Let's face it. Tennis is expensive!

[forehander]

Look at any modern day successful pro tennis player and you'll see a person who has spent countless hours in his/her childhood with private coaches. Most of these players parents have dished out large sums of money to get them where they are today. Does anyone doubt this?

If you were lucky enough to have a parent who is also a coach, then yes, you saved yourself some money, but in the end it is the private, one on one lessons that made the difference.

Does anyone know of any modern successful pro who has not had this type of elite instruction? I doubt it, because I don't really think it is possible to make it to a high level in tennis without it.

Other sports are different. In football and basketball, you can play high school, play college and go pro (assuming you have the natural ability and/or body type). I would venture to say that 99% of players of these sports have never had a private lesson.

What do you guys think?

 

[arosen]

Well, to support your theory, Marat Safin had his mom coaching him and his sister Dinara untill he needed an upgrade for a coach.

 

[snowpuppy]

ditto that. I serious wonder how people expect this sport to be as popular as other sport when everybody consider the main key for improvement is to seek professional instruction. If you play any other sport like basketball, baseball, football (both kind) most people will just tell you to play more to get better. Coaching and professional assistance is only reserve for true competitive play. In tennis the common suggested remedy for a beginner is to "go to a pro". The thing is, they are not cheap! You expect ppl to fork over 40 -80 bucks an hour JUST TO START playing the game?

But then again. all this is is not necessary. You can buy a $20 racquet, pick up dead balls, and sneak into parks to play (in NYC you are suppose to have a tennis permit just to play in public parks, and it cost $!) But yea, tennis is not a "buy a ball and play" type of sport.

 

[AndrewD]

Id reckon most of the Russian women would disagree with you. Sure, they ended up getting private coaching but only after they'd shown they had the sort of talent worth investing in. Most of them started off playing in a run down facility with pretty ordinary equipment and 'coaches' who were a long way from pro level.
Pat Rafter was one of 6 or 8 kids and his family definately didnt have the money to splash out on fancy gear or private lessons. Id hazard a guess that quite a few of the South American players come from families that fit into the lower socio-economic groups.

Anyway, expense is one of the reasons why so many of the pros have had their parent as their coach. They had the innate talent right from day one so all they needed, initially, was someone to get them to the sort of level where they could attract attention.

 

[goober]

Didn't the Williams Sitsers get coached by their dad until they were like 12 or something?

I think a lot of pros have no name, low level coaches as kids until they really start to show promise.

 

[Chadwixx]

thats what makes tennis such a competitive sport. in other sports u just need raw talent (nba mlb nfl) or extensive training (golf). in tennis u need both.

btw the williams sisters had the best coaching in the world, once they came to florida. all for free. yet how many times have u heard them thank the little guys.

 

[andfor]

thats what makes tennis such a competitive sport. in other sports u just need raw talent (nba mlb nfl) or extensive training (golf). in tennis u need both.

btw the williams sisters had the best coaching in the world, once they came to florida. all for free. yet how many times have u heard them thank the little guys.

Good point about the Williams never giving credit to the real experts behind their success.

 

[NoBadMojo]

dont think you can fairly compare a team sport to essentially the individual sport of tennis..it is possible to get on tour without all the personalized instruction but becoming exceedingly unlikely with all the money parents throw at their kid's tennis games to buy them a great game..i think there are many many more trained tennis players these days than athletic ones....the best athletes dont play tennis IMO in general for some of the reasons listed, and kids seem to specialize more in one sport these days which really doesnt turn them into great athletes...it turns them into trained tennis players...'in the old days', the jocks played all the sports..didnt care what sport it was as long as there was some sort of game and ball involved....playing the other sports helps your tennis skills IMO....it's just different out there these days.

 

[Datacipher]

It is generally very very expensive to be on track for the pros. You don't need expensive coaches to develop a great game but generally you do need(among other things):

1.good facilities
2.good training partners
3.good tournament experience at an appropriate level

Usually these things add up to a pretty hefty sum.

