USPTA Southern Standard January 2024

USPTA Southern Division: Where Excellence is Standard

January 2024

Volume 25 Issue 1

Power Up for 2024

Inside Pg 2 Virtual Business Conference Info Pg 3 Utilize Your Special Powers Pg 7 Success with a 55+ Year Veteran Pg 13 Start Using ChatGPT

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President’s Message

By Ken Andriano

Dear USPTA Southern members:

agement companies, and independent professionals to name a few. Over the next few years, we will work to engage our members I hope everyone had a wonderful, relaxing holiand showcase the VALUE of the USPTA. I believe that this will help day season with their family and are ready for a us with member reten on, as well as make us more a rac ve for prosperous and produc ve 2024. It is with future USPTA professionals. I recently had the opportunity to meet much excitement that I will be serving as your with our new CEO, Brian Dillman, and I know we are in good hands USPTA Southern President for the next two years. It has been a moving forward. There are several key things he will be focusing pleasure residing in the Southern Division for the past 18 years, on, including con nuing to build our rela onship with the USTA. and in that me, I have met so many knowledgeable professionals.

It has been my honor to serve on the Southern Board for the past This year we’d like to focus on four major areas: diversity, inclusix years and with the help of the amazing professionals we have sion, and equality (DI&E), social media presence, Elevate on our Southern and State Boards, I know we can con nue the (previously U30), and pickleball. With the help of all of you, we will posi ve direc on the previous Presidents have created. be able to retain and grow our organiza on by working together, which will ensure the USPTA will lead the way in our industry.

There are so many different pathways in our profession that USPPlease con nue to look for upcoming educa onal opportuni es, TA can help us with. I have close friends who have found success and I look forward to serving you all. in different fields such as private clubs, parks and recrea on, man-

Virtual Tennis Business Conference Held 2/22-23 Thur a ernoon, Fri morning Cost is just $40

Earn up to 8 educa on credits

Replays for 3 weeks a erwards Full details, registra on, and more coming soon

Lineup & Topics tenta ve schedule Thursday

Friday

1:00 Dave Dvorak GM Panel: What Is Next for Tennis Professionals

9:30 Tim Irwin Pickleballs Net Worth: Understanding its Why and How?

1:45 Darryl Lewis Growing a Pickleball Program from Nothing to Everything

10:15 Kevin Theos Skill Acquisition: On Court and Beyond

2:30 Ray Wendein/David Gold

11:00 Kim Bastable Action-Centric Leadership: Strategies Beyond Mere Discussion"

3:15 Fernando Velasco What To Do After You Get Your Dream Job

11:45 Stan Oley Ace Customer Retention

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By Tom Sweitzer USPTA Master Professional Most tennis professionals have no idea of their Glamour power. Agassi has it, Djokovic has it…and so do you! You must learn how to u lize it to get free publicity and support from organiza ons and businesses. These tac cs will allow you to increase and diversify the programs you offer. You will also be able to increase your program par cipa on levels, the prices you charge as well as create new income sources. In addi on, you will improve your status within your facility, community, and industry.

Your achievements—IQ, GPA, SAT, credit score, NTRP, UTR—reflect years of hard work. Your glamour ra ng can also soar with effort, opening doors to opportuni es beyond imagina on.

them, you're a rockstar!

Bookstores lack tennis magazines, but glamour mags are aplenty. These publica ons transform readers into fabulous individuals.

Consider the transforma ons of Madonna, Elton John, and Lady Gaga—they sustained their careers. Perhaps it's me for your makeover! Not just in a re or style, but in how you perceive yourself and your profession.

The following are some ideas to assist your new Image is Everything campaign.

Success stories in music, movies, poli cs, business, and sports share a common trait: they're not accidental. Vision, shared dreams, focus, and reless dedica on define triumph. In tennis, icons like Bolle eri, Van der Meer, and Baden weren't just excellent coaches; they stood out due to creavity, relentless work, and effec ve selfpromo on. Their con nual presence in tennis media underlined their mastery of selfpromo on and glamour u liza on.

Start by cra ing your narra ve—your story.

It’s the gateway for clients to know your poten al contribu ons. Struggling? PR experts can lend a hand. Seeking help, especially when inves ng in it, is wise.

"But I'm not glamorous," you might think.

Jim Parsons might have thought similarly before his TV show fame. Your students, and career counselors—envy your freedom, style, and the joy of teaching tennis. To

As one of my former teachers used to say, “Be someone going someplace!” You plan your tennis game, so take the me to plan your tennis career. Start today and plant the seeds to grow your image. Cul va ng a glamorous a tude is the key to unlocking your glamour image, which will open new opportuni es to enhance your career.

