Rick Macci has another star......

T

TCF

Guest
====================================================.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
T

TCF

Guest
====================================================
 
Last edited by a moderator:
arche3

arche3

Banned
How can you tell so young how they will play at 17? I don't think it's possible.

And people here get on about Oscar Wegnar and his marketing.....
 
Last edited:
T

TCF

Guest
====================================================
 
Last edited by a moderator:
arche3

arche3

Banned
And it's a legitimate question how many one in a million players Maci has? I am not saying he is lying but one in a million every few years? He should play the lottery.
 
Bash and Crash

Bash and Crash

Semi-Pro
TCF said:
Even funnier is the Capriati comparison. Capriati was 160 lbs. That girl will be lucky to reach 100-105 lbs. But since Macci has had 4 students the general public ever heard of, Roddick, Venus, Serena, and Capriati.....he went with the one people had heard of who has the same general hair color and complexion as this girl!
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's interesting, he will either have the next Williams if they are African American, Roddick if big hard serving boy, Capriati if cute hard hitting brunette, if he had a few more he would have all categories covered.
 
B

BMC9670

Hall of Fame
Any way you slice it, it's hype to make a buck. That all this is. If he truly has a one in a million talent, great - nurture it, develop it, keep a low profile to keep her and her parents grounded and take over the tennis world when she's a teen. Hype is the worst thing that can be done to a kid and their family this young.
 
T

TCF

Guest
====================================================
 
Last edited by a moderator:
T

TennisEko

Banned
This girl is definitelt a junior star already, ive seen her play twice. If she keeps going same this way, Rick might be just right. 2 many nay sayers in these blogs...Go Gabby!
 
B

BMC9670

Hall of Fame
TennisEko said:
This girl is definitelt a junior star already, ive seen her play twice. If she keeps going same this way, Rick might be just right. 2 many nay sayers in these blogs...Go Gabby!
Click to expand...

Don't disagree that skills or talent may be there, I'm just saying that many of these high-profile coaches exploit kids at young ages to make money. IMHO, that's wrong, not healthy for the kid and the family.
 
J

jigglypuff

Rookie
BMC9670 said:
Don't disagree that skills or talent may be there, I'm just saying that many of these high-profile coaches exploit kids at young ages to make money. IMHO, that's wrong, not healthy for the kid and the family.
Click to expand...

That's what the no-profile coaches everywhere do anyways...
 
T

TennisEko

Banned
Maybe true. if he is developing her into this great player, and parents are fine with it then he should be able to spin it anyway he wants..
 
B

BMC9670

Hall of Fame
TennisEko said:
Maybe true. if he is developing her into this great player, and parents are fine with it then he should be able to spin it anyway he wants..
Click to expand...

Just because one can, doesn't mean one should. Macci in particular always struck me as talk, talk, talk, and not have much concern for any possible consequences of the pressure he puts on little kids.
 
Last edited:
W

widmerpool

Rookie
I guess I just expected something more for 9. She looked liked a precocious 6 year old.

Marketing girls this young is disgusting.

EDIT: Macci's comment about the 4y/o girl was the worst. There's a "place for her on the pro tour". Really???
 
Last edited:
C

chalkflewup

Hall of Fame
Parents slurp, slurp, slurp Macci and continue to open up the wallet. They see pictures of li'l Andy and the Williams sisters and the game begins. Can't blame him.
 
cluckcluck

cluckcluck

Hall of Fame
I've lost faith in the words that he, the Mac bros, and any other academy owner or premiere coach have to say about up and coming talent. Especially after the Donald Young fiasco.
Like Arche3 said,you can't tell at such an early age. Tell us when they're playing 12's or 14's then you might be on to something, but at 8 or 9, the body hasn't started really growing and everything will change with puberty.
 
A

Alohajrtennis

Semi-Pro
treeman10 said:
If he is really talking about 4 and 6 year olds, even 9, ya that is overaggressive, but part of the tennis scene for sure. It sucks those parents in and as Chalk said, the wallets fly open. On the other hand, our player was the poster child for an academy from 12 on, and that was actually very helpful to us. First, we weren't paying for training from then on, and it also put him on the map with the section and USTA. You can be #1 in a section but if you don't play the game, you can be overlooked for opportunities. So we let the academy play the game since we didn't necessarily like the suck up required to be "a chosen one." That resulted in better hits and being "sought after" not just for their events and Carson/Boca visits/training, but for hits with better players here and elsewhere. So we got what we needed from them and they got what they needed from having him as a player, which was more players. In our case, it was a fair trade. But there is certainly blatant overselling going on out there, I see it all the time and feel terrible for those parents tossing their money into the wind.
Click to expand...

