ParentingAces - The Junior Tennis and College Tennis Podcast

Last week I published an article on the new partnerships between Universal Tennis Ratings and the two major coaching certification organizations, USPTA and PTR (click here to read the article). And this week UTR announced another new partnership with Chinese Tennis organization Love Sports. Now, you have the opportunity to hear from UTR's CEO, Mark Leschly, about how UTR works and what's in store for the future. Since there seem to be a lot of misconceptions around UTR and its algorithm, I thought this would be a great chance to clear up some things and give you a peek behind the curtain. Universal Tennis is the company behind UTR powered by Oracle, a revolutionary system that provides a single, unifying language and standard for tennis players across ages, geographies and genders. The company’s vision is to unify tennis for everyone by bringing cutting edge analytics and community based technology to players worldwide independent of level. UTR is a unique, algorithm-based system for tennis that allows anyone to measure, identify and track their level relative to other players, while also providing tools for coaches and organizers to run UTR Powered Events that are level based rather than age or gender driven. Today the UTR powered by Oracle system is gathering data over 6.5 million match results, across 700 thousand players in over 200 countries. The Company is owned by Iconica Partners (www.iconicapartners.com) and other seasoned investors, advisors and operators in tennis, sports, technology and media. Partners include Ken Solomon, President of Tennis Channel; Mark Hurd, CEO of Oracle; Jan Leschly, former CEO of Smithkline Beecham and ATP Top 10; Ken Hao, Managing Partner, Silver Lake Partners; Tennis Media Company; and the LA Dodgers investment group. To sign up for UTR powered by Oracle, please visit www.MyUTR.com. Mark Leschly combines both an in depth knowledge and experience in sports and tennis with nearly 25 years of entrepreneurial management and investment in technology led businesses as a venture capitalist and startup CEO. He is a former ATP ranked player selected to the Danish Davis Cup, two time Captain and #1 player for Harvard Men’s Tennis and a member of the USTA Foundation Advisory Board and USTA Player Development Council. Mark is the Founder and Managing Partner of Iconica Partners, a principal firm investing at the interface of sports, media and technology. He is an owner in several sports teams and leagues including the Los Angeles Football Club (Major League Soccer team in LA), Professional Fighters League (a new MMA league), Team Liquid (esports) and Oklahoma City Dodgers (AAA Minor League baseball team). He is an owner and Managing Partner of Rho Capital Partners, a leading technology focused venture capital and private equity firm with over $2.5B under management (www.rho.com). Mark received an M.B.A. from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and a B.A. with honors from Harvard University where he played tennis all four years. Thank you to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your tennis community. You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or via the ParentingAces website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Several months ago, Tennis Parent (and now, Podcaster!), Robert Garrett called and asked me if I would ever consider doing an episode where he could ask questions of a top junior player, parent, and coach. Of course, I said YES, and this week's episode is the outcome of that conversation. Coach Todd Widom, who y'all have heard from many times on ParentingAces, arranged for his young player, Ronnie Hohmann, and Ronnie's parents, Ron and Judy, to come on the podcast so that Robert could ask them pointed questions about how Ronnie progressed from beginner to 2017 Eddie Herr 16s Champion. The Hohmanns were incredibly honest in their responses to Robert's questions, giving all of you some great information as you help your own junior player reach his/her highest potential. Please remember, though, that this is only one family's experience. There are so many pathways through Junior Tennis, and I hope to be able to have more of these types of conversations with families and coaches over the next few months. You will hear the Little Mo tournaments referenced. You can find more info on Little Mo here. Thank you to Todd, Judy, Ron, Ronnie, and Robert for chatting with us! You can reach Todd at [email protected]. You can find Robert's new podcast, Payers & Players, here. Thank you to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your tennis community. You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or via the ParentingAces website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sports Made Easy, formerly known as My Game Solutions, is an online community that connects players, instructors, and facilities in real time. With the mobile app you can search for players using any preferred location and find a place to play. Participate in a friendly game or competition to help you improve your overall game. Parents and junior players can use the app to schedule practice matches which can be reported to UTR directly through the app IF both players agree. Sports Made Easy really does make the whole notion of playing more practice matches so easy! As a service provider - such as coach, hitting partner, personal trainer, and racquet stringer - you can promote your services on the platform and reach new clientele. As a service provider, get real-time messages and bookings through this innovative app. For more information, please email customer support. They are also conducting a summer camp with a subsidized rate plan for high performance and beginners. High performance kids will be trained with retired pro Melanie Oudin. Check out their events on their website or download the app and register to view all the upcoming events. Neil and Chuck have offered a generous discount to the ParentingAces community! While the Basic Version of the app is free for everyone, Parenting Aces community members will get 30 days of Premium Services for free and a 20% discount on monthly subscription charges for each month you pay for Premium Service until the end of 2018. You simply need to use promo code PA2018 while registering. For more information, email [email protected] A big thank you to Neil and Chuck for taking the time to chat with us. Also a big thank you to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic If you’re so inclined, please share this – and all our episodes! – with your tennis community. You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or via the ParentingAces website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We rarely get to hear from Tennis Parents outside the US, so I was thrilled when UK Tennis Parent Sharon Gaskin agreed to come on the podcast! Sharon shares her son, Ryan's, entire tennis journey starting with his early junior years and moving to his training at Soto Tennis Academy in Spain, eventually landing in the US to play college tennis. She talks about the difficulty of working with the LTA (the UK equivalent of USTA), deciding to send her son abroad to train in his early teen years, and the challenges of college recruiting as an international PSA. Sharon mentions the relationship her son formed with Sara Borwell (hear my podcast with Sara here) in order to help him navigate the recruiting process. Things haven't gone completely smoothly, as you'll hear Sharon explain, but Ryan seems to be settling into American College Life now that he's into his 2nd semester and that the dual match season is underway. A big thank you to Sharon for taking the time to share her journey with us. Also a big thank you to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic If you're so inclined, please share this - and all our episodes! - with your tennis community. You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or via the ParentingAces website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tami Matheny became a Mental Game Coach in 2008 and started Refuse2LoseCoaching, LLC. She knows the role the intangibles play in career success and longevity and has had experience with working on the mental skills at the collegiate level with tennis, basketball, softball, baseball, volleyball, golf, field hockey, cross country and soccer student-athletes. Tami believes that while it’s important to work on the physical and technical aspects of sport, the mental side is just as important; mental skills are often the differentiating factor for the most successful athletes. Tami understands that talent can not always overcome a lack of confidence or mental toughness, but a high level of confidence and mental toughness can often overcome a lack of talent. She enjoys interacting and working hands on with coaches, athletes, and teams to make a difference. In addition to working with student-athletes and teams, Tami has written The Confident Athlete: 4 Easy Steps to Build and Maintain Confidence in hopes of providing a easy but productive way for athletes to take control of their confidence. Tami also has spoken at various businesses, Rotary Clubs, churches. She has also presented at Dan Tudor’s Recruiting Conference.In addition to Mental Game Coaching, Tami Matheny was one of the most successful tennis coaches in USC Upstate tennis history. Working physically and mentally with the men and women’s teams to produce nationally ranked teams, conference champions, and numerous individual awards.Matheny became the head men and women’s tennis coach at USC Upstate in 1998. During her five-year stint with the tennis programs, she elevated the programs to levels never before seen. In her first two seasons as coach, Matheny led the women’s team to a remarkable improvement, as the team went from 0-12 the year before she took the job to 9-16 in 2000 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2003. The men similarly quickly developed after an 0-12 season in her first year. The Rifles won five matches the next year before reaching the NCAA Tournament in 2001. By 2003, Matheny earned the Peach Belt Conference Men’s Coach of the Year, thanks to leading the Rifles to a 20-2 overall record and a share of the Peach Belt