Video Footage from US Open Playoffs.....

Scott and I playing Mixed Doubles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ9NReC8f8A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBQv6MFF20w

US Open Playoffs - Saturday

Scott and I played this morning and lost 6-2, 6-3 to Minnesota's top rostered male player (Wernet) from Germany, and former standout and NCAA qualifier on the women's side (Young, formerly Peterson). A slow start, a couple ill-advised decisions at inopportune times (more so on my part than Scott's), and too many deuce points lost in a no-ad scoring situation, prevented the match from being closer in score. Even with the previous factors in our favor though, the match result likely would have been the same.....they were tough!

Stayed after to watch 1 of the women's semi final matches between Falcon (former standout at LSU) and Beenk (up and coming player from Le Claire, IA). Had a relaxing lunch in the downtown area, milkshakes for all 3 of us included. Returned to the courts to watch the Cleveland/Larson semi final match on the men's side. Ridiculous tennis all around, and quite an enjoyable/exciting atmosphere to be a part of.

Pictures below.......the University of MN is known for their tremendous hockey programs (they even have separate ice arenas for the men and women!). Being a huge hockey fan, and stud hockey player himself, Scott was quite impressed. I was more impressed with the training circuit posted around the top of the arena.....20 stations in all, stairs and an activity included at each station, along with an activity to/from each station. Generated many thoughts to improve/add to our own conditioning program!

Minneapolis - US Open Playoffs!

Arrived in Minneapolis with the Stegemann's yesterday. Mr. Stegemann (Jeff) joined Scott and I on our journey - nice to have court side support and far less responsibility than I am used to in terms of travel arrangements, accommodations, food, etc.

I played last night. Lost 6-2, 6-3 to the University of Minnesota's incoming 5 star, and top 50 ranked Nationally, recruit. Despite it not being a good match-up for me based on game styles, had opportunities. Courter was quite offensive and immediately pushed me back behind the baseline; I had to give myself more time to track down one blistering shot after another. However, this ended up being slightly counter-productive....by giving up more of the baseline, the depth on my own balls became shorter and shorter, allowing her to capitalize on each and every one. Eventually began to serve and volley, and apply some forward pressure. This was quite effective, but too little too late.

Overall, the talent level is pretty phenomenal and GREAT tennis to watch / be a part of. I definitely would have preferred a less offensive first round opponent......but in looking around, EVERY opponent appeared tough! Several of the Gophers upcoming, current and alumni are in the tournament. The University of Iowa is represented by its top player in the late 90's - Tyler Cleveland. Ohio State and LSU also have top-tier players here. Oh....there is also a Mixed Doubles team that had to default their match because they are playing in the respective Men's and Women's Doubles draws at WIMBLEDON!

Scott and I were scheduled to play this evening in the Quarters of the Mixed draw. However, our match was rescheduled for tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 10 AM due to restrictions on the # of matches a player can play each day.

A successful week of the Kohawk Tennis Overnight Camp wrapped up earlier this afternoon with a team competition, and closing ceremony. We were extremely fortunate to have a WONDERFUL group of campers.....very well behaved, respectful and a lot of fun. A big thanks to our staff also.......Coach Rob did a great job in the lead role, Kyle & Michelle handled the long evenings / overnight portion with ease, JR and Jackie were great with the kids on court and Coach Rodgers always offers his insightful wisdom to the campers (as seen in the below picture).

Cleveland Wrap-Up, My Match of Momentum and Tennis Camp!

Played Sunday morning at 9 AM against Cameron Hubbs - a recent graduate from Ohio State. Lost in 3 sets....7-5, 0-6, 2-6. Hubbs plays more of an attack/offensive game. She came out firing; I merely had to run down a few balls (my style) and put them back in play, forcing her to hit 4 winners each point instead of 1. Her errors began to add up giving me a 3-0 early lead in the 1st. However, she quickly settled in and began to attack more intelligently.....pushing me behind the baseline, closing the net/angle and putting 1 volley away after another (or so it seemed). 5 games later, I was down 3-5. Gut check at this point......legs kicked back in gear and I took the next 4 games to capture the set 7-5.

Tides turned quickly, abruptly and to my dismay, at this point in the match. I am still trying to come to terms with how the match played out from this point on, and to understand it from a mental standpoint so that I can grow and learn from it. Hubbs managed to rattle off the next 9 games. After competing/winning the 1st set, how does this happen? Once I can pinpoint the answer, I'll let you know.

Given the stage and level of play, I admit to surprising myself in winning the 1st set. Because of that, perhaps I settled? To the credit of my opponent, she slightly altered her gameplan and did a much better job of mixing up pace/placement, which took me out of rhythm.

Down 0-3 in the 3rd, I did slightly recover and decide that I wasn't going to get knocked down without a fight. Believe I was down 1-3, 15-40 and fought back to win that game. Had a bit of momentum in my favor again, but couldn't capitalize on an ad point at 2-3 to even up the 3rd at 3 a piece.

