Photo by Kamp Fender.
Jerry Nixon retired in December as tennis director at Inverness Country Club. He held the position for more than 40 years.
Jerry Nixon taught tennis to generations in his 40 years at Inverness Country Club.
During the 1980s tennis boom, he trained countless young players who developed an enduring passion for the game. A couple decades later, Nixon trained their kids, too.
“My fondest memories would be teaching, watching people improve,” Nixon said. “I really enjoy teaching, from kids age 4 all the way up to 80-something.”
Recently, he bid farewell to his life’s work.
In December 2018, six weeks shy of his 41st work anniversary, Nixon retired as club tennis director. According to Inverness membership coordinator Cliff Lumpkin, more than 100 people attended Nixon’s retirement dinner.
“Basically, I thanked everybody. It was an honor,” said Nixon, 65. “I was blessed to be able to work there that long and to have a career in the tennis industry for that long. I never thought that would happen when I started.”
Nixon was hired at Inverness in February 1978. At the time, he was only a couple years out of school and had been working as an assistant tennis pro in Mountain Brook.
He didn’t change jobs again. At Inverness, he taught lessons, ran events and managed both the staff and pro shop.
“I wanted to stay in that business and just really liked our membership there and the people there,” Nixon said. “It was a great fit for me. I very much enjoyed it over the years. It became home.”
Nixon picked up tennis at a local YMCA when he was 14 and never stopped playing.
Once he graduated from Shades Valley High School in 1971, he accepted a tennis scholarship from Jefferson State Junior College. Nixon eventually graduated from Western Kentucky University, where he also played on the tennis team.
His affection for the game hasn’t waned over the years. He plans to keep playing tennis, along with golf, in retirement.
“Other than that, I’m just going to take it as it comes along and see what happens,” he said. “But I will definitely continue playing tennis. I still enjoy playing and competing.”
J.C. Freeman succeeded Nixon as Inverness tennis director. Freeman, 31, played at Birmingham-Southern College and was previously in charge of junior development at Pine Tree Country Club in Birmingham.
The two worked together during a transition period in the fall. Nixon said Freeman is personable, experienced and prepared for the position.
“He’s ready for this challenge, and he’ll do great,” Nixon said. “The program is in really good hands going forward.”
Lumpkin concurred. Although the club will miss Nixon’s trademark genuineness and honesty, he said Freeman is the right person to carry on the Inverness tennis tradition.
“We wanted to get the right person,” Lumpkin said. “Jerry had been here for 40 years. We hated to see him go, but there’s a time for everything. Forty years at the same job, you don’t see that very often.”
Freeman labeled the opportunity to follow in Nixon’s footsteps an honor and privilege. He said he’ll draw from the past as he looks toward the future.
“The biggest thing for me is to get people to play as much tennis as possible while having the most amount of fun while doing it,” Freeman said in an email. “I plan on doing that with the same level of professionalism that Jerry had while he was here.”
