Tennis is in an Empire State of Mind right now as the US Open is currently underway. Yes, the quote might be talking about New York, but it certainly applies to The Open. So let’s break down that short verse.

Flushing Meadow’s concrete jungle holds 22,500+ fans and cost more than $250 million dollars to build, making it the world’s largest tennis-specific venue. Some of the biggest most memorable matches and were played under the bright lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium.

And you want to talk about “where dreams are made of” and “there’s nothing you can’t do”? How about Pete Sampras beating Andre Agassi in the 1990 finals to become the youngest champion? Or in 1994 where Agassi became the first unseeded player to win the Open?  What about the 5-setter between Blake and Andre that ended at 1am with Agassi famously saying, “I wasn’t the winner tonight, tennis was.” And let’s not forget 2005, when Kim Clijsters made her comeback complete with her first Grand Slam title. And most recently, American Melanie Oudin made a Cinderella-like run; upsetting the likes of Elena Dementieva, Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova before the clock struck midnight and she lost to Caroline Wozniacki. As you can see, the list can go on and on.

The US Open might be only one of four Major tournaments in the year, but for me, it’s the best. There’s something electric about having the rowdy New York crowd, 22,000 strong, cheering late into the night that makes this tournament special. I’ve only experienced the excitement through my “window to the world,” also known as my television. I can’t imagine what the energy level would be like in person. Needless to say, I’ve cleared up plenty of room on the DVR for the next 2 weeks. Sorry “Jersey Shore,” but you’ve just been fist pumped out of the top spot. As much as it’ll hurt me to do so, I’ll need to postpone the GTL (Gym, Tan, Laundry) for a few weeks.

Here at Tennis Warehouse, a few of us have grabbed our Magic 8 balls and made our predictions of what the final match ups will be. Winners are in bold.

Tiffani
Men’s Final: Andy Roddick vs Andy Murray
Women’s Final: Kim Clijsters vs Maria Sharapova
My take: I like both of these match-ups and the winners. Roddick is obviously a fan favorite and it’d be nice to see him explode back into the top 10 with an Open win. Plus, you can count on at least 8-15 shots of Brooklyn Decker by the camera crew. Who can root against Kim Clijsters? She’s such a sweetheart. Kind of like Sammie from the “Jersey Shore.”

Chris
Men’s Final: Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer
Women’s Final: Kim Clijsters vs Venus Williams
My Take: I think most people would agree the Rafa vs Fed final would be a dream match-up. And not just for Nike, although I think I can hear Phil Knight counting the Benjamins now. Women’s final would be a fun one with two big hitters and one of them being American.

Brittany
Men’s Final: Andy Roddick vs Rafael Nadal
Women’s Final: Caroline Wozniacki vs Venus Williams
My Take: Interesting men’s final. On one hand, I’d love to see Rafael Nadal complete the career slam, but on the other hand, Brooklyn Decker. Toss up! The women’s final would be a snoozer because I think Venus would roll through Caroline.

Kana
Men’s Final: Rafael Nadal vs Robin Soderling
Women’s Final: Na Li vs Kim Clijsters
My Take: I think this would be déjà vu of this year’s French Open final. Nadal wins it in straight sets with a running forehand passing shot on the final point. Crowd goes crazy. Nadal drops to the ground in tears. End scene. I think Kana’s Magic 8 ball was defective when it came time to making the pick for the women’s final match-up. Na Li goes out in the 1st round. Oopsie.

Spencer
Men’s Final: Andy Murray vs Roger Federer
Women’s Final: Maria Sharapova vs Kim Clijsters
My Take: Will Murray finally win his first Grand Slam? Not as long as the guy standing across the net has anything to do about it. Between the both of them, a total of 16 Grand Slam titles. Roger has 16, you do the math. This could be Sharapova’s comeback tournament versus a former Comeback Player of the Year.

Jason
Men’s Final: Andy Roddick vs Rafael Nadal
Women’s Final: Kim Clijsters vs Maria Sharapova
My Take: The men’s final is so tough! My mind says Nadal, but my heart says Brooklyn, err, I mean, Andy. I can’t pick against Clijsters, although I think this match would go to 3 hard fought sets.