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pa ern to break down an opponent’s lack of physical ability to execute (X). Other mes, it can be a gesture, a look, or a fist pump. Many mes, our opponents will begin missing when they believe our confidence is soaring. They’ll even make errors if they believe “the PB Gods are against them,” always pouring

By Dayne Gingrich down bad luck onto their side of the court - this beau ful, selffulfilling prophecy is one of my favorites to watch from the other side of the net. When I no ce an opponent gesture to the There’s a (false) belief in pickleball that if we don’t miss, we’ll heavens about his “terrible luck,” I’ll make sure I celebrate loudwin. Now, at the beginner level and up to 3.5ish, yeah, I agree ly a er our team’s “lucky,” good fortune. that if we make 3 balls in a row, there’s a high probability our Pay a en on! Our opponents are giving us free informa on by opponents will hit some type of poor shot. Definitely.

But as we hit 4.0 and above, making balls doesn’t mean our op- the second. Receive the info, design a plan, and gently keep nudging your opponents along the path YOU want them to walk. ponents miss balls. “Making” isn’t enough, we must DO something to influence our opponent’s error. We must have an inten- Making a good 3rd, 5th, and 10 consecu ve dinks in a row isn’t onal plan that will help coax a bad decision, an impa ent mo- enough if you want to keep excelling through the ridiculous amount of smart and talented players immersing themselves ment, an ego-driven response, or a fear-based shot. Simply hi ng 8 dinks in a row isn’t enough (unless mediocrity is a goal). into the chess match that is now compe ve pickleball.

Some mes the strategy we employ is a specific shot selec on

Pickleball Points

Do More Than Just Get It in Play

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USPTA AR has a newly nominated and

Arkansas elected Board: Chris Stuart – President,

Gail Nankervis – 1st VP, Raul Bermudez – 2nd VP, Paul Pautsch – Secretary, Daniel Cornelison – Treasurer, and the following appointed chairs Camden Riley – U30, Brandon Kiker – Adap ve Chair.

On Jan. 26th of 2024 USPTA AR will host their Annual USPTA Pros Mee ng with guest/keynote speaker Luke Jensen; followed up by a High School Coaches Sec on and an Adap ve Sec on.

We had 3 of our USPTA Tennis Professionals who received USTA AR Awards. Farrell Graves -Henry Doyle Outstanding Senior, Brandon Kiker – Tennis Professional of the Year, Paul Pautsch – Hall of Fame

Georgia

I want to thank Dave Neuhart for a great two years serving as our president. We had a terrific Winter Workshop at Atlanta Athle c Club that our host Jeff Chandley was very generous with their beau ful facility. Ken Dehart, Lane Evans, and Jim Carella were our speakers.

Ken's presenta ons centered around drills for large groups and strategies for improving player performance. Michael Pereira, tennis professional in Gainesville, GA. had a good takeaway with the difference in seeing the ball vs watching the ball. Ken advised Michael to ask his student yes or no when she sees the next ball spinning as it approached her.

Lane Evan’s presenta ons covered injuries and the tennis professional plus the case of the 2.5 player. Lane can speak from experience on injuries as he has recovered from a number of them. Jim Carella did an outstanding job of laying out progressions from beginner, intermediate, and advanced pickleball drills. get excited for the future and have a Louisiana Let’s fantas c year. There are tremendous opportuni es in our business today, and we have the opportunity to impact a lot of lives. Cul va ng rela onships is a must if you want to be successful in this industry. There are many ways to accomplish that and u lizing all those tools will make you effecve. USPTA LA will be hos ng some excellent events to con nue our educa on.

As the 2024 board, we would like to thank our past president Lyndsey Mixon for being doing a fantas c job the last 2 years.

new Kentucky board consists of David Kentucky The White serving as President and Chuck Brown Vice President. We would love to have 2 more members to serve on the board. Please contact David White at kyuspta@gmail.com if you are interested. We are currently discussing the possibility of a joint workshop with the Kentucky High School Tennis Coaches Associa on.

A sincere thank you to everyone who came

Alabama out to our complimentary workshop in

December. It was a fun-filled, educa onal day with over 25 folks in a endance. The day wouldn't have been possible without the generosity of Samford University's head men’s tennis coach, Oliver Reynolds. He let us borrow their beau ful indoor facility while it rained all day. A special thanks to Jeff Barrera, Jack Broudy, Rudy Lewis, and Bill Riddle for giving extremely informa ve and entertaining presenta ons. A special thanks to Jenny Robb for her help and for being a technical genius! For the day, I was proudest of the strengthened sense of community amongst all of our USPTA members. Numerous new friendships were made.

