Ashaway, RI (January 15th, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com — Zyex® performance polymers have been used in racquet strings for a number of years, and are known for their resilience and tension holding properties. However, recent advances in material technology have produced Zyex filaments that are even finer and stronger than before. According to Ashaway’s Steve Crandall, the company has begun using these to produce new multifilament core packages with increased linear density and more cross-sectional strength. The results, he said, are thinner, stronger, lighter-weight tennis, squash and racquetball strings which provide softer feel, more power, and improved ball control, yet still offer the well-known Zyex playing characteristics and tension holding properties.

“This is an evolutionary development in string technology,” said Crandall, who is Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Ashaway Racket Strings, “and comes at a time when there is increased demand for thinner, stronger strings. Both recreational and professional players are looking for the added ‘bite’ thinner strings can provide to enhance ball control. They also want more power. In addition, the increasingly active senior set wants a string that plays softer and is more forgiving to aging joints and muscles.”

Until recently, however, material technology imposed practical limits on gauge reduction: thinner strings just broke. Now, the combination of newer Zyex filaments and Ashaway’s proprietary core construction techniques are lowering those barriers. Crandall said the company has had developmental sets utilizing the new multifilament core packages out for play testing among both amateur and professional tennis, squash and racquetball players. So far, the response has been uniformly positive.

Players have been impressed with the string on a number of counts according to Crandall. The first is increased power. The ball, said one veteran racquetball player, had “a lot more pop. It literally exploded off the string bed.” He also had more control, especially in cutting his serve. “Thinner strings bite into the ball more than thicker strings,” he said. “So you get more feel, more grip, and can do more with the shot.”

Play-testers were also impressed with the durability and tension holding ability of the strings. “I used one racquet for the entire tournament,” said one, “and here it is several weeks later, and I’m still playing with the same string!”

Power players like racquetball champion Jack Huczek were also enthusiastic about the new strings. “This is hands down the best string I’ve ever played with,” he said. Huczek asked Ashaway to make enough to supply him in his tournaments, and has been using them ever since. “The string maintains its playability for its entire life,” Huczek added. “From a power standpoint, and from a feel and control standpoint, it’s just top notch. The ball seems to really jump off the strings. I’ve noticed maybe 15% to 20% more power, and because the string has a rougher texture, it’s great on the feel shots and the touch shots. You can really carve the ball into the corners and the ball really stays down nice.”

Squash and tennis players also report more power and control, in addition to the well known Zyex characteristic of tension holding. One veteran said the ball “literally exploded” off his string bed. Another said, “You get more feel, more grip, and can do more with the shot.” And one well-known squash pro commented that he could “really carve the ball deep along the rail and then stop the rally on a dime with a drop shot up front.” “Even with the softer playability, I’ve noticed a lot more power, and better control,” said a well known tennis player. “Compared to the stiffer monofilaments, you get a really soft feel and are still able to put a lot of spin on serves and ground strokes.”

Crandall said Ashaway plans to introduce several new lines of multifilament Zyex squash, tennis and racquetball strings this year. “The lines will include several different gauges,” he said, “perhaps even a revolutionary one.”

Ashaway Racket Strings are made by Ashaway Line & Twine Mfg. Co., the only U.S. manufacturer of string for squash, tennis, racquetball, and badminton. Operated by the Crandall family since 1824, Ashaway has been making racquet strings since 1949, and is responsible for several important technical innovations. Ashaway is the Official String of USA Racquetball and the Women’s International Squash Players Association. Ashaway Line & Twine Mfg. Co. also makes braided products for medical and industrial applications.

For additional product information, contact:
Ashaway Line & Twine Mfg. Co.
PO Box 549
Ashaway, RI 02804 USA
Tel: (800) 556-7260 (U.S. only) or +1 (401) 377-2221
Fax: +1 (401) 377-9091
Website: http://www.ashawayusa.com
Email: sales@ashawayusa.com

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Orlando, FL (June 26, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - Oscar Wegner’s Modern Tennis Coaching Academy will conduct two week-long “Play Like The Pros” Tennis Camps at Walt Disney World this summer. Not only will campers receive the highest quality instruction from world-renowned coach Oscar Wegner, but they will also enjoy two full days at Walt Disney World® Resort theme parks.
World-renowned International Tennis Coach Oscar Wegner will host 2 one-week Modern Tennis Methodology Camps at Disney’s Wide World Of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida this summer. The camps, which will be supervised by Oscar and his incredible staff lead by Jorge Aguirre, will include both on and off court training, meals, lodging, an evening of Cirque du Soleil, and two days at Disney’s Magic Kingdom® and Epcot®. Tennis players of all ages and ability levels looking for an extraordinary tennis training experience as well as families seeking an interactive vacation adventure will find that the Modern Tennis Coaching Academy Disney Tennis Camp provides the experience of a lifetime.

