Sherwood Tennis FAQ

By Todd Wilcox

This is essentially a FAQ for new tennis players and parents. Where it matters, it is local to Sherwood. If you have other specific questions or want me to add things here, feel free to email me at .

In general, I grew up having to pay a lot of my tennis bills myself, so I’ve approached all this advice from a standpoint of frugality. So, whenever cost is involved, what is here is kind of a minimum for players to be competitive. Feel free to spend more where you want. Or, if you or your son or daughter has a strong interest and dedication to tennis but can’t afford some of these things, email me and I’ll see what I can do to help. Please note that the help that I provide (aside from coaching)means that I reach out to people I know in the awesome local tennis community, not that I’m personally doing much more than coordinating.

Our Current Tennis Staff Includes:

  • Roxanne Imbrie – Girls Head Coach
  • Jason Upton – Volunteer Girls Coach
  • Todd Wilcox – Volunteer Girls Coach
  • Craig Zetterberg – Volunteer Boys and Girls Coach
  • Jim Krauel – Sherwood Tennis founder and current volunteer
  • Emily McBride – Boys Varsity Coach
  • Jim Kusyk – Volunteer Boys Coach

Table of Contents:

Contents

Please Read: Goals for Sherwood Tennis Players

How to Get Better at Tennis

Tennis Clubs

Indoor Lessons

Tennis Racquets

Strings, Shoes, Grips, Head Guards…

Tennis Balls

What to Expect in High School Tennis

Basic Rules for New Players and Parents

Basic Score Keeping

High School District and State Tournaments

Playing Outside Tournaments

Stuff to Bring to a tennis tournament (and probably matches too)

Please Read: Goals for Sherwood Tennis Players

As you or your son or daughter gets involved in our tennis program, I feel that it is important that everyone is on the same page for what we hope to accomplish as a program and what the players should get out of it.

Traditionally, the Sherwood High School tennis team has been a fairly contained program without much help from outside. We don’t have 3-5 freshmen walk in our door each year who have been playing competitive tennis for years already. We generally don’t have a team full of players with private club memberships and personal coaches. In fact, we consider ourselves lucky if we had 1-2 on the team at once. What we have had are coaches and kids who are willing to work hard to become good players. And it has been successful.

As Sherwood has grown, we’ve been pushed into a league with much tougher competition. With how much families spend on other sports like soccer and volleyball these days, the days of tennis being an expensive “country club” sport are long gone. Yet the schools like Lake Oswego, Lakeridge, West Linn, Tualatin, St. Mary’s are still usually very good. That is mainly because lots of parents in those neighborhoods grew up playing tennis and have passed it on to their kids.

So, our competition is much tougher than when we were a 5A school competing against Milwaukie, St. Helens and Sandy. So, we’ve started working harder to build programs for middle-school aged kids so they’ll be a little more skilled when they walk into our program their freshman year.

Does that mean that kids who don’t start playing until they are freshmen won’t have a chance to play or ever make varsity? Definitely not. I don’t think there are any teams in the state where someone who works hard can play at the varsity level. General athleticism helps a lot, but hard work pays off.

Going the other direction, does that mean that we’ll be churning out a scholarship-level player or two every season? Unfortunately, that’s not likely either. Simply put, it is very difficult for anyone to get a scholarship to play tennis in college. I apologize in advance for my honesty, but I don’t believe in telling every parent that their kid can get a scholarship if they spend thousands and thousands of dollars and dedicate themselves full time to a single sport. Thedifficulty in earning scholarships is true for most sports, regardless of what most coaches, clubs and associations say.

So, what CAN your son or daughter realistically achieve? Depending on their athleticism and willingness to work hard, they can get very good. I coached a player who won the 5A state singles championship. He wasn’t anything special his freshman year and wasn’t the best athlete I’vehad, but he worked very hard. He ended up playing Division 1 tennis (but not on scholarship). And, from just the last 5 graduating classes, we’ve had 10-12 players who played or were capable of playing at the Division III level.

