Ask me anything about being a professional tennis player

[fpeliwo]

Hi guys,

My name is Filip, I am from Vancouver, Canada and I am a professional tennis player.

This year, I made the finals of all 4 junior Grand Slams, winning at Wimbledon and the US Open to finish the year as the #1 ITF junior.

In the next year, I will mostly be playing on the Challenger and Futures circuits.

A friend talked me into joining the board, and it seems like a great place to talk tennis with other fans and players. I will try to post a few times a week. In the meantime, feel free to ask me anything about life on tour!

Filip Peliwo
Twitter: @filippeliwo

 

[AnotherTennisProdigy]

I'm almost exactly a month younger than you and was wondering what pro life is like? Is it stressful, do you enjoy the ride?

I'm curious because I had the choice to dedicate myself to tennis at a young age or to play it casually. I chose the latter but I always wondered what it would be like if I tried to make a career out of tennis.

 

[The Bawss]

What is different about Juniors tennis and ATP circuit tennis? How hard is the transition?

 

[robbo1970]

Should Federer switch to a 95?

I'm sorry I'm kidding. You will see many threads debating this point.

Welcome aboard and get involved with some of the threads, all knowledge is very welcome.

 

[tennis_pro]

Can you speak Polish (not that it has anything to do with being a pro...)?

Btw if this is true, it would be great for a real pro to join the boards. Check in as often as you can, mate!

 

[mmk]

Nice of you to do this, and good luck. Given your tennis career so far, you've won the majority of your matches. For a while at least that probably won't be the case, how do you prepare yourself for that?

 

[No1e]

Who is your favorite player?

 

[mike84]

congratulations on all success so far and good luck on your transition to pro circuit.


have you had chance to practice with roger, nadal, novak?

what is your typical week look like?

 

[fpeliwo]

I'm almost exactly a month younger than you and was wondering what pro life is like? Is it stressful, do you enjoy the ride?

I'm curious because I had the choice to dedicate myself to tennis at a young age or to play it casually. I chose the latter but I always wondered what it would be like if I tried to make a career out of tennis.

Life on the pro tour is definitely different from juniors. For one thing, the stakes are a lot higher, as you are playing for ATP points and money. The guys are obviously a lot stronger, so the game is quite different as well. It’s not the same kind of stress as in juniors, because you are generally the underdog when you play against the top players, whereas in juniors (at least in my case) you generally have more pressure and expectations. The rewards are greater than those on the junior tour, so I definitely enjoy playing on the pro tour. It’s something that I’ve worked for most of my life, and its great to see myself progressing through the rankings.

 

[fpeliwo]

Can you speak Polish (not that it has anything to do with being a pro...)?

Btw if this is true, it would be great for a real pro to join the boards. Check in as often as you can, mate!

Thanks!

Yes, I can speak read and write Polish quite fluently

 

[The Meat]

Looked at some of your matches, you have an amazing game!!!

Good luck in the pro circuit!

 

[moonpie]

Welcome aboard this crazy train and thanks for offering us some insight from the professional side. When you start traveling with the challenger/ futures tour, will you get any help from any of the tennis organizations , since you did so well as a junior, or will you be pretty much on your own. Who is your coach? I wish you the best and will be watching for your name on the player lists.

 

[Sim]

Edit:Wrong thread.

 

[AnotherTennisProdigy]

If you come down to Miami I'll come watch your matches.

 

[fpeliwo]

Nice of you to do this, and good luck. Given your tennis career so far, you've won the majority of your matches. For a while at least that probably won't be the case, how do you prepare yourself for that?

Well, as I noted in my answer to a previous question, on the pro tour I am generally going into matches as an underdog. Because of this, there isn't nearly as much pressure, which therefore allows me to play loose and relaxed. However I do expect to win a few rounds at least in every single tournament I enter,no matter at what level.

 

[citybert]

Thanks for doing this. As a promising upcoming junior who is in your travel team? Is it just you and the coach? do you use the Physio from the tournaments that the ATP provides?

How is it not knowing what country you are in sometimes when you wake up?

Thanks again

 

[Seth]

If you play any tournaments in North Carolina, let us know. I'll bring a crowd.

 

[DejZ]

Could you pls tell us something about your game,about strengths and weaknesses you know?(if you have them of course)

 

[kOaMaster]

What are your long-term expectations? What do you personally and honestly think would be a realistic goal to achieve in your career?

