Tips for the over 60 crowd by the over 60 crowd!
The short tennis “off season” is over and the top pros are now returning to play, with an exhibition this weekend, Hopman Cup starting Monday, and a tournament next week.
If you want to improve your game, you MUST practice. Playing matches and even playing tournaments will help; but if you want to change or improve a stroke, you just cannot do it when the score counts.
Last Saturday, we had some great doubles! With all the holiday travels going on, I put together four of us who were about equal; but had never played together. And the results were very surprising.
We have had this discussion several times; but talking during the point came up again during our Saturday morning doubles match.
Warming up for a singles match at the Longboat Key USTA tournament, I stopped over at Sarasota’s Payne Park to hit on their wall before my first match; and was pleasantly surprised.
If you remember, the USTA (in their infinite wisdom) is/was planning to do away nationally with the 60 and over 4.5 league division… in favor of having a 55+ and a 70 and over (4.0 level only). Well, some things are changing – in Florida at least.
On Friday, Tom and I faced the #1 seeded team in the second round of the doubles. According to “knowledgeable friends” (you know who you are!), Fred Farzenagan of Tampa and Ray Lake of Kansas City are “excellent singles players; but with no real doubles weapons.”
After losing my first round singles match to “the ringer” (who gave the #1 seed a match in the first set anyway), Wednesday was consolation singles and Thursday the doubles started for Tom and me.