Tennis Staff
Jag Gowda
Director of Racquet Sports
Bio coming soon…
Tony DeCandia
Assistant Director of Racquet Sports
Anthony Vincent DeCandia (Tony) is the son of Anthony Angelo and Sharon Joy DeCandia who currently live in Jacksonville, North Carolina. His dad served in the US Marine Corps from 1969 – 1989 so Tony moved to many places in his childhood including Texas, Iwakuni, Japan, South Carolina and Norfolk, Virginia. He began playing tennis in high school and developed a love for teaching under the mentoring of J. W. Isenhour while working with the junior program at Raleigh Racquet Club. This provided a foundation for a teaching methodology that has produced great fruit and 7 children who have competed at the collegiate level in tennis. Tony spent time at Olde Forest helping Jag Gowda from August 1996 until April 1998 when the club had the old bubble over the clay courts. After finishing his BA in Philosophy (2001) and Master’s of Divinity (2007), Tony spent the next 12 years ministering to youth and young adults, college students and faculty at NC State, Meredith College and the University of South Carolina as well as working in hospitals, prisons and outreach centers for the disadvantaged.
Tony returned to tennis at Rockbridge Tennis Club in Columbia, South Carolina (2019-2022) where he helped develop a robust junior program and worked with beginner adult players to get them more involved with USTA leagues and social play. Most recently he spent time at Gaston Country Club as the Head Teaching Professional where he worked with junior players, became a certified pickleball instructor and helped with adult development programs as well as a number of socials and events.
Tony is passionate about seeing people grow as they challenge themselves physically, mentally and emotionally. Whether he is working with someone who has never picked up a tennis racquet (or pickleball paddle) or a seasoned league competitor, he is eager to see students have fun and learn something new.
Hannah Higgins
Tennis Professional
Hannah Higgins began playing tennis at Olde Forest in Elementary school under the direction of Racquet Sports Director Jag Gowda. Hannah became a part of the Alamance Junior Tennis Foundation sponsored middle school tennis team at Turrentine Middle. She was able to grow her skills and her love for the game. Hannah went on to play at Williams High School where she was a two-time All-Conference and All-Academic Conference. She had two undefeated seasons at three singles and two doubles partnered with her sister, Olivia.
Hannah committed to continue her tennis career at Methodist University where she played for four years. During her years as a Monarch, Hannah pursued a degree in Management with a concentration in Professional Tennis Management and a minor in Resort Management. Over the summer of 2022, Hannah worked in Greenwich, Connecticut at Burning Tree Country Club as an Assistant tennis professional and pro shop assistant. Hannah also spent a year at North Hills Club in Raleigh, NC. While pursuing her MBA, she is back at home at OFRC!
Samuel Durham
Tennis Assistant & Pro Shop Staff
Samuel Durham began playing tennis in the 6th grade when he became a part of the Alamance Junior Tennis Foundation sponsored middle school tennis team at Western Middle. Through this program, he learned the game of tennis and moved from playing exhibition matches to winning the spring season’s
ATF middle school doubles championship. He continued to play tennis throughout middle and high school, playing number one for both teams. He has competed in USTA and UT tournaments, winning a local USTA tournament for his age group in 2019. As a high school player at Western Alamance, he has been All-Conference and qualified for the Regional competition.
This year, as a senior, he is a team captain. He served as assistant coach to the Western Middle School team. Samuel worked at Burlington Tennis Center before coming to work for Olde Forest Racquet Club.