We’re s ll planning for an all-expenses paid trip to Montgomery, AL on Saturday, February 24th for the Blue Gray Na onal Tennis Classic. Our goal is to treat our current USPTA members to a complimentary event as a thank-you for your support. A Google sign-up form will be emailed to all of you shortly for our USPTA members only. We are discussing a possible complimentary clinic to give back to the community over the summer. If you have any ideas or would like to help with this please email me at invernessjuniortennisacademy@gmail.com.

This year we have a new state board and a lot planned for 2024. Your new state board is Chris Hoshour President, Alec Moore Vice President, Francie Barragan Secretary and Jarrod Liston Treasurer. We plan to have three state workshops this year. One in the spring, one at the Winston Salem Open and one in December in Charlo e.

There will also be two workshops in conjunc on with the USTA. The first will be during USTA NC Tennis Weekend in Pinehurst the 26th of January and a Spanish workshop during the beginning of the Winston Salem Open. We look forward to serving the state of North Carolina and its members.

North Carolina

As the excitement of the new

South Carolina year se les, we at USPTA SC

are gearing up for another year of serving our vibrant community. Stay tuned for our state newsle ers, burs ng with updates and news arriving a few mes throughout the year. We'll be launching our esteemed state awards program, and we need your help. Nomina ons will open soon, so prepare to recognize the excep onal individuals and projects that make our state shine.

And the learning doesn't stop there! We're excited to offer a series of informa ve workshops across the state, covering diverse topics relevant to your needs. Keep an eye out for registra on details, and get ready to dive into enriching experiences.

Let's make 2024 a year of connec on, recogni on, and growth.

Together, we can build an even stronger and more vibrant tennis community.

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The USPTA TN Winter Workshop had 29 USPTA TN pros in a endance with a full day of presenta ons from all USPTA Master Pros. The morning kicked off with Ken DeHart who Ken presented oncourt drills for large groups including members from Fort Sanders. Following Ken was Darryl Lewis, our USPTA Southern Coach Developer for Pickleball, talking about beginning pickleball as a revenue stream and ac vity at your facility.

Lunch was sponsored and provided by USTA TN. Tyler Strong spoke about USTA tournaments and accessing the website. He showed how the USTA provides a lot of resources between their staff and online to run a seamless and profitable tournament.

The USPTA TN annual awards were presented with The Teaching Pro of the Year is Brian Perry from Knoxville. The Facility of the Year is the Cha anooga Chris an School. Outgoing USPTA TN President Dan Beedle was recognized for his outstanding service in leading the USPTA TN Board the last 2 years.

The a ernoon session was led by Kyle LaCroix who gave a very mo va ng presenta on on how you can improve your career.

The workshop finished with Ken on-court showing crea ve ways to teach fundamentals and rela ng them to simple skills.

Thanks to the staff of Fort Sanders Health & Fitness Center for hos ng our 2023 Winter Workshop

Tennessee

We know everyone is excited about our upcoming workshop on January 26, and we are too. There will be a full day of on and off court presenta ons at the beau ful River Hills Club in Jackson. Our main speaker, Paul Walker, you will recognize from the USPTA Southern May Conference. He is joined by Bill Dopp from USTA Southern and current USPTA Southern board member Dan Beedle. Remember that all of our Mississippi pros can receive one night’s stay and mileage reimbursement for coming to the pros’ workshop, USTA MS annual mee ng, and the tournament directors’ workshop.

The USPTA Southern May Conference will be in Gulfport May 16-18. We are looking forward to having this at Bayou Bluff Tennis Club this year and showing everyone why we are called the Hospitality State.

This year we are going be bringing back lunch and learn mee ngs around the state. Details coming soon. We have a great community of coaches here in Mississippi and we are hoping to con nue working with everyone and helping out as needed. Please keep in touch and do not hesitate to reach out with anything.

Mississippi

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Atlanta and taught at Windward Lake Club for 8 years as Adult Director and Junior Fitness Director. 2012 I was hired Give a brief to the posi on of Athle cs Director at descrip on Country Club of Roswell. of your tenWhen did you start playing tennis? Probnis/other ably around 8 years old career: What other sports did you play? I started a er teach- with soccer but broke my leg at 7, then I ing in Syd- did gymnas cs for a few years. I always played a bit of golf as a teenager. ney AustralWhat moved you to teach tennis? At first ia as a teen- it was convenient and great money. I ager then was asked by my coach to help out their briefly at junior programs at about 16 years old. I Newcombe’s Tennis Ranch, I got my first was teaching around three days a week Country Club teaching job in New Albany while I was in high school.

