NEW YORK, NY (April 24, 2012) — InsideOut Sports + Entertainment announced today that the Champions Series tennis circuit has been renamed the PowerShares Series. As the marketing agent for PowerShares QQQ Trust, an ETF based on the NASDAQ 100 index, Invesco PowerShares signed a multi-year agreement in 2011 to become the title sponsor of the InsideOut owned tennis tour.

To commemorate the renaming, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment Founding Partners Jon Venison and Jim Courier were joined this morning by Invesco PowerShares Managing Director of Global ETF’s Ben Fulton at The Opening Bell ceremonies at the NASDAQ MarketSite in New York’s Times Square.

The PowerShares Series will feature Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Jim Courier and other Grand Slam winners competing in twelve one-night tournaments across the United States this fall. Each PowerShares Series tournament will showcase four of the legendary players playing in two, 1-set semifinals followed by a 1-set championship match.

The champions will compete for a prize pool totaling $1 million to be shared by the top three finishers at the conclusion of the season. Pete Sampras finished the 2011 season as the #1 ranked player, followed by Jim Courier and Andre Agassi.

Event details, including ticket information, player fields, dates and venues, will be announced this summer.

“We look forward to a fantastic season of PowerShares Series tennis,” said Jon Venison, founding partner of InsideOut Sports + Entertainment. “With legendary players competing across the United States this fall, PowerShares Series events will bring top flight tournament tennis and star power to the greatest sporting arenas in the country.”

“The name change to PowerShares Series tennis reflects our ongoing support for this highly successful tour which has garnered valuable exposure for PowerShares QQQ,” said Jason Schoepke, Chief Marketing Officer at Invesco PowerShares. “We are confident the 2012 PowerShares Series tennis circuit will continue to advance the PowerShares brand with our core audiences and look forward to this year’s events.”

The PowerShares Series is a tennis circuit for champion tennis players over the age of 30, created in 2005 by InsideOut Sports + Entertainment, the New York based firm which is co-owned and operated by former SFX executive Jon Venison and former world No. 1 Jim Courier.

ABOUT INSIDEOUT SPORTS + ENTERTAINMENT
InsideOut Sports + Entertainment is a New York City-based independent producer of proprietary events and promotions founded in 2004 by former world No. 1 and Hall of Fame tennis player Jim Courier and former SFX and Clear Channel executive Jon Venison. In 2005, InsideOut launched its signature property, the Champions Series, a collection of tournaments featuring the greatest names in tennis over the age of 30. In addition, InsideOut produces many other successful events including “Legendary Night” exhibitions, charity events and corporate outings. Since inception, InsideOut Sports + Entertainment has have raised over $4 million for charity. For more information, please log on to www.InsideOutSE.com or www.ChampionsSeriesTennis.com or follow on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

ABOUT LARRY MAGID ENTERTAINMENT GROUP
Promoting and producing over 16,000 concerts and live events, Larry Magid is considered one of the architects and contemporary leaders of the live entertainment business. He has spent 49 years in the entertainment business with some highlights including producing Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays, the largest grossing non-musical in Broadway’s history and receiving a Tony Award and producing the U.S portions of Live Aid and Live 8.

ABOUT INVESCO POWERSHARES
Invesco PowerShares Capital Management LLC is Leading the Intelligent ETF Revolution® through its family of more than 140 domestic and international exchange-traded funds, providing advisors and investors access to an innovative array of focused investment opportunities. With franchise assets over $57.6 billion as of December 31, 2011, PowerShares ETFs trade on both U.S. stock exchanges. For more information, please visit us at invescopowershares.com or follow us on Twitter @PowerShares.

ABOUT POWERSHARES QQQ
PowerShares QQQ™, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on the NASDAQ-100 Index®, is one of the largest and most traded ETFs in the world. Under most circumstances, QQQ will consist of all of the stocks in the index which includes 100 of the largest domestic and international nonfinancial companies listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market based on market capitalization.