 

[Datacipher]

Id reckon most of the Russian women would disagree with you. Sure, they ended up getting private coaching but only after they'd shown they had the sort of talent worth investing in. Most of them started off playing in a run down facility with pretty ordinary equipment and 'coaches' who were a long way from pro level.
.

Absolutely it's true Andrew that these talented girls started and formed their games away from the spotlight....BUT most of the Russian girls were picked up by Bollettieri or some other enitity and brought over to the US where their training/expenses were subsidized. They probably would not have developed into top level pros if left in Russia despite their talent. Not because of coaching but because they might have had trouble getting the needed facilities, competition and experience.

 

[forehander]

Great input. I'm not convinced that facilities have much to do with it. I mean really, as long as you have some courts to work on you can develop your game. They don't have to be great courts. Competition is important. Until you face it, you don't fully realize what it takes. So, a combination of expert training, natural talent and competition is what it takes. Miss out on one of these three factors and you're just another nobody. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but it is reality.

 

[The Pusher Terminator]

On the most part tennis is very expensive...but there actually are some exceptions.

Monica Seles! She began to play Tennis in a communist counrty which no longer exists (Yugoslavia). It was very cold there and there were no indoor courts. She basically taught herself by Hitting balls against every wall she could find. Sure, much later she went to Bolleteri (for free!), but by that time she had already had developed her own style from hitting against a wall. Think about it...Bolleteri would never teach anyone to hit a two handed backhand and forehand while making a shriek that sounds like the mating call of a moose. She was also able to hit the ball at odd angles and so quickly on the rise from playing against a wall.

Jimmy Connors came from a poor single parent family. Basically his mother taught him how to play the sport. She tught him to hit the ball at only two speeds: 1. hard and 2. harder. She was angry at men and Jimmy was her revenge!

Bjorn Borg was the son of a professional ping pong player. Borg played ping pong before he played tennis. He applied his game to tennis using the open stance and a top spin shot (which is essentially a pin pong "slam"). All the experts said he was wrong to use the open stance and western grip...he was stubborn and played the way he wanted. He was right!

Although John Mcenroe did have expenisve private lessons, he really did not need them. Do you really think that anyone taught him to use that crazy service motion? Does anyone else on the face of the planet use that motion? Of course not! He developed that all by himself. In his book "you cannot be serious" he says he came up with that service motion because it helped his back. Furthermore, his serve and volley style is artistry and can never be duplicated...no one has the touch that Mcenroe had, and no one has ever ran up that close to the net. Pros teach to volley low balls bent over and low to the ground ...Mcenroe stands straight up! Have you seen Mcenroe's ground-strokes? No one else hits the ball like he did. Continetal grip, and simply using his touch against an opponents power. He didnt bend his knees very much and hit most of his strokes standing straight up like a robot! Do you really think that any pro taught him to play like that?!

Johnny did not pick up a tennis racquet until the age of 13 and although he was taught the basics, he invented his own style. He was an artist!

 

[Datacipher]

Great input. I'm not convinced that facilities have much to do with it. I mean really, as long as you have some courts to work on you can develop your game. They don't have to be great courts. .

That's really all I meant by "facilities" Forehander. In some places, even getting a court regularly for extended time is tough. Especially in colder climates, then you need indoor courts and sometimes it's very expensive or even impossible to get indoor courts regularly(let's say at least 5 times a week for 1-2 hours). As you said, the quality of the court is secondary, and I have heard of some pros even using makeshift courts for extra training.

 

[Datacipher]

On the most part tennis is very expensive...but there actually are some exceptions.

!

Pusher, it's true that those people developed in large part on their own and with help from parents, so did many others, which is largely why I don't think famous coaches are the answer. Being a coach myself, I would like to give them more credit, but the fact is that most good junior coaches realize that a lot of the work you do with kids is letting them (and helping nudge them) develop their strokes and talents(then we foolishly think we need to do it another way with adults....)

But, bear in mind, that for your examples of Seles and Mcenroe, a great deal of money went into them. Mcenroe came from a family of means and they spent a great deal of money both in lessons(I agree a lot of his unorthodox form was natural, which is what I believe in anyway) but also in traveling to tournaments. The same is true of Seles after she came to the US. Yes, like the Russian's she developed her game, but to then progress in the junior ranks she needed to come to the US. Bollettierri himself is quick to point out the enormous dollar figure he put into Seles(the family then ripped him off badly, giving him nothing back).

