He was that way from the start. In early 2004, Mark Beal of Taylor Communications had been the leader of the Indian Wells PR effort for over a decade. Matt had joined Taylor a few months earlier and, in March, came to work at the tournament for the first time.
“Most of all, Matt is a great human being,” said Mark. “He is genuine. He is authentic, collaborative, and has a team player mindset.”
Two years later, as Taylor transitioned its business, the decision was made to hand the reigns to Matt.
“I was a little apprehensive,” said Dee Dee Felich, a tournament staff member from 1981 to 2016 (most recently as assistant tournament director). But swiftly, all of Dee Dee’s concerns vanished in the face of Matt’s exceptional ability to be creative, strategic and effective.
“He was a go-getter, eager to learn,” she said. “It was fun. I thoroughly enjoyed working with Matt and I’m very proud of him.”
“I definitely consider Matt part of the WTA family,” said Amy Binder, WTA senior vice president, global communications. “Every year you go to Indian Wells, and there’s Matt with that solid, booming voice, and you have that level of familiarity and trust that’s so important during these high-stakes events.”