1. It’s hard to get my head wrapped around the physical effort I saw on Sunday night in Melbourne, even a few days later. The tennis Novak and Rafa were able to summon late in the match boggles my mind. Ivan Lendl and I were talking Monday morning about it on our way back to the States and both of us were shaking our heads and asking the same question…how could they possibly not cramp up out there? Ivan and I were known to be among the fittest of our time but neither of us felt like we could have possibly made it through the way those guys did. It was a hot night (Novak changed his 1st shirt at the 30 minute mark of the match) and the rallies were brutal from the get go. Whatever it is that these guys are drinking/eating on court, I want some immediately to stave off my jet lag.

2. The bar keep being raised in the men’s game and it is an absolute blast to see the guys respond. Rafa adds weight to his racket in the off season to directly combat Novak and Murray hires Lendl to get over the Slam final hurdle and opposition. I’m not exactly sure what Federer is doing but he’s surely not sitting on his hands waiting for these guys to get worse. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better in the men’s game (Federer-Nadal) along comes Novak with Murray nipping at their heels.

3. Women’s tennis could really use solidification at the top to induce some rivalries. They’re up against tough competition with the men but it would be terrific if Azarenka became a multi-slam winner this year and had Kvitova rise up to meet the challenge. We need a storyline. If Serena can stay healthy and active, having her battle against the new guard would make for compelling viewing. I am not of the mind set that having so many different slam winners is exciting. For the good of the game, we need one of those slam winners to really step up. I don’t care who it is and I know they are trying, but still…please, someone step up.

4. Whatever the issues are with the perception of tennis popularity in the US, there is no such issue in Australia. Tennis dominated the media and water cooler landscape for 2 weeks down there. I did a lot of interviews while I was there working for their network, Channel 7, and it was a nice change to not hear the question “so what’s wrong with tennis? Why has tennis lost its popularity?”

5. Davis Cup’s 1st round is next week. We travel to Switzerland this Saturday night. We announced our team which will be Mardy Fish, John Isner, Mike Bryan and Ryan Harrison. Bob Bryan’s wife, Michelle, is giving birth to their 1st child this week so Bob is not available. Andy Roddick was not planning on joining us and with his injury in Australia he would’ve been out anyway. I’m looking fwd to having Ryan involved, even though he is unlikely to play. We had a great 2 day training camp with Ryan, Donald Young and Jack Sock in December in Tampa and these guys are all working hard to be a part of the team going fwd. Mardy and John are the singles guys and it’s most likely Mardy and Mike in the doubles although we’ll need to see how the singles goes on Friday before we finalize the doubles squad for Saturday. It’s a big challenge with Fed and Wawrinka in front of us. We’ll be ready to fire come match time.

Jim

1.31.2012

Then, in 2012, PowerShares QQQ becomes the umbrella sponsor of the entire series, joining existing sponsors GEICO, ASG Software Solutions, Tennis Magazine, Donnay, Kimpton Hotels, Citation Shares, Izod, Staples, HSBC, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Washington Trust and the USTA.

“We are thrilled to expand our partnership with PowerShares QQQ to include the title sponsorship of the entire Champions Series starting in 2012,” said Jim Courier, founding partner of the Champions Series.

Invesco PowerShares Chief Marketing Officer Jason Schoepke added, “Our sponsorship of the Chicago leg of the 2011 Champions Series tour has garnered valuable exposure for PowerShares QQQ. We are excited to continue our partnership and extend our reach to a broader audience nationwide.”

Until recently, PowerShares’ parent company Invesco had naming rights to the Denver Broncos’ home; Sports Authority took over that deal.

InsideOut Sports + Entertainment first launched the Champions Series in 2005 for champion tennis players over the age of 30.

It’s the first week of November and I’m ten days removed from the final tournament of the 2011 Champions Series. What a run it was: One-night tournaments taking place in 12 cities over a 31 day period all across the United States where I played against an incredible lineup of players: Agassi, Sampras, McEnroe, Connors, Chang, Wilander, Lendl and Martin. Four players faced off each of the 12 nights in major arenas such as the TD Garden in Boston, Verizon Center in DC, United Center in Chicago and Staples Center in LA. It was a great experience on many levels and most of all it was rewarding to see, meet and hear the tennis fans who came out to watch us battle for the nightly crown.

