With the upcoming 82nd Annual National Public Parks Tennis Championship, Inside Tennis spoke with USTA Texas Regional Executive Director Ken McAllister on the importance of tennis in public parks, the growth of the game and what it means be a part of this 82-year-old grass roots tradition in tennis.

Can you give me a little back story on the history of tennis in public parks? The first National Public Park Tennis Championships were held in St. Louis in 1923 at what is now the Dwight Davis Tennis Center, named after the founder of the Davis Cup and President of the USNLTA, who was from St. Louis. It was sponsored by the USTA, then called the United States National Lawn Tennis Association. It was men only until 1930, when a women's draw was introduced. For many years, the winners of those draws were automatically invited to play in the US Nationals until it became the US Open in 1968. In 1948, when the NPPTC was hosted in Los Angeles, junior draws were introduced. The first African American to win was in that same year and was the well-known Oscar Johnson, later recognized by the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Age division events were added in 1959. Up until sometime in the 1990's, players qualified to play in the national event by winning their local events played at public parks. We are currently being assisted by Active.com to revive that tradition while keeping the event open to all who wish to play.

How does it feel to be part of such an historic event as the Public Parks National Championship? As a player who grew up playing only on public courts, it presents a good feeling of being part of a larger and historic picture of tennis for the average Joe. Of course, the truth that many of the greatest players - Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, etc. - also grew up on public courts adds to the credibility.

Can you capture in words the experience of being at the Championship? What is the atmosphere like? The atmosphere is more down home than dramatic. Although there are many nationally ranked players entered, all of us are in a public park setting, and it is frankly very relaxing.

What role do public parks play for young tennis players looking to learn the sport? Although affordability and open access are two obvious pluses for youngsters learning at public centers, the mix of skill levels, backgrounds, and athletes allow for an atmosphere of growth. The key here is whether the parks will hire professionals to bring in the programming and teachers such as our last venue, the Jimmy Evert Tennis Center in Fort Lauderdale, does. When that happens, the opportunity is greater than it is in the private sector.

What do public parks represent to the growth of tennis? The mere statistical fact that 80% of all tennis is played on public facilities points to the obvious decisions that all of us in the industry should focus efforts where the players are. Although our mindset is that this is the bastion of recreational tennis, we can't forget that this is where the great Australian players of the 50's and 60's were discovered. This is where the athletes, currently being skimmed away by soccer, baseball, or football, can also have a shot at trying tennis. I predict that Quick Start Tennis will find its home in public parks and school courts.

What kind of diversity among players does the Championship feature? This may be the greatest feature of the NPPTC. This is where the great players and contributors from the American Tennis Association (the black national tennis organization) came from. I suspect that the NPPTC has the greatest racial diversity of all national tournaments. This is not because other events are closed, but it is because of the very nature that folks using the public venues better reflect the color of America. We have also advocated for offering wheelchair tennis events when possible as these events are most often offered at public tennis facilities.

The number of unique entries into the event is growing. Care to guesstimate the reason for this? #1 - tennis itself is on a general surge throughout the country. We are the fastest growing traditional sport in the US over the past 5 years. Secondly, our Board has been working more closely with Tennis in the Parks, the USTA, and the Sections to get the publicity out over the past few years. Thirdly, it did not hurt to have the National Tennis Center host the event in 2006, which spotlighted the NPPTC to many who had not heard of it.