All ages and abilities are welcome.

Attention Coaches and Teaching Pros: special bonus for referrals.

Modern Tennis Methodology Coaching Certification instruction will be available at the camps.

Dates for Modern Tennis Coaching Academy “Play Like The Pros” Camps

July 26th – August 2nd
August 2nd – August 9th

For more information e-mail tennisangel@me.com

and visit www.moderntenniscoachingacademy.com

To sign up call 954-255-5411
or go directly to our Disney Tennis Camp page at

www.worlwidetenniscamps.com/pltp.html

Come and learn to “Play Like The Pros” with Oscar at “The Happiest Place On Earth”

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Orlando, FL (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - The 3rd annual GSS Racquet Stringers Symposium will be held at the beautiful Regal Sun Resort, an official Walt Disney World hotel in Orlando, Florida on October 10th - October 14th. Seminars include racquet customization, stringing natural gut, racquet layup & production presented by Wilson Sports, machine repair & maintenance, marketing, customer service, USRSA certification and much more. Registration now open at www.grandslamstringers.com. Cost is $495 per person but a 10% registration discount applies to all who register on or before May 15th, 2009. For complete details check out the GSS home page at www.grandslamstringers.com. If you have further questions please contact event organizer Tim Strawn via email at crazydiamond23@cox.net or call direct on 540-772-4418.

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Virginia (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - LaRue E. Cook who serves as a Sports Sciences writer for Tennis Life Magazine, a Sports Conditioning author for Women\’s Basketball Magazine, and an expert panelist contributor to Tennis View Magazine, has recently authored a continuing education course on Deceleration Training for Female Athletes for the International Sports Sciences Association, a professional association for fitness professionals. Cook has also authored a book on developing power and strength for female athletes. Cook can be reached at lecfitness@yahoo.com or by visiting his websites at: www.tennisfitness.net or www.lecfitness.com

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Spring, TX (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - The Giammalva Racquet Club has bolstered its coaching ranks by hiring three additional tennis pros to help with its extensive junior programs.

The family-friendly club in Spring has always prided itself on cultivating junior talent. To meet the need of replacing outgoing instructors and to hire additional staff to support the rapidly growing membership, the junior players should be better tailored to than ever.

George Rivers will lead the club’s Junior Youth Tennis Association group and Northland Christian High School workouts. Matt Snyder will direct the new high school beginner and intermediate program, and Hunter Emmott will assist in the ZAT (zone advancement tournament) junior program.

“Each of these pros bring unique gifts and qualities that complement our existing staff,” said owner Sammy Giammalva Jr.

Rivers attended the University of Texas at San Antonio on a tennis scholarship, lettered all four years and was named co-team captain his senior year. He played for the DJK Eintracht Tennis Club near Frankfurt, Germany, in the German Bundesliga team competition and worked as a staff tennis pro at Fair Oaks Country Club in Boerne, where he coached the junior tennis high performance academy.

Snyder played No. 1 singles for Temple College and has been ranked among the top five players in Texas in the men’s open division. He spent nine years teaching all levels and ages at T Bar M in Dallas, Arlington Tennis Center and Lakewood Tennis in Waco.

Besides playing for Texas A&M University, Emmott was also a nationally ranked junior.

“Our program has been growing, so we needed help. And because we are a very active club, with a ton of different activities always going on, we wanted to find the right instructors to fill the openings,” Giammalva said.

There are about 375 families at the club, with most new signees coming through the Quick Start program.

Family dues are $140 to $150 a month. The beginner kids’ and beginner adults’ programs include free access to professionals.

“The beginner program is the foundation of our club,” Giammalva said. “We get kids when they are rally young and just starting to learn and then they move through the different levels.”

There are 20 tennis courts at the club, and there’s always a game going on, no matter one’s skill level.

“We try to provide a good environment for families,” Giammalva said. “I love bringing the adults and kids together. On Saturdays adults can play with the juniors.”