Thanks for posting this. Obviously, a lot of these kids and their families are in similar quid quo pro deals.
 
C

chalkflewup

Hall of Fame
Alohajrtennis said:
Why not ? Cause it's not illegal ? What's the standard ? Anything to make a buck ? I can blame him.
Click to expand...
Maybe he loves it. If parents are willing to pay high priced attorney fees to someone so their kids can learn to hit a tennis ball from the great one, that`s a personal choice.
 
Moz

Moz

Hall of Fame
It's like a sporting child pageant.

Rick Macci sounds like a snake-oil salesman. Very unpleasant.
 
arche3

arche3

Banned
Moz said:
It's like a sporting child pageant.

Rick Macci sounds like a snake-oil salesman. Very unpleasant.
Click to expand...

I have to agree. Past success prove he was a great coach. Current hype of 4-9 year olds proves he is a peddler of his talent and is now simply closing the sales.
 
1

10ismom

Semi-Pro
Can't just blame Rick. Sure he has to make a living and profit. Don't really know him but still think he is a great coach, great motivator for young players.

Having said that, I don't think he would hype every child coming to his academy. I heard of him and Nick B. criticizing young players they will never make it if not correcting A, B , or C (overhitting aimlessly, bad footwork, etc).

However, to hype a specific child that young......is it fair to the kid and family???
If parents have to pay $$$ instead of free lessons, they should carefully read all "fine prints" that come with the hype. "Great athlete, fighter..... beyond their years, chances at the pro tour, the top, and so on IF NO INJURY, NO BURNOUT, PARENTS DIVORCED, BANKRUPTCY.....you name it.
 
Last edited:
W

widmerpool

Rookie
They have to invent these "prodigies" so rich parents with kids who are mediocre will pay the rent.

Imagine how low the return on the money is for the less talented kids at these academies. Probably overpaying by at least 80% for what they get.
 
K

kme5150

Rookie
tball2day said:
The "B" and "C" kids fees, besides covering the coaches salary and other costs for the academy, fund the "A" kids training and travel.
Click to expand...

That is exactly right.

When it comes to any academy, if you are paying full price then your player is not that good. Regardless of age. Anybody who believes any different is just naive. Top players are an asset to a club and every club owner knows this.
 
R

RollTrackTake

Professional
Ugh. As much as I disparage this coach for hyping a child for his own gain I don't blame the parents. It's their job to protect their child from pit falls (read Capriatti).
 
S

sundaypunch

Hall of Fame
Your worth as a tennis coach is exactly what you can convince someone to pay you. Marketing becomes as important as the drills, etc. at some point.
 
S

Soianka

Hall of Fame
sundaypunch said:
Your worth as a tennis coach is exactly what you can convince someone to pay you. Marketing becomes as important as the drills, etc. at some point.
Click to expand...

This is so true.

Many coaches I have seen are better salesmen than they are tennis coaches.
 
tennisconsultcom

tennisconsultcom

Rookie
I think, marketing became more important than skills for some coaches. I see how many "tennis academies" were launches in last two years by coaches who do not have any special education or certification. It is absurd. You cannot drive a car without a driver license, or work as a hairdresser without a certification, etc.

But you can be a tennis coach and teach kids without any education and any quality control of your job. Just keep talking to parents that their kids are future champions, feed balls, and you are fine.
 
Last edited:
B

BMC9670

Hall of Fame
sundaypunch said:
Your worth as a tennis coach is exactly what you can convince someone to pay you. Marketing becomes as important as the drills, etc. at some point.
Click to expand...

Sure, but not on the backs of little kids. Talking about your star kids to prospective parents is one thing, but when you can get majot media coverage, it becomes something different.
 
S

sundaypunch

Hall of Fame
BMC9670 said:
Sure, but not on the backs of little kids. Talking about your star kids to prospective parents is one thing, but when you can get majot media coverage, it becomes something different.
Click to expand...

That might be your opinion, but it clearly isn't the way his business model works. What you view as a negative is one of his main selling points to parents. It is why he is one of the most successful coaches in the world. That being said, I am neither for or against this approach.

Rick Macci has a proven track record of marketing and public relations capabilities worldwide with all of the major print and TV organizations. Rick can position players like no other coach. Companies trust and believe in Rick and his students. It has been proven over and over again, Macci can maximize a player's potential both on and off the court. You have Rick's personal commitment to help each and every player get a school placement that is right for them!

