The USTA Southern California junior staff selects one tournament director each month who goes above and beyond to run a successful and enjoyable tournament for our junior players. They demonstrate excellent communication, great customer service, and provide a positive experience for everyone. We would like to congratulate Danny Echt, the July 2023 recipient, on this recognition.

Danny competed as a junior in tournaments in Southern California, and later went on to play in college for UCSC. To this day, Danny still enjoys the challenge the game brings. Danny is heavily involved in the Santa Barbara tennis community as a teaching pro at Knowlwood Tennis Club, a tournament director for the Santa Barbara Tennis Patrons, and Head Coach for the Santa Barbara High School Girls team and the Men’s Santa Barbara City College team.

When asked about his experience as a tournament director, Danny said, “Organizing tournaments is a lot of work, and we have a great team in Santa Barbara that takes pride in our junior and adult events. I enjoy the teamwork of running tournaments and especially being around the spirit and energy players bring as they try to better themselves and honor the game. I’m encouraged about the future of tennis by the healthy number of participants and the quality of sportsmanship displayed at our tournaments. Tennis has much to teach us about ourselves. Let’s play on!”