Sports in Memphis, Tennessee

Recreational sports in Memphis, Tennessee are supported in the city by Memphis Park Services, which offers a wide range of public facilities, including 17 swimming pools, 8 public golf courses, 48 athletic fields hosting a range of 510 youth and 269 adult teams, 130 basketball courts (101 outdoor and 29 indoor), 7 tennis centers and a soccer complex. [http://www.cityofmemphis.org/framework.aspx?page=6 Memphis Park Services] ] . Memphis is also home to professional sports teams in basketball, baseball and other sports. Golf, basketball, baseball and tennis are popular recreational sports in Memphis.

Baseball

Memphis has had several professional baseball teams over the years, including the Memphis Chicks (1902-1960, 1978-1997), the Memphis Blues (1968-1976), and since 1998, the Memphis Redbirds of the Pacific Coast League. The Redbirds are a Triple A baseball farm team for the St. Louis Cardinals and play at AutoZone Park, a state-of-the-art baseball-only venue in downtown Memphis.

Basketball

The Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association is the only one of the "big four" major sports leagues in the city. The team played at the Pyramid Arena from 2001–2004 and then moved to the FedExForum in downtown Memphis.

The Memphis Tigers basketball team represents the University of Memphis in NCAA Division I men's college basketball. The Tigers compete in Conference USA and play their home games at FedExForum.

Football

The University of Memphis Tigers football team plays their home games in Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. The Memphis Panthers is an amateur football team that plays in the North American Football League. The Panthers play at Halle Stadium.

Memphis has hosted several professional football teams for brief periods over the years. The Memphis Tigers played there in the late 1920s and early 1930s, [ [http://www.memphismagazine.com/gyrobase/Magazine/Content?oid=oid%3A41256 Lauderdale, Vance "Ask Vance: Coach Houses" Memphis Magazine March 1, 2008] ] and Memphis held a franchise, the Memphis Southmen, in the short-lived professional World Football League (1974 - 1975). The Memphis Mad Dogs were an expansion franchise of the Canadian Football League in 1995. The Tennessee Titans, formerly known as the Houston Oilers, relocated to Memphis for one season in 1997 before moving to Nashville. Other pro teams have included the Memphis Showboats (1984-1985) and the Memphis Maniax (2001).

Golf

Golf is a very popular form of recreation in Memphis, which has eight municipal courses. [ [http://www.cityofmemphis.org/framework.aspx?page=120 City of Memphis - Park Services - Golf] ] The City's first public facility, Galloway Golf Course, was created in 1923. [ [http://www.cityofmemphis.org/framework.aspx?page=810 History of The Memphis Park Services] ] There are now over 30 public and private golf courses in the Memphis Metropolitan Area. [ [http://www.golflink.com/golf-courses/city.asp?dest=Memphis+TN Golflink - Memphis, TN Golf Courses] ] Memphis is home to the annual Stanford St. Jude Championship, a regular part of the PGA TOUR.

Ice Hockey

The Mississippi RiverKings are a professional hockey team of the Central Hockey League. The RiverKings play at the DeSoto Civic Center in nearby DeSoto County, Mississippi.

Motorsports

Memphis is also home to Memphis Motorsports Park, just north of the city on the outskirts of Memphis and Millington, TN. The venue has a 3/4-mile (1207 m) paved oval track that annually hosts 2 NASCAR-sanctioned events, a Busch-series race (the Sam's Town 250) and a Craftsman Truck series race (the O'Reilly 200). It also has a 1/4-mile (402 m) drag strip that annually hosts the NHRA POWERade O'Reilly Mid-South Nationals, as well as locally-sanctioned events that run from February to November.

Rugby

Memphis is also home to the Memphis Blues, a Rugby Union team, which plays at Tobey Field in Midtown, Memphis.

Memphis Women's Rugby is a womens' senior club team (Rugby Union) which also plays at Tobey Field in Midtown, Memphis. The team is a member of USA Rugby South, Division II. [ cite web | url = http://www.memphiswomensrugby.com | title = Official Memphis Womens' Rugby Website]

Tennis

Memphis Park Services maintains seven public tennis centers. Memphis is home to the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships and the Cellular South Cup. The Regions Morgan Keegan Championships is an ATP event, and the Cellular South Cup is a WTA event. The senior event, the Stanford Championships started in Memphis, but it has since relocated to Dallas, Texas.

Wrestling

Memphis also has a fertile history when it comes to pro wrestling. The sport's greatest name to come out of the city is Jerry "The King" Lawler. Other greats who started out in Memphis include Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mick Foley, "Macho Man" Randy Savage", and Ric Flair. Memphis has two pro-wrestling organizations, "Power-Pro Wrestling" which is filmed in the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis, and Memphis Wrestling which is filmed in the Desoto Civic Center in Desoto County.

Overview of Professional and Adult Amateur Teams

Club Sport League Venue Memphis Grizzlies Basketball National Basketball Association FedExForum Memphis Redbirds Baseball Pacific Coast League AutoZone Park Memphis RiverKings Ice Hockey Central Hockey League DeSoto Civic CenterMemphis Panthers Football North American Football League Halle StadiumMemphis Blues Rugby union USA Rugby South Tobey Field

References