I’ve played quite a few tournaments and exhibitions in recent years but this schedule was a different ask, both physically and mentally, than I was accustomed to. First of all playing one-set matches forced the intensity levels higher than normal as there was no room for a slow start in the matches. Secondly, the travel was constant and relentless. Starting a weekend with a tournament in Seattle on Thursday, flying late Thursday to LA to play there on Friday followed by one more flight late Friday night to Las Vegas for a Saturday night tournament was exhilarating and exhausting at the same time. The travel was the hardest part for me, although there were quite a few fun times on the plane with the other players. It can be challenging to arrive at the hotel at 3am after a post-tournament flight with the knowledge that you have big matches ahead of you as well as a lot of other requirements which make the Series work. Some may think it’s simply playing the matches at night but there’s a lot more that goes into a day at one of these stops. Let me show you what each tournament day consisted of in these events for all of the players:

12pm: Phone interviews from hotel room (30 minutes)

2pm: Check out of hotel and leave for the Arena

3pm: 1 hour hitting session on center court with sponsors and VIP Clinic Experience purchasers (2 players do this at 3pm and the other 2 players do another session 4-5pm)

4pm: Autograph items for VIP’s in the locker room (15 minutes per player)

5pm: fifteen minute media session on center court

5:15pm: warm up with another player for matches (20 minutes)

6pm: 15 minute Q&A session in VIP area with emcee Brett Haber and questions from the audience (each of the 4 players does 15 mins separately from 6-7pm)

6:45pm: Stretch w/our physio Gary Kitchell and get ready for the matches (15 mins)

7pm: All players take photos in private room with VIP Backstage Experience purchasers (15 minutes or so)

7:20pm: Do pre-match TV interview in the tunnel

7:30pm: Semi-final #1 (some nights I played the 1st semi and others the 2nd. Relax time was pretty much during the other semi)

8:15pm: Semifinal #2

9:15pm: Championship match

10:30pm: Tournament over, stretch-shower-pack up

11pm: Leave arena for the airport to catch flight with all players and Series staff to next city

11:45pm: Plane takes off

1:30am: arrive at next city, car takes us to hotel

2am: Arrive at hotel and try to sleep.

Rinse and repeat.

Three of the five weekends had three tournaments (thurs-fri-sat), one of the weekends had two events (fri-sat) and one weekend just a single event (just Saturday night – that was easy!).

Playing/competing is obviously the main thing I needed to focus on but as you can see there were a lot of other activities during the day which ensured the VIP’s and Sponsors had a special experience as well, which they did. Ultimately, I got into the rhythm of these events and learned how to manage my energy to be able to peak for 7:30 each night. By the end of the Champions Series I was playing at my highest level, which allowed me to win two of my last three tournaments and finish in 2nd place in the final rankings, behind Pete and just ahead of Andre.

If you want to see some of the “behind the scenes” moments for yourself there will be plenty included alongside the tournament matches in the Champions Series TV shows which have begun airing on Fox Sports Net (FSN) all across the United States. All twelve tournaments will air both on FSN as well as Tennis Channel so check your local listings for Champions Series Tennis and tune in to see us do what we do best…and some other stuff.

For my next blog I’ll put together some thoughts on some of the more memorable matches and moments from the 2011 Champions Series. There’s a lot to choose from.

“To finish in the top spot among this caliber of competition is something I’m very proud of,” said Sampras. “I love to compete and taking on Andre, Jim, Johnny Mac, Michael Chang and all of the great players on this Series is something I enjoyed thoroughly. I look forward to defending my top spot in 2012.”

Sampras compiled an overall match record of 11-2 during the Series, losing only once to Andre Agassi in the finals of the Las Vegas event, and once to Michael Chang in the semifinals in Washington D.C. He took two out of three duals with Agassi, and three of four from Chang, while defeating Courier in three hard fought match ups. 

Courier claimed second place with his two titles and four runner-up finishes. He went 4-1 over the final three events in Chicago, St. Louis, and Buffalo to move past Agassi in the standings.

