The 2015 Australian Ranking tournament calendar has been released with ACT players to benefit with events scheduled at the redeveloped Canberra Tennis Centre across all tournament levels.
The new tennis facility which is funded by the ACT Government, Tennis ACT, and Tennis Australia, will feature eight Plexi-pave hard courts, 12 clay courts, four synthetic grass courts, four ANZ Tennis Hot Shots courts, and an indoor tennis centre with four Plexi-pave hard courts. The variety of court surfaces provide Tennis ACT with the opportunity to host a wide range of events across the tournament pathway.
The ACT will host a $50,000 ATP Challenger Men’s event and a $50,000 ITF Women’s event, along with an ITF Junior event. Also on the calendar will be 6 Australian Money Tournaments (AMT’s) including a Platinum and Gold, along with 4 Junior Tournaments(JT’s) ranging from Gold to Bronze.
Tennis ACT CEO Ross Triffitt said “We are delighted to be nearing completion of the redevelopment of our facilities in Lyneham and for Canberra to feature so prominently on the national tournament calendar. The venue has been designed to deliver a full suite of events, catering to all standards, from our aspiring junior players right through to top international players. We are excited to see this now becoming a reality with the announcement of the 2015 calendar, and finally we have a professional men’s and women’s event back in Canberra. This will be great for the profile of our sport, help inspire the next generation of players and provide great entertainment for tennis fans.”
Across the country there are 180 AMT’s, offering a total prize money pool of $933,500. On the junior tour, there will be 234 opportunities to earn valuable Australian Rankings points across the country in 2015
“The Australian Ranking tournaments continue to offer valuable opportunities for all players, whether it be prize money for those players embarking on a professional career or ranking points for juniors looking to climb the Australian Ranking ladder within their age group and ultimately succeed Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur in the future,” said Francis Soyer, Tournament Development Manager at Tennis Australia.
“We continue to listen to feedback from a number of stakeholders such as the players, officials, parents, coaches and clubs throughout the year which is key to delivering a successful tournament calendar.”
The main focus for 2015 was to improve on the following areas:
- Reducing the amount of tournaments that begin or end their events on school days
- Reduce unnecessary date clashes between tournaments within the same state/territory
- Build circuits during peak periods such as school holidays
The new Tennis Australia Fast4 format will also continue to be piloted throughout 2015 after a small introduction into tournaments at the end of this year. The Fast4 format allows tournaments to be finished in less days, meeting the needs of today’s fast-paced society.
The Australian Ranking tournament circuit starts on 1 January 2015, with many of the January tournaments opening entries late October via http://www.tennis.com.au/tournaments.
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