Call them the odd couple of ATP Officiating: Tom Barnes, the poker-faced former marine who would hold his own in a stare down with Clint Eastwood, and Thomas Karlberg, the mild-mannered softly spoken Swede. The career-long friends and colleagues were both honoured for their lifetime of service in December as part of the ATP Officiating department’s year-end meetings in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
Barnes, who lives in Fresno, California, worked his last event at the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals. Karlberg stepped away after officiating in Basel in October this year.
At first glance, they seem as different as topspin and slice. But peel back the surface layer and you’ll find an underlying dichotomy that connects them.
“Tom is a very, very good friend,” Karlberg said. “He may scare most of the people around him, but that’s just on the surface. If you look under his skin a little bit he is a golden-hearted person and very fun to be around.”
Similarly, Barnes said that first impressions of the genial Karlberg don’t paint the full picture. “He’s probably the strongest one out of all of us even though he doesn’t look or act like he is,” Barnes said. “He’s a very strong character, critical thinker, friendly guy and good to be around.”
Barnes’ career has spanned the birth of the ATP Tour in 1990 through to its newest events, including the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals. Photo: Getty Images.
Barnes worked his first event in Guam in 1990 and completed his tournament report on three laminated pieces of paper. Known by many as ‘Baaaaarnes‘ after being given the moniker by former World No. 4 Brad Gilbert, the Californian said that over the years he bonded with some of the game’s more prickly players.
“I tend to get along better with the difficult players than the not-so-difficult players,” he said. “Why, I don’t know. Maybe it’s because of my marine corps background. It’s all personal relationships.
“We have one goal in mind and that’s to provide good tennis. The Supervisor is in charge of everything and is the final authority on site. The most challenging part of the job is to keep everything in balance and make judgments when it’s important. I always try to consider what is best for the tournament, players, and spectators.”
Karlberg was a Supervisor for the Men’s International Professional Tennis Council and Tournament Director of the Bastad ATP event before joining ATP in 1991, the year after the Tour…
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