Following the match, I stepped off the court, stood in place for 5 minutes, eyes slightly glazed over and took in my surroundings, where I was at and what I was/am trying to do. Honestly believe that I could write a novel about the infinite thoughts that crossed my mind in those short, yet eternal, minutes. In sum and despite the current state of emptiness/loneliness, felt blessed to be standing in the middle of Chagrin Falls, OH, to have had the opportunity to test myself and play at this level, and for the support from family and friends that I have had along my journey thus far. As Coach Rodgers later stated in trying to make me feel better, I have a limited (zero!) matchbank of experience at this level. I will continue to improve/grow and test myself again......in fact, back on the road in just a few short days to play singles and mixed (with Scott Stegemann) at the US Open Qualifier in Minneapolis:

http://tennislink.usta.com/Tournaments/TournamentHome/Tournament.aspx?T=107050

Had a 10 hour drive back to Cedar Rapids following my match. Talk about time to think! Don't think I turned the radio on until I hit the State of Illinois. With our overnight Tennis Camp taking place this week, campers checked in last night. We have 20 great kids for the next 100+ hours. Luckily, we also have a tremendous staff of counselors/coaches. Many/most of the kids and counselors are returning from last year. Coach Rob is taking the lead in running the camp this year (to accommodate my travels/tournaments, thanks!), but I did stop at the Racquet Center to say Hello to the campers on my way back into town. The greeting that I received brought an immediate smile to my face.....the same was true when Emmie peaked out of her bedroom door this morning......kids have a way of doing that! Excited to spend time with Emmie, and the campers, this week! All of us will be in the pool this evening after a long day of progress on the court, and in the classroom. Wimbledon starts today also; another reason to smile! A picture of the campers on court (inside due to rain) this morning:

Day 2 - Cleveland

Smooth sailing on the road today. With time to spare, ALMOST got distracted by Cedar Point.....best coasters in the US! Arrived at the Chagrin Valley Athletic Club mid-afternoon. Snuck on a practice court with a 16 year old from Canada (almost 1/2 my age!). Got checked in / registered. Watched two girls from Japan play the card game of War at a phenomenal speed in the Player's Lounge.....imagine they have been and done this before many a times. Saw several of the players warm-up and it dawned on me that I deserve to be here.....KNOW that I can compete with any/all of the players on court today. Despite that, felt very strange to circle "Pro" (as opposed to amateur) during registration.

Play at 9 AM tomorrow morning and ecstatic about having the opportunity to do so. Here is another link:

http://www.clevelandprotennis.com/

A few pictures also. Emmie would love the beach area here; perhaps she'll be in attendance as a spectator next year?

On my way to Cleveland....

As previously posted, I have been accepted into the Qualifying Draw of the Cleveland $10,000 Event. I departed this afternoon, am staying in Fremont, IN this evening and will complete the drive tomorrow. Check-in is Saturday afternoon with play beginning Sunday morning.

Honestly, my trip has been difficult and stressful thus far. A few hours into my trip, I experienced a 45 minute delay due to construction on I-80. Then, a few miles into Indiana, the overhead sign reads, "Car Stalled 6 Miles Ahead, Center Lane Closed." More construction followed. Finally decide to stop for dinner at a KFC. Rarely eat fast food, but was thinking their new grilled chicken would be acceptable. Turns out, it was a KFC Express with a limited menu and thus, no grilled chicken. Much later than expected, FINALLY get off the highway and can see my hotel......the bridge to get to the other side is closed.....7 mile detour. Lastly, the Hampton cannot find my reservation despite my having a reservation #......they booked me at the Hampton in Fremont, CA instead of Fremont, IN. Luckily, the pool is open until 11 tonight so I now have 20 minutes to get a few laps in before turning in for the night.

All in all, suppose today was simply a test of mental strength for me......difficult path will make the opportunity that much more rewarding when arrive!

You can follow my progress via the following link:

http://www.usta.com/Pro-Tennis/Pro-Circuit/ResultsSchedules/

Scroll down to the Ladies Cleveland Tennis Championships - Cleveland, Ohio.

Wimbledon Miscellaneous..

The All England Lawn Tennis Championships begin in just a few days in Wimbledon, England. Once upon a time three of the four Grand Slam events were played on grass. Now only Wimbledon remains, and the turnaround from the conclusion of the French(June 5th) to the first day of play at Wimbledon(June 20th) marks the shortest portion of the professional circuit, the "grass-court" segment.

Did you know that William Renshaw and Pete Sampras hold the most singles titles with seven? Or that Todd Woodbridge has won nine Men's Doubles crowns?

Martina Navratilova captured nine singles titles, seven doubles titles, and four mixed for a total of 20. Billie Jean King matched that with six singles, ten doubles, and four mixed.

Martina Navratilova played an incredible 326 matches on the courts of Wimbledon.

Last year's Isner/Mahut match lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes!

Serena Williams and Elena Dementieva played the longest Women's match. Two hours and 49 minutes.