“I fought hard at the end to get past Andre and into the 2nd position in the rankings,” said Courier. “I needed to beat Pete in LA to push him for the top spot, but he clipped me in a tiebreaker there and certainly deserved the ranking. I will be back to take another run at it in 2012.”

Agassi won titles in Boston and his hometown of Las Vegas and finished runner up in Chicago, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

FINAL 2011 Champions Series Standings               Points                   Bonus Pool Prize Money

1    Sampras                                                                        2200                                                       $500,000

2    Courier                                                                           1600                                                       $350,000

3    Agassi                                                                             1500                                                       $150,000

4    Chang                                                                             1100

5    Martin                                                                            900

      McEnroe                                                                        900
7    Connors                                                                         200

8    Lendl                                                                               100

      Wilander                                                                        100

The top three finishers in the Champions Series rankings split a pool of $1,000,000. Individual point totals consist of the best six tournament results for each player, added up. 1^st place – $500,000; 2^nd place – $350,000; 3^rd place – $150,000

Points per tournament:                Winner – 400; Finalist – 200; Semifinalist – 100

2011 Champions Series Results

Sept. 22 Florida                   Sampras def. Chang, 6-4                   Courier def. Connors, 7-5                  Sampras def. Courier, 8-6

Sept. 23 Wash DC               Chang def. Sampras, 6-4                   Courier def. Agassi, 7-6 (4)                Chang def. Courier, 8-3

Sept. 24 Philadelphia          Agassi def. Courier, 6-3                      Sampras def. Connors, 6-4             Sampras def. Agassi, 8-7 (5)

Sept. 30 Minneapolis          Chang def. Courier, 6-4                      Martin def. Agassi, 6-4                       Martin def. Chang, 8-5

Oct. 1     Boston                   Courier def. Chang, 6-3                      Agassi def. Lendl, 7-5                         Agassi def. Courier, 8-5

Oct. 8     Arizona                  Courier def. Wilander, 6-3                 Sampras def. Chang, 6-3                   Sampras def. Courier, 8-7 (4)

Oct. 13   Seattle                    Chang def. Courier, 6-4                      Sampras def. McEnroe, 6-4              Sampras def. Chang, 8-4

Oct. 14   Los Angeles          Sampras def. Courier, 7-6 (3)            Agassi def. McEnroe, 6-3                   Sampras def. Agassi, 8-6

Oct. 15   Las Vegas             Sampras def. McEnroe, 6-4              Agassi def. Courier, 6-3                      Agassi def. Sampras, 8-5

Oct. 20   Chicago                Courier def. Martin, 6-3                     Agassi def. McEnroe, 6-4                   Courier def. Agassi, 8-7 (3)

Oct. 21   St. Louis                Courier def. Chang, 6-4                      Martin def. McEnroe, 6-4                  Courier def. Martin, 8-7 (5)

Oct. 22   Buffalo                 Martin def. Chang, 6-2                       McEnroe def. Courier, 6-3                 McEnroe def. Martin, 8-5

“Wow. To finally get a win on the Series this year feels amazing,” said McEnroe. “I thought I had a chance tonight, and got off to a great start in the finals against Todd. The win certainly brings a big smile to my face and I’m ready to take on these guys on the Champions Series again next year.”

Jim Courier – who was coming off back-to-back victories in Chicago and St. Louis – couldn’t handle the attacking McEnroe, who earned a 6-3 semifinal victory to advance into the night’s championship. Martin advanced to the finals with a 6-2 triumph over Michael Chang.

For news and stories regarding the entire 2011 Champions Series and more information about future events, log on to www.championsseriestennis.com.

TONIGHT’S SCORES
Semifinal 1: Martin def. Chang, 6-2
Semifinal 2: McEnroe def. Courier, 6-3
Final: McEnroe def. Martin , 8-5

Courier, who defeated Andre Agassi Thursday night in Chicago’s final, continued his run with a hard fought victory over Martin in a match featuring huge hitting and no breaks of serve.  In the tiebreaker, Courier trailed by an early mini-break but recovered to win the tiebreak and the title by 7 points to 5.

