Payers & Players Podcast

Cooper Woestendick (Olathe, KS) is currently ranked #13 ITF, and recently competed in the Junior Australian Open where he made the QFs in singles and won the Doubles title with his partner Max Exsted (Savage, MN). Cooper shares his junior tennis journey from training with his dad in Kansas City to his current residence at the USTA National Campus in Florida. Cooper is currently a junior in High School and has committed to play college tennis at TCU.

Robert talks to North Texas Head Coach, Amanda Stone. https://meangreensports.com/sports/womens-tennis/roster/coaches/amanda-stone/787

We discuss the latest updates to USTA junior competition, with a focus on the Southern Section. http://www.playerdevelopment.usta.com/

We talk with legendary Georgia Head Coach Manny Diaz about his coaching career, including coaching the great Al Parker and ATP Top 10 John Isner. We also dive into his coaching philosophy, how he has been able to maintain a winning culture for 36 years, recruiting and the outlook for the Bulldogs in 2024.

Dr. Jayanthi leads Emory's Tennis Medicine program, is the Director of Emory Sports Medicine Research and Education, and co-directs Emory's Youth Sports Medicine program. He is considered one of the country's leading experts on youth sports health, injuries, and sports training patterns, as well as an international leader in tennis medicine. He answers our questions about injury prevention, how to modulate tennis training for juniors, nutritional priorities, and fitness training.

ASU Head Coach Matt Hill. Matt shares his story of surviving cancer while in college, how that changed his career path, and why reviving the Arizona State tennis program has been so special. We also discuss college tennis recruiting, how he prepares for matches, and what we can expect from the Sun Devils in 2024. Part 1

Andrew Goodwin is the head coach at Georgia Southern. As a junior, he was a top 100 player from Alpharetta, GA and played collegiately at Southern Miss and Alabama. After working at the USTA, he returned to college with assistant coach positions at Michigan, Mississippi State, Charlotte, and Tulsa.

Chris is coming from New Zealand to Tucker Tennis Academy as the new Director of Junior Tennis. We discuss Chris's background and his tennis coaching philosophy.

Michigan State head coach Harry Jadun joins us on the podcast. Harry walked on at Michigan State, and ended his playing career as an All-American! After serving as the MSU assistant coach for 8 years, Harry took over as head coach before the 2022-23 season. We talk about Harry's experiences as a player and coach, and break down why MSU is no longer a dark horse, but is one of the rising teams for the 2023-24 season. Jadun's Journey: https://youtu.be/LjzmGZE38mY?si=65fntCf-9E1AQAr8

Trent joins us for another great conversation. We discuss how Trent has changed as a coach over the past 20 years, how to work with Parents, and the importance of creating leaders among young tennis players.

Marc Lucero has coached Genie Bouchard, Nicole Gibbs, Allie Riske-Armitraj, Shelby Rogers and Steve Johnson, as well as coaching out of the USTA's West Coast facility in Carson, CA. Mark shares his background and talks about the role of a professional coach. He addresses overcoming vulnerabilities, ball recognition, how he grades success or failure, and how to play defense. Mark also shares his opinion on coaching on court and ball variation from week to week.

David Roditi is one of the most successful coaches in college tennis. We talk with Coach Roditi about his tennis background, coaching philosophy, what he looks for in recruits, coaching ATP top 10 player Cam Norrie, and of course his hats. A 3x All-American at TCU, David Roditi has led his alma mater to the pinnacle of College Tennis since becoming the Head Coach in 2012: - ITA top 10 for 9 straight seasons - 2 National Indoor Championships - 5x Big 12 Coach of the Year - 5x Regular Season Conference Champions - 3x Conference Tournament Champions This episode is abridged - get the full episode by Subscribing on Twitter!

We talked with USTA Lead Men's Coach, David Nainkin, while at the Lexington Challenger. David has coached numerous top 10 players, including Wayne Ferreira, Mardy Fish, Sam Querrey, Taylor Fritz and Sloane Stevens. David was also the interim Davis Cup Captain as well as the USA Olympics coach in Tokyo. We talk about his transition from player to coach, the state of the game, and trends in player development.

Trent Tucker founded the legendary eponymous tennis academy in Tulsa, Oklahoma. TTA is recognized as one the most successful tennis academies in the world, producing numerous USTA ball winners and college scholarship recipients. Trent shares his tennis journey - from a late start to a stellar college career at the University of Kansas to founding TTA.

