CourtSide Ep. 3: 30 Years Running Gates Tennis Center, with Sam Hitman

CourtSide Ep. 3: 30 Years Running Gates Tennis Center, with Sam Hitman

Sam Hitman has been managing Gates Tennis Center since 1993. In 30+ years he's turned a public facility into the host of the country's largest sanctioned tennis tournament, launched two more facilities across Colorado, and built a scholarship program for kids who can't afford lessons. Sam is the General Manager of Gates Tennis Center in Denver, Director of Tennis at Pueblo Tennis & Pickleball Center, and founder of The School of Tennis Management. He and Evan go back to before either of them got into racquet sports, they played on a championship basketball team together at their local community center. In this conversation, we get into the parts of the job nobody puts on a podcast: * How the public-private partnership with The Park People actually works, and what a $4.7M reconstruction looks like when the city owns the land * Running three facilities at the same time across different markets * The real economics of public vs. private tennis facility pricing * How Gates added quiet pickleball courts, the paddles he tested, the investment, and a league that sold out in three days * The School of Tennis Management, why he started teaching facility operators, not just players If you run a facility, manage programs, or want to understand how public tennis centers actually operate, this one's for you. ABOUT COURTSIDE CourtSide is a podcast about the business side of racquet sports. Long-form conversations with the owners, directors, and head pros shaping tennis, pickleball, padel, and squash. Hosted by Evan Dechtman, founder of TopSpin Digital. New episodes every two weeks. Subscribe so you don't miss one. Want to be a guest? Book your spot: https://topspindigital.co/courtside/book [https://topspindigital.co/courtside/book] Email [https://topspindigital.co/courtside/book Email] Evan directly: mailto:evan@topspindigital.co [evan@topspindigital.co] Full show notes: https://topspindigital.co/courtside [https://topspindigital.co/courtside] TopSpin [https://topspindigital.co/courtside TopSpin] Digital: https://topspindigital.co [https://topspindigital.co] HEARD [https://topspindigital.co HEARD] Digital Marketing: https://heardmarketing.io [https://heardmarketing.io] CONNECT WITH SAM HITMAN Gates Tennis Center: https://gatestenniscenter.info [https://gatestenniscenter.info] #CourtSidePodcast #RacquetSports #Tennis #Pickleball #GatesTennisCenter #FacilityManagement #Denver

Courtside Ep. 2: The 40-Hour Tennis Revolution: How Julius Gavin Is Changing the Game

Julius Gavin (@tennis.god) has almost 90,000 followers on Instagram, charges $1,000 for six hours of coaching, and claims he can build a complete tennis game in 40 hours. Some call him the most honest coach in tennis. Others call him a fraud. The truth is more interesting than either take. Julius grew up in Norfolk, Virginia. Navy dad, Filipino mom, started hitting tennis balls at seven years old because a boss fight in The Legend of Zelda looked like a rally. He walked on at Norfolk State, lasted one semester against a roster full of guys from Argentina, Romania, and Brazil, and eventually built a coaching business entirely through Instagram with zero ad spend and no agency behind it. In this conversation, we get into the parts that the comment section argues about: • What "mastered in one to three months" actually means and where the 40-hour number comes from • Why he treats coaching like a math curriculum instead of a basket of tips • The real economics of driving thousands of miles to clients with a trunk full of balls • How short-form content converts a viewer into a $1,000 booking • The fraud accusations from other coaches and how he handles it • Why certifications exist to reduce liability, not prove competence • His plan to scale beyond one-on-one through books, courses, and online coaching • What he tells a young coach who wants to go independent If you coach tennis, run programs, or think about going out on your own, this one's for you. Want to be a guest? Book your spot: topspindigital.co/courtside/book Email: evan@topspindigital.co Show notes: topspindigital.co/courtside

CourtSide Ep. 1: The Business of Running Racquets at a Private Club, with Andy Zodin

Most people in racquet sports know Andy Zodin's voice from the radio. Fewer know what he actually does for a living. For the last 15 years, Andy has been Director of Racquet Sports at Columbine Country Club in Denver, one of the top private clubs in the Intermountain region. He's been a teaching pro since 1984, an RSPA Elite Pro, and served five years as USPTA Intermountain President. He also hosts KickServeRadio.com on the Tennis Channel Podcast Network with Mats Wilander and Jonny Levine. In this conversation, we get into the parts of the job nobody puts on a podcast: how a director of racquets actually spends a Tuesday, the conversations with ownership that happen on repeat, staffing teaching pros in 2026, how private clubs are handling the pickleball question, and what he'd do differently building a program from zero today. If you run a facility, lead a program, or coach for a living, this one's for you. Guest: Andy Zodin, Director of Racquet Sports, Columbine Country Club. Host of KickServeRadio.com. CourtSide is hosted by Evan Dechtman, founder of TopSpin Digital. New episodes every 2-3 weeks. Show notes: https://topspindigital.co/courtside Be a guest: https://topspindigital.co/courtside/book

CourtSide Ep. 0: What This Show Is, Who It's For, and Why I'm Making It

Evan Dechtman, the founder of Top Spin Digital, shares his journey from musician to marketer and the insights that led him to create a show focused on racquet sports. The show aims to capture real conversations about the business side of racquet sports and is targeted at industry professionals. It features one guest per episode and is distributed on various platforms. Guests with real experience and insights are encouraged to become part of the show. Takeaways * Racquet sports marketing * Industry insights Chapters * 00:00 From Musician to Marketer * 05:26 Becoming a Guest