“I got lucky in the end there, because both of us served very well the entire match,” said Courier. “I’m excited to have the momentum of winning back-to-back events now and I’ll be gunning for a third win in a row tomorrow night at the HSBC Tennis Cup in Buffalo.”

Seperated in the 2011 Champions Series points standings by just 200 points coming into the night, Courier and Michael Chang met in the first semifinal. But it was Courier that earned the critical 6-4 victory to advance into the night’s championship match. Martin advanced to the finals with a 6-4 semifinal triumph over crowd favorite John McEnroe.

Pete Sampras holds a commanding lead in the 2011 Champions Series points standings while Courier now sits in second and Andre Agassi holds onto the third position. Only the top 3 finishers at the end of the 2011 Champions Series will share the one million dollar bonus pool.

The Champions Series concludes with the HSBC Tennis Cup Saturday night in Buffalo, NY – the final event of the 2011 tour. Tickets and unique interactive VIP fan experiences for the 2011 Champions Series are on sale to the general public and start at $35.  Tickets are available at venue box offices, all Ticketmaster locations, 202-397-SEAT or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

TONIGHT’S SCORES
Semifinal 1: Courier def. Chang, 6-4
Semifinal 2: Martin def. McEnroe, 6-4
Final: Courier def. Martin , 8-7 (5)

Champions Series Standings                       Points (thru 11 of 12 events)

1  Sampras                                                          2200

2  Courier                                                             1600

3  Agassi                                                               1500

4  Chang                                                               1100

5  Martin                                                              700

6  McEnroe                                                         500

7  Connors                                                           200
8  Lendl                                                                 100

    Wilander                                                          100

John McEnroe hopes to turn back the clock at 7:30 tonight.

He’ll compete against three of his former nemeses, Todd Martin, Jim Courier and Michael Chang, in the Champions Classic at Chaifetz Arena. The event is part of the 2011 Champions Series circuit with stops in 12 cities, finishing Saturday in Buffalo.

“Hopefully we can provide the crowd with the memories of the past, show people we still got something left and how we can compare to the younger bucks,” McEnroe said.

McEnroe, 52, sounded less then nostalgic about his matchups in his days as a touring pro with the trio, each at least a decade younger than him. Courier defeated McEnroe in what would be his final Grand Slam appearance with a 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7-1) victory in the fourth round of the 1992 U.S. Open. By that time, though, McEnroe had gathered 17 Grand Slam titles, seven in singles, 10 in doubles; five Davis Cup titles; and 154 tour titles, 77 in singles, 77 in doubles.

“Michael came along when I was at the twilight of my career. I got a glimpse of how ugly it would be if I would continue,” he said. “Courier put me into retirement, so to speak. Those young bucks were a changing of the guard. I was smart enough to recognize that.”

The trio helped keep alive the flame of U.S. tennis after McEnroe’s retirement. Chang was the youngest player to win a Grand Slam, taking the 1989 French Open title at 17 years, 3 months, and reached No. 2 in singles in 1996.

Courier won four Grand Slam titles and two Davis Cups. Since 2005, he has developed and expanded the Champions Series through various incarnations.

Martin made two Grand Slam finals and won a Davis Cup. He reached a career high of No. 4 in singles in 1999. Martin is replacing Bjorn Borg, who had to withdraw Tuesday because of a knee injury, and will face McEnroe in one semifinal.

Former players appearing at other stops on the circuit are Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Ivan Lendl and Mats Wilander.

“Every one of the guys has won a major or been ranked number one. That makes these matches a lot easier to get up for,” McEnroe said. “The format works well for me because I get to play some of the players who really brought out the best in me, and then sometimes I play the younger guys who beat up on me.”

The athletes are competing for a prize pool totaling $1 million to be shared by the top three finishers after the match in Buffalo. Each of the 12, one-night tournaments feature four champions paired off in one-set semifinals and competing for ranking points. The winners meet in the nightly final, in which the first to win eight games wins the title.

“We only have to play one set, so we can convince ourselves that we can still win,” said McEnroe, 52. “The problem with the tournament format is that you have to play at least two sets for three, four days in a row. That’s really hard on your body at my age. Pete would want to play for four days, year-round. But most of the rest of us benefit from this format.”