So whose dreams are going to come true this year? What matches are going to make it out of the court and into the history books?

You know what they say: if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. Flushing Meadows, that is.

Where does the US Open rank on your list of favorite Grand Slams? What match ups are you most looking forward to?

Jason, TW

Maria Sharapova's Day look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

At night, she’ll up the drama and bring a refined look to the courts with her Maria Sharapova Night Dress. It’s all dressed up for the bright lights with seaming on the body for a sleek look and tuxedo-inspired lapels.

Maria's Night look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

Tune in today to watch her take on Australia’s Jarmila Groth in the first round. Good luck, Maria!

Happy hitting,
Tiffani, TW

Half-man, half-animal, Tony Horton and the rest of the Beachbody crew are what I like to call, MANIMALS.

Power 90 Extreme, more known as P90X, has become a daily routine for some of us working at Tennis Warehouse. We wanted to see if this was the “Mother of all workouts” and if it actually benefited our abilities on the tennis court.

You don’t need a full gym to do this program. All you need are push-up bars (if you have wrist injuries), pull-up bar, weights, and/or bands (which is what I use when it comes to pull-ups). I did a search on Talk Tennis to see if others had jumped on the same bandwagon. It looks like a lot of people are interested in its hype. Some attempt it, some do it, but only some have completed it. As for myself and Chris, we are currently in Week 7 and still going strong.

There’s a total of three phases, each consisting different workouts spread out over 4 weeks. Once your body starts getting used to the first three weeks, it changes in the fourth week focusing on different groups, then body shock again into the next phase. They refer to it as Muscle Confusion. Basically, the program keeps introducing new routines preventing a workout plateau.

Your results truly depend on what you’re willing to put into the program. Since I’m doing most of the workouts with Chris, we push each other due to our competitive nature. It’s always a competition between us and the Beachbody crew; comparing our strength to them. At the beginning, I came out of every exercise exhausted, sometimes to the point of vomiting. Going into Week 7, I now come out of every exercise completely energized because my fitness level has risen. Take that Dreya Webber and one-legged Plyo man! I’m doing legs with more weights and Plyos is like a walk in the park!

Along with the P90x workouts, I’ve bumped my tennis to three days a week and the shoulder is doing pretty well. I still have to use bands most of the time for pull-ups, but push-ups have gotten much easier. On the court, I can hit a more aggressive shot on my back foot or if I’m pulled into a defensive position. The core strengthening exercises are transitioning well into helping me have a stronger coiling action. With all of the exploding leg exercises, I can speedily get to most of Chris’s drop shots now… only to find that he’ll usually lob me afterward! That guy and his drop shots… make me .. sooo.. frustrated.

Anyways, I have yet to jump on the P90x diet, because I admit it, I love my foods! Other than that, I give the developers and the program of P90x two-thumbs up! Have you jumped on the P90x hype? Diet or no diet? If so, how’s it been going? Can you see the results transitioning onto the tennis court like Chris and I have?

Peace Sign,
Kana

Then there’s the fashion. New York is home to one of the most attended Fashion Weeks in the world so it seems appropriate that tennis’ biggest stars step out in style. Nike pulls out all the stops, outfitting them in day and night outfits that are head to toe ensembles. So let’s take a look at what we’ll be seeing out there on the court for the top two men’s seeds.

First up, No. 1 seed Rafael Nadal

Rafa's Day look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

Rafa's Night look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

For day matches, Rafa will sport the Fall Vamos Crew in Hot Lime with the Vamos Woven Short in Black. His Nike Air CourtBallistec 2.3 with be a white based shoe with Hot Lime and black accents. For night, he’ll step out in the same crew and short but all in black with a big hit of color coming from his Hot Lime 2.3s.

Now for No. 2 seed Roger Federer

Fed's Day look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

Fed's Night look (Photo courtesy of Nike)

During the day, Roger will wear the Victory RF Court Polo in Football Blue with Dark Obsidian (dark navy) and white accents. At night, he too goes for a darker ensemble with the same polo in the Dark Obsidian color. He will wear his Lunar Vapor Tours in a special colorway during the day and the same shoe in White/Dark Obsidian/Football Blue at night. You can get it all at Tennis Warehouse.