Conference regular season crown. Matheny coached the men to the Peach Belt Conference championship match and to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight time. On the women’s side, a 15-8 record helped the Lady Rifles earn their first bid to the NCAA Tournament since 1995. The women finished the season ranked 25th in Division II. In total, Matheny coached one All-American, five All-Peach Belt Conference selections and 39 Peach Belt Presidential Honor Roll selections. She took the Spartan men to the NCAA Division II Tournament a school-record-tying three times.You can find Tami online at the following:Instagram: @refuse2losecoachingTwitter: @r2lcoaching and @tamimathenyThank you to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his original creations at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I can't tell you how thrilled I was to run into my old friend, Craig Cignarelli, at the BNP Paribas Open last weekend! It's been quite a while since we've chatted, and I knew he had some incredible knowledge to share with all of us. Thankfully, he agreed to sit down with me and talk junior development pathways and how technology is impacting today's up and coming players (and their parents). He also shares some "secrets" that coaches don't necessarily want us Tennis Parents to know, so you don't want to miss this one! In this Bonus Episode, you will hear Craig reference data regarding how many matches juniors should play and how many hours per week they should practice. You can find links to that data here. Craig also references using technology to upload video for coaches to analyze. Our friends at Tenicity can provide that service - click here for more information. Thank you to Craig for the conversation. I look forward to many more insightful episodes with him! You can find Craig on Twitter at @CraigCignarelli Thank you, too, to 10sballs.com for sponsoring my trip to Indian Wells and to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sixteen-year-old Ronnie Hohmann, who won the 2017 Eddie Herr 16s, recently had the unique opportunity to train with several players on the ATP tour. Both Ronnie - and his coach, Todd Widom - learned so much from these training sessions beyond just hitting forehands and backhands. All junior players and their coaches can learn a lot from studying how the pros train. With so many pro tournaments across the world, there are typically at least one or two days before the main draw starts where the players are on site and getting used to the courts. Practice sessions - other than for some of the very top players - are usually free to attend and open to the public. Consider taking your junior players to watch and see what it means to train like a pro. Coach Todd Widom made the most of his player's time hitting with the pros and found a way to point out and then incorporate those professional behaviors with the players he trains. Hear more about what he learned and how he's using it in this week's episode. You can find Todd online at www.twtennis.com. Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In order to further junior tennis development, it is crucial that coaches learn about and use the new technologies being developed. One of my favorites in terms of planning and communication is Tenicity. Harsh Mankad, the founder of Tenicity, is back with us to talk about the latest updates to his platform, including a new mobile app that parents, players, and coaches can use to track progress and keep the lines of communication open. Tenicity is all about organizing data, communicating the data, and understanding how to learn from it. As Tenicity grows and develops as a strong tool for overall player development, Harsh is traveling to meet with college tennis coaches, junior coaches, and national governing bodies to help them understand the platform and integrate it into their existing systems. As a former top junior and college player, and now, as a developmental coach himself, Harsh truly understands what it takes to help players reach their highest potential. I was happy to hear that Tenicity is partnering with the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) to get the platform into more college tennis programs. This could be a great recruiting tool for coaches who are looking for players interested in developing to the next stage, and Prospective Student Athletes (PSAs) and parents should definitely ask about Tenicity when meeting with college coaches. You can find Tenicity online at www.tenicity.com. If you have questions, contact Harsh Mankad at [email protected] or 651-285-7280. Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I recently had the opportunity to be interviewed by the amazing talents behind the Great Shot Podcast, Alex Gruskin and Max Rothman. We did the interview as I was driving back to Atlanta from the Blue Gray Tennis Classic in Alabama, and I had a blast chatting with these guys! From their website: Welcome toooooo…. Another special edition of Hey, Great Shot!! In today’s episode, co-hosts Alex Gruskin and Max Rothman sit down with Parenting Aces founder Lisa Stone to discuss the many rule changes being proposed to alter the game of tennis. The crew debate topics such as the implications of the newly announced ITF Transition Tour, the merits of ad vs. no-ad scoring, what role coaching should play during matches, and much more. The guys also ask Lisa about her personal history with the game of tennis, and why she chose to make her website tennis parent-focused. Personal note from the GSP hosts: We cannot thank Lisa enough for taking the time to do this interview with us. Her kindness, intelligence, and passion for the game were contagious throughout the episode, and we hope she is willing to come on the podcast again in the future. To find more of Lisa’s content, be sure to checkout her wonderful Parenting Aces Blog or listen to her Parenting Aces Podcast. As always, the opinions in this podcast are our own, and we are happy to debate them with anyone kind enough to listen to or comment on our episode. The podcast feed is now live, so please share our episodes with your friends, and subscribe to our show on iTunes. Thank you for listening, and we hope you enjoy our eighteenth episode!! A special shoutout to Super Producers Max Fliegner and Daniel Westhoff, the men behind the scenes who make these episodes possible. I hope you enjoy hearing a little more about my background and the story behind ParentingAces. Be sure to subscribe to Great Shot Podcast here as well as their sister podcast, Cracked Interviews. They are a great social media follow, too! Find Alex and Max on Twitter: @GreatShotPod Cracked Racquets on Twitter: @CrackedRacquets Cracked Racquets on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/crackedracquets/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As an adjunct to this week's podcast with Tim Russell, I also had the opportunity to chat with Dave Miley who has written a very detailed article about the ITF Transition Tour (https://www.facebook.com/davemileytennis/posts/987689468064829). Dave Miley was the Executive Director of Tennis Development for the International Tennis Federation from 1991 until 2015 and in this role he lead the biggest department of the ITF and was responsible for the non professional activities of the ITF including junior tennis, senior tennis, wheelchair tennis, technical and anti-doping as well as the ITF’s Development Programme. During this time, he visited over 140 countries advising National Associations, conducting coaches’ workshops and directing junior training programmes. Dave was actively involved in the ITF’s High-Performance programmes, helping to establish 5 residential training centres in Africa, Central America and the Pacific and overseeing the ITF’s Grand Slam touring team programme which involved 150+ players per year and included Gustavo Kuerten, Marcos Baghdadis, Grigor Dimitrov, Victoria Azarenka, Li Na, Hyeon Chung and Cara Black. Dave established the ITF’s coach education programme in 1993 and was involved in producing the ITF’s recommended syllabi for coaches which is now available in over 20 languages. He started the publication “ITF Coaching and Sports Science review” in 1992 and was the author of 7 tennis books including the ITF Advanced Coaches Manual, the ITF Schools Tennis Initiative Teachers Manual and Developing Young Tennis Players. He also was responsible for the creation of the tennis i-coach which was launched in 2007 as the ITF’s distance learning platform. He oversaw the growth of the ITF Worldwide Coaches Conference which grew from 100 coaches in 1991 to 850+ coaches from 100 + nations in 2013. Dave has presented at many conferences worldwide including the Worldwide Coaches Conference, the European Coaches Conference, the USTA, LTA and Tennis Australia national conferences as well as at various IOC and Peace and Sport conferences. In the area of tennis participation, Dave chaired the ITF Intro to Tennis Task Force which was instrumental in the development and implementation of the ITF “Tennis…Play and Stay” campaign to increase tennis participation which was launched in 2007 and for the development of tennis 10s and for the adult programme tennis express. This led to the Tennis10s rule change in 2010 which mandated that 10 and under competition use one of the slower red, orange or green balls. He also was responsible for the development of the International Tennis Number (ITN) which was launched in 2003 in Australia as the rating system for world tennis. Before working at the ITF, Dave owned and ran an indoor tennis and fitness centre in Kent with 6 indoor courts and 25 employees. On the playing side Dave was a Irish National Champion in 1982, 1984 and 1987. Dave holds a Bachelor of Commerce from UCD (82) and a degree in Business and economics from Lander University in South Carolina, USA (81). He holds the top coaching qualification from the British LTA (84). Dave was a member of the ITF medical commission (98-2015) and the Tennis Industry Association (2008-2015). You can listen to Part 1 of this discussion at http://traffic.libsyn.com/parentingaces/Tim_Russell_podcast.output.mp3 Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On February 1, 2018, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) sent