Photo: Cal Poly President Jeff Armstrong and Kevin Comerford
Bill Simons
They say life is all about being in the right place at the right time.
One Sunday decades ago, Serena and Venus Williams’s father Richard was scrolling around on his TV when he saw a WTA player win $40,000 and had the brainstorm of having two kids who’d make the family millions. And the rest is history.
Novak Djokovic was just another kid in the Serbian outback. But his world changed when his country’s leading coach showed up at his mountain village and soon began guiding him.
Young Aryna Sabalenka was out driving with her dad when they spotted a tennis court, and, what the heck, decided to give the game a shot.
But sometimes you can be in the wrong place at the right time.
One Saturday morning back in the fall of 2001, Kevin Comerford was innocently having a cup of coffee near the fireplace of a pleasant hotel in picturesque San Luis Obispo on California’s central coast when a stranger came by and told him abruptly, “You’re sitting in the wrong seat.”
What?
But, no worries, Kevin and John Ronca just chuckled. They soon began to chat and, wouldn’t you know it, became fast friends. After all, they had two things in common. Kevin, a vastly successful Contra Costa businessman and a Cal Poly grad, and John, a top official in the school’s athletic department, shared a passion for both San Luis Obispo’s great university and their favorite sport – tennis.
Comerford, who plays tennis nearly every day, noted that his time at Cal Poly was “the best five years anyone could ask for.” So, along with his wife Carolyn, he was determined to find a way to give back to the school he loved and the sport that was his passion.
And bingo. Four years, a zillion meetings and $8 million later, there was a miracle.
Many say college tennis is in turmoil these days. Some schools have shut down their entire programs. Shifts in league affiliations defy both logic and geography. The Pac-12 vanished in the blink of an eye. Name, image and likeness deals and transfer portal protocols are reshaping a once very traditional game. Critics claim that confusion and greed are rampant. Feel-good stories are not too common.
But the November opening of the Comerford Pavilion countered all of that. The stunning, state-of-the-art center features a ground floor study lounge, a nutrition station, offices and private lockers. On the top floor, there’s stadium seating overlooking the courts, a space for team meetings, a conference room, hospitality spaces and new lighting.
Already the pavilion, which opened at Cal Poly on November 2, is drawing rave reviews. Sophomore player Amy Leather says the new site has already brought the Mustangs closer. “It makes me feel honored to be a Cal Poly athlete.”
Another sophomore, Sean Kamyshev, echoed Leather’s sentiments. “The pavilion has transformed our program. It’s amazing – it inspires us and brings us together. It’ll be a hub for years.”
Cal Poly’s men’s coach, Nick Carless, views the pavilion as world class. He says it will improve the school’s recruiting and give the Mustangs a competitive edge.
All the while, some tennis historians are putting Kevin Comerford in the same conversation with other generous California tennis donors like Tad Taube, George Barnes, Lois and Doug Goldman, Eve Zimmerman and Doug Kimmelman. Comerford, who’s planning to move to San Luis Obispo, says “I’ve learned so much about leadership and giving back. I hope the pavilion will help the Mustangs realize their potential and enable them to go to the forefront of collegiate tennis as a force in the Top 20.”
California collegiate sports knows a thing or two about pavilions. Both UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion and Berkeley’s Haas Pavilion are basketball meccas that have also hosted tennis. Now, for generations to come, the Comerford Pavilion will be a haven for great tennis. Plus, Kevin will forever be able to recall the first time he met Ronca. With a twinkle in his eye, he jokes, “That was the most expensive cup of coffee I’ve ever had in my life.”