Next week we’ll take a brief look at what Maria Sharapova has in store for us in New York.

Happy Hitting!
Tiffani, TW

Andy hitting a forehand

August 23, 2010

Seattle, WA

Been back in training for a little over a week now. I got everything in during my practices last week that I intended on getting done, and I’m feeling really good again on the court. The week-long break out at the cabin allowed me to get rested, rejuvenated, and eager to play once again. The renewed enthusiasm to play and work hard again is allowing me to make strides in my game and enjoy my time spent on the court. I put a big emphasis last week on lots of set play, a couple good quickness and agility sessions, and some longer conditioning workouts like a bike ride and running stadiums. This week I want to focus a little more on drilling in order to iron out a couple areas in my game that I would like to improve, while also continuing to play sets and getting in good quickness and conditioning work.

This will be the last blog I’ll be writing from Seattle. I have had a wonderful stay up here in the Northwest for the summer, and I have to thank once again the Bator family for allowing me to stay in their home and making me feel like family. At the end of the week my travel partner Brad and I will be making the trek back down south to California, gearing up for the Comcast Santa Maria Open and a stretch of three Futures tournaments down in the Los Angeles area.

Something I have been thinking about while I’ve been on the road is the idea of home. At the end of June I moved out of my small house in San Luis Obispo, CA, stored most of my stuff in a storage unit, packed everything else that I thought I would need while I traveled in my car, and took off for the summer on an arduous journey through the Northwest. I will be traversing through California once again for the next month or so, and then taking off to Laos and Thailand for October and November, two countries that are extremely foreign to me, even though I have been to Thailand once before. After that, who knows where my travels will take me, all the while not really having a specific place to call home. But what does it mean to have a place called home?

Home is a place where you feel safe, comfortable, and at peace. You go home to relax after a strenuous day, driving in your car or train or bus after work, counting down the hours…minutes…until you can walk through the door, smell those familiar smells, see the people you love, put your feet up and unwind on your favorite couch or chair. You step into your shower at home, where you know exactly how hard the water pressure is when the hot water and steam hit your face. At home, you escape from the tension of the outside world, take a deep breath, and feel at ease in the present moment.

While being on the road, and not necessarily having my own physical place to call home, I’ve realized that home is nothing more than a state of mind. Those familiar sights and sounds as you walk through your door at home represent a safe haven for your mind, a place where you can feel comfortable and safe in your own skin. When I’m on the road I replace a house that I am accustomed to with certain activities that I enjoy doing by myself, which bring me solace and peace of mind. My daily routines, such as a long post-workout stretch or reading a book before I go to bed, help ground me and bring me back to center when I feel out of whack. A couple weeks ago I allowed myself to get out of my routines, and the hustle and bustle of the changing scenery around me caught up to me and got me feeling anxious and on edge. Settling down and getting back to my routines and doing the things that relax and center me allowed me to regain my focus and energy, finding my inner peace of mind that represents home.

Being on the road has taught me how to feel at home without depending on a physical home to come back to. Home is simply a feeling of being at ease, centered, comfortable, and safe, and I’m learning how to provide that for myself when the world around me in constantly changing. As I travel from city to city I recognize the importance of finding the balance between immersing yourself in the world around you, while also staying true to yourself. A good traveler can go out of their comfort zone, meet people, try things, and have new experiences while also grounding themselves in who they are, and not allowing the constant change of scenery to bother them. A good traveler finds home wherever they are, not depending on anything physical, but rather finding home through their state of mind.

-AG

Polyfibre Hexablade

Polyfibre definitely did not disappoint with their new Hexablade tennis string.

Hexablade fully met my expectations, combining the comfort of Polyfibre TCS with excellent access to spin thanks to its hexagonal profile design.

