New Program to Aid College Tennis Players

NEW YORK — When a then unknown Swedish player named Mikael Pernfors reached the final of the French Open last summer, he gave much of the credit to the University of Georgia.

“When my junior career was over I wasn’t good enough to play on the pro circuit,” Pernfors said. “Going to college in America gave me an excellent opportunity to continue to improve without the pressure of pro life.”

Pernfors won two NCAA Championships at Georgia, and now is one of the top players in the world, part of the Swedish team defending the Davis Cup in Australia the last week of December.

At a time of great concern over the demise of American influence in world tennis, there are many who believe the country’s interests could be best served by learning from Pernfors’ example.

In this regard comes a sponsorship program called the Volvo Tennis-Intercollegiate Series. The program is expected to benefit more than 30,000 student athletes on more than 1,000 men’s and women’s tennis teams at more than 800 colleges.

“For both men and women, this exposure will let juniors know about the college program and encourage high school players to go to college and participate,” said Stan Smith, who won the NCAA Championship for USC in 1968 and later won the U.S. Open and Wimbledon. “I’m an advocate of college. We have great coaches out there. The kids can continue in tennis and get an education as well.”

Smith said playing tennis in college allowed him the opportunity to work on weaknesses under little competitive pressure.

“The guys who skip college now more or less become swamped on the tour,” Smith said. “There are only a few exceptional top juniors who can do it.”

Volvo has made an initial three-year commitment to the program, with an option for two additional years, at a cost in excess of $500,000. Details of the program are still to be worked out before the start next September.

“I see no reason why college tennis can’t reach the same relative stature vis a vis professional tennis as we have in basketball and football,” said Bjorn Ahlstrom, president and chief executive officer of Volvo North America Corp. “I believe this program is a very important step in the direction of stamping college tennis as an important establishment in the United States.

“I know it will take time, money, management and dedication. It’s going to take discipline and a structured program, but the system is now in place to put it together. Five to seven years from now college tennis will be as important as college basketball and Volvo wants very much to be a part of it.”

Dick Gould, who has coached Stanford to eight NCAA titles, and Dan Magill, Pernfors’ coach at Georgia, agree this program will benefit young players and overall tennis in this country.

“We need sponors to develop our Grand Prix programs,” Magill said. “Volvo has been supporting our fall championships, and now they are becoming more involved. What they can do is to make the public aware of our college tennis program.”