| IHRSA Report | Success by Association


Curt Beusman


Ted Torcivia


Todd Pulis


Rick Beusman


including fitness, and to reach outside the industry for expertise.” Torcivia, who was a member of the NCCA and a


club owner since the late 1970s, recently retired as president of the Wisconsin Athletic Club, which has six locations in the Milwaukee area. “While my club was one of the first to collect


monthly dues, instead of via annual fees and court time, I remember hearing about electronic funds transfer (EFT) from Bob Peterson of the Courthouse Clubs in Boise, Idaho. We also shared our experi- ence from our racquetball program, which had 100 leagues with 1,000 people each. And Sandy Coffman, a legend in programming, started with us.” Beusman, who founded the Saw Mill Club in


1971, was a nationally ranked tennis player even as a teenager. He was also a board member and past president of the NTA. Today, he’s chairman of Saw Mill Sports Management in Mount Kisco, New York.


Honored as IHRSA’s Man of the Year in 1982,


Beusman was crucial to gaining credibility with tennis club owners. An accomplished speaker, he became known as “Brother Beusman” after present- ing “Ten Commandments for the Industry,” and other topics at IHRSA conventions. His late wife Jane, who passed away last January, worked beside him in the club and chaired many convention roundtables. “IHRSA conventions also provided training for my son, Rick, who now Runs Saw Mill Sports Management, and for our team. Rick served on the IHRSA Board until last spring.” Pulis, whose family had run a day camp since


1951, became involved in the tennis business in 1967. He served on the NTA board, helped to found the NETA, and built the Thoreau Club in Concord, Massachusetts, in 1971. When IHRSA was founded, he lent his vast expe-


rience from tennis. However, until he served as IHRSA’s president in 1983-84, Pulis had never seen himself as a leader. “It was so rewarding. I learned so much about diplomacy.” He says that attending 25 IHRSA


conventions and trade shows helped him as he expanded his club and added fitness, and moved his opera- tion to its current site. “I’ve also tried to help others who


were new to the business. That’s the beauty of the association we created so long ago: we help each other see what’s on the horizon and succeed, despite the challenges.” —|


IHRSA board members, past and present, at 2010 convention www. ihrsa.org | – Patricia Amend, pamend@aol.com JANUARY 2011 | Club Business Internat ional 111


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