out a press release describing its effort to reduce the number of professional tennis players through the creation of a Transition Tour (see http://parentingaces.com/repost-zootennis-itf-junior-rule-changes-2018/ and http://www.itftennis.com/news/278962.aspx for more info). What's obviously missing from the ITF's announcement is a clear-cut pathway for those juniors who choose to go to college instead of turning pro straight from their junior careers. I decided to reach out to the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's (ITA) CEO, Tim Russell, to get his thoughts on how best to navigate this new arrangement. As you'll hear in this week's episode, even Tim doesn't have the answers just yet though he is certainly doing his due diligence to get them. You can learn more about the ITA at www.itatennis.com. Tim Russell's email is [email protected]. He is incredibly responsive to anyone reaching out with questions - I am very grateful to him for that! I also had a follow-up conversation with former ITF Director of Development Dave Miley who has published some very detailed thoughts on this new Transition Tour and its potential impact. So, lucky you! This week's topic is a two-fer! Part 2 is available at http://traffic.libsyn.com/parentingaces/Dave_Miley_podcast.output.mp3 Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just because you're an experienced coach yourself doesn't mean you can't learn from the Great Coaches who came before you. Former college player Chris Trieste has learned that lesson first hand as he researched then wrote his book, 14 Great Coaches: Learn Their Lessons, Improve Your Coaching, Have A Lasting Impact. In this week's podcast, Chris discusses his book and the invaluable lessons he learned and now applies in his own coaching as well as in his life as a Sports Parent. I first learned about Chris when his book was named as a Staff Pick by Changing the Game Project. Shortly after, Chris emailed me, and I was pleased to hear he wanted to come on the podcast to share his knowledge and coaching approach with all of us. Chris feels he can help other Tennis Parents choose good coaches for their young players as they read the lessons learned from the great coaches featured in his book, so he and I both encourage all listeners to check it out! Read more about Chris's book here: http://changingthegameproject.com/culture-code-2017-book-year-plus-staff-picks/ Contact Chris at the following links: Twitter - @CTrieste2 Website: www.christrieste.com 14 Great Coaches Book: http://bit.ly/14GreatCoaches Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-trieste-00a9713/ Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Being sidelined by injury is never a good thing. In the short journey that is Junior Tennis, taking even a few weeks away from training and playing can wreak havoc on development, so it becomes that much more important to keep the body healthy. In this week's podcast, Dr. Erin Boynton, an orthopaedic surgeon who is also a Tennis Parent as well as a competitive tennis player herself, talks about the specific steps juniors can - and should - take to keep their bodies performing at the highest level. We need to understand the firing patterns of the various muscles and how to warm them up properly before each training session or match. Erin suggests we parents (and coaches) do a thorough warm-up ALONGSIDE our kids to encourage proper form and performance. Erin also talks about why playing multiple sports is so important, not only in terms of injury prevention but also in terms of overall athletic development. She offers some great suggestions for coaches and academies to encourage cross-play which could help prevent burnout as well as overuse injuries. Visit Erin's website at http://doctorerinb.com/. Follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/DoctorErinB/ and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DoctorErinB. Thank you to our sponsor 10sballs.com! Thank you, too, to STØNE for our music! You can find more of his music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wondering what your high school or college player should do this summer? USTA tournaments? ITA Summer Circuit? ITF Pro Circuit? Something else? Former USC Women's Assistant Coach West Nott has started a new summer tennis tour that takes male and female players who are currently in high school or college to a variety of tournaments along the Pacific Coast in California, Oregon, and Washington. What an incredible opportunity to travel with a former college coach, play some great matches, and learn from some of the best former college players in the game! In this week's podcast, West talks about the West Coast Tennis Tour, who should take advantage of it, and how the ParentingAces Community can get a discount (hint: mention ParentingAces when you call to get information!). According to West, "The idea is to take 30 players from San Diego to Seattle to compete in 13 events in 3 months during the summer. We are targeting high school kids looking to play college tennis, and we are looking for current college players who need events to play to keep improving during the summer months. We are forming a strong group of mentors to make the experience great for the kids, seeing many new things along the way, staying in giant homes, traveling as a team, one big road trip." West also discusses what he was looking for in a college player when he was recruiting for USC and how he will share that information with Tour participants. It's a tough process, and the more information you have, the better. Coupled with last week's podcast with Renee Lopez, you should now have a pretty thorough understanding of what this process is all about. West has also created a great college viewing opportunity for junior players called www.collegetennistours.com. The College Tennis Tours idea is simply taking junior players to the NCAAs to watch the Sweet 16 and on. This is a great way for parents to send their kids to get excited about their future and what playing for a college team is all about. He is selling 2-day, 3-day, and 4-day packages and is offering a special ParentingAces package as well. #SaveCollegeTennis The book West discusses in the podcast is BECOMING A SUPPLE LEOPARD by Kelly Starrett (click here for more information). Get more information on the West Coast Tennis Tour at https://www.westcoasttennistour.com Contact West directly by phone at 858-322-3171 or email him at [email protected] A big thank you to Morgan Stone and STØNE for our music! And congratulations to him on having his first original song, TIBET, made available on iTunes and Spotify. You can find more of Morgan’s music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The college recruiting process can be overwhelming and confusing. This week's guest, Renee Lopez, works with prospective student athletes (PSAs) and their families to help them find the right college programs then market themselves effectively to those programs. PSAs must find the right fit academically, athletically, and socially. The cost of the program has to come into play as well. Renee discusses the questions to ask the coaches, the admissions department, and yourself when choosing a college. Be sure to listen all the way to the end for a free offer from Renee! A seventeen-year coaching veteran, Renee Lopez has been successful both in business and sports. She has been a college soccer coach for 14 years and high school varsity coach for 3 years. She served on staff at the University of Florida and also been an NCAA Division I & II Head Coach for 11 years. In addition to being the CEO of her own leadership development and coaching education academy consulting service, she is the author of an upcoming book on the college recruiting process for student-athletes titled “Looking For A FULL RIDE?: An Insider’s Recruiting Guide” where she has interviewed 35 college coaches. (www.lookingforafullride.com) In addition to consulting with high school families, coaches, athletic directors, and guidance counselors, she regularly speaks as a keynote and teaches seminars with Fortune 500 companies, sports organizations, non-for-profits, and community groups. She runs a regular blog on the college recruiting process for high school student-athletes and she has been a guest on numerous blogs and podcasts, and radio, and has even recently been featured on ESPN Radio and SiriusXM. As a coach, she developed 3 All-Americans, was named Coach of the Year, and regularly led her teams to Academic Honors, Sportsmanship Awards, & Regional Championships. Her undergraduate degree is in Elementary Education and her graduate work from the University of Florida is in Exercise Sport Science (Sport Management/Pedagogy). She is also a certified speaker, trainer, and coach with the John Maxwell Team, Jon Gordon Company, 3Dimensional Coaching, and Positive Coaching Alliance. You can find more about her www.rlopezcoaching.com or email her at [email protected]. You can find her on social media as follows: Facebook Private Parent Group for those with high school student-athletes: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parentsofhsathleteswantingtoplayincollege/?ref=group_cover Facebook Private Coaches Group Learning Recruiting Process: https://www.facebook.com/groups/coacheslearningrecruiting/ Facebook Private Group for principals, guidance counselors, and ADs about athletic recruiting education: https://www.facebook.com/groups/athleticrecruitingforPrincipalsADsCounselors/ Linkedin: Renee Lopez (also can be found under Looking For A FULL RIDE?) Twitter: @lookn4aFULLRIDE Instagram: Reneelopez5 A big thank you to Morgan Stone and STØNE for our music! And congratulations to him on having his first original song, TIBET, made available on iTunes and Spotify. You can find more of Morgan’s music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Siberia isn't really the first place I think of when I think "Tennis Hotbed." However, there have been some incredible players coming out of that ice-packed region of the world, including this week's guest, Aleksey Zharinov. Aleksey considers himself a product of the Russian System of tennis development, due in large part to the commitment of his father to ensure he had a solid base in "technika" before allowing him to enter any tournaments. After making his mark at the University of Minnesota and taking a stab at the pro tour, Aleksey got into coaching and has recently published a book on the Russian System. Aleksey has graciously offered his book at a deep discount to the ParentingAces community. Simply go to https://aztenniscoaching.com/ and enter promo code PARENTINGACES at checkout to receive your $18.00 discount. I hope you enjoy hearing Aleksey's story and how he approaches developing juniors to their highest potential. You can email him at [email protected] or reach him by phone at (612) 730-2539. A big thank you to Morgan Stone and STØNE for our music! And congratulations to him on having his first original song, TIBET, made available on iTunes and Spotify. You can find more of Morgan’s music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This podcast is from 2013 but warrants a listen even now! Craig is still one of the most influential coaches in my son's Tennis Journey, and his wisdom about junior development needs to be shared. