Established in 2008, Ace Court Equipment & Stringing (ACES) is a community-minded, family business located in Flagstaff, AZ. It is owned and operated by Scott and Jennifer Weber, who have lived in the Flagstaff community for over 8 years.
Like any business, ACES must provide quality products and services at low prices to gain and keep customers. But we are more than a business. Our mission sets us apart from other tennis businesses and parallels that of the United States Tennis Association (USTA). Specifically, our mission is to promote and develop the growth of tennis through successful business practices and community involvement that support development of a world-class, earth-friendly tennis center.
Our ultimate goal is to build and sustain a world-class, earth-friendly tennis center in Northern Arizona, which in turn can serve players at the local, regional, and national levels. Why Northern Arizona? The region needs a premier tennis facility with several, all-weather courts to host leagues, amatuer and professional tournaments, junior development, and other events and programs that directly contribute to the growth of tennis. Northern Arizona is beautiful and offers high altitude training benefits for players.
ACES evolved from a community focus, starting as a home business geared to providing inexpensive strings and stringing services to players, particularly junior players. With our mission and growth in mind, ACES transitioned to a small retail store and office, which will serve as a headquarters for expansion to ecommerce. The expansion to ecommerce is essential to generate the revenue needed to build a tennis center.
What was the inspiration for ACES? ACES President, Scott Weber, recognizes the important role tennis has played in his life. He started playing at age 8 in the small farm town of Blue Earth, MN (population just over 3500). His high school team won two Minnesota State High School Championships and he also experienced the thrill of competing in USTA junior sanctioned tournaments throughout the Midwest. Lessons learned on and off the court helped him grow and mature in youth and as an adult over a successful 20-year career in the Air Force, which in turn instilled a deep sense of public service.
After retiring from the Air Force and settling into Flagstaff with his family, Scott began exploring ways to give back to tennis. In 2006, he volunteered as a coach on the Flagstaff High School Boys and Girls Tennis Teams, which became the first Arizona Interscholastic Assocation (AIA) tennis teams in Flagstaff history. Building the team included an ambitious project to restore two school tennis courts that had been overgrown with plants after 10 years of neglect. Today, there are three Flagstaff high schools with AIA tennis programs. In order to keep the competive spirt alive, he worked with community volunteers to start three annual USTA sanctioned tournaments, the first of their kind for Flagstaff. This tournament tradition, sponsored by ACES and other businesses and powered by community volunteers, has been going strong since 2008. Scott also sought volunteer work in the USTA, serving in capacity as Vice President for Technology, League Coordinator, and Board Member for the USTA Northern Arizona (NAZ) District. To gain more technical insight into the game and support efforts to grow more sanctioned tournaments, Scott became a certified USTA official. He is also the founder and president of the Flagstaff Tennis Association (FTA), a USTA Community Tennis Assocaition (CTA) and Organizational Member. FTA leaders and volunteers are working to unify the community under the common mission to promote and develop the growth of tennis in and around Flagstaff. FTA is aspiring to be a model organization, which can serve as a benchmark and guiding light for other communities looking to build a CTA.
ACES grew out of these and other community-based efforts, and with support from customers and community, it will continue to positively impact the great sport of tennis.