I strung this up on my customized Babolat Pure Storm at 58lbs and had my own reservations on it based on how stiff the string felt while stringing, feeling similar to Luxilon ALU Power Spin. On the first strike my jaw dropped and I felt like I was auditioning for the part of Neo in “The Matrix,” as a simple “whoa,” escaped my mouth. I watched as the ball easily cleared the net by about eight feet and continued to follow its path to inches within the baseline. Usually with a freshly strung poly I’d expect to have a settling in period for the string to readjust after un-mounting the frame. With this string though, there was no “break-in” period. Stroke after stroke I watched as the ball dropped to the court and exploded off the ground.

I took a trip home and used this string to battle against my dad; he usually gives me some competition, but I had the edge this time. After beating up on the ol’ man on the courts, he commented that this was the first time he truly felt old hitting against me, and it was due to the heaviness of the balls that were coming off the racquet face. The speed of the ball outmatched his foot speed, and I hit winner after winner, which felt good after a lifetime of denial and trash talking on my superior game.

Since you can’t always have your cake and eat it too, I did find that this string didn’t hold tension for as long as I would have liked, and it was also the first poly in a long time that I didn’t have to cut out of my frame. I had the string in my frame for about a month and logged around 10-12 hours of playtime on it before one of the strings popped. I saw a lot of frictional notching on the mains once all the string was removed from the frame, which made sense to me as I noticed there was also more string movement than a typical poly. Tension loss probably occurred around the six-hour mark, and the tension felt like it dropped significantly. This only made me focus on my timing and technique even more because there was a noticeable power increase, but once I made the adjustment, the grab from the string again helped the ball drop in play.

It would be hard to be a Polyfibre fan and not like this string. If you’re looking for a soft poly that’s easy on the arm and offers good spin potential, you can’t pass this one up. Hexablade delivers a heavy ball to your opponent while being light on the arm and has a great response.

Jackson.

The Wind Up

August 16, 2010

Seattle, WA

I’m back in Seattle after a week at my one of my favorite personal escapes, my friend’s cabin just outside of Copalis Beach, a very small town of just under 500 people on the western coast of Washington. The cabin is tucked away about 200 yards from the beach, surrounded by towering spruce trees and lush vegetation, making you feel like you are in a lookout bunker in a forest peering out over the crashing waves and open ocean. I’ve been there a few times, and it is simply one of my favorite places in the world to go to relax, recharge the batteries, and have some personal time getting lost in the vast wilderness around you. Over the course of the week, we went hiking through the Olympic National Forest, road biking, and running on the beach, along with just sitting back and enjoying the incredible scenery and serenity around you.

Now that the batteries are recharged, I’m ready to get back to the grind of training for the next couple weeks, until I travel back down south for the Comcast Santa Maria Open during Labor Day weekend. I will be spending 2-4 hours on court each day, getting a balanced mix of drills and match play, along with quickness, agility work, interval training, and long distance cardio. I’ve found it’s very helpful to schedule out your practices, and I do so by keeping a training log in my bag at all times. It’s just a small pocket calendar, but I write in it everything that I want to accomplish each day in practice for the week, and check them off as I do them. For example, my schedule for this week includes…

Monday:
-dynamic warmup
-quickness drills/plyometrics
-one set of stadiums in Husky Stadium
-post-workout stretch

Tuesday:
-dynamic warmup
-basket of serves
-lift
-match play
-post-workout stretch

Wednesday:
-dynamic warmup
-moderate bike ride (approx. 20 miles)
-post-workout stretch

Thursday:
-dynamic warmup
-basket of serves
-quickness/ladder drills
-lift
-post-workout stretch

Friday:
-dynamic warmup
-match play (3 sets)
-interval workout (ex. court sprints)
-post-workout stretch

Saturday:
-long bike ride (30+ miles)
-stretch

As you can see, it does not include everything that I will be doing on these days, but it highlights the things that are a priority to me that I want to be sure to get done on those days. When I do them, I check them off. It keeps me organized, on-track with what I want to be doing, and keeps me motivated when I keep putting check marks in the calendar.