Wofford Mens Tennis Coach Rod Ray joins us to talk about his role as both a coach and tennis parent. His son, Ashe, was a top junior player and a member of the Wofford team. We discuss his tennis journey, his role as a tennis parent, when is the right time to step away, college recruiting, and the future of the Wofford tennis team. Rod is also working on a project about autism and sports - his other son, who has autism, is a D1 track and field athlete at Garner-Webb University. Check out his project: www.hardcomesfirst.com

Matias is from Rosario, Argentina and has been coaching for 10 years. He graduated with a business administration degree from Baylor University. As a player, Matias reached a top 50 ITF junior world ranking, participated in the French Open Junior and earned ATP singles and doubles ranking. At Baylor, he helped the bears win six Big 12 championships and as a senior team captain made school history by winning the 2004 NCAA Team National Championship. Matias clinched the national championship match vs UCLA. “I am thankful and excited for the opportunity to coach, inspire and mentor young TTA (Tucker Tennis Academy, Tulsa, OK) players to achieve their goals and individual excellence.” Matias is a USPTA Certified Professional, USTA High Performance Coach, and an Argentinean National Certified Coach. He lives in Tulsa, OK with his wife, Georgi, and two children, Martina and Ignacio.

Tiffany was a top 10 junior and played collegiately at Texas A&M, where she won the prestigious Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship and Leadership Award. Tiffany is the junior tennis manager for USTA Intermountain as well as a coordinator for Tucker Tennis Academy in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tiffany's junior tennis journey is truly impressive and inspiring. She shares her story and how it impacts her parenting as well as junior tennis coaching philosophy.

We talk the founder of the Cracked Racquets empire - Dalton Thieneman. Dalton grew up in southern Indiana and won a Kentucky HS team title while at St. Xavier. After college, Dalton saw a need for tennis media coverage below the ATP/WTA levels so started a blog and podcast to highlight those players. Today Cracked Racquests is changing the tennis media landscape, led by Dalton's vision and hustle.

We bring back TJ Pura for his 4th time on the podcast. TJ tells us about his decision to leave the corporate world for tennis coaching - with Tommy Paul and his alma mater Duke. We explore how TJ sees the game differently as a coach, what his experience brings to the Duke mens team, and we recap Duke's season as well as discuss their upcoming match vs Virginia in the NCAA Sweet 16. As always, enjoyed every second of this conversation with TJ! TJ also recommends the Huberman Lab podcast - if you want to maximize your performance, check it out. Link: https://open.spotify.com/show/79CkJF3UJTHFV8Dse3Oy0P

We get to know the guy behind the Tennis-Point social media. Nate Walroth grew up in Cincinnati and played college tennis at Bellarmine University (Louisville, KY). He turned his love of tennis into a career promoting the game and the Tennis Point brand.

We announce our plans for for Subscribers on Twitter

We catch up with Petros Chyrsochos. Petros has founded a college tennis recruiting agency to help junior players find the right college to pursue their college tennis career. CONTACT INFO: Website - elitescholarsagency.com Twitter - @petroschry IG - @petros_chr (preferred) or @elitescholarsports FAST FEED 1 - Will you try Pro Pickleball I would love to try Pro Pickle-ball and even compete at tournaments. It looks super fun 2 - Favorite Podcast It would probably be Joe Rogan or Theo Von (this past weekend) 3 - Most used App Definitely Instagram 4 - Netflix recommendation A lot, but Night Agent for now 5 - Something you have changed your mind about I believed pineapple belonged on pizza 6 - Something that you believe to be true, but other people think is crazy Tennis is top 3 toughest sport in the world 7 - Best advice you ever received You will die soon, do something about it 8 - If you could coach any current player, who would it be Definitely Nick Kyrgios, he could win slams 9 - If you had one year of eligibility left, where would you play (excluding Wake Forest) Definitely Stanford 10 - Last meal before being executed - Putters or Chipotle That has to be Chipotle. Greatest food franchise in the history of the world bar none

Scott and Robert talk about what they have been up to since the last podcast in 2021, and the plans for the future of the podcast. It's good to be back!

We talk with tennis parent, Steve Miller, whose son (Chad) is a high school senior 5-star who has committed to Northwestern University. Steve shares his thoughts on the parent's tennis journey and offers advice that can help all tennis parents. Photo: @OhioTennisZone

Nico Heng is a blue-chip recruit heading to play college tennis at Auburn in the Fall of '22. Originally from Madison, Alabama, Nico has trained for the last 5 years at the Tucker Tennis Academy in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Nico tells us how he got into tennis, and how he ended up at Tucker, after spending a year training in Mallorca, Spain. Nico has won multiple gold balls and had an incredibly successful junior career. Wishing him all the best in college and beyond.