Most importantly, they can get to be skilled in a game that they can play the rest of their livesfor enjoyable exercise. I started in high school (at Milwaukie – not a tennis powerhouse), worked hard and got pretty good. I chose to pass up opportunities to play in college locally to go to a bigger school in Chicago. I’m now in my 40s and could stand to lose a few pounds, but in just the last few days have gotten very good practice or played competitive matches with:

  • A University of Nebraska former team captain.
  • A 63-year-old coming back from knee surgery.
  • A recent UP player who was ranked as the #4 girl in South Africa growing up.
  • A girl I coached when she was 11 who now teaches at a private club.
  • A guy who started playing as an adult after too many basketball injuries.
  • A good player from Spain whose wife got transferred here by Adidas.
  • A coach at Lewis and Clark.

(Yes, I really did play with all those people in the last 4 days, plus a few others – I’m very tired right now.)

It’s a great game and can be played enjoyably at a wide range of levels by a very wide variety of people. Those people also tend to be fairly nice and well-employed/connected. Tennis helped me get my best jobs during college and my first real job, which led me to my next career.

Our number 1 goal as a program is to have a team full of players who share our love of the game. We’d really love it if they choose to work hard and get very good. But we know that other sports and activities are fun too, and academics and volunteer work are more important. We will work hard to offer what opportunities we can and players can take advantage of them as they wish.

How to Get Better at Tennis

This is very simple.

  • Take lessons or get instruction when you can.
  • Hit lots of shots with friends or against the wall.
  • Play some practice matches or tournament matches.

Think of those three as a 3-legged stool. Taking lessons all the time but not practicing is a waste of money. Practicing without getting some instruction can build bad habits. And trying to win matches that count when you haven’t practiced them is tough.

Local Coaching: The coaches we have in Sherwood do what we can and do a pretty decent job. But none of us were world-class players or work as professional coaches. Due to the number of kids in the program, we usually have about 8 players for each coach. That means that we don’t have the ability to work in detail with anyone for more than a few minutes. There are also things that we coach well and other stuff we don’t (personally, I’m not great at coaching forehands or serves). If you are serious about your game, going to a professional coach on the side is a good idea (we won’t be offended).

If you are only going to do one of the three things on the list, the most important is to go practice and hit a lot of shots. Getting in position to hit the shot you want requires you to know where the ball is going to bounce and where you need to be – that only comes from hitting lots of shots. 1,500 shots per month will probably maintain your skills (doubles once per week). 4,000-5,000 shots a month will let you improve at a pretty good rate (2-3 singles matches a week). Players who are working very hard on their games are probably hitting 10,000 per month (5 pretty good hitting and match-play sessions per week).

There is a tennis racquet that is like a FitBit for tennis. I used it for a week and looked at how much I had to play in order to hit 500 shots. Here’s what it told me.

  • 120 minutes playing doubles matches (with almost no breaks to change ends, rest or chit-chat).
  • 75 minutes of singles (with normal side changes and breaks)
  • 60 minutes of just hitting with a friend (standing in the middle just hitting back and forth, taking breaks every little bit for water).
  • 20 minutes of hitting against the wall. Yes, only 20 minutes to hit 500 shots. Note that this is an option that is available for free year-round. A player who spends the winter working hard to have good footwork while hitting against the wall for 45 minutes two or three times a week will improve a ton and be in great shape for the season. It’s also a great way to relieve stress.

Another valuable tool for improvement is to have a friend take slow motion video of you hitting your shots. Then compare those to some youtube coaching videos on the strokes (I prefer coaching videos over watching pros hit – the pros are too good and can do things that the rest of us mortals cannot). Focus on:

  • The path that your racquet head travels
  • Your balance
  • Your contact point
  • Your follow-through

In general, you want your racquet to vaguely follow a down-the-hall and up the stairs path. So the racquet face should be moving forward and fairly flat as it goes through the ball, and your stroke should continue forward and going up a bit.

