INDIAN WELLS – Kirk Anderson of Portland, Ore., was honored with the 2016 Alex Gordon Award for the USPTA Professional of the Year by the United States Professional Tennis Association.  Anderson was recognized during the annual awards ceremony at the USPTA World Conference at the Hyatt Regency Indian Wells Resort & Spa in Indian Wells, Calif., on Tuesday, Sept. 27.

The professional of the year is judged in seven areas, including contributions to USPTA and USTA; as a teaching professional, player and coach; education, research and publications; organizational affiliations; and contributions to the community.

A USPTA Master Professional, Anderson has been a USPTA member for 43 years. Throughout these years, he has made his mark on the industry through changes in the way that tennis is taught through the resources developed by the coaching education department under his direction.

Anderson is one of only 11 people worldwide to hold a Master Professional distinction with both the USPTA and PTR.  He is a graduate of the USTA High Performance Coach program and is certified by the International Youth Conditioning Association as a Youth Fitness Specialist. He has a bachelor’s degree in physical education and a master’s degree in exercise science from Western Michigan University.

Kirk has written and co-authored 14 tennis books for coaches and tennis professionals. He’s also written several workshop scripts and dozens of articles in journals in the United States and internationally. He is the Content Manager for the Coaching Youth Tennis online course and served as the project manager for the development of six online Coach Youth Tennis courses and workshop for 10 and Under Tennis coaches. Since its launch in February 2014, more than 60,000  courses have been completed.

Anderson has served on the International Tennis Federation Tennis Participation Task Force since 2000. He is a member of the Special Olympics International Global Resource Tennis Team and the Special Olympics North America Tennis Development Committee. With the help of Special Olympics North America Tennis Director Nancy Hoekstra, Anderson helped change many of the competition rules and expanded the competition levels that now include red, orange and green balls. 

Anderson is a popular speaker and presenter among international, national and regional workshops. He is best known for his innovative and energetic style with players and coaches of all ages and ability levels. He has also been a featured speaker at three ITF Tennis Participation Coaches Workshops held in Bath and London, England.

In 2003, Anderson received the International Tennis Hall of Fame Educational Merit Award; was named Person of the Year by Racquet Sports Industry magazine in 2006 and Professional Tennis Registry Professional of the Year in 2012; and he was inducted into the Western Michigan University Department of Human Performance and Health Education Alumni Honor Academy in 2013.

The USPTA National Awards program is conducted annually. Nominations are submitted by the organization’s 17 divisions and by individuals. Recipients in each category are decided by the USPTA Awards Committee.