The California men's and women's tennis programs are proud to be in possession of some of the finest collegiate tennis facilities in the country. Though the TeamCal tennis offices and main training facility remain at the Hellman Tennis Courts, the Bears facilities have recently expanded and now include the newly refurbished Channing Tennis Courts.
Hellman Tennis Courts
For the past 17 seasons, California tennis has made its home at the Hellman Tennis Courts, located on the southwest side of campus next to the historic Edwards Track and Field Stadium. Used both for practice and home dual match competition, Hellman served as the host facility for the 1996 Men's Rolex NorCal Regional Tournament and was the site of the '94 NCTA/Michael Chang Reach for the Stars tennis clinic that benefited underprivileged Northern California youths.
Built in 1983 with a grant from the S. H. Cowell Foundation, the Hellman Tennis Courts were formally dedicated by the university in October of that year. From 1983-91, Hellman housed the offices of both men's track and field and men's tennis, until the merger of the men's and women's athletic departments relocated women's head coach Jan Brogan's staff to Hellman in 1991. The facility's office has been for tennis only ever since.
The tennis center honors the late Isias Warren Hellman III, a Cal alumnus (A.B., 1920), former chair of the Cowell Foundation and the former president and chair of Wells Fargo Bank. Hellman was one of Cal's most prominent and active donors and was responsible for university contributions ranging from the Friends of the Bancroft Library to the Alumni House and Barrows Hall.
In 1993, stadium lights were added to the Hellman Tennis Courts, a direct result of the work of former Oakland Athletics owner Wally Haas. Haas, a Cal tennis letterwinner in 1927, spearheaded the Cal Sports 80s fundraising campaign, which brought campus-wide improvements to all of Cal's athletic facilities.
In 1994, Hellman underwent another transformation with the addition of Thomas Stow Plaza to the tennis center. The department plans to add scoreboards to the facility sometime in the near future.
Thomas Stow Plaza
Stow Plaza was constructed during the fall of 1994 to honor its namesake, Thomas Stow, the 1926 NCAA doubles champion and former California coach. Formally dedicated upon its completion in January 1995, Stow Plaza brought a face-lift to the Hellman Tennis Courts, creating a new main entrance and landscaped patio for Cal's tennis facility.
Thomas Stow was a legend in California tennis history, partnering with the great Bud Chandler to win the 1926 NCAA Doubles Championship before graduating from Cal in 1927. He returned as head coach from 1932-46, the longest tenure in university history. During his time at the helm of the Golden Bears, Stow compiled a 73-45-1 (.618) coaching record, leading the Bears to three Pacific Coast Conference Championships. He was inducted into Cal's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987.
Channing Tennis Facility
In the 2000 season, TeamCal proudly announced the addition of the Channing Tennis Facility as both a practice and competition venue for both the men's and women's programs. The beneficiary of a $1.3 million face lift, the Channing Tennis Facility remodel was completed in the fall of 1998, just in time for the '99 dual match tennis season.
The nine-court facility is located a few blocks south of the Hellman Tennis Courts on the corner of Channing Way and Ellsworth Street. The Channing facility, which more than doubles Cal's current number of courts, will also enable the Bears to host a variety of large tournaments, including future NCAA Regionals and professional events.