 

[The Pusher Terminator]

Datacipher,

What about Roddick? I think even you would admit that the biggest part of his game is his serve....and that was not taugt to him by any pro. In fact Andy developed that serve on his own. He was fooling around one day....plaiyng "baseball" with a tennis racquet ...basically trying to hit the ball out of the park. To his surprise...one of his shots actually landed in the service box at the highest speed he had ever hit a ball. He was completely blown away and decided to develop this stroke as his regular serve. Thus...the fastest serve ever know to mankind was born. Free of charge!

as far as Seles is concerned, Bolleteri did not develop her through the Junior ranks....she was already a Pro at 16!!! I think she even won a grandslam at that age. Bolleteri may have fine tuned her but that weird twohanded forehand and backhand was all Monica!! Bolleteri did not teach her that . Lets not forget that Bolleteri took her in for free.....why? Because she was already awesome...she taught herself by the time she got to Nick....she was already an awesome player. So lets listen to Seles and get out there and hit a million balls against a backboard!

In regards to mcenroe....yes he did come from a rich family...any yes he did study tennis at the Port washington academy. But his style was all natural. No one is able to teach a style that strange! No one has ever had a service motion like Mac. No one has ever had ground strokes like mac. No one has ever ran as close to the net as Mac. no one has ever volleyed standing straight up! Thats all Johnny .....no one would teach that stuff. at least we both agree that it was natural talent that propelled mac.

 

[Datacipher]

Datacipher,

What about Roddick? I think even you would admit that the biggest part of his game is his serve....and that was not taugt to him by any pro. In fact Andy developed that serve on his own. He was fooling around one day....plaiyng "baseball" with a tennis racquet ...basically trying to hit the ball out of the park. To his surprise...one of his shots actually landed in the service box at the highest speed he had ever hit a ball. He was completely blown away and decided to develop this stroke as his regular serve. Thus...the fastest serve ever know to mankind was born. Free of charge!

Pusher, I keep saying in each post, I don't think coaching is the key. A good coach is very helpful. BUT, I have always maintained that the most important thing is to let a kid develop his stroked naturally...or an adult for that matter. I do think famous coaches get WAY too much credit here, Nick B did not develop the Arias forehand or the Krickstein forehand or the Agassi forehand or the Courier forehand...but after those kids came through there, he capitalized on it and tried to figure out a way to teach it.(which I don't think he was all that successful at! Though I do give him credit as a motivator and as a visionary in building his academy and I think a lot of the criticism of him has been quite unfair.)

But we're talking about money here! Great strokes can be developed at little expense, however, the training and most importantly competition to turn those great strokes into a world class pro game, usually takes quite a bit of money. Roddick had a great deal of money spent on him, including his time at Evert's academy and his work with Tarik Benhabiles. This is not inexpensive, I had a junior who was at Evert's simultaneously and was a world class junior himself, playing evenly with Roddick day in and day out(and beating one Roger Federer in the juniors), I"m sure his parents could tell us something about the costs! Unfortunately a pro career was not to be for him. But I digress....

The only 2 recent Americans I can think of who may not have HAD to spend a lot are the Williams', Because they avoided a lot of junior competition and trained at home. Even for them, getting started on the tour would have cost a lot, but fortunately for them, the hype around them opened a lot of doors and by that point they had already established potential 7 figure endorsement deals.

On another note, I have heard that one advantage of a country like Spain is that it is physically a small country. Thus, travel to tournaments is cheaper. They also have centralized facilities where top juniors can train and not be all that far from home. They also have pro tournaments and you can drive from 1 to the other in a few hours. That's nice, because theoretically, you might be able to take the entire pathway to a world ranking without having do dish out nearly as much dough.

 

[Marius_Hancu]

Johnny did not pick up a tennis racquet until the age of 13

Not true.

