GPTA - Board of Directors

PRESIDENT: BILL OSTERHOLD

Bill is a native of New Orleans, La., and loves that he can now call Atlanta home. Bill was a late bloomer in the sport of tennis, but he was quick to take up the sport and fortunate to have his initial tennis training with the famous Australian Davis Cup Captain, Harry Hopman. Bill was an avid tournament player for many years and has competed at the USTA National Clay Court Championships in the 45’s and 60’s divisions. He also has played in a number of USTA Regional Competitions at the 4.5 and 5.0 levels. Currently, Bill plays on a AA3 Senior Men’s ALTA team. Bill’s strong corporate background includes positions such as Executive Vice President of Schuster Electronics and Vice President with Qualex, Inc; an Eastman Kodak Company. Bill’s professional coaching/teaching career spans nearly 20 years and includes experience with juniors and adults. Bill is a PTR-certified Professional, a member of the 2007 GPTA Board of Directors and the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team. When not on a teaching court, Bill enjoys playing tennis, spin cycling and hanging out with his wife, Cathy, and their German Shepherd, Aura.

PAST PRESIDENT: MARK SUITER

Mark Suiter has been teaching tennis since 1974. In March 2006, Mark became the Director of Tennis at Nesbit Lakes. Before that time, Mark was the Director of Tennis at Rivermont Country Club for 21 years. Mark was the Director of Tennis at the Atlanta Sporting Club for five years. In Illinois, Mark taught at indoor clubs before moving to Atlanta. Mark played his college tennis at Illinois State University. He played number one singles and had the seventh best winning record of all players at Illinois State. Mark played in the NCAA championships in 1974. Mark has been ranked number one in singles in Georgia in the Senior Divisions for seven years. Mark won the GPTA Director of the Year Award in 1992 and twice was the Senior Player of the Year. Mark was President of the GPTA in 1994. In 2004, he won the SPTA seminar contest and competed in the national contest. Mark was the Head Judge for the SPTA seminar contest in 2005. Mark has taught more than 1,200 jJunior Ralleyball students in the past five years. He has been a member of the GPTA since 1979.

FIRST VICE PRESIDENT/TREASURER: KEVIN JACKSON

Kevin Jackson is a USPTA P-1 professional. A graduate of Methodist College's Professional Tennis Managment program. Kevin has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. "KJ" was 2006 GPTA Head Pro of the year, and USPTA Georgia State Pro of the year. "KJ" also won the 2006 USPTA Southern Seminar Contest, and the USPTA National Seminar Contest. "KJ" will be a featured speaker at the 2007 USPTA Southern, and National conventions.

SECOND VICE PRESIDENT: ben hestley

Holding a bachelor's degree in sociology and business administration from the University of North Alabama, Ben played two years for the Lions. Before that, he played at Central Alabama Community College where he was a 2000 Southeast Regional Doubles Finalist. As a teaching professional, Ben has coached 4 Atlanta City Championship teams and numerous Southern Sectional Ranked junior players, including a 2003 Alabama State Junior Champion. As the Associate Tennis Professional at Dunwoody Country Club, Ben coordinates a highly active junior program in addition to teaching several men's and women's ALTA and USTA teams. Ben also acts as the head stringer and runs maintenance operations for Dunwoody Country Club. In 2006, Ben was named GPTA Assistant Pro of the Year and in 2007 USPTA Southern Assistant Pro of the Year. Ben also won the 2007 USPTA Southern Seminar Contest, and as a result he will be given a spot on the Southern Speakers Bureau for 2008.

SECRETARY: ANDREW MINNELLI

Andrew Minnelli joined Country Club of Roswell as Head Professional in 2006 and is in his second year of service with the GPTA Board of Directors. Prior to his relocation to Atlanta, Andrew resided in Savannah, Ga., where he worked at The Landings Club, the largest privately owned country club in the United States. At the Landings, Andrew worked with adult league teams as well as developing the area's first high performance junior tennis academy. Andrew was also a traveling coach and sparring partner with the world class Stan Smith-Billy Stearns Tennis Academy on Hilton Head Island, S.C. from 2002-2003. As a competitive player, Andrew was ranked top 20 in the ITA collegiate doubles national rankings, 23rd in the Boys 18's Midwest section and 1st in Northeastern Ohio during his last year in the juniors. In addition to his on-court accolades, he also has held two professional business positions with the ATP Tour and International Management Group. Andrew is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, and a graduate of Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Mich.