Sampras has a commanding lead over Agassi and Chang, though with good performances here and in Buffalo, Courier could sneak into the top three. The format, which is a variation on the one-set match-ups of World TeamTennis, has proven fan-friendly as well.

“People’s attention span is one of the issues with tennis,” McEnroe said. “If you play two men’s semis, that could be eight hours. I don’t think people are saying, ‘I want to stay up until all hours to watch a tennis match.’”

Tickets start at $35 and are available at MetroTix.com and the Chaifetz Arena box office.

Champions Classic Tennis

When — 7:30 tonight

Where — Chaifetz Arena

Format — One-set semifinals. Michael Chang will face Jim Courier, and John McEnroe will face Todd Martin. The winners advance to a one-set final, in which the first player to win eight games takes the title.

Tickets — $35 to $250, available at MetroTix or Chaifetz box office.

Courier beats Agassi in Champions Series event

CHICAGO — Jim Courier outlasted Andre Agassi 8-7 (3) on Thursday night in the PowerShares QQQ Challenge at the United Center for this first Champions Series title of the year.

“I really had to do something special tonight to beat Andre,” Courier said. “It feels awfully good to get a title.”

Trailing 7-6, Agassi staved off four match points and was able to hold his serve to force Courier into the tiebreaker. But then trailing 3-2 in the breaker, Agassi conceded the mini-break to Courier, who was able to close out the match 7-3 with some big serves and forehands.

“I had a bad feeling that it wasn’t going to go my way, after missing out on the four match points I blew when Andre was serving at 7-6 in the set,” Courier said. “I was really surprised that I was able to turn it around.”

In the semifinals, Agassi beat John McEnroe 6-4, and Courier topped Todd Martin 6-3.

The series will be in St. Louis on Friday night and the season finale is Saturday night in Buffalo, N.Y.

http://online.wsj.com/article/APf32ab42da35d47f09a9d97c770263d95.html

“I really had to do something special tonight to beat Andre,” said Courier. “It feels awfully good to get a title.”

Trailing 7-6, Agassi staved off four match points and was able to hold his serve to force Courier into the tiebreaker. But then trailing 3-2 in the breaker, Agassi conceded the mini-break to Courier, who was able to close out the match 7-3 with some big serves and forehands.

“I had a bad feeling that it wasn’t going to go my way, after missing out on the four match points I blew when Andre was serving at 7-6 in the set,” said Courier. “I was really surprised that I was able to turn it around.” 

“It was a disappointing way to end, but I did my best to hang in there tonight,” said Agassi. “It just wasn’t quite enough.”

Agassi earned a 6-4 semifinal triumph over John McEnroe, while Courier advanced with a 6-3 semifinal victory over Todd Martin, spoiling the former Northwestern collegiate star’s return to Chicago.

Agassi’s semifinal win helped him remain in second place in the official 2011 Champions Series standings. Pete Sampras still holds a commanding lead in the Series with a 700-point advantage over Agassi with just two events remaining. Only the top 3 finishers at the end of the 2011 Champions Series will share the one million dollar bonus pool, as Courier moved ahead of Michael Chang into third place by 200 points.

The Champions Series continues Friday night in St. Louis with the Champions Classic, followed by the HSBC Tennis Cup Saturday night in Buffalo, NY – the final event of the 2011 tour. Tickets and unique interactive VIP fan experiences for the 2011 Champions Series are on sale to the general public and start at $35.  Tickets are available at venue box offices, all Ticketmaster locations, 202-397-SEAT or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

TONIGHT’S SCORES
Semifinal 1: Courier def. Martin, 6-3
Semifinal 2: Agassi def. McEnroe, 6-4
Final: Courier def. Agassi , 8-7 (3)

Champions Series Standings                       Points (thru 10 of 12 events)

1  Sampras                                                          2200

2  Agassi                                                               1500

3  Courier                                                             1300

4  Chang                                                               1100

5  Martin                                                              500

6  McEnroe                                                         400

7  Connors                                                           200
8  Lendl                                                                 100

    Wilander                                                          100