ParentingAces - The Junior Tennis and College Tennis Podcast

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 27, of the ParentingAces Podcast! This week, things get personal! My father, Carl Goodman, started playing tennis in New Orleans when he was a kid. He has continued playing throughout his life with a short hiatus from the sport while he was in medical school in the early 1960s.  He has seen the game change and develop over many decades and has some very definite opinio...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 26 of the ParentingAces Podcast! I have been traveling - A LOT! - and have not been able to schedule podcast recording sessions the past few weeks. So, in this week’s show, we throw it back to my conversation with former World #1 and current Tennis Parent, Tracy Austin. Please note: this episode hails from my days broadcasting on BlogTalkRadio, so you will hear a diffe...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 25 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's show, the topic is High School Tennis. Corey Aldridge and Troy Simonek both grew up playing junior tennis then college tennis, and went into coaching after getting their degrees. Their commitment to growing High School Tennis in Texas has been nothing short of phenomenal. As you'll hear, they have worked alongside Univers...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 24 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's conversation, I chat with Sid Newcomb, lead tester for the USPTA. For those unfamiliar with USPTA , it is one of the most highly-regarded certifying organizations for tennis coaches, and its offices are located directly across the street from the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Florida. The organization was founded in...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 23 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this episode, I discuss the NCAAs with coach - and former University of Miami standout - Todd Widom. If you follow ParentingAces on any social media, you are well aware the NCAA Division I Championships just concluded down in Orlando at the USTA National Campus. I was fortunate enough to be there for the team finals as well as the fi...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 22 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, I chat with Cory Brooks, the ITA Senior Director of Championships, Rankings and Membership about the 2019 ITA Summer Circuit. The Summer Circuit is one of my favorite series for junior players as well as incoming college freshmen and other college players looking for quality competition during their time off from...

Welcome to Season 8 Episode 21 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this episode, we chat once again with Coach Todd Widom as a follow-up to last week's episode with the parents of 2 of Todd's players. The focus of this week's conversation is the importance of following a step-by-step plan in junior development. Todd discusses the dangers when coaches and players try to rush the process, oftentimes le...

Welcome to Season 8 Episode 20 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode we hear from two Tennis Dads who have seen their sons rise to the highest levels of junior and college tennis. Ron Hohmann lives in New York. He grew up playing both tennis and volleyball then played Division I volleyball in college. His son, Ronnie, is choosing the tennis path instead.  You may remember my podcast...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 19 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, we talk about the NCAA rule regarding a grace period between high school graduation and the start of college. Ken is a San Diego-based coach who works with many top-level junior players, including his own niece who has committed to play her college tennis at University of California, Berkeley, starting Fall 2019....

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 18 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, we discuss summer tennis camps with Ohio State Men's Assistant Coach and founder of Wilson Collegiate Tennis Camps, David Schilling. If you've been following ParentingAces for a while, you know what a huge fan I am of sending your child to tennis camp in the summer. Not only is it a fantastic break from their reg...

Welcome to Season 8 Episode 17 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, we hear from two families who have chosen two very different pathways for their junior players, both with the same coach. Over the past couple of years, I have interviewed coach Todd Widom many times. Instead of talking to the coach this week, though, I chose to speak with two sets of parents whose children are co...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 16 of the ParentingAces Podcast! I hope you've used the last couple of weeks to catch up on any episodes you may have missed! Matt Knoll had an incredible career as the Head Coach of Men's Tennis at Baylor University. A 2008 Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, Matt was the Bears' head coach since their first season of Big 12 Conference competition in 1997. Before r...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 15 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week’s episode, we chat with Cindy Brinker and Carol Weyman of the Maureen Connolly Brinker Foundation and Little Mo series of junior tennis events. Not only will you hear about one of my favorite junior tennis events, but you will also learn some Tennis History!  Maureen Connolly, or Little Mo as she was fondly dubbed by a jour...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 14 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, we take a detailed look at hydration and nutrition for junior tennis players. My guest is Certified Sports Nutritionist and Sports Nutritionist for the Boston Bruins, Julie Nicoletti. Julie also now works with CrossCourt Consulting to help junior tennis players maximize their performance both on and off the court...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 13 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, I chat with coach Matt Manasse, the women's Associate Coach at 4th ranked Duke University, about college tennis recruiting. Matt is a former college tennis player himself and offers incredible insights into recruiting and playing at the college level. What questions should your junior ask the college coaches duri...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 12 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, I chat with Mark Kovacs, PhD, founder of the International Tennis Performance Association  (iTPA) and fellow Atlanta resident, about the concept of Periodization and how best to use it with our junior tennis players. This conversation came about after I received an email from a ParentingAces listener asking for m...

Welcome to another Bonus Episode of Season 8 of the ParentingAces Podcast. In this one, I chat with former University of Iowa and current professional player, Shelby Talcott, regarding the possible underlying reason for the ITF's new World Tennis Tour which is implemented beginning January 1, 2019. My conversation with Shelby was prompted by an article she posted on her blog entitled THE ITF'S DEA...

Welcome to another Bonus Episode of Season 8 of the ParentingAces Podcast. In this one, I chat with brothers Jared and Aron Hiltzik and their father, David, about how the new ITF World Tennis Tour is impacting their ability to pursue a professional tennis career. Please visit ParentingAces.com for more details.             Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to this Bonus Episode of the ParentingAces Podcast!  Growing the game of tennis is the mission of many organizations and individuals out there, including Yours Truly. However, there seems to be a disconnect between the marketing experts and those on the ground, and we aren't seeing the increases in players and fans that we hope and work for. One young professional player is working to chan...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 8 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's episode, former college coach, Dave Mullins, joins us from Ireland to talk about what we should really be looking at in terms of player development. Dave recently wrote a 2-part article on this topic (see  http://www.davemullinstennis.com/news/2018/11/2/shaky-foundation-part-1  and  http://www.davemullinstennis.com/news/20...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 7 of the ParentingAces Podcast! In this week's show, the focus is on level-based play. That is, playing tennis against opponents of a similar skill level regardless of age or gender. My guest, Greg Chambers, is the Director of Tennis at the Ensworth School in Nashville, TN. He has a long history in our sport and is bringing his experience and passion to players of all...

Welcome to Season 8, Episode 6 of the ParentingAces Podcast! This week, we chat with Jeff Bearup, Tim Donovan, and David Benzel who founded CrossCourt Consulting in the New England area. Between them, these three gentlemen have extensive experience working with not only Tennis Parents, but all sorts of Sports Parents, to help their children have a more positive experience. Realizing there was a ga...

A few weeks ago, I received an email from a member of the ParentingAces Community asking if ANY coach can develop a champion if the family has enough time and money to invest in the child's tennis. I posed that question to one of my favorite coaches, Todd Widom, and in this week's episode we discuss the query in depth. There is so much more to high-level junior development than simply time and mon...

Several months ago, I had the pleasure of talking with Dave Miley, the Executive Director of Tennis Development for the International Tennis Federation (ITF) from 1991 until 2015 who was responsible for the non professional activities of the ITF including junior tennis, senior tennis, wheelchair tennis, technical and anti-doping as well as the ITF’s Development Programme. Dave has been very vocal...

Jeff Salzenstein has been involved in tennis pretty much his entire life. In Season 8 Episode 3, Jeff shares his tumultuous junior career, going from #1 in the 12's to #69 in the 16's, eventually making his way to the Stanford Men's Tennis Team playing for the inimitable Dick Gould. After giving the pro tour a go then getting side-lined by multiple injuries, Jeff moved into coaching, developing a...