PATIENCE
by Staton Helton, Associate Professional

One of the most important virtues that a tennis player has to have is patience. If you go out in a tournament and try to hit a winner on the first or second ball that you see, you will more than likely lose more matches than you win.

I know that when I go to tournaments I see some kids that can’t keep more than 4 balls in; they don’t try and set up the point. I have also seen kids that cannot figure out why they are losing matches. They are going for winners from positions on the court that would be impossible, unless your name is Roger Federer. When kids lose to a person that can hit more than 10 balls consecutively or return the ball 7 or 8 feet over the net you often hear them describe their opponent as a pusher. No, they are just an effective player.
Over the past couple of months I have attended 8-10 tournaments. No matter what tournament it is, I have come away thinking the same thing. Our Windward Academy players need to be more PATIENT!!!! Growing up as a good junior player in Georgia, I came to realize that to have success in tournament play, I needed to make sure that I stayed in every match and didn’t beat myself. Like many I have watched, this wasn’t easy for me either. I was able to overcome this by implementing a few things into my game, such as:

1. Perfect practice – I had to practice not making silly mistakes
2. Drills – Having to do consistency drills that made me hit a lot of balls before going for a winner.
3. Defining what type of player I am – I realized that I wasn’t going to be the strongest, so I figured out that being patient was going to be my best bet.

So what is the secret to changing all of this? The most important word is PATIENCE!!!! You have to be able to construct the point, let the point develop until you get an opportunity. Remember to open up the court more before going for the winner. If you feel as if you are being rushed to hit the shot, it is not the right time to go for it. If you feel yourself starting to rush between points and starting to lose control, just relax. Take deep breaths in between points to slow down and to stay loose. You have to know when to go for the winners and when to hit a safer shot.

Practice PATIENCE and turn your losses into WINS!!!!