Ranking the 7 NCAA host sites since 2010
I’m ranking the sites based on 3 axes:
Courts: Number of courts, court setup, viewing, and indoor facilities
Location: Is it easy to get to? What does the town offer? Etc.
Experience: How’s the experience as an in-person fan?
Let’s get to the rankings!
1. Orlando - USTA National Campus
Summary: The new home of US tennis has nearly 100 courts spread across 64 acres. There’s no denying that this is a special campus. When I first attended in 2019, it felt like the tournament had been elevated to a new level with sponsor tents, the prestige of the USTA, and a buzz about grounds unlike any other event. There’s an opportunity here to make it the Omaha of tennis...if the USTA is willing to do the work (a big if!). I know ranking Orlando at #1 might be controversial for some, and admittedly there could be some recency bias at play as Orlando has hosted the last two NCAAs.
Courts: This facility was built for college tennis matches. 2 rows of 6 courts with above-ground seating on both sides. It’s extremely easy to stand between the courts and watch multiple matches at once. The parity between the primary and secondary bank of courts is something none of the other facilities have (except my last place finisher, but we’ll get to that…) and is a major reason why Orlando ranks so high. While the set-up is pretty ideal for simultaneous matches, it’s definitely more sterile and lacking the character you find at college facilities. Some improvements they could’ve made: more permanent seating with full seat-backs (including seating on both ends of the courts), overhead awnings, and a permanent scoreboard (noticeably lacking). The facility has 6 indoor courts, but there’s zero seating. Fortunately, we haven’t had to go indoors in either years.
Location: Orlando has a great airport, and the USTA facility is only minutes away, which makes this location easily accessible for pretty much all teams. Lake Nona, where the campus is located, is a growing area with plenty of shops and restaurants to go to between or after matches. The major drawback here is that you’re not actually on a college campus.
Experience: Everything about attending the NCAAs here is pretty easy: parking, accessibility, food options. But I’d be remiss not to mention the weather and the lovebugs. The first few days of the 2019 tournament truly felt straight out of an apocalyptic horror movie -- the heat, humidity, the swarming of lovebugs...it was miserable. However, the 2021 experience was a total 180. We had as ideal of conditions as you could ask for in Orlando (low to mid 80s) during May -- no rain and no lovebugs. 2021 delivered with one of the best championship match atmospheres I’ve attended, but it also made me question why the USTA didn’t build even more seating for this facility since they definitely have the room.
Summary: Since the introduction of the team-bracket competition in 1977, Georgia has hosted the NCAA team championships more than any other location (28 times!). Tulsa and Texas A&M are tied for second with each hosting just 3 times -- clearly a huge disparity. Georgia has long been seen as the mecca of college tennis and, while that might still be true (the college tennis hall of fame is located here), their years of perennially hosting are over. Other schools, and the USTA, have stepped up and built great facilities. UGA stays at #2 on this list for its tradition, main bank of top 3, Athens, and crowd enthusiasm.
Courts: There’s probably no better experience in college tennis than watching a Georgia doubles point. That’s because their top 3 courts are excellent; however, they’re disconnected from the lower bank (or “the pit” as they say in Athens), meaning it’s difficult to watch courts 4-6 from afar or navigate easily between the two to follow the action. Additionally, the bottom bank doesn’t have permanent seating, just temporary stands they put up for the tournament. The secondary bank is pretty miserable. It’s broken up in banks of 2 and 4 courts and is pretty much standing-room only, with only a few small bleacher stands quite a distance from the courts. Playing semi-final matches on those courts was a travesty because they’re standing room only with limited viewing. Lastly, Georgia only has 4 indoor courts that are basically in an oversized garage -- it has no air-conditioning and minimal seating. Unfortunately, Athens usually gets rain during this time of year, so they’re either sending teams to Georgia Tech or playing on their garage courts. I’ve seen UVA/USC matches played there, as well as the 2017 final: UVA vs. UNC...not great! Improvements they should make: permanent seating for primary bank courts 4-6 connected to the main bank with overhead awnings, full indoor facility with seating, and find a way to improve that seemingly helpless secondary bank.