Giammalva knows how great tennis can be when it comes to building family relationships. His father was tennis great Sam Giammalva, who made it all the way to the quarter-finals of the 1955 U.S. National Championships, played for the United States Davis Cup team and went on to coach at Rice University for 14 years where, under his leadership, the Owls won multiple regional titles.

Giammalva had a pretty illustrious career himself. He was formerly ranked among the top 25 players in the world in singles and doubles with wins over Pete Sampras, Jimmy Connors and other top-ranked pros. He also trained many world-ranked professionals and nationally-ranked juniors.

Seeing how tennis has enriched his family’s life, Giammalva makes it his life’s mission to share the sport with others.

“Tennis bridges the generation gap. You can have a junior playing a senior, which is ideal for bonding among parents and children,” Giammalva explained. “It’s a great family value; you can spend time with each other and it’s not real expensive.”

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New Haven, CT (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - Kim Butun and her coaching staff is looking forward to a second winning season for the Hopkins School Girls Tennis Team in New Haven, CT. The program consists of Varsity and Junior Varsity Girls teams totaling 40 players. The two assistant J.V. coaches are Carol Migdalski and Renee Harlow. Last year the Girls Tennis team posted a 13-3 Varsity season total. Butun also runs the Tennis program for Owenego Beach and Tennis Club in Branford, CT and recently opened Madison Tennis Hut, a specialty Tennis retail shop on Rte. 1 in Madison, CT.

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Newport News, VA (April 30, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com –The sport gift wholesale website Netline Sports Outlet now carries a line of tennis gifts and novelty items for specialty and pro shops. The site offers unique items to the tennis industry. Tennis items include tennis coolers, tennis t-shirts, tennis theme jewelry and gifts.

For more information, visit our website NetlineSportsOutlet.com or contact us at 1-866-369-5237.

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Amelia Island, FL (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - With the addition of Kelly Gunterman as director of tennis at Amelia Island Plantation, the resort now will be offering junior tennis day camps weekly from June 29 to August 21. The camps will be held Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., for boys and girls ages 8-15. The cost will be $275 per week/$65 per day for the full-day program, or $160 per week/$35 per day for the ½ day program.
The camp schedule will include:
• 4-5 hours of tennis instruction per day
• Camp T-Shirt
• Lunch provided for full day campers
• Supervision all day
• Use of the ball machine (5-day program)
• Video tape (5 day program)
Additional activities will include:
• Swimming
• Soccer
• Board games
• Lots of Fun!!!
For more information on the camps or to register, call the tennis pro shop at 904.277. 5145.

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USA (May 5, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - “High-end polyester monofilament strings–we call them ‘gut on steroids’–are designed for hard-hitting, high-end players,” said Crandall, “not normal, everyday players. Most recreational players don’t hit the ball hard enough to benefit from them. But people read how the pros use these fancy strings and want to try them. Then they find that for their game, they’re not worth the added cost. Now–and we’re seeing this in our sales figures–they’re turning back to more traditional multifilament and synthetic gut strings which offer a good combination of performance, economy and durability.”

Traditional multifilament and synthetic gut strings play softer than the stiffer, high-tech monofilaments, which can be a benefit for no-longer-quite-so-young players, Crandall added. “None of us like to admit it,” he said, “but we feel it more after a good hard round on the court, especially in our joints. A softer playing multifilament or nylon string can significantly reduce impact shock on our arms and shoulders. That way, we can still look good without the tennis elbow!”

But the economy may also play a role in string choice. “In my experience, people don’t stop playing during hard times,” Crandall said. “In fact, they may even tend to play more, especially if they’ve been laid off. They need to keep active, stay in shape, reduce stress. But they may put off buying big ticket items: instead of buying a new racquet, they’ll buy a new grip, or they’ll keep wearing their old shoes longer than they might otherwise. And while they will still do the necessary things like restring their racquets, they may opt for a less expensive brand of string or look for a more durable string.”

Two beneficiaries of this back-to-basics trend are Ashaway’s Synthetic Gut and Liberty® brands. Synthetic Gut is a classic nylon polymer monofilament available in both 16 and 17 gauge–the 17 gauge being a bit more responsive–that offers excellent resilience with above average durability for players of all styles and skill levels. The string is very economical and includes a wear layer to resist notching, but the reason for its recent rise in popularity may be that it plays more softly than other synthetic guts and is less likely to jar elbows and wrists. Ashaway recommends stringing Synthetic Gut 16 at up to 70 lbs (32 kgs) and their 17 up to 60 lbs (27.5 kgs) for optimum playability.

