Do New York Tennis Players Need to Move to Florida? No!
As a New Yorker and a teaching pro, I have faced frustration from many parents regarding the challenges of raising a tennis player in the New York metropolitan area. First and foremost, the weather forces us to play indoors for more than half of the year, but the real problem is the cost of lessons and the court time, especially during the school year when we go indoors, as court time becomes difficult to come by and very expensive.
The fact that New York kids play indoors for most of the year puts them at a disadvantage when they go out of state and compete against kids who are used to playing in hot and humid conditions year round.
On top of that, if you take into consideration that the competitive nature of New York City makes the school regiment more intense than most other parts of the nation, you will come to the conclusion that it takes a lot of effort to produce a high-level player from this area.
Some families choose to relocate to a warmer place or send their child to a boarding school/tennis academy. Another option is to have the child take home schooling courses and quit regular school which allows more time for practice in earlier times of the day. But for the vast majority of New York tennis parents, these options simply do not exist because of their job commitment, financial limitation or simply because they like the New York lifestyle and don’t want to relocate.
I don’t think that it is right to remove a child from their natural environment, relocate them, put them in another school and change their life completely. There is a way to become a good tennis player in the Northeast region of the U.S.; it just takes more careful planning and discipline from both the player and their parents.
It sounds great when you think of your child being able to play outdoors all year at cheaper rates in warm weather, but the truth of the matter is that many of the academies are pretty commercial, there is not too much technical instruction, and while they do spend a lot of time on the court, it’s not necessarily quality time. In my opinion, to get to a college level, there is absolutely no reason to move out of New York or to even take the child out of a regular school.
Here are a few tips on how to increase the chance of a child to maximize their potential as a tennis player in the New York area:
1. Do the research
Try out a few programs before you decide, the nearest club might not be the best one for your child. Sometimes it’s smarter to spend an extra 20-30 minutes in the car to travel to a better facility with better coaching.
2. Find a good coach early on and stick to him/her
I have often seen parents switching coaches and programs frequently, which can be counter-productive to the player’s development. Like anyone else, the child needs stability and continuity. Tennis is a long-term sport that takes years to master, if you find a good coach or program that works for the player, it is best to keep the consistency. The kids who excel the most in my programs are those who stuck with me for years and took advantage of a continuing and consistent way of teaching.
3. Don’t have more than one pro be the primary teacher
I faced this dilemma many times in the past where the child will have a "summer coach” or a different coach for weekends at the country club. This too can be counter-productive to the player’s development. The child needs to know who their primary coach is … who is in charge of their technical development and who has the last word. All other pros should be considered as a supplement and should communicate their thoughts to the primary coach. I have had cases where a child would work with me for seven months and then would go to Florida and work with another pro for a week and when he came back, their strokes were all different without the pro telling me what they did, thus creating a very confusing situation for the child.
4. Sense of urgency on the court
New York kids need to know from an early age that the New York reality is such that "time is money." Due to the unique pace of life in our area, court time during prime time is extremely valuable, therefore, the child is expected to make the most of the time on the court, start on time, give 110 percent while out there and listen carefully to their instructors.
5. Off-court fitness
The colder climate makes Northeast-based players more vulnerable to heat and humidity, making the fitness part of your child’s development even more crucial for New Yorkers. They will have to do some extra work at the gym during the winter so they don’t melt when summer comes.
6. Take advantage of the summer and vacations
Due to the grueling school schedule endured by New York area kids during the fall and winter, the summer becomes a vital time to step up the volume of hours on the court and play more practice sets and tournaments when court time is easier to get.
7. Think outside the box
It may be challenging, but there are ways to find court time and quality practice time during the indoor season. I have kids coming for lessons before school, some of them come out of school early on certain days, some schools are flexible that way if you write a letter. Weekends are always a good time to play more tennis during the school year.
The bottom line is that it is very possible to produce good tennis players in the New York area. It’s just like anything else in New York … it’s just a bit harder than in other places in the country.
