The USA Intercollegiate Tennis was started in 1956 by J.D. Morgan when he established the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). The organization is responsible for all tennis tournaments that take place in the following divisions: NCAA (Divisions I, II, III), NAIA, Junior/Community College.
Selection of the university is of paramount importance if a player is serious about pursuing a professional tennis career. A junior career can either be backed up by taking the conventional route of playing ITF (International Tennis Federation) or by the USA Intercollegiate Tennis. Players who enrol in suitable universities can pursue collegiate tennis to facilitate their tennis career. The NCAA Division I represents the highest tier of intercollegiate tennis. Winner of this division is guaranteed a wildcard at the US Open.
ITA divides its tournaments in Team and Individual competition formats. The National Indoor Championships played across different divisions of NCAA comprise the team events. The individual events include ITA All-American Championships, the ITA Cup, the ITA National Fall Championships and the ITA Tennis-Point National Summer Championships.
ITA has its own ranking system. This system helps in tracking the players progress through every division starting from Junior College to NCAA Division I.
Based on their performance, players are given annual awards. Some of the most prestigious awards include ITA National College Player of the Year Award, Arthur Ashe Leadership and Sportsmanship Award and ITA Scholar Athlete Awards.
In circumstances where the player is unable to perform in the intercollegiate level, then they have to grind it the hard way by switching the path to ITF.
