Gordon Smith spent many a summer growing up hitting the road with his mom to play in one junior tennis tournament after another.
Little did he know back then, those trips would be the first of many he would make in the sport he came to love.
And it never entered his mind while learning the game on the courts of Rome that he would one day become America’s top tennis official — the executive director and chief operating officer of the United States Tennis Association.
“I’ve got to give all the credit to Rome and my mom,” Smith, who was named Tuesday to assume the USTA’s senior staff position Nov. 15, said Wednesday by phone.
“Rome is such a great tennis town, one known around the country for its tennis community,” he said, “and if I hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t be where I am now.
“Rome got me started on that trip, but it was my mom who carried me around to all those tournaments my entire youth. She probably drove 10,000 miles so I could play.”
Smith, 54, will now be adding to those tennis miles, leading the USTA’s effort to promote and develop the growth of tennis and oversee the operations of the USTA and the functioning of the USTA’s national office.
“Gordon’s longstanding commitment to the sport, combined with business acumen and a keen understanding of the USTA’s organization and structure, make him the perfect person to lead the USTA,” said Jane Brown Grimes, USTA chairman of the board and president.
“I’ve been an avid fan and active participant in the sport of tennis for most of my life” said Smith. “It is therefore a great honor to be chosen as executive director and chief operating officer of the national governing body for the sport.”
Smith will assume the position at the USTA in November upon the retirement of current USTA Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer D. Lee Hamilton.
The son of Oscar and Suzanne Smith of Rome, Smith graduated from Darlington School and went on to attend the University of Georgia, where he served as the team’s captain and helped the Bulldogs win four straight Southeastern Conference titles from 1971 through 1975. He was the SEC doubles champion in 1975.
Smith earned his Bachelor of Arts in journalism and his juris doctorate from Georgia. Following law school, he clerked with the federal judiciary before joining the Atlanta-based international law firm of King and Spalding, where he was a senior partner in the 800-lawyer firm.
Yet he was never far from the game.
Smith has been an active member of the USTA Southern Section since 1992, most recently serving as its president. He also served on the boards of the USTA Tennis and Education Foundation, Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation and the Georgia Tennis Foundation.
Smith began serving a second consecutive term as vice president of the USTA in January 2007. He previously served as a director at large.
“These are very exciting times for tennis,” said Smith, who will be busy in the next month getting ready to move his family to New York from Atlanta, “and I look forward to leading the organization and our incredibly committed volunteers in creating more effective and new ways to attract people to the sport and make tennis even more accessible and inclusive for players and potential players of all backgrounds, ages and abilities.”