Training has to be mind-set and a way of life. It dictates every decision that you make on a daily basis. The hard work and focus drives you, and consumes you. For a professional tennis player, it’s a full-time job, 6-8 hours a day, 6-7 days a week. And it’s not just about the time spent on the court or in the gym, but it’s about everything that you do. Every decision that you make either gets you closer to achieving your goals, or takes you further away of them. Every action that you do is going to have consequences on your body, and when you are in training you want to be pushing yourself as hard as you possibly can, while being smart and managing your body in order to stay injury-free. Your life revolves around your training. What you eat, when you eat, and how much you eat is very important. Your sleep habits are extremely important, as you want to be sure to get your optimal amount for your body to be functioning at the highest level. Your body and your mind must be performing at its finest, and learning what you need to do individually to make that happen is very important.

So that’s the plan for the next couple weeks…back in training mode. In two weeks, I’ll be taking the drive back down south, and will be training the week prior to the tournament in San Luis Obispo. Stay tuned for training updates from the Northwest!

-AG

Feetures! No Show Tab Socks

When essential tennis gear comes to mind, racquets, strings and shoes top the list. What I’ve learned is that if you haven’t already added good socks to the list, get out your pen now. When I was a kid, I played in whatever socks my parents bought me, which was usually whatever came in bulk and was on sale. I don’t blame them because, like many kids, I ruined socks faster than Carl Lewis could run 100 meters. (Yes, I’m hinting at my age. And, yes, I grew up many a year before Usain Bolt came onto the scene.) Unfortunately, these socks my parents lovingly provided me were usually uncomfortable to wear for a tennis player and did their part in creating blisters.

Now that I’ve learned socks are not like shoes and should not be worn on the sidewalk or dirt and I’m in charge of my own sock destiny, I’m much more selective in my choice of socks both on and off the court. Because we’re here to Talk Tennis, I’ll stick to my favorite court socks. There are a few key features I look for when choosing tennis socks:

1. The fabric must be soft. There’s nothing worse than socks that are rough so if I happen to slide around inside my shoes, my feet are rubbed raw.

2. The toe seam should not be felt. Some socks don’t have toe seams, which is wonderful, while others have huge tie-off knots. Those knots rub on my toes and not only serve as an unneeded distraction, but also can lead to blisters or skin irritations.

3. The socks must be the right thickness, not too thick, not too thin. I understand sock thickness can be a controversial subject. Some like the thick cushioned socks for a variety of reasons, and I actually like the heavy cushioning when I go backpacking for protection and comfort. However, I have wide feet and wearing really thick court socks only makes most tennis shoes feel narrower. On the flip side, I do like some cushioning. Socks are too thin to me if I can feel a shoe’s insole and they fail to absorb any sweat.

4. The socks must be offered in a no-show cut. OK, I’ll admit this comes down to vanity. The vanity decision is twofold. First, I’m not very tall (5’4″), so I like the no-show socks because anything higher makes my legs look short. Second, sock tan lines can be horrific.

5. Socks should be offered in multiple sizes. Women’s socks are often sold as “one size fits all.” I have small feet and wear a women’s size 6 shoe. The general sock size, which is often labeled 9-11, hangs off my feet like I’m a little kid wearing my mom’s socks. A women’s 9-11 is supposed to fit a women’s shoe size 5-10. There’s quite a gap between a size 5 and a size 10, yet a sock is supposed to please both? I don’t think so. (As a side note, where do sock sizing numbers come from? They should match shoe sizes. Let’s simplify life, people.)

I don’t think that’s too much to ask. Hey, it’s only five bullet points. Not to mention, I ardently believe our feet are worth pleasing. I’ve been lucky to try many socks at Tennis Warehouse. One of my favorite brands, one that meets all the criteria, is Feetures! Here’s how the Feetures! socks perform in each of my categories.

1. Check! The Feetures! socks are smooth against the skin and comfortable throughout my tennis sessions or workouts. I’ve put them through the wash numerous times, and they have held up well. I find that some socks will get rougher in time, and the fabric will thin as well. I’ve had some of my Feetures! socks for about a year, and they’re still in rotation.

2. Check! The toe is seamless so there is absolutely no rubbing. It’s bliss.

3. Check! There’s plenty of cushioning without being too bulky. The cushioning is also in the right place: under my feet. The top has mesh panels for ventilation, so my feet don’t feel overheated. I also like the arch band that keeps the socks snug against my feet.

