Port Washington Resident Inducted Into Eastern Tennis Hall Of Fame

A Port Washington resident will be inducted into the Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame at a celebration on Friday night.

Dick Zausner has been an instrumental part of the tennis community in the Eastern Section for more than 30 years. He will be recognized by the Junior Tennis Foundation at the 30th Annual Eastern Tennis Hall of Fame at the Beach Point Club in Mamaroneck.

Zausner serves as the Director at Port Washington Tennis Academy. Through the PWTA, he has given thousands of youth and adults the opportunity to try tennis.

“Our main goal is to be able to help children earn college scholarships,” Zausner said in a press release. “We are a non-profit organization that believes in providing as many opportunities for children that we can.”

The academy is home to 17 indoor courts and offers a wide variety of tennis programming for players of all ages and levels. PWTA also hosts approximately 24 USTA Eastern sanctioned tournaments a year.

Zausner’s father, Hy, started PWTA in 1966 to help others, particularly children. Zausner took over PWTA in the 1980s and continues to lead the organization with his father's values in mind. PWTA and Zausner also look to give back by supporting local charities that focus on benefiting children.

"PWTA only supports organizations that we feel could use the money," Zausner said. "We like to make a meaningful dent, rather than just make small donations.”

Through his work with PWTA, Zausner has served as Chairman of USTA Eastern’s Junior Tournament Rules and Discipline Committee, where he has he handled rule explanation and tournament draw questions for more than a decade. He has also been actively involved as the publisher of College and Junior Tennis, an online magazine, for more than 10 years

At PWTA, Zausner offers on-site housing to teaching professionals as a more affordable solution to nearby rentals and a variety of snacks are always available for anyone who visits the academy. “I don’t treat my employees like employees,” Zausner said. “I value the people who work for me, and am proud to have several longtime employees. We always have food available for people when they walk in, that way no one leaves hungry.”

Zausner says he is proud of what PWTA has done to help children through tennis and continues to work diligently to further develop the game.

Proceeds from the celebration will benefit JTF, which provides scholarships and grants for junior and adaptive tennis players throughout the Eastern Section.

Photo Credit: Brian Coleman