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do you get when you cross a marketing whiz with a top-notch event planner/journalist? A new ATP tournament featuring black courts, a female-anchored exhibition, and a community event for players and fans of all ages!Memphis's loss is Long Island's gain as the long-standing Winter Indoor event makes its move and brings top-level professional tennis to hungry fans in the form of the New York Open and Tennis Expo.Tournament Director, Josh Ripple, and New York Open Expo creator, David Sickmen, talk about the unique aspects of this new event in this week's podcast. They are going above and beyond to bring a Total Tennis Experience to players and fans through offering an inside look (and playing opportunity) at the tournament's facility in the cutting edge NYCB Live Arena as well as interactive experiences with college coaches, top junior coaches, and the latest tennis equipment and technology. From a College Recruiting panel discussion to a fashion show and everything in between, fans are in for a fabulous FREE day of top programs, camps, products, apparel, sports medicine, travel destinations and more. To register for the Tennis Expo, click here. Your registration also serves as your FREE parking pass!The tournament itself features many NextGen stars such as local favorite Noah Rubin, Next Gen ATP Finals Champion Hyeon Chung, and rising stars Frances Tiafoe, Jared Donaldson, and Reilly Opelka. The opening night will showcase exhibition matches from John McEnroe, James Blake, Genie Bouchard, and US Open Champ Sloane Stephens.For more information and to buy tickets, click here.Thank you to Morgan Stone and STØNE for our new music! You can find more of Morgan’s original music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Family practicioner, Charlotte Alabaster, originally from the UK and now living and practicing in Calgary, Canada, grew up playing tennis only recreationally but fell in love with the sport. As a family practice physician, Charlotte has encountered several elite youth athletes who are suffering from nutritional deficits. In this week's episode, she shares with us the specific nutritional needs of young athletes both prior to puberty and after. It varies greatly between boys and girls, and it's important that we understand how to help our young players get the required calories, vitamins, and minerals so they can reach their growth potential. Charlotte discusses specific food choices, the importance of reading food labels, and the various vitamins and minerals (and how best to get them). She addresses how vegans and vegetarians can meet their needs and maintain a high level of performance. She also addresses the prevalence of eating disorders in both boys and girls, the warning signs that an eating disorder may be brewing, and how parents can help their children maintain a healthy body image while also properly fueling their growing bodies. Charlotte recommends the following resource for the latest nutrition information: Authority Nutrition Music by: STØNE – You can find more of Morgan Stone’s original music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy New Year and welcome to our first podcast episode of 2018 with Patricia Hy-Boulais! Music by: STØNE - You can find more of Morgan Stone's original music at SoundCloud.com/stonemuzic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 3 of my series with Todd Widom, we discuss the importance of choosing a coach who has a long-term development plan for your child. Unfortunately for us parents, there are many coaches and academies out there who just want to keep giving your child - and charging you! - private lessons week after week, year after year regardless of how your child is developing as an overall player. These coaches may or may not have the knowledge or desire to create and implement a long-term development plan to help your child reach his/her highest potential. In this week's podcast episode, Coach Widom helps us understand how to determine whether or not a coach has the know-how to develop a player from the beginner stage through Juniors to college and beyond. You can find Todd online at www.twtennis.com. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Please visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I had the opportunity to speak at the Middle States USPTA Conference in Philadelphia last weekend, presenting to a room full of coaches. What a treat! This week's podcast is a slightly edited recording of my presentation. You will hear questions from the audience (please forgive the sound quality as I was recording the whole thing on my iPhone) and my attempts at helping these coaches understand what parents want from them. We discuss communication, tournaments, rankings, college recruiting, and burnout among other things. I hope this presentation opens the door to many more opportunities to address coaches directly and help to bridge the gap between them and us. You will hear me reference a Facebook Live video that I did regarding USPTA certification. You can find that video at https://www.facebook.com/ParentingAces/videos/1676603665745115/. You will also hear me mention Allistair McCaw's new book, Champion Minded. You can find his book here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/069279154X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=069279154X&linkCode=as2&tag=pareaces-20&linkId=d437a485e4f34c3ac4ce061b067fd289 Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Be sure to visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Tennis Parent Extraordinaire, Steve Johnson, passed away unexpectedly in May, the tennis world was in shock. Steve was a man who devoted his life to his family and his sport, coaching not only his own son to the highest level of the game but also committing himself to helping all young players who wanted to learn and succeed in tennis. Dennis Claus was a good friend of Steve's and decided to pull together a tournament to honor this dear man. The tournament included a Men's Open division as well as a high school division in order to further Steve's work with the high school he and his wife, Michelle, and their kids all attended - Orange High School. The proceeds of the event will go toward preserving the facilities and the tennis program at Orange. In this week's episode, Dennis talks about the how and why of the tournament as well as his thoughts on the importance of playing high school tennis. Dennis currently coaches his local high school team as a labor of love. For information on the joint tournament between USTA and UTR that we discuss in this episode, go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/761/ and https://blog.universaltennis.com/2017/11/01/usta-and-utr-partner-to-stage-a-tournament-in-orlando/. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Please check us out at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carlos Goffi has a very impressive coaching resume, listing John McEnroe and Mary Carillo among his successful charges. In this week's throw-back episode from 2013, Coach Goffi shares how he learned to coach, why he feels young athletes should play a variety of sports, and why it is so important for us as parents to learn how to control our emotions and body language as we watch our young players compete in the classroom, on the field, or on the court. This episode was recorded several years ago as I was driving with my son back from Mobile, Alabama, where we had spent the long weekend at a junior tournament. Listening to it today brings back so many memories and emotions of my years traveling with my son! Having just returned home from spending a long weekend with him and my daughters in Los Angeles, I am reminded of how tennis helped cement a bond between us that I hope will last forever. Tennis is truly the gift that keeps on giving! You can find Carlos Goffi's book, TOURNAMENT TOUGH, here. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Please check us out at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this second in a series of episodes devoted to the business side of tennis, Coach Todd Widom discusses how to determine what coaches and academies have really accomplished with their players. Whether it's rankings or college placements and scholarships, sometimes you have to dig deeper to truly understand what an academy's claims truly mean. Todd offers up specific questions to ask and helps parents cut through the marketing hype as they search for the right training environment for their junior players. To listen to Part 1 of this series, go to http://traffic.libsyn.com/parentingaces/Todd_Widom_podcast.output_1.mp3 You can find Todd online at www.twtennis.com or via email at [email protected]. His phone number is 954-296-5610. