Back in the day, men's tennis was ruled for a time by big-mouthed boors who railed against the injustices and perceived slights inflicted by the tennis establishment. The irony, of course, is that these rebels without a clue rarely played by the rules of sportsmen-like behavior. Some of these tennis thugs have grown up, but…
The Memphis Open, the only indoor ATP tournament in the U.S., is leaving after 41 years and relocating to The Nassau Coliseum next February. Remember when pro tennis was scheduled to come to Long Island last year at Hempstead Lake State Park? That "event" folded before it got started, but this is the real deal, led by…
Roger Federer won the BNP Paribas Open last week after a recent six-month injury layoff. At the ripe age of 35, he is rewriting the record books, seemingly defying the laws of physics and human biology. With both Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray struggling, it's reasonable to pencil Roger in as an early Wimbledon favorite…
I watched a highly ranked student compete in a national tournament the other day and behave emotionally, talking to herself, throwing her arms up in the air and displaying anger at her performance. Her opponent responded with a few "questionable" line calls and yes, I believe it was a response to my student's behavior. Not…
"Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around it or through it."—Bruce Lee This last weekend inspired me to remember that the heart of a champion refuses to quit with the adamant belief they will succeed. Now I'm no…
Venus versus Serena, Roger versus Rafa in a Grand Slam finals. It happened this weekend after a nine-year hiatus and it was well worth the wait. The storylines were dramatic and the stakes were high. Serena was going after Grand Slam title number 23, hoping to break her modern record tie with Steffi Graf and…
The new shiny USTA Center in Lake Nona, Fla. looks amazing, but looks aren't everything when it comes to building champions. This beautiful facility is 64 acres on a $63 million dollar (at least) campus with more than 100 tennis courts. The USTA claims that it is the "Most technologically advanced facility in the world,"…
A new study in The British Journal of Sports Medicine using data from 11 health surveys for England and Scotland between 1994 and 2008 suggests that tennis reduces mortality rates 47 percent, the highest rate of any sport studied. In comparison, swimmers had only a 28 percent reduction in mortality rate. The tennis industry is…
Andy Murray is the world's number one for 2016, and no one is arguing … not even Novak Djokovic who said after losing the Tour Finals in London, "Andy is definitely number one in the world." Well no one except for the venerable magazine Newsweek with the article "HOW TENNIS'S FLAWED RANKING SYSTEM MADE ANDY…
Should I play high school tennis? It's a question that every highly-ranked player confronts (along with should I attend school or should I be home-schooled?). It wasn't always this way … Once upon a time in a tennis universe far away, almost every top player attended and competed for their high school. I can go…