What is something people will be surCountry Club. It was an amazing introprised to learn about you? I was a very duc on to the industry and I was shy boy. hooked. A er three years I traveled to What are your hobbies? I don’t have

Marcus Rutsche Country Club of Roswell Roswell, GA

Geoff Browne The Grove College Grove, TN Give a brief descrip on of your tennis/other career: I am experienced in working in a variety of areas of the tennis world including resort, academy, private club and non-profit.

Along my journey I was mentored by many legends of the game and exposed to tennis at a world class level. My non-tennis experience has helped shape me as a tennis professional.

My passion is helping players of all levels, ages and aspira ons achieve their goals by giving them the tools to do so. I have been very blessed to have learned from some of the greats of tennis including Bill Tym, Tony

Palafox and Harry Hopman.

When did you start playing tennis? Age 13 What other sports did you play? Baseball, Cross Country, Track What moved you to teach tennis? The joy in and reward in helping others What is something people will be surprised to learn about you? I was a professional dog handler What are your hobbies? Cooking What is your favorite movie? Caddyshack Are you reading anything right now? The 4 Disciplines of Execu on What is your favorite sports team? Anything Detroit Who is your favorite player of all me? Roger Federer What person would you most like to have lunch with? Roger Federer What would you be doing if you were not in

me for hobbies with twin 5 year olds!

What is your favorite movie? Anything

by Christopher Nolan Are you reading anything right now? No books but mostly ar cles on geo poli cs and current affairs.

What is your favorite sports team? Penrith Panthers- Australian Rugby League Who is your favorite player of all me?

Roger of course.

What person would you most like to have lunch with? My parents. I don’t get to see them o en.

What would you be doing if you were not in tennis? I have never thought of my life without tennis so I would probably be six feet under.

If you had a "do over", what one thing would you have done differently in your teaching career? Nothing. I have had an amazing career so far. I wouldn’t change any of my experiences!

tennis? Sponsorship ac va on If you had a "do over", what one thing would you have done differently in your teaching career? I feel that there is a greater plan for all of us and we are responsible for doing what is necessary to fulfill that. I am very thankful for what tennis has done for me and my family as well as the individuals in the sport that I have crossed paths with.

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“Success Secrets” With Fernando Velasco Interview by Pat Whitworth, USPTA Master Professional

Gallway. These people and Fernando Velasco was born in La ships, as I dove from a 3 meter Paz, Bolivia in 1943. He compe- board, I saw another kid dive from many more became friends of ted in soccer, tennis, and gymbelow and across my path. We col- a life me and made a big imnas cs through college, and in lided head to head. I almost blacked print on my coaching. Vic 1972 became a full- me tennis out, and he was par ally paralyzed. Braden was famous for having professional. His first Director The doctor told me that I should fun even while making fun of posi on was at the University never dive or swim again because you. Peter Burwash was faClub in Dallas, and later another accident of any type would mous for wri ng notes to Brookhaven Country Club. The paralyze me. I was able to learn everyone. USPTA was the best last 30 years he was at the Lanfrom some of the people as my dad decision I ever made. dings in Savannah GA and Boca Pointe Country Club in FL. 2001 played, and I became pre y good. I Are you mentoring anybody later would hit in the mornings, go right now? Every day I walk brought him back to Texas at to school, and then back on court the facility, I am mentoring the Circle C Tennis Club. a er school. people at work. I am also involved Fernando has too many awards Enjoy the game, laugh, and have to list, but here are a few. In What was a big break-through mo- in the USPTA Mentoring Program. I fun, then add the sophis cated 1976, he was the first recipient ment for you? A er college, I was a have always been willing to share of the USPTA Na onal "Pro of my experiences, both good and bad, coaching as the players advance. high school teacher and coached the Year." In 1995, he was inif others are willing to listen and soccer, gymnas cs, and tennis. I You s ll compete in the 80s and ducted into the USPTA Midwest hungry to learn. loved coaching, and was not so in have been compe ng at a high level Division Hall of Fame and was love with the teaching part. To pro- How do you con nue to learn? Are for many years in the seniors. How selected as the Pro of the Year vide for my family, I took a job at a do you keep it going? It is quality vs. you reading anything now?

I am not by the USPTA Southern Division.