4. Check! Actually there are two options from Feetures! for a no-show cut. There’s a standard no-show sock, but there’s also the No Show Tab Socks. I prefer the latter. Tennis shoes often have high heel collars to provide more support on the court. If socks sit too low, a shoe can “eat” the socks, meaning they slip into the shoe and the back of  your heel gets rubbed raw. The Feetures! No Show Tab Socks prevent this. The little cushioned tab at the back does wonders for keeping socks in place during play. If you haven’t tried a tabbed no-show sock, I recommend giving it a whirl. Your Achilles will thank you.

5. Check! The Feetures! brand offers small through extra large socks. This will satisfy everyone from a women’s shoe size 4 up to a men’s shoe size 16. I’m sure everyone would appreciate socks that actually fit their feet.

So that’s it in a nutshell. The Feetures! No Show Tab socks in particular meet each of my sock demands. If you haven’t tried a pair of truly good socks, I urge you to try a pair. The initial cost may be more, but my experience is that they also last a lot longer so it evens out in the end. Not to mention, the way your feet will feel is, well, as they say: priceless.

Happy Hitting!
Tiffani, TW

August 9, 2010

Ocean Shores, WA

I realized the importance of careful tournament planning and of keeping your body and mind adequately rested, as I took my first early round loss during the Pacific Northwest Summer Circuit in the last tournament on the schedule, the Washington State Open, this past week. After a stretch of seven tournaments in seven weeks, I finally ran out of gas and lost in the second round to my former college teammate at Cal Poly, Brian McPhee.

I could feel the physical fatigue this long stretch of tournaments has taken on my body. I acquired more and more aches and pains and began to get sore earlier and earlier in the tournaments. But what I underestimated was the mental and emotional stress I was under, and that is what I felt finally caught up to me in the last tournament. I’m an emotional and fiery competitor by nature, and tough match after tough match seemed to suck the life out of me, and by the seventh week my gas tank had finally hit empty. Now I’m taking a much needed break from tennis, as I plan to take about a week off to recuperate my body and mind.

I want to start off my congratulating my former teammate Brian McPhee on an awesome week of tennis. He came into the tournament unseeded, took me out in the second round (I was seeded #4), and proceeded to make it through to the semifinals, beating some tough players along the way, including the #8 seed in a long three-set battle. Brian is an inspirational person who has worked his way from being a walk-on on our Cal Poly team to now being on scholarship and being one of the toughest guys on the team at his position, posting the best dual match record of anyone on the team last year. His stellar work ethic, coupled with his incredible fight and spirit when he competes, inspires his teammates and the people around him. He deserves all the accomplishments that he achieves, and I’m excited to see what heights he can climb to in the final two years of his collegiate career…Congrats McPhizz!!

Coming away from this past tournament, and the entire summer circuit, it was quite a learning experience. I was disappointed with the way I finished up following a great (and somewhat unexpected) start to the summer, but in the process I learned a lot about how to manage my body and mind and keep myself fresh in order to compete at my highest level. The seven tournaments in seven weeks might have been a little much, and looking at the future I might now schedule a week or two break during a two-month stretch of tournaments. Keeping up with an injury prevention routine is also extremely important, as I got away from my habit of stretching everyday, doing my shoulder band exercises everyday, and doing my dynamic warm-up everyday before practice. These habits are crucial to success at any level of competition, especially when pushing the body to its max.

There’s also a lot that I will build on looking back to the beginning of the summer when I was playing my best. I got valuable match experience against great players that served as awesome learning experiences. My match play improved over the course of the summer, and when I get back to training in the next week I’m going to create a plan and continue to work on the aspects of my game that I want to improve. For instance, getting more free points on my first serve was a priority this summer, and my goal during matches was to serve big and take more risk than I normally would feel comfortable doing at crucial times during matches. As I get back to training, I’m going to keep working on improving the power and accuracy of my first serve, and keep using it during the “big moments” in matches.

