Macon-Bibb losing money from tennis tournaments because courts in disrepair

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Macon tennis players say that the county is losing thousands of dollars due to poor court conditions. A temporary tennis consultant says the county needs to do something before it hurts the economy.

The Tattnall Square Park tennis courts are covered with cracks, mold, and broken nets.

Macon Bibb’s temporary tennis consultant, Jaimie Kaplan, says tennis tournaments bring in $3.2 million each year. However, due to the poor conditions of Macon’s tennis courts, tennis tournament  officials  look elsewhere.

“If you say I’m going to have 60 courts, but those courts have mildew, cracks, or broken nets, it starts affecting our ability to get tournaments,” Kaplan said.

She’s asking the county to give the Macon Tennis Association $60,000 to resurface courts at Tattnall and John Drew Smith Tennis Center. Kaplan says the  United States Tennis Association will match the county’s $60,000.

Kaplan says that part of the problem is that the county tennis manager position has been vacant for more than a year.

“We’ve already lost a tournament that had 600 players in it,” Kaplan said. “It was a Georgia Jr. qualifier. We lost that while we didn’t have a [county tennis manager] in the bidding process.”

A county tennis manager does more than organize tournaments–they generate revenue.

“If you compare us to the other cities we’re competing with, they have a tennis pro that not only does just the tennis tournaments – they generate other programs for income in the community,” Macon-Bibb Commissioner Valerie Wynn said.

24 courts are under construction at the South Bibb Recreation Center.