Episode 68 - Catch up with TJ Pura by Robert Garrett and Scott Colson

Cooper Williams and Richard Woodruff Cooper is 16 years old, and currently ranked #131 ITF and #10 TRN. Richard is the Director at Raw Tennis Performance in Boca Raton, FL. Richard is one of the top tennis fitness coaches in the world, having worked with Coco Gauff, Shelby Rogers, Kevin Anderson and many other top juniors and professionals. www.rawtennisperformance.com

In Part 2, we take a deeper look at Brian's tennis coaching philosophy, what makes a successful tennis academy, and some observations from what other successful tennis federations are doing. BIO Brian was the #1 junior in Southern California before playing college tennis at the University of Illinois. At Illinois, he won the NCAA team championship and doubles title (partnering with current US Open doubles champion) Rajeev Ram. He also achieved being ranked #1 in college tennis. On the pro circuit he was 15 titles, and in World Team Tennis had wins over Pete Sampras and Pat Rafter. He is currently the Associate Director of HP at Darling Tennis Center, Las Vegas and US Scout for Head tennis.

In part 1 of our series with Brian, we explore his junior tennis path, the programs and events coming up at the Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas, and the UTR Pro Tennis Tour events. if you enjoy this episode, check out our other episodes with Brian. BIO Brian was the #1 junior in Southern California before playing college tennis at the University of Illinois. At Illinois, he won the NCAA team championship and doubles title (partnering with current US Open doubles champion) Rajeev Ram. He also achieved being ranked #1 in college tennis. On the pro circuit he was 15 titles, and in World Team Tennis had wins over Pete Sampras and Pat Rafter. He is currently the Associate Director of HP at Darling Tennis Center, Las Vegas and US Scout for Head tennis.

Episode 64 - Trent Bryde by Robert Garrett and Scott Colson

We talk with the 2021 ITA National Player of the Year - sophomore Liam Draxl from Newmarket, Canada. Liam shares stories of his tennis journey, his college career so far, and his plans for the future. Photo: University of Kentucky Tennis

JY Aubone played college tennis at Florida State, where was ranked in the top 10 ITA. After brief stop in the world of finance, he played professionally for a few years. He is now the travel coach of Reilly Opelka (currently #36 ATP).

In this episode we explore ways to make tennis more fan-friendly, how players can take advantage of the NCAA NIL rules, the UTR's Pro Tennis Tour, and we talk about Jett's tennis development. Jett Middleton is a sophomore on the University of Arizona's tennis team. Jett grew up in Colorado, and moved to California in high school to improve his tennis.

Episode 58 - Giovanni Oradini by Robert Garrett and Scott Colson

Eric was a 5-time All American at Kentucky, and holds the NCAA record for most singles match victories. He made the finals of the 2012 NCAA Singles championships, where he lost to Steve Johnson. In his return to the podcast (also see Episode 26), we catch up with Eric and discuss what he's learned after being away from professional tennis for a couple years and working with some of the top juniors in Kentucky. In addition to working with a local homebuilder as a site manager, Eric also helps out with the programs at Top Gun Academy and Hurstbourne CC in Louisville.

Episode 59 - Zeke Clark by Robert Garrett and Scott Colson

In this episode, we talk with Diego Moyano - one of the most successful coaches in USTA player development. Diego has worked closely with Reilly Opelka, Tommy Paul, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Dennis Kudla and many more. He's been referred to as America's Tennis Whisperer. Diego shares his thoughts on junior player development, including how to develop weapons, motivate players, and deal with players on an individual basis. Diego's passion for tennis and developing players as well as his relentless work ethic is evident in this interview. I doubt his Apple Watch has ever told him it's time to stand. Diego is currently coaching Kevin Anderson on the ATP tour.

Jordan Cox was one of the highest ranked junior tennis in the US. He culminated his junior career by making the finals of Jr Wimbledon. After a few years on the pro circuit, he finished his career at Georgia Gwinnett College. He led the Grizzlies to 3 NAIA National Championships while he was there. Jordan is currently pursuing his acting career and hosting his own tennis shows in Instagram (@jmcoxxy).

Episode 55 - Adam Blicher by Robert Garrett and Scott Colson

Beau is currently the travelling coach for Brandon Nakashima. Beau played college tennis at Nebraska (Big 10 Doubles Champion) and played 4 year on the Futures/Challenger circuit. Before joining Brandon's team, Beau was a High Performance coach at the Brymer-Lewis Tennis Academy in Southern California. Beau is passionate about maximizing tennis performance thru the use of video analysis, match charting and strategic practice organization.