In Richard Evans's book (written in cooperation with Mac), "McEnroe - A Rage for Perfection," at p. 27, it is mentioned:

"I like to say that I beat John McEnroe for two straight years," says his father with an impish grin. "From the age of eight to ten!".

During that time, he played at the Douglaston Club, which had 5 courts.

 

[Datacipher]

Not true.

In Richard Evans's book (written in cooperation with Mac), "McEnroe - A Rage for Perfection," at p. 27, it is mentioned:



During that time, he played at the Douglaston Club, which had 5 courts.

John started at age 8, Patrick at age 3. Moreover, John played and excelled at a number of "ball" sports since the time he could walk. According to his autobiography.

 

[Marius_Hancu]

On another note, I have heard that one advantage of a country like Spain is that it is physically a small country. Thus, travel to tournaments is cheaper. They also have centralized facilities where top juniors can train and not be all that far from home. They also have pro tournaments and you can drive from 1 to the other in a few hours. That's nice, because theoretically, you might be able to take the entire pathway to a world ranking without having do dish out nearly as much dough.

That's valid for Europe in general. Borg's coach (Lenart Bergelin) had a mini-van, loaded with several kids, he was travelling all over Europe to various junior tournaments.

You can see them both in 2001 in Monte Carlo.
http://mcpress.monaco.net/Actualite en image/Tennis/Tennis.htm
when Borg got the life-time membership to the club (so he doesn't have to pay the fees anymore))

 

[forehander]

Very interesting stuff. You all are very knowledgeable and I appreciate it. It almost sounds like facilities and a high level of competition, with a little motivation and help from a coach can be the key to allowing the most talented players to develop.

Speaking of Spain, does anybody have any opinions on the Sanches-Casal and the Bruegueras academy in Barcelona?

Thanks for your feedback.

 

[New Balls]

Why not just say it's a product of hard work, and that it's a direct result of what you put into it?

The Bryan bros. had their dad (who happened to own a raquet club) run drills everyday. But regardless of who had what facilities or coaches, didn't all these great players just go out there at an early age and play non-stop? I mean didn't these kids hit like thousands of balls everyday? I've seen guys pick up a raquet in high school, take lessons at the public parks (which is relatively cheap), then go on to play (somewhat) decent d3 college ball. Every now and then I see a guy with great natural instincts ie can read the ball, uses all shots, etc and wonder what if he'd started playing at a much younger age...

 

[Rob_C]

McEnroe's style isnt all that strange, if you consider he started playing with wood rackets. He was taught by his coach, Tony Palafox, to use the same grip for the forehand & backhand groundies. Thats the way alot of people back in the days of 3 of the slams being on grass played, I believe.

Also, Seles' dad taught her how to play. She had an older brother that played also, just didnt have the same success.

Lastly, Roddicks service motion happened during a frustrating practice session, when he wasnt hitting serves too well with his full service motion, so he hit a few with the abbreviated service motion, and the rest is history.

 

[The Pusher Terminator]

McEnroe's style isnt all that strange, if you consider he started playing with wood rackets. He was taught by his coach, Tony Palafox, to use the same grip for the forehand & backhand groundies. Thats the way alot of people back in the days of 3 of the slams being on grass played, I believe.

Also, Seles' dad taught her how to play. She had an older brother that played also, just didnt have the same success.

Lastly, Roddicks service motion happened during a frustrating practice session, when he wasnt hitting serves too well with his full service motion, so he hit a few with the abbreviated service motion, and the rest is history.

1. mcenroes style is not all that strange? Who else do you know with a service motion like that? Who else volleyes low ball standing straight up? In fact almost all of his strokes are hit standing straight up.

2. Seles older brother was Zoltan. He simply quit. Seles lived in a very poor communist country. She was also a minority in that she was Hungarian and trapped in Yugoslavia. She was discriminated against quite a bit and that is why her brother Zoltan now lives in Hungary.In any even , although her father did help...she mainl trained usig a wall...bottom line: she had no money.

3.Ok the Roddick service motion is an urban legend ...whether he discovered it fooling around or from frustration is irrelevant....the bottom line is that he discovered it!

