World TeamTennis (WTT) Pro League – FACTS & FIGURES
Name: World TeamTennis (WTT) Pro League
Teams: Western Conference: Kansas City Explorers, Orange County Breakers, Sacramento Capitals, Springfield Lasers
Eastern Conference: Boston Lobsters, New York Sportimes, Philadelphia Freedoms, Washington Kastles
2012 Schedule: The 37th season of the WTT Pro League runs July 9-28, and concludes with the WTT Finals Weekend, September 14-16, at the Family Circle Tennis Center in Charleston, S.C.
The eight coed professional tennis teams in the WTT Pro League presented by GEICO are battling for a spot in the Finals during the 2012 regular season which runs July 9-28. The top two teams from the regular season in both the Western and Eastern Conference will advance to the WTT Conference Championships in Charleston, with one Conference Championship match on Friday, September 14 (6:30pm ET), and another on Saturday, September 15 (6:30pm ET). The Conference Champions face off for the King Trophy, named after League co-founder Billie Jean King, in the WTT Finals presented by GEICO on Sunday, September 16 at 3:30pm ET. The Washington Kastles are the defending WTT Champions, capping the first undefeated season in WTT history by winning their second League title last summer in Charleston.
History: World TeamTennis was co-founded in the 1970s by Billie Jean King and Larry King. The WTT Pro League first hit the courts in 1974 for a five-year run. After a short hiatus, the League returned in 1981 and has been a highlight of the annual U.S. tennis calendar since.
The WTT Pro League, which begins its 37th season in July 2012, is a showcase for three generations of tennis standouts, including legends, current tour players and future champions. Since the League’s debut, virtually every major champion of the Open era has played World TeamTennis including Pete Sampras, Andy Roddick, Kim Clijsters, Steffi Graf, Bob and Mike Bryan, Andre Agassi, Venus and Serena Williams, Martina Hingis, Maria Sharapova, Lindsay Davenport, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert.
Sponsors: Official WTT Pro League national and regional sponsors for the 2012 season include Cancer Treatment Centers of America, DecoTurf, GEICO, Kraft, UBS and Wilson Racquet Sports. The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is a minority owner and promotional partner of World TeamTennis. WTT and the USTA are teaming up on number of initiatives, including development of the youth market through junior team tennis programs.
Format: In the WTT format, each team is comprised of two men, two women and a coach. Team matches consist of five sets, with one set each of men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles. The first team to reach five games wins each set. A nine-point tiebreaker is played if a set reaches four games all. One point is awarded for each game won. If necessary, Overtime and a Supertiebreaker are played to determine the winner of the match.
Matches: The eight teams will annually travel more than 60,000 miles to play 59 matches in 24 days.
CEO/Commissioner: Ilana Kloss
WTT Co-Founders: Billie Jean King, Larry King
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Topics: World Team Tennis