TTC Palms at Shadow Mountain shares plans to expand racket sports, tennis in Coachella Valley

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – Tennis continues to be a growing sport in the Coachella Valley, but some local clubs believe there should be more done for youth athletes.

For TTC Palms at Shadow Mountain Resort and Club in Palm Desert, they're working to expand their racket sports program, and implement more competitive pathways for youth.

They're implementing UTR Sports for ranking local athletes based on their play, and they're bringing three Junior Team Tennis teams with the United States Tennis Association to the club. Organizers said they hope this builds a stronger tennis community and elevates their level of play.

"Tennis really is missing that pathway in the Coachella Valley for, UTR, where players can actually have a true pathway from little guys and kiddos all the way to high school and collegiate," Jesse Talamantez, the director of racket sports at TTC Palms, said.

One of the coaches joining TTC Palms is Eleazar Vazquez, a former local tennis athlete and head coach at Xavier College Prep. He will be joining the JTT USTA teams as a coach and in youth development.

"We're bringing the JTT, which is a Junior Team Tennis for the USTA. We're going to be the only facility that runs that," Vazquez said. "Last year, my teams got third place in all of SoCal, and we're happy to bring the entire team here and continue growing it."

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