Tennis Club of Rochester: 140 years of tradition and friendships

Listen to this article

When the Tennis Club of Rochester celebrated its 140th anniversary, history obviously was front and center.

A mural celebrating the club’s milestone moments and prominent figures was unveiled and long-time members were recognized during the events in late May.

Since 1886, TCR has maintained a prominent position on the area’s sporting landscape, celebrating the game, honoring tradition and extending a legacy.

Yet with longevity comes a willingness to embrace change, and while tennis will always be the focal point, TCR has incorporated other racket/paddle sports into the club offerings.

Along with 20 outdoor clay courts and three indoor hard courts at the property off Kreag Road in Perinton, there is a swimming pool, four courts for platform tennis and a pickleball area.

“We do realize we’ve become so much more than just tennis,” said Deanna Kernan, the club’s general manager. “Tennis is obviously the driving force that has sustained this club, but we do find that most of our members enjoy having the pool, enjoy playing paddle tennis and the same with pickleball.”

An understanding that ongoing upgrades are always necessary — along with a willingness to change with the times — have been instrumental in ensuring the value of a membership, she said. That’s one reason Kernan was behind the pickleball movement when the game began to gain popularity across the country.

“I felt like we should join them instead of fight them,” she said. “I could see it was definitely becoming a huge trend within the racket sports industry. In 2018, I went to the board and proposed that we add four pickleballs courts on a hard court that was not being used very much.”

Said Nam Graczyk-Danh, the club’s membership and marketing director: “I know some tennis players might be contentious with pickleball treading on their turf but I think we can definitely co-exist. One sport can lead to another. I see a lot of pickleball players that have never tried tennis, they see all the tennis going on, they want to give that a shot. And vise-versa.”

Indeed, pickleball quickly caught on with members.

“We had people that were aging out from tennis,” Kernan said. “To play on a shorter court allowed them to continue to enjoy hitting a ball and swinging a paddle. Now we have over 150 of our members using those courts.

“Our goal is to get people enjoying racket sports and meeting other people, continuing to upgrade the facility so we are the premier facility in Rochester.”

The club has close to 2,400 year-round members, with over 1,200 active in tennis pickleball and the pool for the summer months. Including junior members, the median membership age is 46.

Attracting families and younger members has been a point of emphasis, especially through social media channels.

“There’s a stereotype around tennis, less so than golf, that it’s elitist, a little upper society,” Graczyk-Danh said. “I kind of felt that way growing up in the city of Rochester. I never had the opportunities to play tennis and didn’t pick up a racket until I was almost 20 years old.

“What sets TCR apart is how much we listen to our members. We spent a lot of last year altering our membership model to attract young families and create a wider reach, increasing our footprint on social media.”

The club continues to ensure youth players have a chance to learn the game and also learn employment skills. The junior program has more than 300 participants. Private and group lessons for adult and juniors are popular. And the club’s week-long summer camps — with 32 youth participating each week or eight weeks — sell out almost instantly, Kernan said.

During the outdoor season, the club has 65 part-time staff members to complement the 10-member full-time staff. There are 25 part-time staffers during the indoor season.

For those who are interested in playing more tennis but aren’t sure if a club membership is what they need, TCR offers free, no-strings-attached, 30-minute tennis evaluations.

“It helps us gauge where they are in their tennis ability, whether they should be spending a lot of time in classes, if they should be working on a few things in private lessons,” Graczyk-Danh said.

The club also brings some of the country’s best players to Rochester every summer by hosting an International Tennis Federation World Tennis Tour/USTA Pro Circuit tournament. This year’s event, which is open to the public, will take place July 13-19.

By bringing the pros to town, TCR marks off another box on the something-for-everyone checklist.

“It’s a community where people are making their best friends,” Kernan said. “It’s definitely a life-enhancing sport and club.”

[email protected]/(585) 653-4020