Every year since 1986, the Ferris PTM program hosts a banquet and invites top professionals of the industry to share their knowledge with the students.  This year's banquet was themed "A Weekend with the Masters."

By Ryan Bauman

The 24th Annual PTM Banquet was the first banquet I had attended at Ferris State University.  It was everything I thought it would be and more.  Most of the speakers hold "Master Professional" status, the highest level of certification, with the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA). And the headliner was Nick Saviano, a master professional with both USPTA and the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). Only eight other teaching pros worldwide hold this accomplishment, including another seminar speaker, Ajay Pant. Our line-up of great speakers also included  Steve Smith, Pintu "Bean" Patel, Bob Love, and Jay Hardman were also speakers at the seminar.

Some amazing things really stood out to me during the weekend, but not what I was expecting at all.  I expected to get a lot of great information from all of the speakers, and I did.  The presentations were outstanding and enjoyable in all regards.  But the fact that these professionals, some of the top people in the tennis industry, would come speak to 50 college students about tennis and about our futures, giving career advice and on-court knowledge simply blows my mind.  Ferris does not pay their way: the speakers must pay for their transportation themselves.  When I learned this fact I felt so much more appreciative and thankful that they would come.

Another thing that stood out and helped me feel more comfortable is how approachable the speakers were.  We could simply walk up to them at any given point and they would immediately ask us questions and be genuinely interested in us.  There were more than just a few occasions where I would walk away answering more questions than I had asked.  I was impressed and flattered that each of the speakers would take as much time as they could to actually learn about us and talk with us one-on-one.

It's also customary for alumni to attend the banquet, and while my previous boss and mentor was unable to make it this year, several alums I had met recently showed up.  This was another aspect that was important for us current PTMers: networking. 

There's a little saying in PTM, and I think I've heard similar things elsewhere, "Once a PTM'er, always a PTM'er."  As soon as the alums started to arrive, everyone was socializing and networking, and, more importantly, everyone was comfortable with each other, even if this was their first time meeting.  Having the common ground that is PTM, alumni almost automatically consider you "part of the family" and seem to enjoy spending their time hanging out with current students.

Banquet weekend was a great way for me to recharge and make the fire that is tennis burn brighter.  Seeing the speakers and talking with them, and seeing the alumni and talking with them, I really learned a lot about tennis and industry, but also about the program.  I think I have a much better understanding now of what it really means to be in PTM and what that can mean for my future.

To learn more about Professional Tennis Management at Ferris State University, click here.