Country Club in Illinois and made as much of a reader, but I read ar cles quan ty. I do not play as many In 2004, he was the Pro of the events, and I start training about 3 on tennis. There are special books Year for the Texas Division. 2012 much in 3 months as I did in a full he was awarded the USPTA Na- term of teaching (at that me that I have read through the years, weeks out to tune my shots. I love $9000 a year). I became cer fied onal Manager of the Year for Balls in Your Court by Michael Lew- to play Father/Daughter na onals in Small Facility. He has been play- with USPTA in 1972 and decided to is, Let Love Serve by Steve WilkerChicago, and Father/Grandson. I s ll er of the year in numerous sen- surround myself with the best and son, Posi ve Sports Paren ng, and play about 4 tournaments in Texas ior-age divisions. In 2017 he to learn everything I could. I a end- the book by Katrina Adams, who I and have secured the #1 ranking in received the “USPTA George ed every workshop and conference, have known for years. At my age both singles and doubles. I make Bacso Life me Achievement read tennis magazines, and watched (80), I s ll need to con nue to learn sure to not do too much, stay in Award” and the “2017 Tennis how players hit and trained. I was shape, and not burn myself out or something new, whether it be a Industry USPTA Member of the working in the a ernoons to early over-train. It also adds a level of computer, using my phone, a new Year. He is also one of 12 that evenings, and people liked how I extra respect from my students. way to run a tournament, or even are Master Professionals in both taught and the business exploded. plumbing. My 11 grandkids are organiza ons.

Any final thoughts to share? I highly You have been involved in mul ple sports. How did you se le on tennis as your final choice? As a kid in Bolivia from the age of 8-15, I never lost a race in swimming, and I was a na onal diving champion. At a diving prac ce for na onal champion-

In those days, there were no superstar coaches. Everybody was a nobody. I became very ac ve in the USPTA Midwest Division as a board member and would reach out to people to be guest speakers. Some of those speakers include Dennis VanDerMeer, Nick Bolleteri, Peter Burwash, Vic Braden, and Timothy

great to show me that I am not doing something the right way, and I learn a lot from them.

recommend people con nue to seek out educa on, a end conferences, watch the Tennis Channel, and watch online video seminars.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for pros today, especially Learn from others, and do not be someone in their first 10 years? The afraid to ask people for help. Also, do not be afraid to reach for a job. biggest challenge is that pros are Make sure to thank the person who trying to teach people how to hit helped. and play instead of to love to play.

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Dividing the Doubles court into Thirds, Not Halves, and Understanding the Angles Pt 2

By Stewart Russell USPTA Elite Professional (For Beginner and Intermediate and Advanced Level Players) 1.5- Pro feeds over a net person’s head and baseline partner moves hour session over to cover.

Switching- **** I am a huge proponent of the net player understanding how and where to move when deferring to the baseline partner to cover the ball send over their head. **** Players should ALWAYS turn into the lob when switching and try and Round 2 – 10 Minutes Volleys cross court and incorporate “one “glance” @ their partner to gain a proper understanding of the type of response that might be a empted. *** This will help the ball all four’ with designated players going down the line and cross court. No excuse for players not being ready as they know switching player to move to a more offensive or defensive switch they will be receiving a ball from the same person each me. *** posi on then the customary service line switch with no aware(Level based Pro involvement to keep a controlled environment ness/expecta on on what might happen that we see so o en. I recognize so many have been taught “don’t look back @ your with feeding and perhaps even playing in) partner, but I prefer: “If you have me, a “glance” to gain an Break for 5 minutes discussing the third(s) of a Tennis Court and understanding on where to be is perfectly acceptable. Players the Introduc on to the 4th area of Lobs. ie: Outer third, Middle begin to understand backing up be er when short lobs are hit, as third, and Inner third and now Balls that go over the Net persons well as closing in when more offensive balls are struck, when head * session(s) 1-3 the primary focus was on the a acking and they get a feel/peek at what type of shot their partner is striking. defending with groundstrokes and volleys. We need to eliminate ***Defensive switching- Switching player shades middle and players preferring the Deuce or Add side only. The only stroke a tries to get back past the service line and low as most probably preference should be made would be return of serve. With sesopponents are going to be hi ng @ their feet because so many sions 4-6 you can now incorporate the many variables associathave been instructed to do so. ***Offensive switching- Switching ed with Lobbing. player also shades middle and tries to get well inside the baseline Round 3 – 15 Minutes (more Hi ng of the different types of to look to a ack an opponent’s weaker reply. lobs and when and why to use) Round 6 – 15-20 Minutes (Running Doubles) All four players Prefer doing some line drills with players on both the deuce and star ng back, and anything goes ie; Pro again should feed from add side and pro feeding from angles and working on a defenjust off the court NOT from the MIDDLE and can feed to anyone sive and/or offensive type of lob based on the dependency of with two out of three points won ge ng someone over to the the type of ball received. Stress the importance of the different king side. * Review a er done and all balls picked up on how heights and inten on behind the lob, plus trying to locate the players moved on offense and defensive and MOST IMPORTANTopponent’s backhand side before a emp ng.