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Please check us out at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Y'all know how much I love to hear about tennis players giving back to their communities. And, when the various organizations within our sport take the initiative to sponsor community service opportunities . . . well, that is The Best! In this week's podcast, I chat with Mary Edman, Director of Community Programs for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) and Rhiannon Potkey of TennisRecruiting.net about their respective community service programs. The ITA is sponsoring an actual Community Service Month throughout October wherein college teams come up with community service activities, log their service hours with the ITA (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeA6-g6MN1NvgXp0AFOeXRtQehb4-ZNZuDJtD88-TY2tL8MqQ/viewform?usp=send_form), post photos and videos to earn points (http://indi.com/itachallenges/communitaservice), and have an opportunity to win grants for their college teams. TRN is sponsoring its own Community Service Initiative called First Serve for Community to encourage junior players to give back. This is an ongoing initiative wherein TRN will feature the good works of its players through articles on its website, social media, etc. I am so happy to have an opportunity to share these great initiatives with all of you and hope that you will encourage your junior and college players to get involved. I will be sharing both the ITA's and TRN's stories on the ParentingAces Facebook page and Twitter feed. To reach Mary Edman at the ITA, email her at [email protected]. To reach Rhiannon Potkey at TRN, email her at [email protected]. If you are interested in sponsoring an episode of the ParentingAces podcast, please go to http://parentingaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/SponsorshipPackages-Aug-2017.pdf for more information. We hope you'll visit us online at http://parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the last year, we saw something pretty remarkable in terms of Roger Federer's career. He took extensive time away from the game then came back to win 5 titles including 2 Majors and 2 Masters 1000s. Federer's time away had to do with his age (he's now 36!) and some recurring injuries that were impacting his ability to perform at his best. And his decision to decrease his playing schedule is starting to trickle down to others on the tour, including Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic, as well as players at the entry level of the professional game. If things continue as they have in the past, we will likely start to see these types of extended breaks from training and competing trickle down to college and maybe even junior tennis. And, according to this week's guest, that is a very good thing. Your kid can't play if he/she is injured. So, what can we parents and coaches do to help prevent the most common injuries in our young players? Dr. Neeru Jayanthi of the Emory Tennis Medicine Center offers some valuable insights into how we can use early screenings and other methods to reduce or even prevent injury from over-use and over-training. Dr. J shares information on his STAY (Specialized Training Assessments in Young Tennis Players) screenings and how he's using the data he's collecting to help coaches at all levels better train their young athletes. He also discusses his opinions on how our current ranking structure feeds the need to over-train and over-play, leading to a high attrition rate in our sport as young as age 13. The goal, according to Dr. J, is to keep our kids playing tennis beyond their junior or college years so that it truly is a sport for their lifetime. Through early assessment and smart scheduling we can help them prevent the injuries and burnout that may take them out of the game prematurely. To schedule a free assessment with Dr. J and his team, go to https://calendly.com/neerujayanthi/tennis-medicine. To contact Dr. J directly, email him at [email protected] or [email protected]. To read Ben Rothenberg's New York Times article addressing the WTA's age eligibility rule referred to in the podcast, go to https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/10/sports/tennis/us-open-girls-final-anisimova-gauff.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share If you are interested in sponsoring an episode of the ParentingAces podcast, please go to http://parentingaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/SponsorshipPackages-Aug-2017.pdf for more information. We hope you'll visit us online at http://parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the growth of the internet and the proliferation of online tennis sites, it's tough to separate the proverbial wheat from the chaff. Coach Todd Widom comes to the rescue! In this first in a series of episodes devoted to the business side of tennis, Todd discusses the best way for parents to see past the bells and whistles to determine whether or not a potential coach or academy is right for their family. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Please visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The topic of cheating in junior tennis seems to come up ad nauseum both on this podcast as well as on the ParentingAces social media outlets. I'm not sure if that means the issue is getting worse or if we're just talking about it more, but, either way, it is something we as a Tennis Community need to act on to ensure the growth of our sport. In this week's ParentingAces podcast, Bill Patton and I revisit past conversations we've had around cheating and what to do about it. Bill lays out some specific action items in his e-book, How To End Cheating in Junior Tennis (visit https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Y00NKNK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00Y00NKNK&linkCode=as2&tag=pareaces-20&linkId=2b3a09843f63af59fba90d21bf36832d to view and order the book). He also leaves the ParentingAces community with a challenge to take specific steps ourselves to stop this negative aspect of our sport. We also discuss Bill's upcoming USATennisCoach Deep Coaching Workshop. You can get more information on the USATennis Coach Facebook page here. To watch Bill's live YouTube broadcast of the first part of our podcast, click here. Thank you for listening and sharing our podcast with your tennis community! Please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Google Play or wherever you like to grab your podcasts! If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, click here for more information. Find us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Seventeen year old Trey Hilderbrand and his father, Mark, joined me in the interview room at the US Open to discuss his incredible run at this year's US Open Juniors event. They share details about Trey's tennis development and his plans for the future. We appreciate the support for our podcast. If you are interested in sponsoring one or more episodes, please go to http://parentingaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/SponsorshipPackages-Aug-2017.pdf Visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since I'm not yet at the 2017 US Open, I thought I would throw things back to my last trip to our Home Slam and my conversation with Tennis Parents Extraordinaire: Wayne Bryan (father of Bob & Mike, the Bryan Brothers), Steve Johnson (father of Stevie who passed away earlier this year), and Melanie Rubin (mom of Noah). These three have so much knowledge and great advice to share to those of us coming up behind them. I hope you enjoy hearing from them. I plan on releasing another podcast episode later this week from the 2017 US Open, so please keep an eye out for it. The US Open Juniors tournament is now underway, and the Collegiate Invitational starts Thursday, both of which will provide lots of great content for another podcast! And, for those interested, we are now accepting sponsors for the ParentingAces Podcast. If you'd like to learn more, please visit parentingaces.com/sponsorshippackages-aug-2017/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coach Craig O'Shannessy knew there had to be more to developing players and analyzing matches than simply relying on the opinion of others. He looked to other sports like baseball, basketball, and soccer and found that those sports relied on a unified method of collecting data, analyzing it, then using it to improve performance. The eyes, afterall, don't always tell the whole story! In early 2010, Craig started Brain Game Tennis (click http://www.braingametennis.com to go to his website) so he could share his data with others in the tennis world. As Craig writes on his site, "Tennis looks like a game of pinball, with the ball careening here, there, and everywhere. But it's not. It's actually the exact opposite. Tennis is a game of repeatable patterns in four specific areas - serving, returning, rallying and approaching. Study the patterns, learn the winning percentages, and make the game simple. That's what Brain Game Tennis stands for. No more guessing. No more opinions. Just the facts please..." And now Craig has introduced Gameplan, his newest product for use in junior development, college tennis, and beyond. Listen to this week's podcast for more information on Gameplan and how you can purchase it. Then go to this link (https://www.braingametennis.com/stop-guessing-start-knowing/) to read more. NOTE: If you purchase Gameplan - or any of Craig's other Brain Game Tennis products - during the two weeks of the 2017 US Open, you will receive a 20% discount. To contact Craig directly, go to his homepage here (http://www.braingametennis.com) then scroll to the bottom for the Contact Craig O'Shannessy link. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the ParentingAces Podcast, please contact us. You can reach us at www.parentingaces.com. You can email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

