TopCourt, an online platform for tennis players, launches after raising $1.25M

RALEIGH – TopCourt, a tech startup building an online platform for tennis instruction, has officially launched after closing on $1.25 million in seed series funding.

“The team is incredibly excited about the immediate traction and excitement that’s happening,” its co-founder and former UNC-Chapel Hill tennis player Taylor Meyer, 29, told WRAL TechWire by email. “We’re receiving testimonials daily from users across the globe.”

TopCourt is a digital learning platform that is partnering with some of the world’s top ranked professionals to offer fans “an authentic look” into the life, mind, and performance of the game’s top professionals. Unlimited access to 20-plus professionals starts at $15/month (billed annually).

A colorful list of big-name tennis players already back TopCourt. They include the Bryan Brothers (identical twin brothers Robert Charles “Bob” Bryan and Michael Carl “Mike” Bryan, 16-time Grand Slam Champions), Lindsay Davenport (three-time Grand Slam Champion), Petra Kviotva (2-Time Wimbledon Champion) and Sloane Stephens (US Open Champion), among others.

Main investors include Scott Scherr (founder, NASDAQ: ULTI), Jimmy John (founder, Jimmy Johns), and Raleigh-based Hyperspace Ventures, a software development and venture capital firm that Meyer helped found in 2017.

“Through various connections, Hyperspace was able to help connect the TopCourt team with a few key agencies and professional tennis players,” Meyer explained of his high-profile funders and brand partners.

“As in most start-ups, buy-in was difficult early on when individuals or companies don’t have a product or vision to experience yet. After the first few TopCourt shoots, we were thrilled to see that many other players and agents wanted to be a part of this movement. We’re very grateful for the partnerships we’ve formed with, and support we’ve gotten from, various agencies including IMG, Octagon, GSE, TopNotch, TopFive, and more.”

TopCourt co-founders Taylor Meyer (center) with Alex Rafiee, Zach Hunter and the Bryan brothers — identical twin brothers Robert Charles “Bob” Bryan and Michael Carl “Mike” Bryan, American professional doubles tennis players.

Meyer said the injection of capital will now enable the Raleigh-based startup to develop its software, create content and grow out the business team.

“We look forward to on-boarding more top players and coaches in the near future, and continuing to build something that’s never been done before in tennis.”

He added the pandemic hasn’t slowed down business thus far. In fact, just the opposite. “It seems as though the current circumstances have accelerated the ongoing shift towards digital platforms for learning and entertainment,” Meyer said.

This isn’t Meyer’s only company. He founded his first tech company, UConnection, as an undergraduate student-athlete at UNC-Chapel Hill. He successfully exited to a private equity firm roughly six years later.

That same year, 2017, he, along with Zach Hunter, 30, and Alex Rafiee, 30, founded Hyperspace Ventures, a software development and venture capital firm based out of Chapel Hill, which builds tech products for early stage ventures. They all met while playing varsity tennis at UNC-Chapel.

Peter Fox, 27, is also a managing partner at Hyperspace but is not officially part of TopCourt.

TopCourt partnered with Hyperspace Ventures for all design, development, and technical product manager roles.