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE: PAUL BARTHOLOMAI

Paul Bartholomai is the Director of Tennis at Peachtree Station Swim and Tennis Club in Norcross, Ga. He is a member of the ALTA, Argentina Tennis Association, GPTA, USPTA and USTA. He has held Board-level positions with the GPTA over the years as well as USPTA Georgia and USPTA. In 2005, Paul received the GPTA Director of the ‘Year Award; in 2003 he received the USPTA Georgia Chapter Pro of the Year Award and the GPTA Volunteer of the Year Award; and in 2002 he received the GPTA All-Court Award (Rookie of the Year). He actively participates in charity fundraisers, pro-am tournaments and local league play as a player and coach. Paul has hosted Tennis Across America for several years introducing more than 60 preschoolers to tennis. He also participated in the Drill Exchange the 2002 USPTR Symposium, the 2001 USPTA Southern/Florida Division Convention and GPTA Drill Contests (2nd place in 2000 & 2001). He has made presentations at workshops and coventions, and his work has been published in the USPTA GA Newsletter, The Standard; ADDvantage magazine; ALTA’s Net News; the USPTA website; and Argentine Tennis Magazine. He is the Editor of the GPTA Newsletter, The Pro Approach, for which he compiles the monthly “Tips” department. Paul played junior tennis in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and college tennis at Georgia Perimeter College, where he played on the men's team and won the National Championships in Tyler, Texas, in 1999. His most memorable tennis moment was when he had the opportunity to be Guillermo Vilas' and Alberto Mancini's practice partner. Outside of tennis, he enjoys soccer, traveling and having fun with his wife and two daughters.

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE: PAIGE MILLER

Paige Miller is the Director of Marketing for USTA Georgia. Her primary focus is to assist Georgia community tennis associations in the promotion and execution of USTA programs and events. Paige is also the Public Relations and Communications contact person for USTA Georgia. Prior to her current position, Paige's tennis background and experience has touched many facets of the industry including parks and recreation, product sales and facility operations/management. She also has been a USTA/ITF certified referee and umpire with a few highlights including the US Open, Pan Am Games and Fed Cup. While playing and coaching collegiate tennis at Georgia State University, Paige received a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and a Masters Degree in Sports Marketing.

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE: HARLON MATTHEWS

Harlon is a PTR-certified instructor for both able-bodied and wheelchair athletes. He holds a ranking of No. 12 in the U.S. men's wheelchair "A" division. He has competed in USTA, ALTA and Visionary Tennis leagues against both wheelchair and able-bodied opponents. In 2007, Harlon was the first instructor using a wheelchair to serve a seven-week a internship at the Van Der Meer Tennis Academy on Hilton Head Island in S.C. Harlon is a director for Welcome to Wheelchair Tennis clinics, is the Tournament Director at The Geranium Festival wheelchair tennis tournament in McDonough, Ga., and directs the BlazeSports Henry County wheelchair tennis, which was the 2006 USTA Georgia program of Year. Other awards include the 2005 USTA Georgia Wheelchair Tennis Player of the Year, the 2005 GPTA Player of the Year, the 2005 PTR Golden Eagle Award for contribution to the game of tennis, the 2006 USTA Southern Wheelchair Tennis Player of Year and the 2006 PTR Wheelchair Professional of Year.

2007 SPECIAL ASSISTANTS to the BOARD:

LACY BARNES

DAVE NEUHART

Dave is known as a tennis professional, a teacher, a developer of personnel, an event organizer and a successful tennis/resort businessman who increases memberships and customer satisfaction while increasing revenue and profits. His business, teaching and cultural experiences are global – having lived, worked or traveled in most of mainland United States and Hawaii, the Caribbean, Mexico and Western Europe. He has trained top players from these countries and from Africa, the Pacific Rim and Australia. Dave has worked at every level for Peter Burwash International (PBI), and received PBI’s highest award (Pro of the Year) in 2000 after having been runner-up for the award on two other occasions. Dave has taken start-up tennis/community operations and led them to national award winning facilities. Currently at the newer, upscale development of Reynolds Plantation, recent awards have included A Top 50 - Tennis Resorts Online facility in the World in 2007, Tennis Welcome Centers - Top 50 – Tennis facilities in the USA – 2006 and rated #1 PBI Facility of the Year for 2006. Dave has continued his personal development as a businessman and tennis pro through his membership and participation in continuing education offerings by U.S. Professional Tennis Association and U.S. Racket Stringers Association. He is a certified tester in each of these organizations, and a speaker at their meetings. Dave’s personal commitment to the community, and to the growth of tennis as a sport for life--touching children to seniors, and to competitive tennis (USTA tournaments at every level including Challengers) have won him numerous honors and awards, including being in the international, “Who’s Who in Tennis.” Dave holds a B.A. from Central Missouri State University, where he majored in private/commercial recreation and minored in business. He also attended Southwest Baptist University where he was a member of the tennis team, ranked #6 nationally in NAIA.

STEPHEN VODEGEL

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: JENNIFER BURNS

Jennifer Burns, a graduate of the University of Georgia School of Journalism, has been with the GPTA since 2000. She is the Managing Editor of The Pro Approach, GPTA's monthly newsletter. She took on the role of Executive Director in August 2007. Jennifer received the GPTA President's Award in both 2003 and 2006. She lives in Roswell with her husband and children and enjoys traveling, hiking, reading, collecting antiques and doing volunteer work.