LY gained a proper understanding on who and why someone is Round 4 – 15 Minutes (live ball Pro fed start to points) responsible and accountable for the MIDDLE THIRD of the DOUBLES COURT. That is my ball or your ball because it is your foreTwo up two back with the two back a emp ng an offensive/ defensive lob based on the type of feed the pro gives them. Pro hand in the middle is NEVER overhead throughout any of the training sessions in Weeks 1-3 and **** now in sessions 4-6 we should feed from off the side of the court and players should begin to understand Ball recogni on and how close they should are trying to eliminate players calling out “yours” too much as they begin to understand who is responsible for a lob and what be in rela on to the net prior to a lob being struck type(s) of movement, “how to switch” and the different shots ****Round 5 – 15-20 Minutes (pro fed “Switching”) VERY IMthat can be expected to be played.

PORTANT Round 1 – 10 Minutes Players warming up CROSS COURT only mini tennis to ensure players are seeing the ball they are receiving as well as sending on the applicable ball being played during a live ball point.

Page 49

Selling the Dream

By Mark McMahon - USPTA Master Professional,

Presented by McMahon Careers Last year, I read over 500 resumes of ten- Many considera ons go into the decision nis professionals. The resumes belonged of deciding who to interview for any job. to professionals of every age, and experi- This can include the career-phase of the ence level. Most were intent on being candidate, different types of career experihired into the role of a Director of Tennis ences, the degree of rela ve-experience, or Director of Racquet Sports and were in professional and personal reputa on, prethe process of applying for a job. Some vious clubs worked, and the candidate’s belonged to professionals who intended to public profile on social media. Your reapply for a job soon. Most of the resumes sume and cover le er, however, is your included an opening paragraph of some first chance to begin to sell the dream of you running the program, and a cri cal type, similar in type to the one above, where the professional summarized their part of success within this first round of professional experience and wri en in the the selec on process. third person.

The tle of this ar cle was inspired by the tle of an ar cle I recently read that was When your resume is received by a Club wri en by personal branding and commuManager, a Search Firm, a Search Comnica on expert Bruce Turkel. In his ar cle mi ee Chair, or Human Resources Directled: Selling The Dream 1965 and Today, tor, it is usually a ached to an email, or Bruce walks his reader back to Miami uploaded to a website, along with the reqBeach in 1965 where his father built the uisite cover le er. Your cover le er should first residen al condominium in the Unitnot be a repeat of your resume; however, ed States.

Among the many lessons shared both are designed to accomplish one obwith Bruce by his father was that he aljec ve which is, get you an invita on to ways wanted to sell his condo apartments interview. as early as possible in the project’s A first interview is usually done over the lifespan. phone, some mes by video, and possibly Bruce figured the reason was to get as even through a ques onnaire where you will be asked to respond to a bank of ques- much money as quickly as possible but his Dad said it was because he always preons related to the job. While an interferred to sell the dream. As his dad exview of any type demands a set of skills plained it, his best opportunity to sell an different from those needed to present apartment for the highest price was to yourself via a resume or cover le er, all require one consistent strategy to succeed walk his poten al buyer through a construc on site and show – your ability to create a vision. Add to this, it’s my experience that if the candithem where they’d live, how close they’d date does not grab the a en on of the be to shopping, tennis courts, and the reader within 15 – 20 seconds, the other beach. He’d show them where they’d park accompanying document (resume or cover and where their grandchildren would le er depending on which is read first) sleep when they stayed over. may never even be read.

But once the apartment was complete,

showers because they couldn’t step over the bathtub rim.

So, what’s an easier sell? Pain ng the picture of where the new buyers are going to tuck in their adorable grandchildren? Or deba ng the value proposi on of Corian versus Formica countertops? When put in those simple terms, the advantages of selling the dream become clear. In his ar cle, Bruce Turkel maintains the belief that people are more likely to find affinity with The Dream.

