USIC member Bruce Lipka has just been appointed as the new Men’s Tennis Head Coach at Penn State
Thursday, June 20, 2024
USIC Board Member Bruce Lipka Named Penn State Head Men’s Tennis Coach
USIC Board member and former Men’s Captain Bruce Lipka has been hired as Head Men’s Tennis Coach at Penn State University.
Lipka brings 36 years of coaching experience to Penn State, including mentoring multiple Grand Slam champions, eight NCAA champions and more than 20 Top 100 ATP and WTA Tour players.
Prior to joining Penn State, Lipka has served as the Director of Racquet Sports at the Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, MD for nearly 24 years. Lipka has helped the Woodmont Country Club to rank among the Top 20 U.S. Country Clubs.
"I'm honored and humbled to have been given the opportunity to coach the men's tennis team at Penn State," said Lipka. "I'm full of gratitude to be offered this opportunity to mentor these young men and to build a program that fits this great university.”
A three-time USPTA Tour Coach of the Year and four-time USPTA Professional of the Year, Lipka achieved USPTA Master Professional status in 2020. He was the 2022 Tim Gullikson Tour Coach of the Year and 2023 PTR Tour Coach of the Year.
Lipka is currently coaching the 2023 US Open Women's Doubles champions Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe.
While managing the 31-court facility at the Woodmont Country Club, Lipka has coached nine active tour players at Grand Slams and elite tour-level events, while competing in top international events at the senior level including numerous USIC events himself and serving as USIC Men’s Captain and competing in numerous international events.
As a collegiate coach, Lipka led his teams to three conference championships and has worked as a consultant for multiple Division I programs in the Big Ten, ACC, Pac-12, SEC and Ivy League.
As a player, Lipka was a national champion and claimed international titles and several wins over Top 100 players on the ATP Tour. He has served as a captain on U.S. National Teams across multiple international events, helping the teams to numerous gold medal and podium finishes.
From 1996-2000, Lipka was the Director of Tennis at Woodfield Country Club in Boca Raton, FL coaching multiple WTA and ATP Tour players, including Wimbledon Champion Jana Novotna. He was also a hitting partner for Venus and Serena Williams.
Lipka served as Men's Tennis Head Coach at Miami University of Ohio from 1989-96. He led the RedHawks to MAC Championships in 1994, 1995, and 1996. He was named MAC Coach of the Year in 1992, 1994, and 1995.
At Miami University of Ohio, Lipka mentored 20 All-MAC selections, two MAC Players of the Year, two MAC Newcomers of the Year and 23 Academic All-MAC selections.
Lipka was the men's tennis associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Florida in 1988-89. He recruited two NCAA Champions and three All-Americans in two recruiting classes. He also led fundraising efforts for the program.
Lipka earned his Bachelor's degree in Education from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 1985. He earned his Master's degree in Sport Psychology from the University of Florida in 1990.