Other stuff to help improve:

  • Don’t neglect movement. It’s hard to hit great shots if you aren’t in the right place to hit them. Work on moving quickly to where you need to be, then using little adjustment steps to get in the exact right place. Don’t drift to where you need to be (getting there just in time to hit the ball).
  • Don’t neglect fitness. Fit people can practice much longer and are less likely to get injured. Fit people have good footwork late in matches when it gets close.
  • Put pressure on yourself. At random points in your practice session, tell yourself that you have to do 5 pushups if you miss your next shot. Or play a match where the loser has to go running after.

Tennis Clubs

When you start talking about tennis clubs, you start talking about investing time and money to become a better player. And what you get out of a membership depends on what you put into it. Joining the fanciest club in town doesn’t do you any good if you don’t get out and practice hard.

Do I recommend tennis clubs for everyone? No. I recommend them for people who really want to improve their tennis game by having the ability to play year-round and potentially get lessons from professional instructors. (If you aren’t going to try to use them several times per week, you probably aren’t getting your money’s worth.) Clubs are also great places to be exposed to lots of other players who play tennis seriously.

One of the most important things to consider when joining a club is who you will play with. Lots of people join and don’t get very much use out of them because they don’t have anyone to play with. When I joined as a junior, I joined with my doubles partner and he was my practice partner 85% of my time there. Options for playing at clubs as a junior:

  • Playing mostly in group lessons. These can be 2-3 days per week, but get expensive if that’s what you are doing.
  • Playing with friends who you know going in.
  • Joining a junior team at a club to meet people to practice with. You’ll generally need to take the initiative to actually get kids from other schools to go out and play though.
  • Play with your parents if they play and join with you.
  • Hit on a ball machine.

That being said, here are the local clubs:

Charbonneau (Wilsonville, cheapest by far, but you’ll really want to bring a friend, and there are some annoyances)

  • You can only join on July 1 and January 1, and you apply in advance.
  • $100 non-refundable application fee. They may not let you join when you want – you may get deferred by 6 months.
  • Single Membership – about $400 per year. Family Membership – about $550 per year.
  • 2 courts (but membership is limited to keep them kind of available)
  • Good teaching pro but without too many classes. But class prices are reasonable.
  • No staff – just a building with two courts and a passcode to get you in the door.
  • Online reservation system where it helps to be awake at midnight to book your courts.
  • Ball Machine use is free.

Stafford Hills (Tualatin, most expensive and nicest):

  • Up to $1000 to join, then over $100/month for a junior membership. $2000 and about $200/month for a family
  • 7 courts.
  • Multiple teaching pros and lots of expensive lessons available.
  • Full gym and pool, lots of fitness classes included in membership. It’s all very nice.
  • Online reservation system where you book courts at either 7am or 7:30am.
  • Ball machine use is $30/month.

Mountain Park (Lake Oswego, the in-between, but on the expensive side).

  • Junior memberships are more accessible. Several hundred to join, but under $80/month after that (I think – call to check to confirm). Family memberships are a bit less than Stafford Hills, but not a ton.
  • 9 indoor courts
  • Great teaching pros and extensive junior program (this is where the Lake Oswego dominance comes from). The lessons are fairly expensive though.
  • Dial-in reservation system (8:30 call in time – it is super annoying).
  • Small gym and a few fitness classes.
  • Ball machine isn’t free – probably has a single use or monthly rate to use it.

Indoor Lessons

If you want to keep playing in the winter without joining a club, going to some of the public facilities around town and taking group lessons is a good way to get out and hit 1-2 times per week. The closest options there are:

  • Lake Oswego Tennis Center (cheapest and maybe the closest, but I’ve found instructors at other facilities to be a little consistent). I’m assuming that former varsity players and those confident they’ll be on varsity next year would sign up as Intermediate. JV level players are probably advanced beginners.
  • Tualatin Hills Tennis Center (more expensive for out of district people (like Sherwood) but they tend to have pretty high-level instruction.) You’ll have to call to figure out the appropriate level.

