Before you plan an event there are some questions that you will need to define and answer:

Why have an event?

It is important that the Management Committee are clear about why the event is being held and what the club/centre or association aims to achieve from such an event.

Why is the event being held?

What does the club/centre or association want to achieve by holding the event?

The event could have a number of desired outcomes, which may include:

• To provide an avenue for competition for all levels of players
• To promote tennis to newcomers
• To give benefits to sponsors
• To obtain media coverage of your club/centre or association

Who is the event for?

The second question that the Management Committee must address is, who is the event for? Is the event for:

• Club/centre or association members/non-members
• Competitors
• Spectators
• Supporters
• Sponsors
• Media

Once this has been answered, the event can be planned with the target group in mind.

Where and when?
Once the above three questions have been answered the Management Group need to address where and when the
event will be held.

Sanctioning 
A sanction must be obtained from your state/territory Member Association or Tennis Australia to conduct an event.
Tennis Australia is responsible for sanctioning, regulating and controlling the following:

• International matches
• Australian/National Championships
• Interstate matches
• Matches involving professional players
• Junior National Points Ranking Tournaments

Deciding Tournament Events
It is vitally important when planning a tournament to consider carefully:

• DATES available
• COURTS available, match and practice
  EVENTS to be played
  SIZE OF EVENT DRAWS, open or restricted
• MAXIMUM number of events a player may enter

Venues/Facilities
All venues and their facilities should be inspected early to:

• Ensure sufficient number and standard of courts to cater for planned events/entries
• Identify repairs and maintenance to be completed
• Ensure adequate facilities for players, catering, etc
• Volunteers
• Experienced volunteers should be approached early for assistance
• Consider training inexperienced younger people to take over roles in the future

Tournament Entry Forms
It is important when running a tournament, to consider the nature and layout of the entry form. Effectively, this is the
only correspondence your tournament staff will have with potential competitors. Make sure that entry forms are legible
and very basic to understand. The less the competitor has to fill out the better.
Entry forms should detail:

• Specific gradings for events
• Eligibility for graded events
• Corresponding entry fee for each event
• Close of entry date clearly visible
• Adequate space for competitors’ details

Receiving Entries
A systematic thorough plan should be implemented for the receipt and recording of entries and the receipting and
banking of entry fees. Further information on banking can be obtained in Financial Management section

A Master Entry Recording Sheet can be developed or a computer recording system can be used.
Information recorded on the Master Entry Recording Sheet will vary according to the number of events within the
tournament but may include:

• Player’s full name
• Date of birth (if events have age restrictions)
• Events entered
• Name of doubles partner

Entry forms should be filed alphabetically.
Entry lists for each individual event can then be compiled in alphabetical order and distributed to selectors for seeding
purposes.

Additional Support:

If you have any questions about your club please contact us at 1800 PLAY TENNIS or email.