Location: Athens is driving distance from several schools who compete annually in the NCAAs, but a solid 1.5 hours (on a good day) from the Atlanta airport; however, Athens is hands down the best college town on this list, which makes up for any difficulty in getting there. The town has everything you want in a good college town and makes attending the event so much more fun if you can explore the town between or after matches. The courts are fairly central to campus, right next to the baseball field and other athletic facilities.
Experience: Many people say that Georgia should host every year and that it’s the pinnacle of college tennis. While I think that opinion is usually held by people with some Georgia-bias or people who came of age when Georgia was one of only a few decent facilities across the country and still teaching on the quarter system (so more students were on campus during NCAAs and showed up), I do agree to a point. I’ve not experienced anything in college tennis like cheering on a Georgia team deep in the NCAAs in Athens. The fans, the barking, it really is special and an environment most college players never get to experience; however, if you’re attending for anything other than the home-town team, there’s a lot to be desired. The secondary bank is a pretty awful viewing experience, parking is difficult (and you usually need to pay), and Georgia is king of the ticketing police -- I’ve never had to show my ticket so many times, even within the facility, or be told I can’t stand or sit in certain places. You feel like you’re walking on eggshells just to watch some tennis.
Summary: Despite the Waco Shootout and pretty crappy weather that occurred during the tournament, I came away very impressed with the Baylor facility. You can certainly feel the impact Mark Hurd has had at Baylor (RIP).
Courts: Baylor’s primary bank of 6 is really well done-- it’s all chair-backed, covered seating (with water-misters!) in a straight line, making it easy to not only see all courts at once, but also move between them. Baylor has the best primary 6 of any of these 7 host sites; however, their back 6 is disappointing. While similarly in a nice row of 6, there’s no permanent seating, just a few temporary bleachers. Their indoor courts are nice and actually have permanent seating inside, although it’s quite cramped.
Location: Uhh...well, it's about 1.5 hours from either Dallas or Austin. You can visit Chip and Joana Gaines’ Magnolia HQ?
Experience: Once you actually get to Baylor, attending the tournament is easy (e.g. parking). The weather everyday was about 85-95 degrees with a 50% chance of thunderstorms, hence why there were so many indoor matches. The facility lacks good food options, and there’s not much in the immediate area. Baylor was expected to make a deep run in 2015, and the Baylor fans certainly were loud and rowdy (still couldn’t beat UVA though…).
4. Stanford - Taube Family Tennis Center
Summary: Stanford undoubtedly has one of the nicest facilities in the country -- there’s a reason they held a WTA event for so long; however, they also lost that event for the same reason they won’t host NCAAs again: Stanford doesn't have much interest in hosting...and that’s clear.
Courts: Stanford has the nicest bank of top 3 courts in the country, seating about 2-3K with all chair-backed seats and additional covered seating. The problem is that it’s a little disconnected (about a 30 second walk) from the other 3 courts being played on; there’s no way to see all 6 courts at once on Stanford’s primary courts. Additionally, their secondary bank, while neatly situated as 6 in a row with limited above-court seating, is across the street, making it difficult to jump between matches, which is commonly done at the NCAAs. Additionally, they only have 1 indoor court, which they wouldn’t use for matches in the exceedingly rare case of rain.
Location: Stanford is a plane ride away for almost every school competing in this event, but it is nicely situated between two awesome airports in San Francisco and San Jose. The courts are right in the middle of campus and incredibly scenic. Palo Alto is far from a classic college town, but it’s filled with everything you could want when attending the tournament (e.g. nice restaurants, sights to see, etc.)
Experience: As mentioned, Stanford does little to make the tournament feel special -- you more or less feel like you’re just attending a duel match. Additionally, while the weather is perfect during the day (mid to high 70s usually), it gets really cool for the night matches, to the point of requiring blankets and sweatshirts.
