Columbia, SC
Inducted December 2012
JIM HINSON OF COLUMBIA HAS BEEN A DOMINANT PLAYER AND INSPIRATIONAL TEACHING PROFESSIONAL FOR DECADES. HE WAS A TOP RANKED HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE PLAYER AT GEORGIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY, AND HAS BEEN A TOP ADULT TOURNAMENT PLAYER IN THE STATE AND SECTION FOR MANY YEARS. HE HAS ALSO BEEN A CREATIVE AND HARD WORKING TEACHING PROFESSIONAL AT THE MEMBERS CLUB AT WOODCREEK AND WILDEWOOD
JIM GREW UP IN FLORIDA WHERE HE HELPED THE LAKELAND HIGH SCHOOL TEAM WIN THE FLORIDA HIGH SCHOOL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP. HE BEGAN HIS COLLEGE CAREER AT MIAMI DADE NORTH JUNIOR COLLEGE WHERE HE WON BOTH THE INDIVIDUAL AND TEAM FLORIDA JUNIOR COLLEGE CHAMPIONSHIPS. HE CONTINUED HIS COLLEGIATE CAREER AT GEORGIA SOUTHERN WHERE HE PLAYED #1 SINGLES.
AFTER GRADUATING FROM COLLEGE, HINSON BECAME A CONSTANT PRESENCE AT THE TOP OF THE USTA AGE DIVISION RANKINGS. SOME OF HIS TOP RANKINGS INCLUDE:
- #1 IN SOUTH CAROLINA IN MEN’S 30’S, 35’S, 40’S, 45’S, 50’S AND 55’S AGE DIVISIONS FOR MULTIPLE YEARS.
- #1 IN SOUTHERN IN THE MEN’S 35’S AND 45’S.
- ACHIEVED TOP 10 NATIONAL RANKING (#4 AND #9) TWO YEARS IN THE MEN’S 35’S.
- RANKED #1 IN HIS AGE DIVISION IN SOUTH CAROLINA THE PAST 11 YEARS.
HE HAS BEEN A STALWART MEMBER OF SOUTH CAROLINA SENIOR CUP TEAM FOR 24 STRAIGHT YEARS, AND HAS HELPED THE TEAM WIN THE OVERALL COMPETITION THREE OF THE PAST FOUR YEARS. HE HAS BEEN A MEMBER OF THE SOUTHERN INTERSECTIONAL TEAM IN BOTH THE 35’S AND 40’S AGE DIVISIONS.
HINSON HAS BEEN THE DIRECTOR OF TENNIS AT WILDEWOOD FOR 26 YEARS WHERE HE HAS ORGANIZED SOCIALS, EXHIBITIONS, ADULT LEAGUE TEAMS, JUNIOR TEAM TENNIS TEAMS, TOURNAMENTS AND NUMEROUS OTHER EVENTS HOSTED BY THE CLUB. AS A TEACHING PROFESSIONAL, JIM HAS USED HIS VIGOR, VITALITY, KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE TO BE ONE OF THE LONGEST STANDING PROS IN THE STATE. THE CLUB WON A USTA SOUTH CAROLINA SECTION OUTSTANDING LEAGUE FACILITY AWARD FOR ITS STRONG LEAGUE PROGRAM AND WON THE USTA SOUTH CAROLINA MEMBER FACILITY OF THE YEAR AWARD IN 2000. THE JUNIOR TEAM TENNIS PROGRAM IS STELLAR; CLUB TEAMS HAVE WON BOTH THE SOUTH CAROLINA AND SOUTHERN CHAMPIONSHIPS MULTIPLE TIMES AND A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2007.
HE IS BOTH A USPTA AND PTR CERTIFIED TENNIS PROFESSIONAL, AND HAS BEEN A CERTIFIED REFEREE FOR OVER 20 YEARS. JIM’S PLAYING SKILLS AND ORGANIZING EFFORTS HAVE RECEIVED MANY ACCOLADES, INCLUDING:
- USTA SOUTHERN PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR.
- USTA SOUTH CAROLINA JOHN NEWCOMBE PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR.
- THE SOUTH CAROLINA PROFESSIONAL TENNIS ASSOCIATION PLAYER OF THE YEAR.
- TWO-TIME USTA SOUTH CAROLINA ADULT MALE PLAYER OF THE YEAR.
- 2003 USTA SOUTH CAROLINA ADULT TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR, THE PFIZER CLASSIC.