Just take a minute to review his Academy website. The discussion is at the bottom of this page-
http://www.rickmacci.com/academy-programs/
 
B

BMC9670

Hall of Fame
sundaypunch said:
That might be your opinion, but it clearly isn't the way his business model works. What you view as a negative is one of his main selling points to parents. It is why he is one of the most successful coaches in the world. That being said, I am neither for or against this approach.

Rick Macci has a proven track record of marketing and public relations capabilities worldwide with all of the major print and TV organizations. Rick can position players like no other coach. Companies trust and believe in Rick and his students. It has been proven over and over again, Macci can maximize a player's potential both on and off the court. You have Rick's personal commitment to help each and every player get a school placement that is right for them!

Just take a minute to review his Academy website. The discussion is at the bottom of this page-
http://www.rickmacci.com/academy-programs/
Click to expand...

I know it's how it works, and yes it's my opinion that it's wrong to hype really young kids in order to charge ridiculously high fees regardless of who you are or who you've coached (and even if it was a long time ago). Too much pressure on a young kid and possibly on the family. Just because a guy like Macci can make outrageous claims about a 4, 6 or 9 year old being the next future pro star to bilk their family out of $300-$400 per hour doesn't make it right. But that's just my opinion.
 
T

tennis5

Professional
BMC9670 said:
I know it's how it works, and yes it's my opinion that it's wrong to hype really young kids in order to charge ridiculously high fees regardless of who you are or who you've coached (and even if it was a long time ago). Too much pressure on a young kid and possibly on the family. Just because a guy like Macci can make outrageous claims about a 4, 6 or 9 year old being the next future pro star to bilk their family out of $300-$400 per hour doesn't make it right. But that's just my opinion.
Click to expand...

By a coach building up some kid, it puts pressure (guilt) on some parents not to deprive their child of being the next one......
And yes, the per hour rate is just downright greedy.
 
S

superfittennis

New User
tennisconsultcom said:
I think, marketing became more important than skills for some coaches. I see how many "tennis academies" were launches in last two years by coaches who do not have any special education or certification. It is absurd. You cannot drive a car without a driver license, or work as a hairdresser without a certification, etc.

But you can be a tennis coach and teach kids without any education and any quality control of your job. Just keep talking to parents that their kids are future champions, feed balls, and you are fine.
Click to expand...


Want to know something really scary? Fitness trainers are not required to have a certification or license in order to train people. A snake oil salesman could legally train and prescribe a cardio program to your uncle who has just had his 3rd heart attack. Who you let train your kids is up to you! Do your research first.
 
db10s

db10s

Hall of Fame
I'm playing a Super Series there this wk end, I'll see what the hype is all about and report back.
 
tennisconsultcom

tennisconsultcom

Rookie
superfittennis said:
Want to know something really scary? Fitness trainers are not required to have a certification or license in order to train people. A snake oil salesman could legally train and prescribe a cardio program to your uncle who has just had his 3rd heart attack. Who you let train your kids is up to you! Do your research first.
Click to expand...

Thanks CA! At least hairdressers have to have certification here:)
 
M

maggmaster

Hall of Fame
superfittennis said:
Want to know something really scary? Fitness trainers are not required to have a certification or license in order to train people. A snake oil salesman could legally train and prescribe a cardio program to your uncle who has just had his 3rd heart attack. Who you let train your kids is up to you! Do your research first.
Click to expand...

Actually the scariest thing is the sheer number of certifications out there, some of which require very little actual knowledge of physiological systems.
 
T

TCF

Guest
maggmaster said:
Actually the scariest thing is the sheer number of certifications out there, some of which require very little actual knowledge of physiological systems.
Click to expand...

Yup. I ran a large fitness club for 15 years. The trainers came with all sorts of different letters of certification organizations. Some trainers were amazing, others pretty lame.

We finally ended up designing our own internal training program for personal trainers.
 
T

TCF

Guest
================================================
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Walenty
The Next Great American Player on the Horizon?
Replies
16
Views
2K
donnygg
D
navigator
Tennis Parent Cautionary Tale: Gabby Price
2 3
Replies
105
Views
11K
LuckyR
LuckyR
raftermania
Reflections on Rick Macci
Replies
14
Views
3K
arnz
A
guanzishou
Rick Macci: Carlitos will have better career than Federer, Djokovic, Nadal
2 3
Replies
125
Views
3K
Robert C
R
A
Article: Jennifer Capriati harassing, stalking, boyfriend charged yet not arrested.
Replies
5
Views
2K
gold2nadal
G
Top