Lastly, and most importantly in my eyes, I lost sight of myself and the things that are important to my own personal well being — what keeps me centered and focused on a day-to-day basis. I’m an independent person, and enjoy a lot of time to myself to do things that allow me to be a little more introspective and reflective, like writing this blog for example. My stretching routine is another thing that allows me to seemingly meditate, calm myself, and put myself in my preferred “mental space.” I enjoy reading and listening and playing music on my guitar, which is also like therapy to me. As I allowed myself to get caught up in the tournaments and all the tennis I was playing, I lost sight of these things that are important to me, and stopped making them a priority. I realized how important those activities are to keeping me fresh and focused mentally and emotionally. They need to be a priority in my life, especially when the scenery that I am surrounded by is constantly changing.

As I prepare myself for overseas travel to professional tournaments, I also realize that this simple drive up the West Coast this summer is nothing compared to the culture shock of flying halfway across the world, arriving completely jet-lagged in a country where you don’t speak the native language and don’t eat the cuisine, trying to adapt and blend in to the culture, and all while having to compete at your highest level on the tennis court. It was good to learn the importance of keeping my routines and doing the things that keep me happy and centered now, as opposed to in a few months when I’m in a foreign country, having spent thousands of dollars to get myself there and give myself an opportunity to get a couple of  valuable ATP points.

Every point, every game, every match, and every tournament that I play should be a learning experience. Sometimes I learn about a stroke or strategy that I want to improve. Other times I learn about what it takes mentally and emotionally to win at crucial situations. Sometimes the lessons I learn are just about tennis, but more often then not the lessons I learn are about myself, on a deeper level, away from the court. I’ve always thought that the beauty of competition is how it brings out an aspect of your character that is rarely exposed on a day-to-day basis. When you’re in the heat of competition, when the pressure is mounting and the game or match is on the line, you can’t protect yourself like you would in everyday life, like putting up emotional “walls” in a social environment to shield your “true self”. Think about a competitive situation you’ve been in that has come down to the wire, whether you’re stepping up to the line to serve a big point, hit a crucial free throw, make a crucial putt…whatever it is. Your mind and your heart are racing. You’re lost in the moment of competition. You’re vulnerable, exposed and on trial for the jury that’s watching, awaiting your next move. Often times, the toughest person in that jury is you, and your self-confidence and self-worth are tied up in the result of that moment. These are the times when you learn a lot about yourself, about your character, and about your spirit.

Maybe I’m a nut when it comes to this stuff, but I’m a sports enthusiast because I think that this is the beauty of sports. People are faced with obstacles in sports that you don’t normally run into, and the way you tackle those obstacles and learn from them afterward is the valuable life lesson in my eyes. And as I reflect on the last month and a half of competing, there is a lot I learn about my tennis game, but always more I can learn about myself. I’m going to take this week to reflect and learn more, take in and hold on to the good things I did, and also assess and move on from the bad things. And hopefully in a few days when I get back to training I’ll be rested, rejuvenated, and have gained some new and valuable insight to help myself grow as a tennis player and a person.

-AG

PS. My next stretch of tournaments is now set, highlighted by a return home to the San Luis Obispo area for the Comcast Santa Maria Open. My full schedule for the rest of 2010 is…

Sept. 4-6: Santa Maria Comcast Open (Santa Maria, CA)
Sept. 9: Claremont, CA Futures (Qualifying → Main Draw)
Sept. 16: Costa Mesa, CA Futures (Qualifying → Main Draw)
Sept. 23: Irvine, CA Futures (Q → MD)
Oct. 29: Laos Futures
Nov. 5: Thailand 4 Futures
Nov. 12: Thailand 5 Futures

Today, one of the most recognizable brands in tennis turns the big 4-0. The brand in question is the one that claims to “rule the court.” Of course, we are writing about Prince.

Think that catchy slogan is too tough to live up to? Consider this: Prince has sponsored some of the greatest of all time, players such as Andre Agassi, Monica Seles, Michael Chang, Martina Navratilova, and Jimmy Connors. The new class of Prince players are making their own mark on the game, from Gael Monfils to Maria Sharapova to the Bryan Brothers to John Isner. The Bryan’s even delivered an early birthday present for Prince by winning their record breaking 62nd doubles title a few days earlier at the Farmers Classic in UCLA.

