UM tennis alums featured in Grantland
February 5th, 2014 at 4:58 PM ^
Very interesting article. Tennis is still a great sport to play to keep in shape and have fun for your whole life. Even if the ceiling is a potential college scholarship, I would still encourage my kids to play tennis. But there's obviously a difference between playing tennis semi-competitively and all out training for tennis from a young age, which I agree would not be a justifiable expense.
February 5th, 2014 at 5:33 PM ^
college scholly should be the goal. Going "balls to the wall" as the OP implies, certainly doesn't pay off in the LR, however in terms of professional careers. Certainly the most unforgiving all around. Seeding helps obviously, but if you don't perform at each tournament, you don't get paid. No rest for the weary
February 5th, 2014 at 5:53 PM ^
February 5th, 2014 at 5:04 PM ^
I also did not read the entire article either so if I missed something very important, sorry.
February 5th, 2014 at 5:10 PM ^
February 5th, 2014 at 5:57 PM ^
Basketball is pretty international at this point.
February 5th, 2014 at 6:02 PM ^
True, with the difference here being the top American players in basketball will still most likely be among the top in the world, even though it has become a very global sport. The same doesn't hold true for sports like tennis, soccer and even hockey.
February 5th, 2014 at 6:33 PM ^
King and Maravic were the best players Michigan has had in a decade. Neither were anywhere near going pro.
The last true pro-type player Michigan had was Victor Amaya, I believe.
February 5th, 2014 at 6:38 PM ^
MaliVai Washington(who was coached by Victor Amaya) is more recent.
February 5th, 2014 at 7:17 PM ^
February 5th, 2014 at 7:36 PM ^
Todd Martin is from the state of MIchigan, but played college tennis at Northwestern.
February 5th, 2014 at 5:33 PM ^
Each tennis match brings uncertainty. But you prepare and put your effort in before and during the match to give yourself the best chance. Sometimes you come out on top and sometimes not. Tennis has taught me to enjoy everything that is thrown at us. Whether good or bad. - from Jung's blog
This caught my eye as well - there's something sort of bittersweet about his sentiment here, but I like how he's turned the experience into constructive lessons that will be useful regardless of what his ultimate path is. I think that a love of a sport, especially one like tennis where even the USTA site tells people to get their education unless they are a "can't miss" prospect, really does teach people how to set and achieve goals and deal with adversity.
Interesting read. Thanks for sharing that!
February 5th, 2014 at 10:22 PM ^
what is the surprise here? Being an athelete in many sports is not lucrative, if not all sports. It's just like going into entertainment - you might get lucky and make it, but usually you don't.
That said, another good article at Grantland. They produce some quality stuff...
February 6th, 2014 at 8:46 AM ^
I agree that it's probably not wise to bank on your kids going pro and getting a ROI. I still plan on having my daughters learn tennis if they show any interest. My father-in-law has played his whole life and taught lessons at several tennis centers, so my investment will be minimal. Hopefully they will learn a love for sports and physical activity and if that leads to a scholarship down the road then bonus. As a side question, does anyone know about the availability of sailing scholarships in college? My dad sails and claims that several kids in his club's youth sailing programs have gotten scholarships and they weren't even very good.