The Brookhaven Recreation Department is looking at another wayto get children who would not usually be exposed to tennis involvedin a sport they can play all their lives.

BRD has joined with the United States Tennis Association tointroduce Quickstart tennis to the Brookhaven area, with thepurpose of making tennis a more playable sport for youngchildren.

“Quickstart is a new deal the USTA has started,” RecreationDepartment Director Terry Reid said. “Instead of playing an 8- to10-year-old kid on a full-size court, you tailor it more to hissize and abilities.”

Reid said the game is played with a larger foam ball and biggerracquets on half of the court. As they graduate to different agelevels, the court and equipment sizes change accordingly. Thepurpose is to make the game easier for children to learn, and byusing lighter racquets, shorter courts, and slower balls, they canbecome involved in the game faster.

Reid said the format is a good way of increasing participationand retaining more beginners because it is tailored more to thedifferent sizes and ability levels of the children involved. Inaddition, it’s a good way for kids to learn about the game, Reidsaid.

“The USTA met with the officers of the Lincoln County TennisAssociation about getting kids who have never played tennisinvolved in the game through Quickstart,” Reid said.

Reid said there will be an organizational meeting Tuesdayevening for anyone interested in enrolling their children in theprogram. He said the meeting is open to anyone who is interested inthe program.

“The parents don’t have to know anything about tennis,” Reidsaid. “The USTA will train the volunteers to help.”

The meeting will be held at the recreation department at 6:30Tuesday night, and that anyone with questions is welcome to callBRD at (601) 833-3791.