If you can’t see these things in person, it’s hard to get inspired by them. It’s hard to feel the magic. It’s hard to feel the crowd come alive. It’s a completely different feeling to see a 145mph serve in person come off of Isner’s racquet. To hear the sound of Juan Martin Del Potro’s forehand as it connects with the center of his strings. To see Federer’s beautiful gliding slice that barely goes over the net. To see and hear Nadal’s huge fist pump after a forehand buggy whip winner on the...

What are you willing to tolerate on your high performance junior tennis journey? Some people can't handle the emotional outbursts, bad line calls, frustrating parents, and the overall emotional roller coaster. They want a nice respectful game, with a nice relaxing atmosphere, and if goals aren't achieved, it's not a problem. Others can tolerate the roller coaster so long as progress is being made and the child is showing continuous signs of happiness. Unfortunately you have to pick....

A tennis player spends approximately 80% of a match WALKING around. Not running and playing. Walking. Yet we spent 99.99% of our practices working on everything else, and we wonder why most kids struggle to be mentally tough. An argument can be made that the routines in-between points are the most important thing that will determine how mentally tough a player will be in a match. In this podcast I discuss the routine I try to teach the players I work with. If your players are not...

This is part 2 of a 2-part special guest episode with Christopher Trizzino. In part 1 Chris shared his fearless journey of how he started tennis very late at the age of 13, fell in love with coaching but had no idea how to succeed with it, and now runs one of the best academies in the entire region. This episode is a great reminder that you don't need to plan every step of your journey in order to succeed. In this episode, Chris discusses the importance he places on parent education, being...

This is part 1 of a 2-part special guest episode with Christopher Trizzino. In part 1 Chris shares his fearless journey of how he started tennis very late at the age of 13, fell in love with coaching but had no idea how to succeed with it, and now runs one of the best academies in the entire region. This episode is a great reminder that you don't need to plan every step of your journey in order to succeed. After you're done with part 1, check out part 2 where Chris discusses the importance...

One of the least talked about areas parents have to deal with is the time in-between 2nd and 3rd sets. I wonder how many parents were given the heads up that they'd be put in a situation where they'd have to consider putting their coaching hat on. It's an unfair position to be put in. Parents aren't coaches! They're just there to parent, and this is a delicate and important moment in the match. How they handle this time is important! They can either provide more anxiety for their child, or...

What's more important to a player, the racquet or the string? Should kids be using polyester strings? What's the best way to test racquets? These are some of the questions we asked racquet specialist, and Head of USA Marketing for Tecnifibre, Philippe Oudshoorn. Philippe is an incredible resource to have because his knowledge of these things is directly from the player and coach's perspective. Before joining Tecnifibre, Philippe played collegiate tennis at the University of Virginia,...

A champion is someone who gets up when he can’t” - Jack Dempsey It’s a hard thing to explain to someone if they haven’t gone through something incredibly difficult and challenging, and refused to back down. It can also seem like an unfair thing to explain to a young athlete. When talking to a child, a psychologist probably wouldn’t be too happy with a coach saying physical effort is not enough, and that deep inside that child has an extra gear, a 6th or 7th gear they need to tap into to take...

We have another special guest episode with Jonathan Stokke (full bio below) from the Baseline Intelligence podcast. If you haven't listened to the Baseline Intelligence podcast, and you're a tennis coach, parent, or player, you need to! Stokke has an incredible wealth of knowledge, from his experience as a junior and collegiate player, playing in the US Open, coaching in college tennis, and now a private coach with an amazing podcast. He's interviewed many incredible people like Paul...

Answering this question is straight forward, but finding that type of environment is difficult. -There will always be a higher level training group so at some point, a coach has to say no, they can’t move you up. -Does the player show a disciplined effort to train at 100% no matter who they're with? -Is it fair for the higher level players when the lower level player joins them? -Can you get better training with a lower level player? These are the things I discuss in this podcast, along...

One of my favorite things to do at the end of the year is to take some time to reflect. Days can quickly turn into months, and just like that, the year is over. It’s hard to stop, slow down, and evaluate things, yet it’s something I try to do as much as possible. It’s during these moments that we can fine tune our process, and redirect our coaching energies to the most important places. In this podcast I discuss the 3 things I learned in 2023, as well as 3 things that stayed the same. Enjoy!

