2008 Tournament Dates: August 1 -10

Stowe Stadium at Kalamazoo College

In 1943, when the USTA Nationals first appeared in Kalamazoo, there were only 90 entries for the two age divisions.

Now the tournament draw is a mammoth one, with 192 singles entries in each group, 18-and-under and 16-and-under.

It has grown to an enormous undertaking, one that requires 10 days to complete. The early tournaments were enclosed in a six day schedule, Monday through Saturday.

The new draw was initiated in the summer of 1997, an increase from the normal 128 in each division from previous years.

Regardless of the changes in the draw, there is one constant--the role of Kalamazoo as host to the USTA Nationals.

The twin tournaments (two age groups) are entering their 66th summer on the courts of Kalamazoo College, the longest tenure of a USTA National junior event at the same location in history.

Believe it or not, Kalamazoo was not always the host of the Nationals. The championships have been held at five other sites: West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills, N.Y. (six years, 1916-20, inclusive, and 1927); Longwood Cricket Club, Boston, Mass (3 years, 1921-23); Southside Tennis Club, Chicago, Ill. (3 years, 1924-26), and Culver Military Academy (15 years, 1928-42).

Stowe Courts, 1942During World War II the dual USTA junior tournaments were moved from Culver to the five Grasstex courts, located on Academy Street, at Kalamazoo College. The late Dr. Allen B. Stowe, then the school's chemistry professor and tennis coach, was instrumental in procuring the championships for Kalamazoo.

It is fitting that the current location of the Nationals, the 11-court Stowe Stadium, bears the name of Dr. Stowe, who served as director of the tournaments from 1943 until February 1957 when he was killed in a tragic traffic mishap. There have been only three other directors - former Kalamazoo College athletic director and football coach Rolla Anderson, who successfully carried on the Stowe tradition from 1957 until his retirement following the 1993 championships; Timon Corwin, former men's tennis coach and athletic director at K-College through the 2007 tournaments; and the present director, Mark Riley, men's tennis coach at K-College..

The old Grasstex courts on Academy long have been victims of building expansion at Kalamazoo College, but the current site, Stowe Stadium, is a mere block away. The stadium's first surface was Teniko, a red clay composition, but now it is similar to the all-weather DecoTurf II courts at the U.S. Open.

Sorensen Courts at Western Michigan University


In order to play 950 matches over the allotted 10-day period, the 20-court Raymond Sorensen complex at Western Michigan University is a critical component to the success of the Nationals in Kalamazoo. All courts at the WMU site have been completely renovated. The 8 new upper courts were available for Tournament play in 2006. By Tournament time in 2007, the 12 lower courts were ready for play as well. The combination of the Stowe Stadium Courts at Kalamazoo College and the Sorensen Courts at Western Michigan University makes available 31 excellent U.S. Open quality hard courts for play at the Boys' 18 & 16 National Championships.