LTA Funding 2011

LordBrownof · Futures level

LTA Funding 2011

LordBrownof · Futures level

Tara replied to me to say that they have delayed the decision, which has meant her missing a trip to India. I try not to, but the LTA make it very difficult not to think of them as useless.

Ratty · County player

LordBrownof wrote:

I try not to, but the LTA make it very difficult not to think of them as useless.

Why so?

They have a finite budget for player support. Who's to say whether paying for 4 people to follow Andy Murray around the world is not a better use of their money than paying for players like Tara Moore to go on trips to India?

And how far down the rankings do you go? If providing financial support for an 18-year old ranked no 11 in the UK is (according to most posters on this board) a "gimme", what about Jade Windley (20 years old and ranked 20)? Or Emily Webley-Smith (26 years old and ranked 15)?

Pro tennis is brutal. Only 12 British women players born before 1990 have a ranking at all, which sort of confirms the commonly held belief that if you don't succeed young in women's tennis, you don't succeed at all.

It seems perfectly reasonable to take some time thinking about whether to pay money to people whose chances of success are, historically and statistically, frankly rather poor.

LordBrownof · Futures level

Ratty, you miss my point. It wasn't about the amount of total funding available or even who gets it. The fact is, under LTA rules, people like Tara are able to get funding. My point is that the delayed decision has cost her a trip to a tournament, which isn't in anyone's interests.

RBBOT · Futures qualifying

Well, apparently Jaguar is now "the official vehicle supplier to British Tennis". So I wonder how many players they are going to 'supply' free vehicles to?

Probably just the one - surname rhymes with 'paper'.

James · Satellite level

Ratty wrote:

It seems perfectly reasonable to take some time thinking about whether to pay money to people whose chances of success are, historically and statistically, frankly rather poor.

They've had 12 months. If one sets a date then one should stick to it, unless there is a complete unexpected situation that arises around the release date.

I'd love to point out that this is a further example of ineffeciency etc etc... but that is simply beating a dead horse.. oh hell, I can't be bothered. Dragging up and pointing at this organisations lack of effiacy is well past being interesting reading (& typing).

Look forward to seeing the selection...

Count Zero · Tennis legend

i was under the impression the LTA funding was changing to be purely results based save for a select few.