Rob Clayton Joins Elmira College as Head Men's and Women's Tennis Coach
ELMIRA, N.Y. -- Elmira College Vice President of Athletics Pat Thompson is pleased to announce the hiring of
Rob Clayton as the new head coach for the Soaring Eagle men's and women's tennis programs.
"Coach Clayton's tennis and teaching experience, combined with the enthusiasm he brings to Elmira, provides both our men's and women's programs a great opportunity to move to the next level under his leadership," Thompson stated.
Clayton takes over the reins of the EC men's and women's tennis teams with a well-versed background as a tennis professional, private instructor, coach and All-Conference student-athlete.
"I am beyond excited to get started and help both the men's and women's tennis teams achieve highly on the court and in the classroom," Clayton said. "With my extensive tennis background and theoretical knowledge of the game, I hope to establish each team as a conference contender. I already feel very welcomed and supported by Vice President Pat Thompson and the rest of the athletics staff, which leads me to believe we will achieve great things."
Most recently, Clayton spent the past year as a teaching professional for Cliff Drysdale Tennis at a pair of pristine resorts – the Bachelor Gulch Village in Avon, Colorado, and the Omni Amelia Island Plantation in Fernandina Beach, Florida. As a part of Cliff Drysdale's Tennis Professional Advancement program at Amelia Island and as the Director of Tennis at Bachelor Gulch, Clayton organized camps and clinics and taught private lessons for all age groups. Founded by and the namesake of the International Tennis Hall of Famer, Cliff Drysdale Tennis is a national organization that specializes in tennis program development, daily tennis operations, and tennis management for resorts, hotels, and private clubs.
Clayton also spent five summers as a teaching professional at the renowned Sea Pines Racquet Club, an award-winning tennis center located in one of the sport's hotbeds in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. That included work at the Smith Sterns Tennis Academy, co-owned by former world No. 1 and Hall of Famer Stan Smith, where he conducted clinics and lessons for several college-bound junior players. Clayton also boasts similar experience as an assistant pro at the Highland Country Club in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
As a student-athlete at Methodist University, Clayton twice garnered USA South All-Conference Honorable Mention accolades and was named a USA South All-Conference Scholar-Athlete in each of his four undergraduate years. The Avon Lake, Ohio, native is the still program's all-time record holder for doubles wins (55) and helped the Monarchs win 17 matches in both his junior and senior campaigns.
Clayton graduated from Methodist's Professional Tennis Management (PTM) program with a B.S. in Business Administration in 2013, before returning to his alma mater to earn an MBA with a concentration in Organizational Leadership. As a graduate student, he served as an assistant coach for the Monarchs men's and women's tennis teams, the latter of which advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament in the 2013-14 season.
In addition to his PTM degree, Clayton is certified by the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) as an Elite Professional and by the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR) as a Master Professional. He also possesses Sports Science Level I certification from the United State Tennis Association (UTSA).