Coach Jones’ love for coaching stems from his longstanding desire to instill a passion for the sport. Jones has coached tennis for over 30 years between California, the Midwest, Hawaii, and New England. He says, “Professional tennis is like two sides of the same mountain. On one side is the ATP/WTA tours and on the other is the professional coach, grooming some athletes to play at the highest levels.”

As a Head Professional for many notable country clubs across the U.S., and as an Advisory Member for Prince Sports in the early 2000s, Rusty played at Indian Wells with some of the world’s best, i.e., Sam Querry, David Ferrer, Juan Carols Ferrero, Guillermo Coria, and Jennifer Capriati to name a few. Certified originally with the USPTA in 1988, and at the highest level since 2011, Jones followed his passion for developing and coaching players within the Principia institutions of school and college.

Now In his 8th year as Head Men’s Coach for Principia College, the Panther men have shined strong under Jones’ direction, winning the last 7 of 8 SLIAC Conference Championships, as well as team “B-Class” qualification to the NCAA Division III National Tournament in 2019, and the NCAA Division III Individual Singles Tournament in 2021. In addition, the 2021 men’s team received its first central region team ranking, plus 2 individual regional rankings for singles and doubles in over 30 years. Coach Jones is honored with 4 SLIAC “Coach of the Year” awards in 6 years, 2 Team Sportsmanship Awards, and his. men have earned the prestigious ITA All-Academic Team Award 6 times. In 2020, SLIAC honored coach Jones with “Coach of the Decade” shared with Casey Reynolds, Jones’ predecessor, both coaching the Panthers to a collection of more than ten SLIAC conference titles within the last decade.

Also of note: In 1984-1988, Jones was Head Varsity Men’s Tennis Coach for the Principia High School boys’ team, who won 2 District Titles and placed 1st and 3rd in the Missouri State Championships, the first state titles in Principia School history.

In 2007, Jones authored, and self-published the tennis book: “META Tennis: A Handbook for Those Not Necessarily Wimbledon Bound.” Off the court, Mr. Jones enjoys playing classical guitar, is a published poet, and loves hiking the Southwest National Parks with his family in the summertime. Coach Jones is married to his lovely wife Pam, and they have two daughters.
 
Education
    Elite Tennis Professional, United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA)   Certified P3 1988; P1 1996; Elite 2011
    Degree:  BA  English / Liberal Studies, Southern New Hampshire University
    Degree:  AA  Business Administration, College of the Canyons, Valencia CA

Contributions to Field
    Coached numerous men's and women's USTA 4.0+ tennis teams
    Head Professional for notable country clubs
    One of the first creators of Tennis for Tots in the U.S.
    Advisory staff member for Prince Sports

Accolades
    SLIAC Coach of the Decade, 2020
    Coached Principia's Upper School varsity boys' tennis team to two District & State titles, 1985, 1987
    Doubles Exhibition with ATP pro Xavier Malisse, Belgium / 2003 Prince Pro-Am Indian Wells, California

Memberships and Affiliations
    United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA), Certified Elite Professional
    United States Tennis Association (USTA)
    Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA)
    St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC)

Curriculum Vitae
Rusty Jones CV