Ge ng hired for a par cular job requires the successful naviga on of many different phases of the hiring process. To connect to the example of Bruce’s Dad selling his condos, there will be a phase in the hiring process where the Manager or Search Commi ee’s preferences for “gold carpe ng, le kitchens and a shower over a bathtub” will become more relevant and it is at this the me when your authen c, real experiences and skills must come to the fore. At this stage of the hiring process the successful candidate, through storytelling about past experiences, must demonstrate an ability to deliver “shag carpe ng” in many different colors, and both “ le and butcher-block” in the kitchen – if that is what the role requires. This stage of the process is called the personal interview and is when a selec on is made from among a small number of final candidates. Ul mately, at this stage of the interview process,

it is most o en very small differences between the candidates and the personal preferences of those making the selec on that drive a final decision. During the earliest phase of the process, however – when submi ng a resume and cover le er, take the conversa ons would become more a page out of Bruce’s Dad’s playbook and prosaic. One couple wanted gold shag Successful applicants quickly create a carpe ng. The next buyer hated gold. One provide a vision of you as the Director. To vision of how the program will look and secure that interview, it’s my experience couple wanted a le kitchen. The next serve the members’ needs and expectathat you must first Sell the Dream. ons with the applicant as the new Direc- wanted butcher block. Some people insisttor. ed on bathtubs. Other people only wanted

Page 10

By Ken DeHart - Master Professional

Mix It Up Mixer

Running out of ideas for your social mixers? Use the same format but with: 1.

The Saber It’s been a while since I’ve come across a teaching tool that I tend to use every day. The Saber has not only benefi ed my students but it’s become a staple in my training. For the past month, I have used the Saber in every lesson warmup, and sporadically throughout the rest of the lesson. I truly believe that every teaching professional would benefit greatly from owning a Saber, so let me tell you a li le more about this teaching tool.

spin Pro. I’ve found that this immediate focus on both contact point and spin is a fantasc way to steer the beginning of your lesson in the right direc on. No longer do I have to say “can you feel that was a mishit” or “try to watch yourThe Saber is adver sed as “an on-court training aid that plays self make contact with the like a normal tennis racket but with a much smaller head size”. ball” because the Saber silentVisually, it’s a tennis racket with a very small racket head; forcly does it for you. With 100% confidence, I can say that the Saing you to focus on sweat spot contact. It’s an immediate reber, especially the short junior version, has greatly increased the sponse teaching tool that will let you know if you’ve successfully consistency and contact of all my students. hit the strings. Structurally, the Saber feels almost iden cal to a tennis racket. It lacks power but that’s to be expected with the Now, from a personal perspec ve, the Saber is an incredibly FUN smaller head size. It’s made from composite material in the challenge racket for us as teaching professionals. I’ve used my same factories as other major brands, so you can expect the Saber in every junior social to “even the playing field” in the eyes same wonderful build quali es that you find in your racket. of the kids. If you are red of hi ng with your non-dominant What I find most useful is the fact that the Saber comes in three hand against your juniors, using the Saber is a great way to make different sizes, a 300-gram (regular weight), 265-gram (lite them feel like you’re easier to beat. Now that kids are no longer weight), and a shorter 240-gram 25/26 inch junior racket. infants, I’ve been training to get back into compe ve play. I use the Saber for at least ten minutes at the beginning of my training I’ve purchased, and use, all three sizes daily in my lessons. All of sessions, or before a match. You rarely find a teaching tool that my students have loved the challenge of hi ng the sweet spot. is fun to use.

More importantly, every one of my students has successfully hit the strings within their first few minutes of using the Saber, You can find the Saber for purchase online at building a massive amount of confidence in their tennis game. I www.func onaltennis.com. You’ll find bundle deals if you’re start every lesson using the Saber in conjunc on with the Toplooking to purchase different weights or lengths, which I HIGHLY

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3/22-24 Indian Land, SC 4/12-14 Cumming, GA 6/28-30 Memphis, TN

Southern Officers President Ken Andriano kandriano@atlantacountryclub.org 336-541-5876

Past President Tom Parkes tparkes@pinevalleycountryclub.com 910-233-4755

1st Vice President Allan Jensen Ajensen.tennis@gmail.com 404-483-6591

Executive Director Pat Whitworth pat.whitworth@uspta.org 800-438-7782

2nd Vice President Jason Hazley jasonh@noltc.com 225-247-3028

Directors at Large Dan Beedle dan.beedle10s@gmail.com 219-510-3608

Secretary/Treasurer Bill Riddle TENNISUN@aol.com 615-243-6698

Darryl Lewis d.lewis@aussie10s.com 678.595.2650 Marcus Rutsche promarcus@hotmail.com

Alabama JC Freeman

Mississippi William Foreman foremantennis@gmail.com 601-720-4539

Arkansas Chris Stuart stuart@sta.usta.com 479 831-8346

North Carolina Chris Hoshour chrishoshour@gmail.com

Georgia Rick Willett rickdwillett@gmail.com

South Carolina Mark Schminke usptasouthcarolina@gmail.com

Kentucky David White davidtennis55@gmail.com

Tennessee Geoff Browne geoffbrowne0609@gmail.com

Louisiana John Wahlborg jwahlborg1@gmail.com

Page 13

ChatGPT - You Have To Ask the Right Ques ons

By Pat Whitworth USPTA Master Professional

The first step is to ac vate ChatGPT. You can do this on a computer, or your phone, or both. Go to chat.openai.com or the mobile app, and log in or sign up (it's free).