Ashaway’s Liberty has been a favorite with US players for over 25 years. Also nylon, but using a multi stranded monofilament construction, Liberty offers the best value-to-performance ratio of any string on the market. Available in both L15 and 16 gauge configurations, Liberty gets high marks for both durability and playability. Designed for all playing styles, the 16 gauge version edges towards better performance, while the L15 gauge optimizes durability. Both are available in a variety of colors and can be strung up to 70 lbs (32 kgs).

Ashaway Racket Strings are made by Ashaway Line & Twine Mfg. Co., the only U.S. manufacturer of string for squash, tennis, racquetball, and badminton. Operated by the Crandall family since 1824, Ashaway has been making racquet strings since 1949, and is responsible for several important technical innovations. Ashaway is the Official String of USA Racquetball and the Women’s International Squash Players Association. Ashaway Line & Twine Mfg. Co. also makes braided products for medical and industrial applications.

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Amelia Island, FL (April 9, 2009) TennisBusinessWire.com - Kelly Gunterman is expanding his partnership with Amelia Island Plantation to work as director of tennis, offering tennis players of all abilities the opportunity to improve their strokes and strategy in the tropical environs of Florida. His Gunterman Tennis Schools, which have been rated consistently in Tennis Magazine’s “Top 25 Adult Tennis Schools,” is growing from a seasonal to a year-round operation.
“We’ve served Floridians and tourists at the resort since 2002, and we’re thrilled to align in a bigger way with this award-winning resort and the people who run it,” says Kelly Gunterman, a 25-year teaching professional who is certified by the USPTA and PTR and regularly pens instructional articles for Tennis Life magazine.
Tim Seyda, vice president and general manager of the resort, says, “Tennis is an important part of the Amelia Island Plantation experience, and with Kelly on board full-time, we’re proud to offer our guests the best instruction and play through-out the year.”
Amelia Island Plantation holds a rich tennis tradition. Its Racquet Park has hosted pro tennis tournaments since 1974. Andre Agassi, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert and Martina Hingis are among the legends which have graced center court. The 23 Har-Tru clay courts offer players of all ages tailored instruction by certified tennis pros, with no more than four students per teacher. Video stroke analysis, private lessons, group clinics and competitive play are available for all ages and abilities.
In addition to Amelia Island Plantation, Gunterman Tennis Schools runs the tennis program at Vermont’s Summit Lodge, just minutes from Killington and Pico mountains, from May to October. For day rates or packages for Adult Tennis School and Junior Tennis Camp at both locations, visit GreatTennis.com.

ABOUT GUNTERMAN TENNIS SCHOOLS www.GreatTennis.com
Gunterman Tennis Schools specializes in creating tailored instruction programs for people of all ages and abilities at two lush locations–the green mountains of Summit Lodge near Killington, Vermont, and the tropical sunshine of Amelia Island Plantation in Florida. The staff of certified professionals is led by Kelly Gunterman, who is a former collegiate competitor who trained and taught with legends John Newcombe and Peter Burwash. He has helped improve the tennis skills of more than 15,000 people from Hawaii and Texas to Virginia and Vermont.
Travel and tennis magazines consistently provide excellent reviews of Gunterman Tennis Schools, which offers fine tennis facilities and the latest equipment at both locations. Town & Country wrote that Gunterman Tennis Schools “has the best reputation for tennis,” and Travel & Leisure has listed the school in “The Guide to the Best Tennis Schools.”
ABOUT AMELIA ISLAND PLANTATION www.AIPFL.com
Amelia Island Plantation is Florida’s premier AAA-Four Diamond island resort in perfect harmony with nature, and a Florida Green Lodging destination. Located on Amelia Island, just 29 miles north of Jacksonville International Airport (JAX), the 1,350-acre property overlooks the blue water of the Atlantic on the east and the green salt water marshes and Intracoastal Waterway on the west. Its commitment to nature is legendary, as is its championship tennis and four championship golf courses, all Audubon International certified sanctuaries. With 3 ½ miles of wide, uncrowded beach, 20 pools, a holistic spa, old Florida-style shopping village and full-time nature center, Amelia Island Plantation offers the best of resort vacations and living for families, couples and groups planning a conference of teambuilding and natural environs.

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