed doubles and juniors. Ultimate Tennis introduced singles flex leagues to Atlanta in 2000. Membership has grown to more than 60,000.
About T2Tennis
T2Tennis was founded in 2002 in Atlanta, Georgia. Originally a flex league for juniors, T2Tennis rapidly grew by adding recreational doubles leagues for adults of all playing levels. Membership has grown to more than 70,000 players.Merger Questions and Answers
Why did we merge companies?
Flex leagues are built on a foundation of service and convenience for players and this merger was an opportunity to improve the core benefits that our members enjoy most. These will include shorter drive times, better player variety and the ability to offer divisions at all levels and sections of town.
Will both the T2Tennis and Ultimate Tennis leagues remain?
Absolutely! Both Ultimate Tennis and T2Tennis will continue to conduct leagues both within and outside of Atlanta. We know players have preferences and our plan is to coordinate seasons in such a way as to produce the best possible combination of flex leagues.
How will the merger benefit me?
As a combined company, T2Tennis and Ultimate Tennis represent over 95% of all flex leagues played in Atlanta. When it comes to the quality of your league playing experience bigger is better. Every aspect of the league improves when you add more players…shorter drive times, more variety, and more divisions at the highest levels and in the less populated areas of Atlanta.What are some of the improvements and changes that I should expect?
Over the course of the next year, with your input, we will work together to incorporate the best practices of both leagues to deliver the best playing experience possible.- A coordinated league calendar that produces larger leagues with less overlap
- Shorter drive times
- Better player variety at all levels
- More divisions in less populated areas of Atlanta
- More divisions at higher levels
- Improved rating accuracy
- Shared website feature
- Bigger and better City Finals events
- Increased sponsor support and prizes