Vic Braden and Welby Van Horn passed away last year and left a huge void in the tennis teaching profession. Braden was a renowned researcher whose insights will live on for decades…..he was also the funniest coach ever if you exclude a fella named Dave Romberg who taught at Cherry Hills Country Club in Denver for 29 years. Van Horn was famous for his ability to produce terrific junior players and his foundational approach has positively affected students and admiring coaches worldwide. Here are a couple of ideas from these outstanding coaches that might resonate with you. Braden used to say that tennis was the ultimate sport because it encouraged players to ‘laugh their guts out,’ on court. Van Horn described felonies as errors made into the net. It prompted another pro to encourage players to put a note in their tennis bag with the following statement printed on it. ‘When I’m playing my best tennis,I refuse to have net felonies.’ Thanks to these two amazing coaches who influenced our sport in such a remarkable way!
A fellow coach said that Bob and Mike Bryan played a US OPEN doubles final a few years ago where they had only two felonies in two and a half hours of play.
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