The Jensen Zone: Grading Your Tennis IQ

How is your tennis IQ? I believe smart tennis players are successful tennis players. I have always viewed myself as a tennis junkie. I can watch any level of play and really enjoy it.

When I was a player, I would sit and watch players compete and learn the do's and don'ts of how to play under pressure. Players like John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors would draw me in by the way they played with such rage and passion. I also engaged in the way the “Ice Man” Bjorn Borg would never rattle and stayed so ice cold and calm under the most extreme of pressure situations. Martina Navratilova was so talented, but would become so emotional and break down from time to time, and then go on massive winning streaks and dominate the tour.

I found that taking elements from all of these pros helped form the emotional approach that I used towards preparing for competition and being my best in competitive situations. So much of our sport is mental, and I stress that the more brain power you can channel towards a positive impact on your game, the more improvement you will see.

I was taught at a very young age from my life coaches (my parents) and all of my mentors through the game that I should be a student of the game. I was taught to be more than just a competitor, but to learn the game inside and out. I learned how to string my own racquets as a young teenager. I learned the cause and effect of string tension and string technology on my game. I was encouraged to chart matches and understand exactly what the statistics meant. There were areas of the game I was discovering that really helped my game grow.

When I began as an analyst for ESPN, and then a coach, I found even more layers to the most important approach to winning. I learned of the impact that attitude can have on growing a champion. There is a hunger that has to be included in the process to achieve great things. There needs to be a desire to work on something repeatedly until the shot works out.

My advice to any player at any level is to dig deeper into your game and view the game from other angles and approaches while looking through a different lens from time to time.

Smart players win and smart players are always developing and growing!

Go out and be the best you can be!