After 50 years, Green family tennis tournament still a smash hit

It began, like all everlasting events do, with a simple idea.

In 1975, three members of the Green Family in Nassau County Stephen Green and his siblings Stanley Green and Betty Joachim, decided they wanted to organize a family tennis tournament.

Because the extended group all lived in the metropolitan area, the trio was able to get around 20 people to get together for the first event, a doubles exhibition with the scoring rules slightly changed, and a fun afterparty after that.

“It was so much fun. Beyond fun,” remembers Joel Joachim, a teenager who played in the first matches. “I don’t think anyone then thought it would still be going in 2026, though.”

On Jan. 24 at the Jericho-Westbury Tennis Club, the Green family will convene again for this year’s tournament.

As many as 60 family members will either swap forehands and serves with each other or come to the afterparty following the tournament, planned, as always in recent years, by Linda Sussman, mom of tournament director Josh.

There will be laughs, there will be great shots hit, and sure, some terrible shanks as well. And at the end, the big family trophy will be awarded to the top player, with an engraving and everything (the original trophy is being retired this year, because they’ve run out of room to put new names and plaques).

The Green Family Tournament has missed a few years here and there, due to COVID, or family situations getting in the way, but it’s still going, well into its third generation of players now.

It binds an already close family even closer together.

“We have a pretty close family and we do see each other a few times a year, but the tournament is something we all look forward to,” said Adam Green, son of co-founder Stephen. “There are periods where the interest wanes, but it always comes back up with the next generation.”

Tennis has been a passion for many of the Green family, and this athletic crew also used to hold an Olympics-style competition with pentathlon events, Dave Green recalled.

“We had a lot of events and like, cricket and croquet and other stuff like that,” Dave Green said. ” But that faded away after a while.

“Tennis is a lot easier,” he laughed.

Like with any tournament, there are rules and bylaws, including one stating that a participant must actually be IN the family to play, no boyfriends or girlfriends allowed.

“Gotta have a ring on it,” Adam Green said with a laugh.

Players are matched with partners of varying abilities, so you don’t get two very strong players on the same team, competing against weaker players.

A winner from the past year is always paired with a less-accomplished player in the following tournament, making repeat champions all the more impressive.

Some of the Green family is competitive, but the tournament is all in fun.

Gabriel Green, a multiple-time winner of the event and Adam’s son, said family unity means a lot to him.

“To know that for 50 years, my family has been coming together for this … it just shows how much we want to be together, and it’s a testament to how we feel about each other,” Gabriel Green said. “It’s absolutely a rite of passage for all of us to play in it.”

At the 50th tournament, competitors as young as 13-year-old Avery Bromberg and as “seasoned” as 66-year-old Howard Sussman will vie for the title,

Many, though, will just come and watch, and relish a family tie get stronger and stronger.

“I don’t play, but I’m the King Kibbitzer,” Dave Green said. “I get such joy out of watching the younger generation play.”

“We get sweaty, then we go shower, put some nice clothes on, and have a nice dinner and give out the trophy, and it’s really just a beautiful thing,” Gabriel Green added. “This family is full of traditions, and this is definitely one of the best ones.”