4. Coria was so poor he taught tennis to feed his family. Therefore, the bottomline is that if you have the talent, then you will get the training. Seles, Sharapova, Kournikova all did not have a pot to **** in....yet they made it. Bottom line is that you simply cannot just take any individual pay for training since the age of 2 and expect him/her to be a champion. The greatest strokes on earth have always been created by sheer talent and it is up to the coaches to spot that talent and groom the player.

5. I stand corrected. mcenroe started at 8 and not 13. In any event , the man had pure talent....he developed his strokes on his own! No one can teach you to play like Mcenroe...thats why his game has never even come close to being duplicated. Henman is a serve and volleyer...but he does not have the same touch and strokes as mac did. Dent is a serve and volleyer but he is quite different than Mcenroe. No one has ever played the game before or after like mcenroe did. He developed his own peculiar style.

 

[forehander]

Why not just say it's a product of hard work, and that it's a direct result of what you put into it?

Because NEW BALLS, that is not reality. The more you are around sports and athletes, the more you realize that the cream of the crop are on top because of natural talent (and practice of course).

Unfortunately for all of those kids out there practicing their guts our, they will one day realize that life is not fair and it's not as simple as "he who practices the most, wins".

I know many people do not want to believe this, but I'm an old and wise guy now. I know it to be true.

 

[WW Volley]

Yes. Tennis is expensive to be competative at. Very few pros now or in the future will come from the lowest end of the economic spectrum. Unlike basketball, football, and baseball, tennis requires a lot of financial backing to get regular quality practice in.

Hockey suffers from the same problem, which is why in years past the NHL held fundraisers to try to get inner city kids on the ice. Soon as all those amazing atheletes realize they can do more than basketball (and maybe afford more) you'll see things change in hockey, tennis, etc.

 

[IOP]

Tennis can't be less expensive in Asia, even though almost all brand name racquets were made there with cost of less than 10% of the selling prices here. Those racquets were selling at prices there (I am excluding mainland China) that are more than those here in the US.

I once live in a couple of so called civilized countries in the Asia Pacific. There were NO public (free-of-charge) courts. Coaching cost about US$25 - 35 / hr (7 years ago) from the most rotten coaches who could not even beat a 3.5.

I don't see the sport of tennis going anywhere in those sort of places where the rich are always doing all their best to keep everything inaccessible to the average middle to lower income people.

If you had live in Asia and observed how the rich and powerful people manipulate the lives of others, you would know what I mean.

 

[predrag]

[snip]

2. Seles older brother was Zoltan. He simply quit. Seles lived in a very poor communist country. She was also a minority in that she was Hungarian and trapped in Yugoslavia. She was discriminated against quite a bit and that is why her brother Zoltan now lives in Hungary.In any even , although her father did help...she mainl trained usig a wall...bottom line: she had no money.

[snip]

Zoltan quit what?
He played as a semi professional player in the German Bundesliga.
He was Monika's hitting partner for a long time.
She was discriminated ? Like how?
Tennis is expensive sport and it is hard to find courts. Seles family was not
that wealthy (however, most of the people are like that there) and they
were angry because Tennis Fedreation did not do enough (if anything) to help
Monika prepare for Orange Bowl which she won three times.
Pop singer let her practice on his private courts.

Monika started at 4 by hitting against the wall in their appartment.

Regards, Predrag

 

[loubapache]

I traveled to China last year and played tennis with a few people. I can tell you that it is very expensive to play tennis there.

First of all. all these made in China racquets are more expensive in China than in the US. US might be the cheapest place to buy things...

There are virtually no free courts in China (at least in Beijing where I was). It was winter and the indoor courts cost around $25 per hour, more expansive than where I play here in the US, not even factoring the wage differences.

The tennis balls that can be bought at Wal-Mart for $2 per can costs about $5 - 6 in China (the exact same balls). I brought a few cans of the Wilson Championship balls over and used them there.

Average wage earners are not likely to play indoor tennis in the winter. The a few people I played with own their own business/stores, work for Motorolla as midlle managers, and are government officials.

