How much do you charge for coaching?

Maximagq

Maximagq

Banned
Just curious to see how much the certified coaches on TT charge for lessons. I don't have a certification and I usually just coach local kids for a reasonable amount: about $15-20 an hour.
 
Do you guys think $15-20 for me is a good range because I'm not USPTA certified and I don't think I'm all that great of a coach. I can hit with the kids and do drills but I'm not really an expert on technique or anything.
 
Maximagq said:
Do you guys think $15-20 for me is a good range because I'm not USPTA certified and I don't think I'm all that great of a coach. I can hit with the kids and do drills but I'm not really an expert on technique or anything.
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You mean all this time on Talk Tennis listening to sureshs talk about technique hasn't taught you about technique? :)
 
Maximagq said:
Do you guys think $15-20 for me is a good range because I'm not USPTA certified and I don't think I'm all that great of a coach. I can hit with the kids and do drills but I'm not really an expert on technique or anything.
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If thats what you think your worth go for it. Honestly most parents cant tell the difference and dont care anyways. look where they send their kids every day at school.

like-ability on court is far more important than knowledge most of the time. most kids just want to go out and hit balls. If you teach women and are good looking with a nice body flirting with them is probably the most important.

when i taught full time 99% of my lesson were because kids liked me and thought i was cool and adult women wanted to hang out or whatever. maybe go have a drink and forget they were married...LOL. a few of them liked to bring beverages on court and try and get me drunk.

all this sounds great but it actually gets kind of old after a while.

go get your certification. Its overrated but if you have other pros around you they will kill your business behind your back. Pros are notorious from taking kids from other pros. i never had it happen though as mine were extremely loyal and i still get calls from kids, parents, and women. I pretty much always started kids from the ground up other than ones who sought me out. There are a lot of sharks in the business. especially right now. i actually dont recommend people go into it. its a bad way to make a living unless you enjoy self torture.

you might as well get some books on psychiatry while your at it. People seem to bring a lot of baggage and reveal their deepest and darkest secrets on the tennis court....especially women. there are days you will feel like Dr. Phil (those are bad days) and days you will feel like Errol Flynn (those are fun days).

For the small kids your basically just a big toy to play with and entertain them.

i think i have literally seen just about everything on the tennis court. endless stories that will make you shake your head.
 
Over here, coaches typically charge about $45-50 an hour. At melbourne park its around $80 and hour.. hence why i dont get lessons :)
 
20 euro an hour. I have only started coaching and I get more clients this way. I will bump it up when I get more experience.
 
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aimr75 said:
Over here, coaches typically charge about $45-50 an hour. At melbourne park its around $80 and hour.. hence why i dont get lessons :)
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At my club in Sydney also ~80$ per hour for a private lesson. But its from world class players who were once on the tour and have completed accredited coached courses. I've seen them do wonders for some of my friends' games with just a handful of lessons.
 
Maximagq said:
Just curious to see how much the certified coaches on TT charge for lessons. I don't have a certification and I usually just coach local kids for a reasonable amount: about $15-20 an hour.
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15 to 20 per hour you are giving it away.

The USPTA coaches I know charge anywhere between between $40 to $70 per hour depending on location, club, or public courts.
 
Around here, a former D1 college player who just graduated without any cert charges 40/hr outdoors. An average pro teacher here charges 60-85/hr outdoors. The really well known coaches charge $120 to 150 indoors. I have heard of a few coaches who charge $250/hr or more, but they are rare.
Harry
 
tennis_balla said:
He's not certified and has little coaching experience, so $15-$20 is fair.
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I disagree. He's a good player with modern game skill sets.
Often I see certified coaches who are:
1. Too technical - have trouble communicating
2. Older and cannot move around and hit with younger and agile players
3. Teach outdated Technics

Glad its a free country. If he wants to charge $15 that's good for him, but his time is worth more IMHO regardless of certification
 
I charge $150 an hour. But I am not very good, and have never given a lesson. I play for our 2nd/3rd club team. I haven't told anyone I give lessons either.

It's not working out great at the moment, I think I need to charge a bit more.
 
Matt, I'm a stingy guy and given your level I'd probably pay you $15/hr just to hit, so $20 for instruction sounds reasonable.