High-performance coach Jim Harp has been around a few years, more than 30 to be exact, and he knows his stuff! He makes it his mission to learn something new every day so he can better coach the junior players under his care. He works with all levels of juniors - from the very beginners to the D-1 college bound and everything in between. In this week's podcast, Jim and I discuss his coaching philosophy as well as his new role as an advisor to TennisMentors.net. He has a lot of wisdom to impart to Tennis Parents and is more than happy to answer your questions if you'd like to reach out to him. You can find him online at HarpTennis.com or via email at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Photo courtesy of Bill Kallenberg & Captured In Action What happens when two top juniors get together to form a business while giving back to the sport they both love? TennisMentors.net! I had the opportunity to chat with Trent Bryde and Patrick Kypson the day before their week at Kalamazoo 2017 started. They took some time away from their tournament preparation to talk about their goals as tennis players as well as in business. Trent and Patrick have wisely partnered with Jim Harp of Harp Performance Tennis Academy to market their mentoring service to young players around the US. Jim is an experienced coach based in the Metro Atlanta area and is a huge asset to this blossoming business. The other two mentors on board so far are Gianni Ross and Sam Riffice. They hope to eventually include some female mentors, too. Through their new venture, these young men hope to meet with and advise those coming up behind them. Whether it's through an online chat, a phone call, or an in-person hitting session, they will work with a player on a one-to-one level with the aim of helping the younger players reach their own tennis goals. Be sure to check out their website at http://tennismentors.net. Huge congratulations to Patrick on winning the Boys 18s singles (and for reaching the finals of the Boys 18s doubles) at Kalamazoo last week! Please join me in wishing him all the best as he puts his US Open Wildcard to use in a few weeks! Please visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Contact Lisa at [email protected]. Note: We are currently seeking additional sponsors for the ParentingAces podcast. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Lisa at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Professional tennis player, Rubin Statham, chats with Lisa about his life growing up with his twin brother in New Zealand and going through the juniors there then transitioning to a life on the pro tour. A few years into his career, Rubin and his twin, Oliver, noticed that they were spending in excess of $17,000 per year on stringing, almost half of their overall prize money. They decided to find a way to cut their expenses and go into business at the same time. That's how the Pro Stringer Platinum was born! Rubin talks about why every junior player should learn how to string his/her own racquets and the best age to start stringing. Rubin graciously agreed to offer a nice discount to the ParentingAces community, so if you're interested in purchasing one of these fabulous portable stringing machines, go to https://pro-stringer.com/the-pro-stringer-platinum-in-action-limited-time-offer/ and use PROMO CODE "ACES100" to get a $100 discount at checkout. To read more about the Pro Tennis Platinum stringer, check out this article on ParentingAces.com: http://parentingaces.com/how-to-save-money-on-racket-stringing/. Be sure to visit us at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Tour Level Program was born of a vision to bring together tennis experts from around the world and to make the program accessible globally to junior, collegiate and professional tennis players. The program experts' collaborative approach enables you to add to your existing team while maintaining great synergy. Using online platforms such as Skype, they are able to offer a variety of 'off-court' online training with their experts that includes Tennis Fitness, Nutrition, Mental Training, Mindfulness, Skype Yoga and Recovery Strategies - each of them key to being a complete player. They also provide exciting Tour Mentorship opportunities with members of the tennis elite: Guy Fritz, a former touring pro and winner of the prestigious Team USA Developmental Coach of the Year in 2016, will provide ATP Tour Track Mentorship. Angelica Gavaldon, former WTA Tour world no. 30 and Fed Cup Team Captain for Mexico, will provide WTA Tour Track Mentorship. There are also in-person training options including high performance on-court coaching from former ATP Tour world no. 18 Vince Spadea (Los Angeles, CA), Guy Fritz (San Diego, CA) and Matt Hanlin (McKinney, TX). Additionally, for those located close to or willing to travel to their world experts, in-person training will be available for all aspects of the Tour Level Player Development Program. Contact Mark for more information, either using the Contact Form or by emailing [email protected]. You can reach him by phone at (310) 923-1856. Also be sure to follow them on social media: http://www.facebook.com/TourLevelProgram, http://instagram.com/tourlevelprogram, https://twitter.com/tour_level Reminder: you can still enter the 2017 Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tournament in Baltimore August 12-13. Go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/ - entry deadline is August 5th! Visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sport Psychologist, Dr. Michelle Cleere, talks with us about why training the brain is crucial to the overall junior development process. Her approach to working with young players is to normalize the process and help them understand that they need tools to deal with the ups and downs that naturally happen during a tennis match or during training. If all a child knows how to do is throw a temper tantrum or cry, then they are more likely to give up on the sport. Instead, what if they were able to process and file away their strong emotions so they didn't get in the way of their play? This is the work that Dr. Michelle does with her young charges. She gives them the tools to develop their own mental game plan. You can learn more about Dr. Michelle at https://drmichellecleere.com. Email her at [email protected]. To purchase her book, Beating the Tennis Demons, go to https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00WFG2AJG/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00WFG2AJG&linkCode=as2&tag=pareaces-20&linkId=e407c93a7974ea287379cea8280e9594. DR. MICHELLE CLEERE Elite Performance Expert Dr. Michelle helps professional, junior and age group tennis players overcome their performance challenges. It’s her passion, mission, and promise. Ultimately, she works with top athletes to help them unlock the power of the mind and create the mental toughness necessary to be the best. Dr. Michelle’s extensive academic background, which includes a PhD in Clinical Psychology and a Masters in Sports Psychology, allows her to help clients deal with performance anxiety, gain more confidence, and build resilience. As many clients attest, their experience with Dr. Michelle is exactly what they needed and more than they expected – it was life changing. Dr. Michelle’s bestseller, Beating the Tennis Demons, helps clients develop practical skills to gain more control over competitive environments and mitigate the interruption in play to overcome intense odds and defeat adversity. She has been involved in many different sports and understands the stress and demands to perform at the top. As a 15-year USAT Coach, she developed simple and effective tools to mentally train her athletes, and they are used by PTR and USPTA coaches around the world. If you are interested in finding out how Dr. Michelle can help your child beat their tennis demons, email her for a free 30-minute phone consult – [email protected] . She works with clients remotely via Skype or phone. Be sure to enter the Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tournament August 12-13 in Baltimore at http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. If your child is unable to play but you would still like to support our fund to provide grants to college tennis programs at risk of being cut, you can make a donation using Venmo to my email address: [email protected]. Visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Russell, the head honcho at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), discusses how his organization is working with colleges, coaches, and communities to save and grow college tennis across the US. The ITA has developed a self-assessment tool, the Program Health Index, for college tennis programs to use in order to determine whether their team is "safe" or at risk of being cut. The assessment includes items such as the team GPA, how much community outreach the players do, and how often the college president attends matches. Tim and his staff hope this will help prevent program cuts by helping coaches learn what's important to university administrators. Tim stresses that the ITA is committed to telling the stories of college tennis, not just to the community, but also to college presidents and other decision-makers at the school. It is a tough sell since tennis is a non-revenue sport, but the Program Health Index and other tools are helping the ITA to make its case effectively. Of course, it wouldn't be a college tennis discussion without addressing the subject of international players! Tim and I delve into that topic as well. You can learn more about the ITA and its initiatives at www.itatennis.com. Just a reminder that entries are still open for the Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In tournament in Baltimore August 12-13. You can enter at http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. Visit us at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I will once again be covering the BB&T Atlanta Open, the kick-off men's event to the US Open Series. This year's tournament will be held at Atlantic Station in the heart of Atlanta's Midtown district July 22-30, 2017. For more information on the tournament, go to http://www.bbtatlantaopen.com. At this year's Media Day, I had the opportunity to chat with Young Guns Chris Eubanks and Trent Bryde (who is coached by Viv Chhetri and Will Wright) about their tennis goals and the role tournaments like this one play in their overall development. I also had the chance to talk to Trent's dad, Bruce, not only about Trent but also about the other two Bryde children, Karlee and Kyle, and how he and his wife, Kathi, balance the various interests of their offspring. Be sure to enter the Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In tournament(s) before the deadlines! For the Atlanta event (July 17-19) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/. For the Baltimore event (August 12-13) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. If you'd simply like to make a donation to our fund which will