Alex was the #1 rated recruit by Tennis Recruiting Net his junior & senior years of high school. We discuss his junior tennis development from growing up in South Florida to choosing to attend TCU, where he was an All-American and Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year. He is currently competing on the pro tour. https://www.atptour.com/en/players/alex-rybakov/rg42/overview

Jack Newman is the founder of the Austin Tennis Academy, one of the top tennis academies in the United States. Jack tells the story of ATA and what has made their program so successful.

We talk to Peyton Stearns about her junior tennis development. She grew up in Cincinnati, OH and has played all the junior Grand Slam events. We talk about her training with Todd Widom, her experiences at the junior slams and how she trained for the different surfaces. We also talk about her future plans, including her college plans.

TJ Pura played college tennis at Duke. He was a nationally ranked junior player who was featured in the awesome tennis movie 50,000 balls. In 2018 he coached and mentored Tommy Paul, who went on to reach a career high of 79. We talk with TJ about his time coaching Tommy, and what he's doing today. His tennis background helped him successfully land his dream job working in the renewable energies corporate finance industry. TJ offers a lot of wisdom to players and parents alike,

Episode 49 is with Tommy Paul. Tommy is an American Professional tennis player. Tommy reached a career high ATP ranking of #79 in 2019. We caught up with Tommy at the Knoxville Challenger for a quick conversation. We talked about his tennis development in Greeneville, NC, Coach Brandi's favorite punishment, how he was able to go from losing in Qualifying to winning the Charlottesville Challenger in 2018, and why sliding may or may not be bad footwork.

Payers and Players Podcast Episode 48 - Sean Drake from Racquetfit

Kevin is the coach of Caty and John McNally, and has coached several women on the WTA tour as well working with National level junior players. In this episode we discuss what fundamentals junior players should be focused and we explore the lessons Kevin has learned from 25+ of coaching. https://payersandplayers.com/2019/10/08/episode-47-kevin-oneill/

We bring back Petros to review the NCAA tennis championships, his experience playing World Team Tennis, get his thoughts on how tennis can attract new fans, and his plans for the future.

Ronnie Schneider was the #1 recruit in his class, he won Kalamazoo 3 times (16s Singles & Doubles and 18s Doubles), was an All-American at UNC, reached a career high ATP rank of 406, and is currently the volunteer assistant at Indiana University, where he is getting his MBA. In part 2 of our conversation, we talk about his experiences of playing at the US Open, he offers advice to both parents and players for how to get the most out of a tournament, his thoughts on how tennis can be a viable profession, and recruiting pitch to players to come to IU.

In part 1 of our wide-ranging conversation with Ronnie Schneider about his junior career, including winning Kalamazoo 3 times (16s Singles, 16s Doubles, and 18s Doubles)and playing in the US Open (both junior and Main Draw doubles). Ronnie was the #1 recruit in his class in each of his 4 years of high school, and was an All-American at the University of North Carolina. He reached a career high ATP ranking of #406. He is currently pursuing his Master's degree at the University of Indiana, and is serving as the volunteer assistant coach of the men's tennis team. This podcast is sponsored by the Smashpoint App - the leading match tracking app. You can find it in the App Store for iPhones. www.Smashpoint.pro Enter promo code: Podcast for a 20% discount on their "pro" products.

We talk with Heath Waters, Sr. about his philosophy on junior tennis development. Heath Waters is one of only a handful of coaches in the world to be a current ATP and WTA registered coach on the men’s and women’s professional tennis tour. Heath’s professional players have had wins over many top world ranked tour players such as the likes of Andy Murray, Fernando Gonzalez, James Blake, Ivo Karlovic, Sam Querrey, Juan Ignacio Chela, and more. Heath is the founder of the Alliance for Coaching Excellence (ACE) Player Development System™ and runs the Homeschool program at the Manor. Heath’s professional players have won more than 40 professional titles on tour and his junior students have won more than 30 gold balls. Heath and his wife, current professional tour player, Lindsay Lee-Waters own and operate a popular tennis instructional website www.virtualtennisacademy.com. Heath’s desire is to enhance tennis player development throughout the world through a pragmatic and scientific based approach. This podcast is sponsored by the Smashpoint App - the leading match tracking app. You can find it in the App Store for iPhones. www.Smashpoint.pro Enter promo code: Podcast for a 20% discount on their "pro" products.