The President of The Southwest Tennis Club (SWTC) Mr. Mike Butler organized a tennis tournament for beginners at the Flamingo Gardens tennis courts. It was the first interclub tournament for the SWTC youth afterschool “play tennis program”. The club has a roster of 50 registered kids ranging from ages 4 – 12.
During the tournament, kids participated in various tennis drills and competitions. Coach Butler was assisted by Coach Corey Francis. Also on hand to assist were Mr. Bernard Clarke and Mrs. Shayvon Clarke. Mr. Butler was pleased with the tournament and he stated that “The turnout was good, this tournament was about assessing the skills of the players through various drills. These kids participate in our tennis afterschool program 3 times a week. This tournament provided a good snapshot of where the kids are and what is needed for the future.”
Mike expressed that one of the goals of the SWTC is to identify kids competent enough to join the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) series of sanctioned tennis.
In attendance was Mr. Perry Newton, BLTA’s Junior Development Head. Mr. Newton said “We applaud Coach Mike of the SWTC and Coach Corey for the work they are doing with the young children in the community. Tennis tournaments of this nature that provide competition in such a fun environment is instrumental to the growth of the sport. The focus of the red and orange balls is the approach that we encourage coaches and organizations to take in the developmental stages of the beginner tennis
player.”
The junior tennis tournament was sponsored by Bahamas Waste Management and Caribbean Bottling Company, Not Bread Alone, Beverly’s Kitchen and Ed Armbrister Baseball Academy. Coach Butler was very appreciative of the donations received towards this initiative.
The Southwest Tennis Club launched its community youth tennis outreach initiative approximately 4 years ago. The program was born out of the need to expose kids to alternative sporting and recreational activities, with a view of deterring many from antisocial and criminal activities. In moving the club towards international tennis standards Mr. Butler expressed the club’s need for age-appropriate tennis equipment (mini nets and kids tennis racquets). He stated “Our main objective is to teach life lessons and foster fellowship amongst one another and to prepare and inspire those to aspire to a higher level of competition.
There is a present demand for a positive alternative such as the Sport of Tennis to help to keep the youths focused and on the right track. Pictured in the attached are the kids who participated in the tournament and from right Coach Mike Butler, Perry Newton, Bernard Clarke, Shayvon Clarke and Coach Francis.
Coach Mike and Corry with kids SWTC Members SWTC Drills
Original Post Date: 10/4/2019
