The USTA announced on Monday that due to the fallout of COVID-19, that they would be laying off 110 people and closing their White Plains, New York Office. The tennis organization will be restructuring
“We have an opportunity to re-imagine the structure of the organization to better serve the tennis community in the United States,” said USTA Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director Michael Dowse.
“This new structure allows the USTA to be more agile and more cost effective, while getting closer to tennis players at the local level.
“Unfortunately, today represents a challenging day for many of the USTA family who have been negatively affected by the downsizing of the organization, and I would like to sincerely thank each USTA staff member for their dedication to the organization.”
With the cancellation of Wimbledon and the change of dates of the French Open to later September, the decision on whether the US Open will be played is due in mid-June.
The tennis season is currently suspended until July 31 due to coronavirus.
The reorganization had been in the works since 2018, when the USTA board of directors launched a process that ultimately produced a "strategic plan" that, according to Patrick Galbraith, USTA chairman of the board and president, was "designed to bolster the organization's mission and provide continuity of planning through 2026." However, the implementation of that plan was sped up in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
Dowse was brought in to succeed Gordon Smith as the USTA CEO specifically to oversee this transition. The organization's commitment to a $20 million relief package to help grassroots and tennis facility operators, along with anticipated losses from a COVID-compromised US Open, fueled the urgency of the shake-up.
The USTA identified more than $20 million in savings to be had by, among other things, reducing salaries at the management level, furloughing employees and canceling the USTA annual and semi-annual meetings. The association also is eliminating select programs in marketing, player development and operations, and deferring all non-essential capital projects.