As far as whether $20 is too low, the question is how much added value your instruction is providing, and it's hard to answer that without having a sense of what and how you teach. If you feel like you don't have the coaching experience to ask for more, your instincts on that are probably good.
 
Avles said:
Matt, I'm a stingy guy and given your level I'd probably pay you $15/hr just to hit, so $20 for instruction sounds reasonable.

As far as whether $20 is too low, the question is how much added value your instruction is providing, and it's hard to answer that without having a sense of what and how you teach. If you feel like you don't have the coaching experience to ask for more, your instincts on that are probably good.
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Yeah, I've hit with DI college guys for $20 an hour and a USC player for $40 an hour. Most people agreed that $15-20 is a reasonable rate, so I'm just going based on that.
 
Maximagq said:
Do you guys think $15-20 for me is a good range because I'm not USPTA certified and I don't think I'm all that great of a coach. I can hit with the kids and do drills but I'm not really an expert on technique or anything.
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Don't waste time coaching for 20 per hour. At the minimum, you should charge 40. But if you are a CS major, you should get internships. Don't go through UCLA and expect a good job after graduation if you don't have work experience.
 
No one is going to pay $40/hr to a college kid with no coaching experience. Even if he played on a top Div. 1 team it would be tough to get unless he really knew what he was doing and had good references. As a hitting partner for amateurs you also wouldn't get that. Nothing against OP, but not gonna happen.

Edit:

Also, he's gotta attract clients if he wants to get hours and make some money. Charging high right away isn't gonna help. $20/hr, foot through the door, get your name out there, get a good reputation and Bob's your uncle. Where else is he gonna find a job for $20/hr outside, socializing with people and doing what he loves? You people are nuts. Minimum wage is what? $9/hr? Come on!
 
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for me i was just hitting with a friend and people came up to me to hit with their kids. I wasn't sure of a price so they offered $25/hr as a "hitting coach". After a while of hitting with his person's children, other people seemed to notice and I started hitting with more people. Now people ask me to coach and offer $35-40/hr
 
I hit so nice, like yesterday I warmed up for this man and on the second feed we hit like 60+ shots. I also gave out unsolicited advices but no one ever asked to pay me for coaching :(
 
I think it depends on where you are. In a more competitive market, $20 is really low. A more competitive market, $35 would be about right.
 
I'm at $50 an hour for an individual private. Group lessons are more. I am one of the cheaper coaches in my area given the level of facility I coach at. I also do have certification.

-Fuji
 
tennisgotomarket said:
Don't waste time coaching for 20 per hour. At the minimum, you should charge 40. But if you are a CS major, you should get internships. Don't go through UCLA and expect a good job after graduation if you don't have work experience.
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Well yeah, obviously I know that, but I don't have enough experience in programming because a lot of the languages in demand like PHP and C# I don't know yet. I really only know mostly C++, some Python, and a little Javascript, HTML, and jQuery. As a result, I'm coaching on the side until I get more CS experience next year haha.
 
well one thing to understand is that pros charging high rates at clubs are getting cuts taken out by the director or club plus they are taxed as self employed. so while $50-75 seems like a lot its really not. Its always funny to see the looks on kids faces when they start having to pay taxes....LOL. A Lot of tennis pros get the phone call from the IRS. Its a red flag occupation.

Be patriotic...pay your taxes....LOL. They only take around 40% of your income. You will live. always remember that when you have been on court for 10 straight hours in 100+ temps and your getting stomach cramps and diarrhea from dehydration.
 
magnut said:
well one thing to understand is that pros charging high rates at clubs are getting cuts taken out by the director or club plus they are taxed as self employed. so while $50-75 seems like a lot its really not. Its always funny to see the looks on kids faces when they start having to pay taxes....LOL. A Lot of tennis pros get the phone call from the IRS. Its a red flag occupation.

Be patriotic...pay your taxes....LOL. They only take around 40% of your income. You will live. always remember that when you have been on court for 10 straight hours in 100+ temps and your getting stomach cramps and diarrhea from dehydration.
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This is true. Working at a big club has it's benefits of lots of clientele, but the club takes it's fair share. Also, coaching 8+ hours a day on court in the sun is rather... interesting. It can be a bit taxing on weeks on end.

