SherriAnn Carroll has played in tennis tournaments all over the country, but there is just something different about the Houston Tennis Classic, played each year at MacGregor Park’s Homer Ford Tennis Center.
Unlike other tournaments, this one, with over 400 participants from across the country, is described as a tennis festival that feels more like a family reunion.
“The biggest thing to me is it’s majority African American,” said Carroll, who has played in the Houston Tennis Classic every year since 2019. “It gives us a chance to get together with others from Dallas and from Arkansas and from other areas. It happens once a year, and you find out what everybody has been doing, how everybody’s family is. It’s a great camaraderie among us.”
The Houston Tennis Classic returns to MacGregor Park, May 22-24, for the 32nd Annual installment of the largest tournament of its kind in the US. The three-day event centers on tennis, but it has come to mean so much more as participants begin arriving May 21 for the festivities.
It’s Black culture, with tennis at its epicenter.
“It’s an experience,” said Sharon Evans-Brooks, who has been the director of the Houston Tennis Classic for 10 years. “It’s not just tennis racquets and tennis skirts. It’s a full Black tennis experience.
“It’s an opportunity for Black folks to come together. There is networking that takes place, there are some marriages and some interpersonal relationships that have been introduced.
“It is community, it is culture, it is entertainment, it is health-related and supported, and connections.”
Linda Griffin agrees that it’s all of that and then some. She and her husband spend a good part of the year traveling across the country to play in different tennis tournaments.
They might be in New York one week, Indianapolis the next, and may make a quick hop over to Austin. But for Grifin, a native of Oklahoma City who now resides in Clear Lake, there is nothing like the tournament in her own backyard.
“The fellowship,” said Griffin, who has played in the tournament for 15 years. “That’s what brings me back. I enjoy the reunion of other players from other cities. There is nothing like it.”
That was precisely the intent when the Houston Tennis Classic, formerly known as the KTSU Classic, was first presented by legendary Texas Southern Tennis coach Herbert Provost.
“It’s always sold out. Folks look forward to this tournament. There are tennis tournaments all over Houston and all over the country, but they don’t have the atmosphere and the cultural significance and the longevity that this tournament has.”
Keith Cornelius
The tournament has grown from a few players playing on the courts in Provost’s backyard to now 430 participants from across the United States playing at both McGregor Park and Memorial Park to accommodate the number of players.
Former KTSU General Manager George Thomas and John Wilkerson later picked up the mantle, with Ann Eaton and Ken Groovy taking over as the primary organizers.
“We just got together and wanted to continue George Thomas’ path because everybody played, everybody wanted to play. We all got along together. It was just like a family, which it still is,” said Eaton, who still participates at 79 years old. “Ken and I just picked up the mantle for him (Thomas) and continued the tournament, and it grew and grew. “
Under Eaton and Groovy for 20 years, the tournament reached as high as 200 participants. Eaton credits the doubling of participants to Brooks’s unique marketing approach, sponsorships, and making the tournament an event people want to come back to year after year.
This year, the Houston Tennis Classic organizers had to turn down applicants because they had reached the capacity of the courts they have access to in the city.
“I don’t think Ken and I thought it would grow this large,” Eaton said. “We always hoped that it would, but each year with Sharon doing it, the tournament has grown.”
Griffin also credits Evans-Brooks for the tournament’s continued growth. There are parties, which include a Martha’s Vineyard-themed party right on the courts at MacGregor on Saturday night, vendors, plenty of food, networking, and important health discussions.
“It is community, it is culture, it is entertainment, it is health-related and supported, and connections.”
Sharon Evans-Brooks
“This is the largest tournament, and we have so many activities,” Griffin said. “Sharon does a great job of getting sponsorships. Our goody bags are awesome. All of the activities that she plans out are more than any of the other tournaments we’ve ever attended.
“She gives you more than what your entry fee would cover. It’s not all about the tennis, it’s all about having a good time.”
Keith Cornelius, who is assisting Brooks while also participating in the tournament, describes the event as more of a family event in which tennis happens to be played.
“This event is basically a tennis cookout. It’s a cookout where tennis is played,” said Cornelius as he pointed to different parts of the tennis center. “Back over here, you will have the party going on over there on the practice court. You have all of this green space where vendors are set up, folks are listening to music, and massage tables.”
In addition to the festivities and events, there is also a party with a purpose component. Organizers donate $5,000 scholarships to high school graduates who will play tennis collegiately.
“We are able to parlay that love into supporting the next generation,” Evans-Brooks said. “I feel bad that it’s only $5,000, so we are working to increase that amount.”
It all equates to what is expected to be another epic weekend of tennis, good food, and festivities.
“It’s a Black tennis festival,” Evans-Brooks said. “We are looking to hit every part of your life: The competitive part of you, the family reunion/cookout vibe that we create, the supporting Black businesses through the number of small incubator Black businesses that will be outside, and we want to fill your stomach with good food.
“None of this is done by the larger USTA organization. You go to their event, and you might get your balls, you hit, and you might get a trophy, or you might not. There is none of this multi-layered, full-body, holistic experience that you get when you participate in this experience.”
