Davida Dinerman

NWTO Co-President Elect Spotlight: Kathy Settles

Tennis is a Family Affair

Synonymous with the name Kathy Settles are the words “family” and “sports.” And as she prepares to serve as co-president of the NWTO next year, knowing this about our leadership ensures us Kathy is a perfect pick for the role. 

It began when she was growing up in Davis, California. Not only did her father introduce Kathy and her sister Robynne to tennis, but he was also their softball coach and ran football pass plays with them. By age 12, Kathy added gymnastics to her repertoire, but her parents, who were getting a bit tired of running all over the universe, asked her to pick one sport. She picked tennis. It was her choice, and, as she stated, “I knew my Dad would like it.” And she was all in.

Kathy competed in the juniors and in high school. She then went on to play tennis for the University of California, Irvine from 1985-1989. In 1991, she moved to Florida and began working as a Player Services Manager at the ATP Tour. Little did she know at the time, this would change the direction of her life.

The ATP took her to men’s professional events around the world for more than 12 years. It was a thrill for her to work at the highest level of the sport she loved and to “meet incredible people” with whom she is still in touch. But that was not all. While working at the ATP, Kathy also met her husband, Paul, who was a Tour Manager. The new couple started a family and were soon running around with three little ones, a daughter named Ryley (now 26), and two boys, Christian (now 24) and James (now 21). 

In 2004, Kathy and Paul felt a calling to move back to California to be closer to their families. On a return trip from Asia, Paul interviewed and landed the men’s coaching position at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS), which sealed the deal for them to move to Claremont. Two years later, Caleb (now 18) was born. Kathy contributed to the CMS women’s tennis program as an assistant coach. Together, the couple helped to bring the CMS men's and women's programs to national prominence, including an NCAA DIII National Men's Title in 2015 and an NCAA DIII National Women's Title in 2018, 2022 and 2023.

When Christian was a junior in high school, Kathy started to coach the boys and girls varsity teams at Claremont High School. And like everything she touches, she achieves greatness. During her tenure at Claremont High, she was named the 2019 Sun/Bulletin Girls Tennis Coach of the Year after the girls team reached the final of Division II CIF Team Championships. In 2021, her boys Team won the Division I CIF Team Championship Title. 

Kathy said she loved the variety of coaching styles she needed to offer between the college and high school levels, and she especially liked that connection with the high school while her children were there. But now, a decade later, she will be retiring from that position at the end of this season.

But there is another side to all of this, and it is where that family/sport theme rings true. Family tennis was important in Paul’s life too, which made it easy for Kathy and Paul to continue the tradition with their children. Paul grew up playing Father-Son tournaments with his dad and now plays with Christian and Caleb, capturing a total of three gold balls between the two boys. Kathy and Christian have won six USTA gold balls in National Mother-Son Championships. Last August, Kathy and Paul each represented Team USA at the ITF Masters World Team Championships in Lisbon, Portugal where both teams won a bronze medal. 

When Kathy and Paul got married, they played in the pilot National Husband-Wife tournament in Chicago, and since then, have won 18 more doubles titles together. This tournament category resonated so much with them that they established the USTA Husband-Wife Clay Courts Championships in 2001 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and now run the USTA National Family Hard Courts in June, and the USTA National Husband-Wife Hard Courts in November. To Kathy, it’s pure joy to provide opportunities for families to come together from all over the country. As tournament directors, Paul and Kathy are keen on the smallest details to make sure they offer participants a warm, welcoming, and overall excellent experience. 

In 2013, Kathy and Paul launched Tennis in Our Schools, a 501(C)3 non-profit foundation bringing tennis to each of Claremont's seven elementary schools in the form of physical education and after school programming. In 2018, the program redirected to aid high school tennis teams in need. They have raised more than $70,000 for Tennis in Our Schools, introducing the sport to hundreds of Claremont elementary school children and impacting local need-based high school teams.

When asked how she maintains balance in all this activity, she said immediately, “It starts with having a spouse who understands you need balance. Having my own things to do – coaching, giving lessons and getting in my own hitting for an hour or two a week – is what I need to maintain balance.” In addition, Kathy loves flowers and gardening. It’s that nurturing gene she has. During the pandemic, she and Ryley started a floral design business called 5683 Blooms. (Hint 5683 is LOVE on a phone’s keypad). Right now, it’s a part-time gig out of Kathy and Paul’s home, and once she finishes her high school coaching career, she’ll be able to focus on it full time. Kathy said, “There is nothing more joyous than picking your own flowers and making a beautiful arrangement.” Her favorite flower is a Ranunculus.

So how did the NWTO come into the picture? Kathy first joined in 2022 at the National Grass courts in Palm Springs as she liked the idea of supporting women’s tennis. Being president was not even on her radar until Mariko Fritz-Krockow asked her to co-preside over the organization. It didn’t take long for Kathy to accept the post. Right now, she’s participating in meetings and doing a lot of listening. But she brings to the NWTO rich experiences and ideas having worked in the tennis professional world, run tournaments and camps, and coached at all levels. 

When we wrapped up our conversation, Kathy brought it back to the days when she played tennis with her dad and is forever grateful for her parents’ support and guidance. Over the years, she has benefitted in myriad ways from the game – personally and professionally - and never imagined the places it would take her.  The NWTO is pleased to welcome Kathy Settles as an incoming co-president.