Miami - WTA boss Larry Scott dropped a bombshell into
women's tennis on the eve of one of the biggest events on the
calendar Tuesday, announcing that he will step down to move to a
university athletics job in the United States.
The resignation announcement prior to the Miami Masters came less
than three months after ATP boss Etienne de Villiers was forced out
and replaced with a lawyer, Adam Helfant, with little experience in
the sport.
Scott, who worked with the men's ATP before coming over to the
women's side and serving for six years as chief executive of the WTA,
will head the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) PAC-10
Conference, effective July 1.
Scott oversaw a vast increase in prize money and a flourishing
partnership with tour global sponsor Sony Ericsson, which turned
headline players like Maria Sharapova and the Williams sisters into
cross-over celebrities with forays into fashion, music and show
business and computer gaming.
'With women's professional tennis more popular than ever, the Tour
in the strongest business position in its history and a fantastic
senior management team in place, now is the right time for me to
embrace a new challenge consistent with my family and personal goals,
and leave room for the next generation of Tour leadership to take on
new responsibilities,' Scott said.
He will work with the Tour Board on the selection process for his
replacement.
'Under Larry's leadership, the Tour and our sport have grown over
the past six years beyond anyone's wildest expectations,' said Steve
Simon, Tournament Board representative and chairman of the Tournament
Council.
'As an organization and sport, we are positioned for continued
success. We wish Larry the very best in his new role, and are looking
forward to beginning the process of selecting a new CEO for the
organization to lead us into the future.'
Scott's latest crisis came at Dubai last month when Israeli player
Shahar Peer was denied a visa into the Arab emirate, sparking a war
of words, a fine of 300,000 dollars from the WTA and potential
sanctions against the highlight event.
The resignation will also allow Scott to dodge a bullet in the
ongoing case of the Williams sisters' boycott of the just-concluded
Indian Wells Masters, a stance which for the first time in 2009 will
result in sanctions for the millionaire sibling act.
Scott's tenure saw the passage of the Tour's Roadmap plan, the
most sweeping reforms to the Tour calendar in its history to enhance
the women's tennis product, and the achievement of equal prize money
at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, with the top 10 events in women's
professional tennis now featuring equal pay.
He also oversaw the signing of the largest sponsorship deal in the
history of women's sport and professional tennis with Sony Ericsson
at 88 million dollars over six years. The deal contributed to the
establishment of the Tour on its strongest financial footing in
history, including a 500 per cent increase in sponsorship revenues
and two and one half times increase in overall revenues, a 40 per
cent increase in prize money and 710 million dollars in new stadium
investments.
Scott also saw the global expansion of the sport into new markets,
including establishment of the Tour's first ever Asia-Pacific
headquarters in Beijing.
USA
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