2011 Men's Singles Seeds

1 Nadal 2 Djokovic 3 Federer 4 Murray 5 Soderling 6 Berdych 7 Ferrer 8 Roddick

2011 Women's Singles Seeds

1 Wozniacki 2 Zvonareva 3 Li Na 4 Azarenka 5 Sharapova 6 Schiavone 7 S Williams 8 Kvitova

Weekend Pictures

Coach Rob (left) and a number of the guys at the Waterloo Open this past weekend:

The clay courts at Cedar Rapids Country Club in the early morning immediately before Coach Rodgers and I put a training session in:

Emmie Diehl intently focused on the task at hand.....left handed!

Waterloo Results

Kohawk affiliated results from the Waterloo tourney.

Nikki Kuehl(Burke) 2002 alum was runner-up in Women's Open singles, taking out the top seed along the way and won the Women's Doubles

Joey White(trains at Coe) was the singles runner-up, 2011 grads Elliot Rausa and Scott Stegemann were semi-finalists, Curtis Newman and Coach Rob Rye were quarterfinalists(Rob's back went out chasing one of Scott's topspin lobs!) and Jonathan Roger was a consolation semifinalist.

Elliot won the doubles over Scott and JR. Scott and JR edged Curtis & Kyle Tucker in the semi finals in a Match Tiebreaker.

In Men's 4.0 action, the sandbagging Chuck Lampe(trains at Coe) won the event with the loss of only 7 games in eight sets!

Waterloo Open / First Team Reunion of the Summer!

Several of the players on our men's team, 2 recent graduates and Coach Rob will be playing in the Waterloo Open this weekend. You can follow their progress/results by clicking on the link provided.

Elliot Rausa (2011 graduate) will be hosting all of the players at the residence of his parents. A big thanks to Dave and Patty for opening up their home, and constant support of Kohawk Tennis. I am confident the guys will have a great time and enjoy their time on court / competing!

2011 French Open and a bit of Tennis History

As the French Open fades into the past, and we look forward to the onset of Wimbledon in just 12 days, an observational lesson from the Men's Final. Despite the brilliant five months of undefeated play by Novak Djokovic, the French Final was once again a Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer match up, thanks to the brilliant and bold shot-making effort by Federer in the semi-final vs Djokovic.

In the Final, once again Nadal was victorious despite, at times, a flurry of greatness from Federer. On Clay this match up always seem to be "same old, same old", as Nadal loops his lefthanded FH crosscourt to the Federer one-handed BH. Seemingly to the point of boredom. I mean 4 sets of running the same play over and over. Well, it has produced a 12-2 advantage over the years on clay!

Which brings to mind the point Bill Tilden "hammered" home in his classic tennis book, Match Play and Spin of the Ball. Published in 1925, Tilden made the statement, "Always change a losing game, and NEVER change a winning game".

Bill Tilden was an early American great Tennis Player. During his amateur career from 1912-30, he won 14 Grand Slams, and won 138 of 192 tournaments played, including a match winning percentage of 93.6%. He turned Professional in 1931 and was one of the pioneers in establishing tennis as a professional sport.

Bill Tilden in action:

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=4676

Nadal is an obvious proponent of Tilden's rule. So while the content of the claycourt matches between Federer and Nadal are amazingly similar and perhaps tedious, let's remember and appreciate that we have the opportunity to be watching two of the all time great players ply their skills. I know I can appreciate the amazing brilliance of Federer's racquet artistry, and at the same time marvel in Nadal's ability to blunt Federer's shot-making with sheer doggedness, effort, and execution of a game plan.

Many will wonder how Djokovic would have fared with his two-handed shot to foil Nadal's FH? I think that would have been, and will be, quite interesting, but until proven otherwise, I am opting to stick with Nadal's "physicality", especially in a best of five Grand Slam situation.

On to Wimbledon!

Happenings at Coe!

A very Happy 3rd Birthday to Emmie Diehl!

Coach Rob returned from a short trip to Denver in which he was able to spend time with family. Rob has also been putting quite a bit of time into conditioning, performed quite well in the beep test today (in an attempt to push Curtis this Fall?), and will be playing in the Waterloo Open this weekend.

Coach Kris snuck away for 28 hours late last week and spent a day relaxing up in Prairie Du Chien with family. Kris has been accepted into the qualifying draw of the ITF Circuit Cleveland $10,000 Tournament. She will be headed to Cleveland on June 18th to compete!

Coach Rodgers spent many hours in the Racquet Center this past weekend as Coe played host to the Senior and Mixed USTA League District Championships. Proceeds from the event help pay for Spring Break so a big thanks to Coach for the long hours. Coach also found time to put in 100+ miles on the bike.

The Kohawk Summer Tennis Camp is quickly approaching! June 19th-24th. We are still accepting registrations. Please advertise to those you feel may be interested. After expenses, the money is put directly back into Kohawk Tennis! A link to camp details is in the right hand sidebar.

For the players, and because we know how much you enjoy Kohawk Conditioning, we are now posting optional daily workouts on the blog.

Lastly, you can now follow our blog via email; please sign up above if you would like to receive an email when updates to the blog have been made.

Hope all of our followers/players/alumni/parents are enjoying the Summer weather; we certainly miss having many of you around the Racquet Center on a daily basis!