This week we have a special episode! It's the first time we have a guest joining us. Marcelo Ferreira, Windy Hill High Performance Tennis Manager joined us to discuss the incredible program he's built in Atlanta, GA. Marcelo discusses how culture, character and discipline come first, and then tennis. Their person first approach combined with their holistic mindset is what makes their program so unique. Fitness, yoga, meditation, nutrition, and mental skills training are a mandatory part of...

When we think of the word weapon in tennis, we’ve been trained to think of a powerful weapon. A big forehand. A monster serve. The ability to finish points at the net. Something that can overpower your opponent, and take the racket out of their hand. I’d like to redefine that.  Visit www.aubonetennis.com for more

This podcast crossed my mind as I put myself in the shoes of many parents, and wondered what type of training setup I would look for if my son decided to pursue high performance tennis. I tried to be reasonable. Of course I’d want everything on site right ? Nutritionist. Mental coach. Physical therapist. Restaurant. Indoor courts. Classroom. Locker rooms. Etc. Etc.. The list could go on forever. But few places like that exist, and they’re usually part of a massive operation. I don’t want to...

Twice in my life I've made improvements to my nutrition, and they were so impactful that I can never go back to my old ways. The foods and liquids we consume, how we consume them, and when we consume them have a direct affect not only our energy, but our mood. If we have low energy, we’ll be more at risk of being in a bad mood, having a negative mindset throughout the match, and we’ll struggle to make proper decisions. If you’re going to spend thousands of dollars a year on tennis...

There are days where we wake up and for some reason, our favorite forehand is no where to be found. Our fitness levels feel depleted. Our legs feel like cement. And our serve feels like we forgot how to hit it. There’s no real explanation for it. That’s just the way it is. Just like Steph Curry’s 3 point shooting percentage is never exactly the same day after day, neither is our tennis game. Because of all that, we as tennis players need to be continuously flexible. When yesterday we needed...

The hardest part when selecting the 5 things to fix in high performance junior tennis was narrowing it down to just 5! A lot has changed since I started playing junior tennis. Some things for the good, but some things for the worst. Maybe it's just because now I'm a coach that I'm more involved with what's going on, but it's tough to sit back and listen to stories of parents wondering if they should pull their kid out of tennis. There will always be kids that switch sports. That's totally...

Everybody has moments where they lose focus or get tight. It happened to both players in this match. They’re the #1 and #2 players in the world, yet it still happens to them. But look at how they each handled it in the 2nd and 3rd set! Incredible. A lot to learn for juniors.

Ah! The grand ol question I’ve received more times than I care to remember. Not only from juniors, but from adults as well! Players across all levels struggle against pushers. I get it. They’re terribly boring to play against. They give you no rhythm. They make for long and exhausting matches that test not only your physical fitness, but your mental fitness as well. Well say no more to those horrible nightmares! It’s time for the pushers reign to end. In this blog are 5 strategies to beat...

One of the most common questions I get from junior tennis parents is should my child home school? Is it the only way they can develop into a division 1 collegiate athlete? And I get that question not because they’re in love with the idea of homeschooling. It’s because they feel like they’re being forced into it by the current junior tennis structure. Most parents don’t actually want their child to homeschool. They want to keep them in regular school. Well I have a way to work around part of...

This can probably be said for most individual sports as well. Team sports have the advantage of having everything organized for the players. There’s a coach. A season. A set schedule. Set practice times. Uniforms. Etc.. Sure, there’s still a cost to all that, but all the information is put together, and handed out to the parents. They know what to expect, what their schedule is, and then put on their uber hat and drive the kids everywhere. That doesn’t exist in junior...

Junior tennis ranking systems for people to be obsessed with have existed for decades. UTR is just another system with its own advantages and disadvantages. What’s changed is how academies, parents, and players have easy access to seeing the “ratings” thus exposing how much they actually look at them. Click below for the full blog. Hope you enjoy the episode! http://www.aubonetennis.com/blog/utr

Ohhhhh I've been wanting to write this one for a while. Innocent well-intentioned actions can do more harm than we think. We overlook the consequences of actions that WE think don't mean anything. But it's not what we think. It's what is. I've worked with some players and parents who look at the draw and all it is is a waste of their time. It changes nothing for them. I've worked with others who can't help but look at their second round opponent, believe it's an easier match than the first...

Tennis is far behind when it comes to using video technology in their coaching methods. All major sports are using them and it's time for tennis to catch up! In this episode I discuss the benefits of using video technology, and how it can help in the development of a player. Click below for the blog portion! https://www.aubonetennis.com/blog/whyvideoissoimportant