5% of players will become weekend warriors or more; they play competitively, want to win, and want to play leagues and tournaments, some almost non-stop. But we often think that these are the only players we serve and that everyone should aspire to play like that; everyone else is a lower being on the ladder of tennis players.

​In the first lesson with an adult, I approach them first with this decision because it guides all other choices. Recently, I took over a client from another pro.  The woman was a 1.5 and, with some encouragement, could be a 2.0, capable of playing some not-great doubles with ladies her age and ability. The former pro, however, told her, “It’s probably going to take a year of weekly lessons for you to have good enough technique to play a match,” to which I politely say ‘BS.' When I determined that the woman wanted to be able to make friends and play socially, we took a much different course. There are two unwritten rules in tennis. 1. If you can rally, people will rally with you. If you can’t, they won’t, but they will come up with exotic excuses not to play. 2. If you can serve, return serve, and hit another shot or three, then people will play a match with you. This is how I teach my beginners, first to rally, then in 5 or 6 lessons to be a 2.0, ready to play other 2.0’s.  

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With children, every new child in my program is faced with these questions: There are players, coaches, and parents; “Who is the decision maker?”  Kids have never been told that they are a decision maker. When they realize this, they get excited. I then ask, “Who is your expert?” They then point to me.  When we get to “Who gives final approval?” They often hem and haw until they say that it’s the parents. Those questions set the tone for the program, solving many problems.

In reality, 80% of tennis teaching decision-making should center around rallying. And the rest about competently serving and returning well enough to keep the match from being boring. The problem is that hundreds or millions or billions of dollars are spent on lessons that do not offer these benefits. Players dumbly follow the edicts of the greedy tennis pros, clubs, leaders, and content providers who show the new ideal technique; the Ben Shelton,  take this fitness class, a neat doubles trick done by the high-flying doubles twins or another aging doubles legend.

What gives the fantastic joy of tennis is, “I paid $10 for a 3-hour Super Saturday, and now I can play tennis; I can’t believe it; it’s so much fun”, which is what Lila says every time I see her.

When I ask people which category they fall into, the numbers support what I have said above. Some people say I might end up in the lunatic fringe, but I want to play socially for now. So, tennis people, are you going to decide to meet the pickleball sociability head-on and provide the same thing in tennis, or are you going to be the reason that more tennis players defect to plastic racquets and balls, with little movement, impending hearing loss, losing an eye, and a myriad of injuries, simply for the sake of autonomy?

Make a better decision and help your players, then provide the programs that support their choices.