provide grants to college tennis programs at risk of being cut, you can do so via check made payable to The Sol and sent to 70 1st Avenue SE, Atlanta, GA 30317 OR you can now donate via Venmo to [email protected]. Thank you for any support you can give! This is also the last week to take advantage of the ParentingAces discount on Match!Tennis App. If you haven't downloaded it and taken advantage of a 30-day free trial, what are you waiting for???? For more information, visit http://parentingaces.com/tennis-parents-gotta-get-app/. We hope you'll visit us online at http://www.parentingaces.com. Email [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two-time Australian Open Champion, Johan Kriek, has been working hard for the past several years to change how we train junior tennis players here in the US. Last year, he moved his academy from Charlotte, NC down to the PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, FL in order to maximize the opportunity for young players to train and learn. This summer, Johan is partnering with Ten-Pro Global's Junior Tour to offer the Kriek Cup, an age-group tournament for players age U10 through U16 August 13-19, 2017. Players can register to compete in their own age group PLUS one age group up to maximize the number of matches played with a minimum of 4 matches guaranteed to each player. On-court coaching is allowed during the set breaks. Johan's academy is also offering a special training camp the week prior to the tournament to help players adapt to the clay and to the South Florida heat and humidity. Per the press release from the Johan Kriek Tennis Academy: All highly talented junior tennis players around the world are invited to participate in the KRIEK CUP USA International Junior Tournament organized by TEN-PRO Global Junior Tour. The tournament which takes place at PGA National Resort & Spa, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida during school vacation, August 13 through 19, 2017 gives the perfect possibility to combine a holiday with World top junior tournament and also promises participants an enjoyable stay at the beautiful and sunny Florida resort. This tournament is part of a very successful series that is being played at the world's most prestigious tennis academies such as the Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy, Kim Clijsters Academy and the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy. The Johan Kriek Tennis Academy is the first and only academy in the US to host this event. The tournaments results are counted by UTR (Universal Tennis Rating) and will be played in separate competitions in each age category at the same time (U9), U10, U11, U12, U13, U14, U15, U16. As part of the packages embedded in this great tournament, four matches are guaranteed per person with new coaching on court. Johan Kriek and the Johan Kriek Tennis Academy team will also conduct a Kriek Cup Preparatory Camp right before the tournament. For more information on the camp visit https://www.johankriektennis.com/kriek-cup-tennis-camp For more information on the Kriek Cup, go to https://www.johankriektennis.com/events/kriek-cup-2017-this-august/ Registration is still open for both Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tournaments. For the Atlanta event (July 17-19), go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/. For the Baltimore event (August 12-13), go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. Be sure to visit us online at www.parentingaces.com. Email us at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

My dear friend, Sol Schwartz, passed away suddenly in March 2016, and a group of us decided to honor his legacy and try to continue his life's work by creating a very special junior tennis tournament. The inaugural tournament was held in Sol's hometown of Baltimore in August of 2016. This year, we are excited to expand the tournament to two cities: Atlanta July 17-19 and Baltimore August 12-13. In this week's podcast, we hear from others affiliated with the tournament as well as from Sol's wife, Ilene. My hope is that you'll feel compelled to sign your junior players up for these tournaments after hearing from them! After all, in what other junior tennis tournament is your child guaranteed 3 matches all for the low cost of $15 per day? A huge thank you to the tournament sponsors: 10sballs.com Holabird Sports The Intensivist Team Kassimir Physical Therapy Match Tennis App Maller Wealth Advisors Solinco Dunlop Tennis Trunk Universal Tennis Rating Universal Tennis Academy Voss Water Melanie Rubin Michael Sellman Ilene, Dori, and Evan Schwartz For more information on the tournaments, you can visit the following links: #theSol Atlanta: http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/ #theSol Baltimore: http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/ More info on this year's tournaments: http://parentingaces.com/thesol-year-2/ Info on last year's tourney: http://parentingaces.com/sol-schwartz-savecollegetennis-all-in-tournament/ Info on Sol: http://parentingaces.com/tribute-to-a-gentle-man/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Should we parents push our kids to be fiercely competitive? Or should we protect them from the knockouts? In Part 8 of our conversation, John Falbo is of the opinion that not only should we push our kids to be competitive but it is also OUR RESPONSIBILITY as parents to do so in order for them to be successful in life. As usual, John doesn't mince words, and some may find his opinions offensive, but that's what I love about him! He speaks his mind as someone who has lived through the rigors of junior and college tennis and used those experiences to find success in the business world. You can find John's Facebook video here: https://www.facebook.com/ You can find the article he references here: https://tennisdadblog.wordpress.com To enter the 2017 #theSol Atlanta tournament, click here. To enter the 2017 #theSol Baltimore tournament, click here. To get info on the Match Tennis App, click here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like most of us Tennis Parents, Lindsay Lee Waters (who also happens to be a touring pro) found herself spending an inordinate amount of time dealing with her son's junior tournament scheduling. Between searching for tournaments on TennisLink, UTR, and other sites then choosing which tournaments were appropriate given her son's current level then signing up without missing the deadline then checking every few days to see if her son got in and whether the draws had been posted, Lindsay was overwhelmed. She knew there had to be a better way. So, Lindsay and her husband, Heath, a high-performance junior coach, enlisted the help of some techies to develop an app for that. A few months later, the Match!Tennis app was born. I won't spoil the podcast by laying out all the features of the app in the show notes, but suffice it to say that if your child plays junior tennis, you absolutely have to download it. And, the fact that, as part of the ParentingAces community, you get a 30 day free trial PLUS a 20% discount makes this a no-brainer! Here's how to take advantage of the discount: 1. Go to http://matchtennisapp.com/parenting-aces/ 2. Enter promo code “acesmonth” into the promo code box during registration to get your 20% discount to a monthly Match Tennis App subscription. 3. Enter promo code “acesyear” into promo code box during registration to get your 20% discount to a yearly Match Tennis App subscription. 4. Make sure to use the correct phone number and email address during registration as you will be sent verification code to your text or email in order to secure your registration. 5. If you have any issues completing registration or need any assistance contact [email protected] and they will help you get squared away. 6. The discount codes are only good through July 15, 2017, so act quickly! The Match Tennis app is nationwide so every state in the US is able to use it and take advantage of the 20% discount. NOTE: You will need to put in your credit card info during registration. However, you will receive a 30 day free trial to give you time to see if the app is right for you. You can easily cancel using the desktop app before the 30 day trial ends by clicking "My Account" then scrolling to the big red "Cancel Subscription" button to avoid any charges on your credit card. Entries for the 2nd annual Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tennis Tournament are now open. We are thrilled that Match Tennis App will be a sponsor this year! For the Atlanta tournament (July 17-19) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/. For the Baltimore tournament (August 12-13) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. Also, registration for the ITA Summer Circuit is now open. Go to http://www.itatennis.com/Events/ITA_Summer_Circuit.htm for information. Visit us at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dave Mullins comes from an extensive tennis background, both as a player and as a coach. He is originally from Dublin, Ireland, and came to the US to play college tennis. He wound up in the world of college coaching, having a stellar career at the University of Oklahoma as the head women's coach. A couple of years ago, Dave retired from coaching and returned with his wife and two children to Dublin where he is now working at the same club where he grew up playing. He is also devoting a good amount of time to helping families navigate through the tennis development process. In this week's podcast, Dave and I talk about how rising college freshmen, as well as current college players, should be spending their summers. Should they be playing tournaments? Should they take an internship? Should they have a paying job? Should they take time off and relax? Of course, there's not one answer that is best for every player, but Dave backs up his answers with what he's learned in his years as a player and as a coach. He shares very important information as we move into the summer season. To find Dave online, visit his website at www.davemullinstennis.com. You can also reach him via email at [email protected]. Entries for the 2nd annual Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tennis Tournament are now open. For the Atlanta tournament (July 