5. Wake Forest - Wake Forest Tennis Center
Summary: I’m honestly surprised Wake Forest got a hosting bid. Their primary bank is good but everything else is mediocre. I’d be bummed if we had to return for another NCAAs here.
Courts: Wake Forest has a really nice primary bank of 6 courts, which you can see in the above picture. What’s not great, though, is that the secondary bank of courts is split between two rows of 3 and has no seating other than a few random bleachers (also pictured). Wake’s indoor facility is mediocre, but at least they have 6 courts because, unfortunately, much of 2018 was spent cramped inside that facility due to weather.
Location: Wake Forest is driving distance for many schools who make it deep into the tournament, so schools get to save on airfare. The courts are about 1.5 miles off campus and back right up into the football stadium, which is pretty neat. They’re about 3 miles from downtown Winston-Salem. You’re in the wrong place if you’re looking to explore a great college town.
Experience: Second to Georgia, Wake Forest had the most intense ticket policing (i.e. always having to show your ticket everywhere) and rules for where you could and couldn’t go. Despite much of the tournament being spent indoors, fans packed the stands for the hometown team in the final, which made for one of the better championship atmospheres I’ve been in. A few other things worth noting: Wake had one of the better merch and food stands due to the proximity to the football field, but when it wasn’t raining, boy was it hot as hell.
6. Tulsa - Michael D. Case Tennis Center
Summary: The Tulsa facility is awesome, but it’s just not built for college tennis team events. Adding insult to injury, the 2016 event was full of rain delays, indoor play, and tornado warnings.
Courts: The Tulsa facility has 3 rows of banks of 2 and only the middle row has behind court seating. It’s obviously less than ideal to not have a full bank of 6 each and viewing for the non-primary 4 courts is pretty much standing-room only, even with minimal fans.
Location: Not super easy to get into if you’re flying in -- not too many direct flights into Tulsa. Plus, there’s not much going on in the immediate vicinity of the Tulsa facility.
Experience: Parking is easy, and the courts are right on campus. Thankfully, 2016 was the historic run for the OSU women’s team, which made for a great atmosphere.
7. Illinois - Atkins Tennis Center
Summary: I-L-L...E-G-A-L! That’s what Illinois hosting the NCAAs should be. Would you want to watch the infamous Puget net touch on the championship point in 2013 through a chain link fence? Too bad, we all had to at Illinois.
Courts: Solid 2 banks of 6 with equal viewing on both. They didn’t have to use it in 2013, but they do have a really good indoor facility, probably in the top 2 of the other 6 host sites; however, having to view their outdoor courts through a chain link fence is a miserable experience and one we shouldn’t have to endure for the NCAA championships. I’m stunned they were given a bid for 2022. Building above-court seating between their two banks of courts should’ve been an absolute requirement. Scenic views of the hay silos if you’re into that.
Location: Champaign isn’t an easy place to get to; you either have to fly into Chicago or Indianapolis and drive a few hours...not great. Also, I found the town pretty dreary with few good restaurant options.
Experience: Parking is easy, and there’s minimal policing around where you can and can’t go. One of the few sites where there was noticeable pre-match tailgating, which is always a fun addition.
What does the future hold?
The host sites through 2026 have already been announced:
A few notes about the upcoming sites:
I’m really excited to see Oklahoma State’s facility; I’ve heard awesome things and expect Chris Young and team to run an amazing event.
Outside of Illinois (once again: ugh), these places feel like the right picks to host. We can hopefully permanently remove Stanford, Tulsa, Wake Forest, and Illinois from the rotation. I’ve already discussed my suggested improvement for Illinois. Here’s what I’d like to see improved at Baylor and Georgia:
Baylor: Permanent seating for their secondary bank
Georgia: Permanent seating for their entire primary bank, a 6 court indoor facility, and the secondary bank simply feels helpless
Let me know your thoughts, opinions, or questions!
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