 

[The Pusher Terminator]

Zoltan quit what?
He played as a semi professional player in the German Bundesliga.
He was Monika's hitting partner for a long time.
She was discriminated ? Like how?
Tennis is expensive sport and it is hard to find courts. Seles family was not
that wealthy (however, most of the people are like that there) and they
were angry because Tennis Fedreation did not do enough (if anything) to help
Monika prepare for Orange Bowl which she won three times.
Pop singer let her practice on his private courts.

Monika started at 4 by hitting against the wall in their appartment.

Regards, Predrag

1. Zoltan quit playing tennis. There was a whole article on Seles a couple of years ago.

2. It is a known fact that the Hungarian Minority was heavily discriminated against in then Communist Yugoslavia (later Serbs & croats etc all killed each other...(hence ruing a great basketball team..Vlade Divac , petrovic and I foget the third) . Anyway...in that same article Monika talks about it.

regards

 

[joe sch]

The common denominator for most tennis pros is exceptional talent and lots of hard work. Many of the greats did put in alot of hard self work to get to the point of being recognized and offered the coaching and endorsement deals. You can read theory, watch champions and cross train yourself to an open tennis level but ofcourse exceptional coaching usually makes the difference between winning and losing to the best players in your age class.

 

[Rob_C]

3.Ok the Roddick service motion is an urban legend ...whether he discovered it fooling around or from frustration is irrelevant....the bottom line is that he discovered it!

He discovered it??????? Isnt that pretty much the same motion that Rafter & Rios use, plus alot of other people nowadays. When Agassi was defending his Wimby title in '93, he used that motion also, b/c of the layoff from the wrist injury.

 

[predrag]

1. Zoltan quit playing tennis. There was a whole article on Seles a couple of years ago.

2. It is a known fact that the Hungarian Minority was heavily discriminated against in then Communist Yugoslavia (later Serbs & croats etc all killed each other...(hence ruing a great basketball team..Vlade Divac , petrovic and I foget the third) . Anyway...in that same article Monika talks about it.

regards

Obviously, you did not get it from my post.

Hungarian Minority being discriminated is BULL.

They have schools in their own language, they have TV programs in their own
language, they have newspapers in their own language.
They have all the rights, and actually they are fighting for an independent
state.
If not having an independent state means that they are discriminated, then
you are right, they are.

Discrimination was not the reason why Monika had problem getting court time.
Not being able to afford it was. At least one of them.

Let me be clear, I do understand that you read everything what you are
saying in Monika's interview.
What I am ttying to say is, sometimes hearing one side is not enough.

Regards, Predrag

 

[edge]

Ol' man Williams was a very crafty hype artist. He personally hyped those girls to the stratosphere and had the tennis apparel companies and tennis pros salivating and chomping at the bit to take on the girls for free. I personally know a pro who was used as many other young pros were used as the girls fodder. They were hardly paid minimum wage to relentlessly hit with the girls. They also did alot of gopher crap like helping the girls with their homework, doing babysitting and running errands. After all that was done, the Williams clan never thanked them, never took care of them. They were discarded when the sistas went pro with all their endorsement money.

Every youngster that gets a free scholarship to Nick B's has ALREADY proven themselves in the tennis arena. Seles was already winning BIG tennis tournamnets as a junior playing 5 years ahead of her age throughout europe. Sharapova was already talked about throughout Russia BEFORE she came to FL. You think he's actually having an open tryout?! Sure the TV commentators make it sound the Cinderella way but NO! First you make a name for yourself by winning, after winnig and ranking advancement, the offers come in. I know as I am knee deep in the process. But before you get the wins and the sponsorships, you first have to spend $$$ for lessons, for hitting time in winter, to hit with competition, to travel to National tournamnets. No one gets there without $$$ unless the state sponsors them (e.g., in Russia) and picks them out after they win in competition among the many.