Other options include Portland Tennis Center (not the best) and Vancouver Tennis Center (surprisingly good programs, but really far away).

My advice for the lessons at the public centers is to research it and book it early. They fill up fast.

Or if none of that works out, go hit against a wall under cover (Laurel Ridge has a great area for this). There are pro players who spent more time hitting against walls than against people.

Tennis Racquets

With tennis racquets, you generally get what you pay for. More expensive racquets are generally much better than their less expensive counter-parts. But that doesn’t mean that beginners who want to try out tennis need to go out and spend $200 on a racquet on day 1.

Quick Plug: The best (only?) tennis dedicated shops in Portland are Players Racquet Shops. There are shops in Beaverton (biggest), Lake Oswego (closest) and Portland (basically the same, but owned by a different guy). I personally recommend them for mid-level or high-end racquets, strings, grips and shoes, but their clothing selection is limited.

Racquet Sizes:

  • If a player is 4’6” or less, 23” is a good length.
  • If a player is under 4’11” and under the age of 12, 25” is a good length.
  • 27” (standard) for anyone 5’ or above (or over the age of 12).

Grip Sizes:

  • Junior racquets (under 27”) don’t really vary in their grip size.
  • Otherwise, you will sometimes see a number (1,2,3,4,5) or a size in inches.
  • Smaller numbers for smaller hands (1 = 4 and 1/8 inch; 2 = 4 and ¼ inch)
  • Bigger numbers for bigger hands (4 = 4 and ½ inches)
  • The old rule is that after you grab it, you hand should be a little short of going all the way around – leaving enough room for you to put your pinky in the gap.
  • The recent trend is for people to use slightly smaller grip sizes, but bigger grip sizes reduce the risk of tennis elbow.

Basic Racquet Price Points and Quality:

  • Before I start, these qualities and price ranges are for both junior and standard sizes.
  • About $30. These racquets are better than what I used for my first year and a half of playing, so they are viable for use. But, they tend to be aluminum and put together from multiple pieces, which makes them unstable on off-center shots. They are generally fine for someone learning the game but are hard to use for hitting or returning harder shots. I can actually see shots that are hit off-centergoing almost nowhere with these racquets, while the same swing gives a decent result with a slightly better racquet. You can buy these at Amazon or at Dick’s. Wilson, Prince, Head and Babolat are the main brands.
  • About $75. These tend to be aluminum/graphite composites. They definitely have improved stability to deal with more powerful shots, but tend to not balance weight, control and power like higher-end racquets do. You can get these at Players, Dick’s and Amazon. In general, players who aren’t serious about tennis (playing 3+ times a week) will probably be okay with this level of racquet. Wilson, Prince, Head and Babolat are the main brands.
  • $150 - $200 for 27” frames, $100 - $120 for 23” and 25” frames. These are high-end racquets generally made of graphite and other strong-but-light materials. They can be restrung lots of times and will generally last for many years if you don’t beat them on the ground. These will offer various blends of power and control, different weights and balance points. It’s very much a case of personal preference (see the next section for how to pick one).

If you are cost-conscious, there are two ways to potentially keep costs down. The first is to keep in touch with Players to find when their demo racquets get retired (once per year). They’ll sell those for around $75, so you can pick up two used high-end racquets for $150 total. This is best if you really want to be picky about your racquets without paying for it. If you aren’t picky and just want a good deal on a good, used racquet, try Ebay, Craigslist or garage sales. Used racquets are not in high demand, so you can frequently get a high-end racquet in good condition for $30 or so (just make sure you google it to find out if it was actually good – even if it is 20 years old). High-end racquets from the 90s will still hit the ball well – they are just a little heavier.