-Fuji
 
^^^ouch! That's a lot of cash for a guy who appears to have no coaching credentials whatsoever, aside from not making it as a player (I hate coach biographies that talk about playing this event, or beating the number whatever ranked player)
 
well thats just a location thing. looks like he keeps the weekends free to go sailing with his yacht buddies. There are lots of places like this.

location and competition are probably the two biggest factors for prices. Max must be a like-able guy!
 
magnut said:
well thats just a location thing. looks like he keeps the weekends free to go sailing with his yacht buddies. There are lots of places like this.

location and competition are probably the two biggest factors for prices. Max must be a like-able guy!
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Don't let my online persona mislead you! Ask anyone who has met me in real life, I'm actually a very nice person.
 
Ash_Smith said:
^^^ouch! That's a lot of cash for a guy who appears to have no coaching credentials whatsoever, aside from not making it as a player (I hate coach biographies that talk about playing this event, or beating the number whatever ranked player)
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Totally agree. It's not about you it's about your student. Go out get certified, attend conferences, update knowledge and work hard at producing players. Like reading your posts Ash.
 
MethodTennis said:
Really? I in no way believe that level of play = effective was of coach but then when I get emailed job ads they often mention level of play. If the player is reassured by the fact you could hit a good ball and that helps you get more business then go for it. What annoys me is when I read a long list of results and rankings and tournaments and then the player believes that this means he knows how to teach the game.
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I think competitve results are far more credible than certification. Maybe for beginners, it's better to have someone who has been trained in teaching progressions, etc but I want someone who can hit a good enough ball to break me down. Plus, I am looking for insights on competitive play. I just don't see much value in a 4.5 with a lot of paper certificates.
 
RetroSpin said:
I think competitve results are far more credible than certification.
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I know guys who walk into national coaching programmes after finishing their pro career. They just do a fast track coaching qualification and slot into full time coaching with the best juniors in the country!
 
MethodTennis said:
The tutors for many of the coach education courses I've attended are far more professional and better coaches than myself but I would kill them at tennis and would have done when they were younger as well. 'Break you down' what do you mean? I can set up an exercise in such a way that I'll beat Federer. Good coaches can do that. Granted Federer probably has plentiful access to hitters etc but you get my point.

A good coach would watch you compete and see where you break down and tailor sessions to the breaking point.
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I want to go into a match knowing that I will not face ground strokes or serves that can match what I practice against. I'm not interested in getting balls fed to me from a hopper, etc.

If I were a beginner, I can see the situation might be different but I'm not, plus I have limited time for practice.

All I was saying in the beginning though was that in evaluating a potential coach, say someone from CL, I would weigh current match results heavily. The fact someone got their PTR or whatever doesn't impress me all that much.
 
RetroSpin said:
I want to go into a match knowing that I will not face ground strokes or serves that can match what I practice against. I'm not interested in getting balls fed to me from a hopper, etc.

If I were a beginner, I can see the situation might be different but I'm not, plus I have limited time for practice.

All I was saying in the beginning though was that in evaluating a potential coach, say someone from CL, I would weigh current match results heavily. The fact someone got their PTR or whatever doesn't impress me all that much.
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sometimes it matters and sometimes it doesnt. there are a lot of dingbats that have certification. Its not that hard. There are also a lot of people that have spent a lot of time studying the game and know their stuff.

there are also a lot that get by on personality alone. 99% of people dont know anything about fundamentals or biomechanics. they just like the pro. Being good looking and fit is also a huge plus...especially for ladies. They just want to spend some time on court with a nice good looking guy for various reasons. tennis isnt priority #1.
 
Maximagq said:
Well yeah, obviously I know that, but I don't have enough experience in programming because a lot of the languages in demand like PHP and C# I don't know yet. I really only know mostly C++, some Python, and a little Javascript, HTML, and jQuery. As a result, I'm coaching on the side until I get more CS experience next year haha.
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Maximaqq, don't worry about what you know. it's about who you know.....now...I know that's a lot harder than learning a language. But you need to learn that.
 
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