My Tennis Journey to Montana, USA – Matt Upton
Do they even play tennis in Montana? Certainly, they do – playing in the university/college system in the USA is regarded by many as the best route for performance players to transition from junior to the professional tour or other roles within tennis. I am in my second year of four, at the University of Montana as a “Griz” tennis athletic scholar at this Division 1 college. There are three sport divisions in USA colleges with around 240 men’s and 260 women’s tennis teams in Division 1, and many more in the other and small college divisions.
My tennis journey started at Truro Lawn Tennis Club at the age of 4. From the ages of 7 to 16 I was coached by Tim Webster, initially training outside of school times and then joining the LTA’s Regional Player Development Centre (RPDC) at West Hants, Bournemouth for 2 days a week when I was 13 and 14. Although Richard Lander School was able to accommodate this pre-GCSE, I moved to online schooling for my GCSE’s and A-levels.
I won the triple of Cornwall Men’s, 18’s and 16’s single titles when I was 15 and competed increasingly out of Cornwall, reaching the top 10 in the LTA national rankings at 14 and 16 and in the ITF GB 18 age groups; and winning the 18’s Welsh Open singles. Other results include winning J30 ITF singles and doubles titles, a J60 doubles title, a semi-finalist and finalist in various J60s and J100s, winning 15 out of 15 doubles matches at the 2024 men’s summer county cup with Jowan Rawson, and two 5th places in UTR Pro Tennis Tour tournaments. I was accepted on to the HEAD National Tour programme at the age of 13, since when I have been sponsored for rackets and clothing, and attended HEAD training events.
When I was 16, I moved to the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy near Nice for two years, which allowed me to train in a professional environment and compete in more ITF tournaments. My career high ITF world junior singles ranking was 320. Having a large number of players to train with was really helpful.
For my next step I wanted to become a college player in the USA, it was just a matter of where? And that is how I am now playing tennis in Montana! It’s intense and a superb opportunity for me to continue to progress. Over the summer 2026 I played UTR Pro Tennis Tour and HotelPlanner tournaments, as well as helping Cornwall men’s team get promoted in the summer county cup. Currently, my UTR singles rating is 12.79 and my WTN singles is 8.2.
Hopefully, my story can give inspiration to others, but everyone’s journey is their own!
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Learnt observations (from Matt’s parents!):
Motivation and dedication need to be outstanding and come from the player themselves.
The player must be coachable and have great coaches – thank you, Tim Webster (Cornwall), Julien JeanPierre and Yannick Faque (Mouratoglou), and Jason Brown (University of Montana)!
Compete out of Cornwall as much as possible, both nationally and internationally. Matt has travelled to circa 15 different countries, some several times, on his tennis journey so far.
Resilience is a critical skill as losses come thick and fast as you progress up the tournament levels. The tennis journey is long and tough.
Balance tennis and education. Online schooling is challenging and, as with the tennis, it must be self-motivated. If your player wants the USA college route, the academic side is equally important!
It’s a family affair, running the taxi services to training and tournaments, racket stringing, washing the kit, etc.; and not forgetting the other sibling!
Moving internationally has its challenges in visas and NCAA eligibility to name just two, so professional support is a huge bonus – thank you, Sarah Borwell of Tennis Smart! Finding the right place is about the best fit for all aspects; tennis, coaches, ethos, education, living, etc.
……...and a final note to parents: do not count the financial costs! The costs are high, but so too are the opportunities and personal development that comes with a performance tennis journey!
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