 

[Evan77]

welcome and all the best to you. I'd love to see you playing so if you have any videos it would be awesome if you can post them.

what's your current rankings? have you ever met Raonic?

 

[Torres]

How much travelling do you do? Are you away every week or do you still manage to spend say 50% of the time still at home? Do your parents accompany you along with a coach? Would be interested in hearing about the logistical, itinerary, travelling, time side of things.

Slightly awkward question but how much does all that global travelling cost? Presumably your family is quite wealthy?

 

[dgoran]

I was always curious about junior to pro transition and your equipement (racquet) specs. Mainly if there was any adjustment to your racquet specs: sw weight balance etc due to pros quality of shots vs junior shots.

And of course what are your current racquet of choice and swing weight weight balance flex etc...is it pro stock Wilson or off the shelf

 

[tennis_pro]

Oh and btw if you win a major in the future, please mention me in your speech, bro!

"And I'd like to thank all my fans especially tennis_pro from TW..."

 

[TheCanadian]

Thank you for joining this forum. It's great to have the opportunity to chat to somebody who's actually living the life many of us wished we had.

My first questions: many top juniors did not make an equally successful transition into professional tennis. In fact, some had relatively mediocre pro careers. Why do you think this is so?

What are your short-term and long-term goals?

Do you think a below average height in professional tennis is a significant hurdle today?

At what age did you start playing tennis and what kind of regimen did you follow? For example, how much time a week did you spend on a court at the age of 5, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, etc. And now? How much time did you spend in the gym and on fitness? And now?

I assume many coaches at a hand in your development, would you like to mention some names?

How many hours should a kid spend in (private or otherwise) lessons in a typical week versus practicing? It seems to me that too many parents spend a fortune on lessons when a kid should be practicing and playing matches.

 

[tistrapukcipeht]

I personally think that Liam Broady is a beast left player, it probably is a nightmare to play that guy. What did you do to beat him strategically wise?

About Sponsorship:

2--You are sponsored by Wilson, do you get paid as well or you just get the equipment?

About Equipment:

Most people here in this forum brag about heavy racquets and mid size racquets, I here ask you:

3-What's your racquet's weight?

4-Would a mid size racquet be a step back to your career ??

I appreciated your time and answers if you would.

Thanks

 

[Prisoner of Birth]

First of all, welcome to the board! Nice to see actual players who know their stuff post here. Secondly, do stick around. This place will be the better for it.

 

[dmcb101]

As a teaching pro, I was wondering what type of drills you do for an average practice.Is there a specific drill that you do almost every practice? Thanks!

 

[GoaLaSSo]

I saw you play a bit and you just got a new fan!

 

[cmb]

the tour must be boring! in fact it must have reached an epic level of boredom if you are posting on talk tennis at 8 in the morning.

dont worry filip....we are here for you! lOOOL

 

[Geology_Rocks!]

First Congratulations and welcome to the boards!

Saw your match at Wimbledon, you have an awesome game.

Very nice of you to join the forum, would love to hear whatever you gotta say about the tour, especially about equipment.

 

[augustobt]

Hi Filip! I was cheering for you to take down Saville at the AO, came close but didn't happened, and then you did it in Wimbledon. That was nice!

My question is: How many do you spend in a professional year?

 

[LeeD]

Thanks for coming on this forum.
One thing WE could help YOU with.... We can put you up for a few nights near some of the events you're going to, so you can save time and money looking for a place to hang and shower. And if we provide you transportation to or from the event site, it would make it almost worth your while to answer some of our dumb question.
You only need to post your proposed schedule a few weeks in advance, and I"m sure you can find a place to say, some food, a shower, and maybe a ride.
That part alone usually takes up hours of your time, and distracts you from focusing on your match.

 

[kishnabe]

Have you ever trained at the Rogers Cup Indoor Bubble? Hopefully we will get to see you play the tournament in Toronto in 2014.
Nestor(frequently), Milosh and Cilic have shown up there at times.

You look very relieved after the Wimbledon title, did it change how you treated the US Open?

Lastly, what do you think is the main improvement in the Canadian Tennis program?

Thanks for representing Canada and inspiring other juniors.

Before I forget, it was nice to see you do the traditional Can DC dance in Montreal.