A true innovator and trail blazer for the game of tennis, Prince was the first to develop a commercial ball machine, the first to introduce a multi-filament string and the first to make extended length or “longbody” racquets.

According to Prince, it all started in 1970. Working in his Princeton, New Jersey garage, inventor and entrepreneur Bob McClure reversed the motor on a household vacuum cleaner to produce the first commercially viable tennis ball machine. He called the machine the “Little Prince” and a tennis brand was born.

The original ball machine developed by Prince

Prince hit the world scene in the mid-1970’s when legendary engineer, Howard Head (who also invented the first metal alpine ski), using McClure’s ball machine to work on his tennis game, realized he could develop a racquet that would help him significantly raise his level of play and hit better shots, more often.  Head patented the first “Oversize” tennis racquet in 1976 with a 110 square inch head, called it “The Prince,” and in doing so, ushered in a major tennis ‘boom’ by making tennis easier to play and more fun for millions of people.

The first oversized racquet known as The Prince

In a statement released to the press, Nick Bollettieri said, “I remember when I first saw that new racquet in the mid to late seventies, I thought, what in the world is that?  It looked completely different to the small, heavy wooden frames of the day, but it was helping all of these people play better tennis.” The founder and President of Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy continued, saying, “I remember young kids traveling all around in cars and vans to let players at private clubs, public courts, tournaments – wherever there was a tennis player – test out these new frames.  And boy did it catch on!  Pretty soon, you could not throw a stone near a tennis court without hitting someone using a Prince racquet.  Our academy is proud to be affiliated with Prince products and we look forward to forty more years of their moving the game forward.”

Most recently, in 2005, the company debuted another revolutionary breakthrough in product design with the introduction of O-Technology in racquets.  Eliminating restrictive grommet holes in the frame, this engineering feat used large holes and suspended the string bed facilitating more string movement for an enhanced sweet spot.  Maria Sharapova won her U.S. Open (and subsequently her first Australian Open) using this new technology, and today there are nearly 100 players on tour who have switched to this racquet design innovation.

“At the end of the day, we strive to continue the mission set forth by Mr. McClure and Mr. Head – to help all player types, whether recreational or those competing at the game’s highest levels, hit more great shots, more often,” said Zach Perles, Vice President of Global Communications at Prince Sports, Inc. “We will continue to bring to market best-in-class products that help raise people’s level of play and support them with meaningful grassroots programs and industry partnerships designed to grow the game overall.  We are an integral part of the fabric of this sport, proud of our past products, programs and players, but even more energized about our plans for the future.”

Prince EXO3 Black - featuring Prince's latest technology

A list of milestones in Prince’s history:

1970 – Bob McClure invents the first commercially viable ball machine by reversing the motor on a vacuum cleaner.  The “Little Prince” is introduced and Prince Sports, Inc. is formed.

1976 –Howard Head engineers and patents the first “Prince” racquet – an “Oversize” frame at 110 square inches designed to deliver the largest sweet spot. It revolutionizes the game.

1977 – Prince introduces the original Graphite, which becomes the first “top players” racquet and the standard by which all others are compared.

1978 – Prince invents the first multi-filament tennis string, which becomes an industry top seller that same year.

1985 – Seeing the need to go beyond the all-purpose shoe, Prince introduces the TPU-4000, a lightweight and durable shoe made specifically for tennis players.

1995 – Prince is the first company to introduce ‘Longbody’ technology, which launches Michael Chang to #2 in the world.  His frame becomes the best-selling racquet in tennis.

2005 – Prince re-invents racquet design with introduction of O-Technology, which transforms traditional grommets into large holes.  The technology platform is soon exported to brands in other sports. Maria Sharapova wins the 2006 U.S. Open with the Prince O3 White (which features O-technology).  The racquet becomes the best selling model in the United States.

2009 – Building off the O-Tech platform, Prince introduces EXO3 racquet technology, which suspends the string bed for ultimate string movement resulting in a larger sweet spot.

Happy birthday Prince! Can’t wait to see what you have in store for tennis in the next 40 years.

Jason, TW