No, in the U.S., the state does not sponsor, (the USTA does not sponsor until you've proven yourself in national competition) so you are left to your own to spend $$$ to develope. The equipment is the cheapest part of the problem. My tournament playing son had been given free racquets from Wilson when he since 10 years old, but he had proven himself playing in the Little Mo Nationals the year before. He is on track and many pros (including the USTA) think he has what it takes to be a touring pro. He just turned 14 and is ranked #1 in his section and in the top 50 USTA National Rankings and still has a year to play his age group. Yes he does have a racquet sponsorship and he can get any apparel or equipment at less than 1/3 price price from a slew of companies. Yes he has receive scholarship offers from the academies and he will probably attend this fall. But before all that came to be, he had to prove himself and it cost more $$$ that it precludes the masses. This is a shame because I would love to see tennis broaden and atttract the masses because it's a great game but I don't see it in this country. Just my $0.02.

 

[rafael]

Roddick has explained the origin of his serve in interviews. When he was 16 he decided to see how hard he could hit the ball and the rest is history.

 

[johnmcc516]

You must be very proud edge. I would be.

 

[tennissavy]

Wothout a doubt tennis is expensive if one is taking private lessons, training inside in winter/rain... However, one of the most expensive sports is figure skating. Average skating lessons are a minimum of $1 per minute, the boots range from $500-$800+, blades $300+, sharpening for blades $10-$25, the costumes (you don't even want to go there)...and just think that every year you need to buy new skates, blades and costumes as the little one is growing.

 

[Defcon]

Tennis is also very expensive to play at any level other than recreational. I see a lot of people just buy a $30 racquet and go play on public courts to have fun. This approach would lead to success in many other sports such as soccer if one were to decide to become serious later on.

But in tennis it is very very hard to overcome bad stroke mechanics. And it is almost impossible to discover these on your own, by watching others play. So what ends up happening is people learn to hit the ball a certain way, buy ultra powerful light frames, and will never be able to progress beyond beginner.

I guess thats not really anyone's fault, its just an inherent quality of tennis - it is difficult to learn.

Speaking of expensive sports, skiing has to be right up there (downhill, not cross country). Even for a beginner, renting everything, its easily $100/day. Once you start thinking about buying boots/skis, season passes etc, its easily thousands.

 

[tennissavy]

Tennis is also very expensive to play at any level other than recreational. I see a lot of people just buy a $30 racquet and go play on public courts to have fun. This approach would lead to success in many other sports such as soccer if one were to decide to become serious later on.

But in tennis it is very very hard to overcome bad stroke mechanics. And it is almost impossible to discover these on your own, by watching others play. So what ends up happening is people learn to hit the ball a certain way, buy ultra powerful light frames, and will never be able to progress beyond beginner.

I guess thats not really anyone's fault, its just an inherent quality of tennis - it is difficult to learn.

Speaking of expensive sports, skiing has to be right up there (downhill, not cross country). Even for a beginner, renting everything, its easily $100/day. Once you start thinking about buying boots/skis, season passes etc, its easily thousands.

Yes, skiing is quite expensive too. I'm glad you brought that one up. It also trumps tennis in the expense department.

 

[Defcon]

Interesting fact about tennis and skiing - they are the top 2 sports for knee injuries. Not too surprising when you think about it.

What is surprising is that a large %age of tennis players also ski - I forgot where I read this but it may have had a European bias, where both are much more popular than in the US.

I have tendinitis in my my left knee from tennis, and I ski too. I've been taking care of it, but joint problems never fullly go away

 

[tennissavy]

Interesting fact about tennis and skiing - they are the top 2 sports for knee injuries. Not too surprising when you think about it.

What is surprising is that a large %age of tennis players also ski - I forgot where I read this but it may have had a European bias, where both are much more popular than in the US.

I have tendinitis in my my left knee from tennis, and I ski too. I've been taking care of it, but joint problems never fullly go away

Good luck with your knee injuries. I completely sympathize as I once had my skate blade come loose causing me to fall and twist my knee horribly. I had difficulties with my knee for YEARS. Thankfully, it is 100% now so there is hope. Sometimes an injury can linger for years and seem to be permanent but heal completely anyway- just quite a bit later than we wanted or expected!

 

[edge]

johnmcc516, I am very proud of my son, thanks. He's a great kid, very uassuming. You would never know he's ranked that highly, he's never arrogant, never talks about it. He just loves to play tennis and his Les Paul electric guitar. We have a great bond going on with driving together to tournaments every other weekend.