 

[mike84]

welcome and all the best to you. I'd love to see you playing so if you have any videos it would be awesome if you can post them.

what's your current rankings? have you ever met Raonic?

not hard to find his full matches online

here is recent one
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/25091667

 

[thejackal]

the tour must be boring! in fact it must have reached an epic level of boredom if you are posting on talk tennis at 8 in the morning.

dont worry filip....we are here for you! lOOOL

just as a FYI, Filip had no idea what TalkTennis was until I showed him a week or so ago.

Being on tour IS pretty boring at times, though, especially when it rains...

 

[jaggy]

When will you overtake Donald Young in the rankings?

 

[kishnabe]

just as a FYI, Filip had no idea what TalkTennis was until I showed him a week or so ago.

Being on tour IS pretty boring at times, though, especially when it rains...

Are you a tennis coach, or a TC representative, or some other qualification?

 

[LeeD]

Tennis players on the cusp spend lots of time trying to kill time, and nowadaze, everyone has a computer of some sorts.
Time waiting for flights, time waiting for rides, time waiting for practice to begin, time waiting for food, just tons of time to kill.
What better way to kill time than to answer your fans and also arrange some living and eating schedules?

 

[seattle_1hander]

What do you think of that lazy @ssclown bernard tomic?

 

[Prisoner of Birth]

Hey, don't even respond to these guys trying to start up something with their comments on other players.

 

[DolgoSantoro]

Welcome to the forum! I hope our insanity doesn't scare you off.

I was wondering, who is the highest ranked player you've hit with/played against and what did you think of them?

Good luck with your future!

 

[BlueB]

Welcome on board! Very nice that you do this!
Very cool to have the next tennis hope from the same city and also of the Slavic origin! I'll be cheering for you.

I hope you don't mind that I posted this nice pic of you.

Question: Have you trained with Dimitri at Global, or in the North Van?

 

[krz]

I'm just curious if you look through the threads in the "Pro Player Discussion" section and just laugh at some of the absurd comments/topics.

You should really post in tips and tricks though. Post a vid of yourself in practice, ask people what your NTRP is. "3.5 at best"

 

[galain]

I'd also be interested to know how things go with finances if it's not too forward. Not necessarily yourself, but in general at the junior level and the satellite level - I suspect we never get to see many talented players because the finances just don't stretch that far?

 

[TennisLovaLova]

Great thread amigo.

In the clay season there are tons of challengers here in morocco
That Martin Klizan giy won 2 of them just last year!
And for discovering some new cultures and new people, being a pro travelling the world must be great, hope u enjoy it.

Btw if you have an iphone you can access the forum anytime you want by using the tapatalk app

 

[tennisaddict]

Fillip
Welcome to the boards.

I loved your Gangnam dance, it was posted on Sports Illustrated couple of days back

http://tennis.si.com/2012/10/08/gangnam-style-tennis-novak-djokovic-laura-robson/

I have been following you since the begining of this year. I noticed you beat some very good players even at the Pro Level in the Canadian Challengers.

Also i noticed you were part of the practice team for the Davis Cup.

I hope you will reach the upper echelons in the next few years.

One favor : Tell something awesome about Federer.

Thanks..

 

[thejackal]

I'd also be interested to know how things go with finances if it's not too forward. Not necessarily yourself, but in general at the junior level and the satellite level - I suspect we never get to see many talented players because the finances just don't stretch that far?

Stats from the USTA:

The average expenditure of a tour player: $143K per year

Breakeven point (where prize earnings = expenses): #119ATP, or #145 WTA

The average player is on tour for 7 years, and takes 3-4 years to break into the top 100 (if she/he lasts that long on tour)

....

Imagine a business operating at a loss for the first 3 years of its existence, and that's pretty close to the actual financial situation of a tour player.

It takes a lot of financial help from federations, sponsors and family members/friends to make it, not just talent

 

[Great Uncle Bulgaria]

Congrats on your amazing year - hope your success continues.

You said you will mostly be playing on the Challenger and Futures circuits. Is there any chance of you getting a wildcard into one of the bigger tournaments or is it too soon?

 

[rufus_smith]

Got any current funding from government or corporations or associations or other sponsors?
How do you plan to support your career expenses?

Wish you well, btw

 

[Rock Strongo]

That's rather demoralizing, you're as near as makes no difference a month older than me and look at where you are!

Very warm welcome from an otherwise cold country. Should you be around and you need a personal chef, don't hesitate to send me an email Hope you'll do well in the near (and distant) future!