By Liza Horan

Photo by FalPhotography

Even before the NY Sportimes stepped on court to face the St. Louis Aces last night for their opening match in this month's Advanta World TeamTennis (WTT) season, Claude Okin considered it a huge win. From the sidelines Okin, managing partner of the team, could see the immaculate red, green and blue trademark court surface of the league ready for play and the 2,000+ seat outdoor stadium filling up with fans. This moment was a long time coming.

For the first time since 1978, WTT was playing Manhattan.

As the sun descended, the competition heated up. New York and St. Louis were neck-and-neck, forcing the contest into overtime. Eventually the St. Louis Aces emerged with a 20-18 victory over the NY Sportimes, which was represented by American pros Robert Kendrick, Abigail Spears (right), Jesse Whitten and Christina Fusano. John McEnroe also plays for the team, which is coached by Chuck Adams.

Serena Williams is playing Friday night for the Washington Kastles, and other matches this season will bring Martina Navratilova and the No.1 doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan to Randall's Island. WTT offers an intimate, fun atmosphere to watch world-class tennis. The matches take place on a single, bright-colored court, the teams are co-ed, and the play format is short yet competitive. [Click for match schedule.]

Winning the season opener would have been icing on the cake, surely, but hosting the first match at the new $15 million, 20-court facility was a feat in itself.

It started several years ago as Okin scouted for a new home court for the NY Sportimes, which was anchored in 2008 at Harbor Island Park in Mamaroneck. The team shares its name with the Sportime TFM (tennis, fitness and multi-sport) club network that had 13 locations, none of which directly served city natives.

"I've watched the tennis courts disappear over the years," Okin said of Manhattan's tennis scene. "We lost 100 courts over seven or eight years."

There's no lack of tennis players. Every public court is in use and there's often a line of players waiting for their turns. Tennis participation nationwide has grown 43 percent from 2000 to 2008 with the number of players now exceeding 27 million for the first time in 15 years. All these people need places to play, and indoor facilities in Manhattan are charging $135/hour or more for court time.

The demand for more courts was there, but how about the space and the money?

While Okin considered many opportunities—like situating the club on a roof—none made sense like the wide open space of Randall's Island, connected by a bridge from Manhattan's Upper East Side and from Queens. The 480-acre island is billed as 'NYC's backyard for sports and recreation' by the Randall's Island Sports Foundation. It's undergoing a comprehensive development plan that will includes 64 sport fields, a boardwalk, a nature center and other attractions. It's home to Icahn Stadium (an internationally sanctioned track and field facility) and hosts concerts and other events.

"We're re-imagining the whole island as a recreational destination for the people of Manhattan, the Bronx and Queens," said Okin, who secured a license to operate the Randall's Island tennis facility in 2005. "What's unique it that it's the first time a licensee has been granted approval to build a facility—usually we have to retrofit a facility. It's very exciting."

Manhattan's biggest and newest tennis facility fully opened this summer and features 20 indoor and outdoor courts; 10 are DecoTurf hard courts and 10 are Har-Tru clay courts. Five courts are lit for night play. The tennis center includes a 20,000-square foot building that houses a fully equipped fitness center, separate adult and junior lockerrooms, lounges, a cafe and bar, a pro shop, classrooms, free wi-fi Internet access, plus the show court.

The tennis center remains a public/private operation: The courts are open to residents with an NYC parks tennis permit and to members of the Sportime TFM network.

"Outside of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (home to the U.S. Open), this is the largest public tennis facility in the area built with private money," said Okin, adding that the process of building a tennis center of this caliber and earning back the investment is "an enormous challenge." He's confident about the future.

"Nobody gets rich in this business: We're tennis lovers, we love the business, we're family. We're trying to do great things," said Okin."We'd like to say we're bringing more people to tennis. We're definitely trying to make a huge impact."

Related links:
NY Sportimes schedule
Sportime tennis facility at Randall's Island
Randall's Island Sports Foundation
World TeamTennis