Georgetown got some good news recently about a major event that is expected to have a significant tourism impact on our city. We know that the Most Beautiful Town Square in Texas is a big attraction for tourists, but the Square is not our only major attraction. Every year our sports and recreation facilities and our parks bring thousands of tourists and visitors to our city for sports tournaments and other recreational or sporting events.
The United States Tennis Association announced in July that Georgetown won the three-year bid to host the Texas Slam, one of the largest junior tennis tournaments in the country.
Approximately 1,100 participants ages 11 to 18 compete each year in the annual tournament held in June. Along with family members and other spectators, Georgetown can expect 3,000 to 4,000 visitors each year in 2020-22 for the Texas Slam tournament.
The Texas Slam is the premier junior event of the year for USTA Texas. The nine-day tennis tournament brings players, their families, and coaches from across the state of Texas. Georgetown was chosen to host the Texas Slam tournament in 2020-22 by a special USTA selection committee that reviewed multiple proposals.
Junior Tennis Council Chair Robert Rubel worked with the USTA selection committee to review the bids. “The committee has worked hard over the past several weeks evaluating all of the proposals for the Slam bid,” said Rubel in July. “After careful evaluation of all bids, the volunteer committee unanimously selected Georgetown as the future home of the tournament.”
The selection committee focused on the strength of the proposals related to the commitment and involvement of the host community. In selecting Georgetown, the committee highlighted the more than 150 tennis courts in Georgetown including courts at the Georgetown Tennis Center, Berry Creek Tennis Center, Sun City Texas, Southwestern University, the two Georgetown high schools, and three middle schools.
The Texas Slam is projected to generate an economic impact of $1.8 million per year. That economic impact includes hotel rooms, meals at restaurants, shopping, and other local purchases. The tournament is expected to fill an average of 400 hotel rooms per night for seven nights and will likely fill most of the 800 hotel rooms in Georgetown for the first nights of the tournament.
Our award-winning parks and recreation facilities, top-notch school facilities, Southwestern University, and our Beautiful Town Square will continue to attract sports tourism and recreation events to our community. These events are a significant engine of economic activity for Georgetown.
In June next year, if you see these young tennis players and their families on our tennis courts, in our restaurants, at our parks, or in our shops, I hope you will join me in welcoming them to Georgetown.