17-19) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/. For the Baltimore tournament (August 12-13) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. Also, registration for the ITA Summer Circuit is now open. Go to http://www.itatennis.com/Events/ITA_Summer_Circuit.htm for information. Find us at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The past 12 days at the NCAAs at the University of Georgia have been incredible! The level of tennis and sportsmanship exhibited by the student-athletes, coaches, and fans (well, mostly!) has been superb. I ran into some old friends (including Stanford Super Fan, Cliff Hayashi!) and made some new ones. I even had the opportunity to meet some long-time digital friends in person - including College10s2day's Bobby Knight - what a treat! At this year's Championships, I wanted to give y'all a glimpse at some of the people who make this event so great, so I reached out to some of the players, parents, and behind-the-scenes folks involved. The volunteers from UGA did an incredible job of keeping things running, including squeegeeing courts, manning the gates, and keeping all of us fed and hydrated. I hope those of you on Twitter and Instagram enjoyed my updates there, too! In this week's ParentingAces Podcast, which is a bit longer than usual (sorry!), you will hear from Taylor Davidson, a senior at Stanford; Francesca DiLorenzo, a sophomore at Ohio State; Chanmeet Narang, the UGA Men's Tennis Team Manager; Elizabeth Milano, a UGA student and volunteer at the Championships; Tammy Duncan and Olga Reinberg, parents of UGA players; and Beata Redlicki, mom to players at University of Arkansas and UCLA. Please pardon the background noise as these interviews were actually conducted on the grounds of the Championships. As mentioned in the podcast, entries for the 2nd annual Sol Schwartz #SaveCollegeTennis All-In Tennis Tournament are now open. For the Atlanta tournament (July 17-19) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/261/. For the Baltimore tournament (August 12-13) go to http://events.universaltennis.com/tournaments/336/. To watch the FloTennis profile on Michael Redlicki, go to https://www.flotennis.com/article/56190-8-things-you-didn-t-know-about-mike-redlicki. Also, registration for the ITA Summer Circuit is now open. Go to http://www.itatennis.com/Events/ITA_Summer_Circuit.htm for information. For more information on the 2017 NCAA Division I Tennis Championships, visit http://www.georgiadogs.com/sports/m-tennis/spec-rel/ncaa-2017.html. A huge THANK YOU to the University of Georgia, the NCAA, and the ITA for working together to put on my favorite event in tennis, hands down. Visit us at www.parentingaces.com. Email me at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PlaySight Head of Sales Racquet Sports, Josh Graves, grew up in tennis. Upon graduating from Northwestern where he played #1 for the men's tennis team, he sought a job. Using the vast store of resources he developed throughout his tennis career, he landed his ideal job: working with a cutting-edge tech company in the tennis arena. PlaySight has really changed since I was first introduced to it at the 2014 NCAA Tennis Championships. The company has created more affordable options for colleges and other facilities that want to bring the latest video, streaming, and stats technology to their users. Now, PlaySight is situated in 20 of the 32 schools represented at the NCAA Team Championships as well as at the new USTA Lake Nona facility. They also have a presence in several private clubs around the world, including the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The PlaySight folks have also created a great new tournament format called PlayFair using their video replay capabilities as a sort of challenge system (click here for my article on the first collegiate PlayFair tournament). So far, PlayFair has been very well received by key players, including coaches, officials, and players. PlaySight has partnered with USTA to test out the PlayFair format at some junior tournaments. We should expect to see more of these tournaments over the coming months which is great news for junior tennis. PlaySight has developed an app as well, which can be downloaded free of charge from the App Store or the PlaySight website. It provides free video annotating and sharing as well as free viewing of livestreaming. To reach PlaySight, go to www.playsight.com. You can also find them on the various social media outlets. To listen to my 2014 podcast with PlaySight founder Gordon Uehling, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOzK3qByYeM&list=PLfiLuMW_ON87GUE6yUO5lVErBpThwyC1r&index=6 Visit www.parentingaces.com Email [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On July 28, 2015, Tim Siegel received a phone call that tragically changed his life. In this week's ParentingAces podcast, Tim talks about his son, Luke's, golf cart accident and how his family has turned such a horrific event into a foundation dedicated to helping others. Tim grew up in tennis, achieving the highest level as a junior player, college player, and on the pro tour before moving into college coaching at Texas Tech University. He lives with his wife, Jenny, and their children in Lubbock, Texas, now working full-time to care for Luke and to share Luke's story in hopes of raising funds to assist other families that have a child suffering with a traumatic brain injury. FoxTV will air a recently-produced documentary on Luke this summer (air dates listed in image below). The ITA also produced a short video on Luke which you can view at https://www.facebook.com/ITACollegeTennis/videos/vb.44553009422/10154633892519423/?type=2&theater Please take the time to visit the Team Luke Foundation website at http://teamlukefoundation.com. You can follow Luke's story on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Prayforlukesiegel/?ref=br_rs, on Twitter @TimSiegelTTU, and on Instagram @Luke.Siegel Visit us: http://parentingaces.com Contact us: [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, the world lost a great man, a great supporter of tennis, and the Tennis Parent I aspired to be when Steve Johnson, Sr. passed away. I first met Steve at the NCAA Championships in Athens, GA when he was on a panel for parents and high school-age players who were interested in learning more about college tennis. After the panel discussion, my husband and I spoke with Steve and thanked him for his candor. I never guessed that would be the beginning of a friendship that would find us together at the US Open, Indian Wells, the Easter Bowl, and at a variety of college matches in Southern California. Whenever I traveled to SoCal, I would always let Steve know I was coming to "his coast" in hopes that we would have a chance to meet up and catch up. If he wasn't too busy teaching tennis lessons or spending time with his family, he would make the effort to find a way to come to wherever I was and say hello. The last time was at the Boise State-UC Irvine match just a few weeks ago. I will miss Steve's friendship and his council. My thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Michelle, and his two well-loved children, Alison and Stevie. Godspeed, my friend. This podcast was originally recorded in December of 2012. To read an interview between Steve and Frank Giampaolo, click here. For two other interviews I did with Steve, click here and here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adam Van Zee played his college tennis at D3 Wabash College then coached both the men's and women's teams at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana. He now works in development at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis while also writing and hosting his own podcast for Division3Tennis.com. In this episode of the ParentingAces podcast, Adam and I discuss the ins and outs of playing a Division 3 sport. We talk about how to finance a D3 education when the NCAA does not allow for athletic scholarships, how the D3 recruiting and application process works, and how PSAs can use the D3 Recruiting Hub to narrow down their list of potential schools. NOTE: According to the information I was able to find online, PSAs are allowed unlimited official visits to D3 colleges starting the first day of their senior year of high school. However, they are only allowed one official visit per college. In Divisions 1 and 2, PSAs are limited to 5 total unofficial visits. If you have questions about choosing a D3 tennis program, you can reach Adam on Twitter @d3centraltennis or via email at [email protected] For more information on Division 3 from the NCAA, click here and here. My apologies for the ad-lib from Sully mid-episode! Keywords: adam van zee, college, d3, division 3, earlham, ncaa, official, recruiting, tennis, visits, scholarships, financial aid, college tennis, coach, student-athlete Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coach Ed Krass runs a series of college exposure camps for high school age junior players (rising 9-12 graders). His goal is to help these kids learn from the college coaches themselves so they have a clear idea of what it means to play college tennis. Not only are the kids on the court with the head coaches themselves, but they also have the opportunity to talk one on one with the coaches and ask questions that can help them throughout the recruiting process. In this episode of the ParentingAces podcast, Ed shares a day in the life of his campers as well as some of the things potential student-athletes should look for in a college tennis coach and program. Plus Ed graciously offers a $50 discount to the ParentingAces audience! To redeem the discount offer, visit the Register Now link on CollegeTennis.com to choose the date and location you'd like your player to attend, then call 813-684-9031 and let them know you're a ParentingAces listener who would like to take advantage of the discount. For more information, visit CollegeTennis.com. Also, check out OneOnOneDoubles.com for information on the doubles drills and tournaments that Ed discusses during our podcast. Book mentioned in podcast: Coaching Tennis by Coach Chuck Kriese (click here to buy) To contact Ed Krass, call 813-684-9031 or email [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices