Serving Up the Tennis Channel

Steve Bellamy recently made a big new purchase, a house near the hills in Pacific Palisades, and wound up with a little more than he bargained for.

“We have rattlesnakes, tarantulas and bees,” he said, describing the unexpected backyard accouterments. “That’s an odd non-disclosure there, you think, when you buy a house.”

Bellamy reviewed the fine print in the contract.

“It was disclosed,” he said, “as ‘rodents and vermin.’ ”

At least Bellamy was fairly warned before stepping out into the treacherous world of sports television with his 24-hour Tennis Channel. In that world, the snakes have limo drivers, the rodents do lunch and the vermin throw rackets when they’re not threatening to sue because tour officials requested they sit down for a television interview.

In New York this week to promote his network at the U.S. Open, Bellamy spoke at a gathering of these critters--or as Bellamy politely worded it, “250 of the most powerful people in the tennis industry.” His speech was equal parts pep talk, rallying cry and frontal assault, and urged his fragmented, self-interested audience to get its act together and work together or get out of the business of half-promoting a sport that needs round-the-clock supervision.

“I ruffled some feathers,” he said.

Bellamy is wildly passionate about tennis. He plays the game and coaches it. He’s married to former professional player Beth Herr, who won the 1983 NCAA women’s championship while playing at USC. Get him talking about tennis, which isn’t difficult, and, motor revved, he will tell you, straight-faced, that “the biggest superstars in sports are ours” and “we are the women’s sport, period, bar none.”

Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Barry Bonds, Randy Johnson, Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning, David Beckham, Ronaldo, Lance Armstrong, Jeff Gordon, Ian Thorpe, Marion Jones, Mia Hamm, Sarah Hughes and Michelle Kwan--just to name a few--might beg to differ. But Bellamy has a product to push, up a very steep incline, and had better be in a positive frame of mind if he is to persuade a skeptical public that a 24-hour tennis network has a chance for survival.

Even one of his biggest superstars, Jennifer Capriati, expressed doubts in the venture, saying she would tune in to the Tennis Channel only “if I was really bored.”

Undeterred, Bellamy exclaimed, “I guarantee you that she’ll love it. I think every pro will love watching the story of other pros.”

The Right Time?

Bellamy does not have a precise start-up date, saying that the Tennis Channel will make its debut “toward the end of the year.”

Toward the end of a year in which seven of the nine men’s Masters Series tournaments will lose money and after which the women’s tour could lose its sponsor.

Toward the end of a year in which one family dominates women’s tennis to the point of foregone conclusion and the careers of the two biggest names in men’s tennis, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, are in distinct wind-down mode.

If timing is indeed everything, the Tennis Channel looks to be in trouble before it begins.

Bellamy, however, stands in there doggedly, counterpunching with the naysayers.

“The Williams sisters are two of the greatest players of all time,” he said. “These two girls grew up in Compton--and they’re sisters. They’re 1 and 2....

“We just have so many great stories to tell. It’s such a great sport. It’s the hardest sport in my opinion. It’s like boxing and chess at the same time.”

Bellamy disputes the idea that men’s tennis, with Agassi in his twilight and Sampras making headlines simply for winning a first-round match at the U.S. Open, is headed for a down cycle--sometimes referred to among fans and media as the Lleyton Hewitt Dark Ages.

“I so disagree with that notion,” he said. “For one, when you watch the tennis, granted, there are so many good players that it makes it hard for one or two guys to emerge. Is that a negative? Maybe from a marketing standpoint.

“But if we’re just selling tennis, the tennis that’s out there is so incredible. I mean, everybody was [complaining] five years ago that the serves were too big and that’s ruining tennis. Look at who’s at the top of the game--the returners. Lleyton Hewitt’s the best example. The guy’s a counterpuncher--and he’s the best returner in the world, and he’s the fastest, and he’s No. 1 in the world.

“It’s totally not like how [it was]. You go to the U.S. Open or any tournament today, and you’re seeing 25-ball rallies, not two-ball rallies. I think the tennis is just phenomenal. It’s at a level we’ve never experienced before.”

Bellamy mentions Andy Roddick, James Blake and Taylor Dent as three American men with enough star potential upon which to build a round-the-clock tennis network.

“The women have an inventory that is just blockbuster stars, there’s 10 of them and they’ve got 10 years left,” he said. “It’s just flawless.

“The men, it’s just a different thing. The guys are in between inventories, but the [next] inventory ... out of 25 [prospects], you don’t think we’re going to have more than two or three that break through? Roddick and Blake, you’ve got to bet even money that one of those guys are going to be a top-five player.”

Old-Time Tennis

Bellamy received encouraging news this week when Agassi signed on to help promote the Tennis Channel, joining Sampras, who will host an instruction show on the network. Bellamy was also pleased to announce his channel had secured the television rights to eight tournaments in 2003, including the women’s Manhattan Beach JPMorgan Chase Open.

The Tennis Channel also acquired the rights to the World Team Tennis video archives and will air old matches featuring the likes of Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe.

Bellamy says his network has access to so much vintage tennis footage that “we could have 10 Tennis Channels.” But he only needs one to succeed. As challenges go, that would seem to be more than enough.

Contingency Plans

Bracing for the possibility of a baseball strike, ESPN and Fox planned to fill potential holes in their weekend broadcast schedules in similar fashion: with lots of talk.

Both networks were set to televise games between the San Francisco Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks--Fox on Saturday, ESPN on Sunday. If the games are not played, Fox will air an hour-long pregame show titled “America’s Pastime in Crisis,” then give the remaining time to the local affiliates. ESPN was prepared to air a town-hall discussion on baseball’s labor situation, followed by a special edition of “Sports Reporters” to discuss the strike.

Local Fox Sports Net and Fox Sports Net 2 planned to fill scheduling gaps with repeat broadcasts of “Best Damn Sports Show Period.” If the owners and the players needed any more incentive to reach an agreement, and reach it quickly, there it is.

USC Across the Dial

USC opens its football season Monday against Auburn with no fewer than seven radio stations carrying the action.

In addition to KMPC (1540), play-by-play announcer Pete Arbogast and analyst Paul McDonald can be heard in Orange County on KPLS (830), in San Diego on XEMM (800), in Palm Springs on KXPS (1010), in Bakersfield on KGEO (1230) and in Ventura on KVEN (1540).

This season’s Trojan games will also be carried live on Spanish-language XPRS (1090).