Once you have an account, just type your prompt in the message box on the ChatGPT home page. Once ChatGPT spits out a response, you have a handful of opons: Enter a new prompt. Regenerate the response. Copy the response. Share the response.

ChatGPT can provide a wealth of knowledge, and it is more likely to pinpoint to your desired result than a Google search. Both are useful tools, but when you need variety on a topic, ideas to flesh out, or in depth details on a subject, ChatGPT will be the choice. It is also more like a conversa on as an interac ve soluon, and it does learn the type of responses that you are looking for. It is really useful for problem solving, storytelling, and sugges ons. While google is more of a fact search, ChatGPT can be thought of as an assistant capable of offering sugges ons, providing insights, and contribu ng to the crea ve process DOWN TO DETAILS AND HOW TO MAKE ChatGPT WORK FOR YOU The quality of your output is deeply intertwined to the quality of your input.

ChatGPT is not just an exercise in ques on and answer, but

it's a mind shi from simple Q&A to a dia- more, and the vaca on is just around the logue. So what does that mean? Well, corner. when we say dialogue, it's temp ng to Natural Language Processing (NLP) is anthink of it as just a one-way street. You ask other part of the prompt. You could ask ChatGPT a ques on, and it responds. But for a poem in the style of Shakespeare, or in reality, it's more like a dance. Each even more fun, try what Kevin Theos prompt you provide shapes the next reshared with me: The Ge ysburg Address sponse from ChatGPT. as a rap. AMAZING what the response is.

So, how can we become be er dance part- You can ask for formal, informal, business ners? We can do this by following the pre- se ng, etc. A good ask is for this to be at a cision principle, which basically entails 5th grade level. It is very surprising how being more precise with your prompts to well this reads. get accurate and relevant responses. For There are se ngs or parameters that can example, if you ask a friend for a good influence the response from ChatGPT. movie to watch, the sugges on will be They are Max Tokens, Temperature, and fairly random. If we ask ChatGPT, “can you Frequency. recommend a movie for me to watch?” it's Max tokens essen ally allow you to control just going to return any movie that it the length of the output text, and the thinks you may like. It may be what you length of your output is measured in towant, but chances are that the search is kens, which include words, punctua ons too wide. If we follow the precision princi- and spaces too. On average, for English ple and be more direct and specific with words, one word is roughly five tokens. what we want, “can you recommend a Ask it to set max token limits to 2500 as thrilling crime movie set in the 80s?” Now remember, one word is roughly five towe're going to get a precise sugges on, kens. So 2500 tokens is going to be appoxiwhich is exactly what we're a er. So the mately 500 words. more precise you are, the be er.

Temperature controls. The randomness of If you are not happy with the response, the AI's response and the temperature ask for more sugges ons, or even ask for a range goes from 0 to 2. The higher, the set number of more sugges ons. It will be more random your response is going to in the category that you have already set, be. If you set a high temperature like 1.8, and you can even ask from a certain direc- your AI is going to become really wild and tor or actor to really fine tune the search. throw some unexpected and crea ve outPrompt engineering is an essen al part of puts out there. But if you go for a lower your interac ons with ChatGPT to ensure temperature se ng of maybe 0.2, it's goyou're ing to play more safe and s cking to the ge ng the best output possible. Prompt most likely responses. engineering is all about cra ing effec ve Frequency is used for discouraging the AI prompts or instruc ons that guide the AI's from using common phrases or repea ng response. Calling out the mistake is a big itself, pushing it towards a more unique part of the proper prompt. If you ask for a output. place to vaca on, then the response will ChatGPT can be your guide on using these be too generic. Add that it should be in parameters – just ask it what are se ngs Europe, and that will get you closer. But for any of the 3 listed above, and how do I what if you wanted on the coast? Add that phrase my request. Remember, you can por on, and you have narrowed the retalk to ChatGPT like you would hold a consponses to your target. Now ask for 10 versa on with a person. Just try it.

Page 14

FAST FACTS

Aussie Open

1. Oldest Grand Slam in Asia-Pacific: The Australian Open is the oldest tennis tournament in the Asia-Pacific region, first held in 1905.

2. Surface Varia ons: The tournament has seen surface changes over the years. It switched from grass to hard courts in 1988 to the present Plexicushion surface.

3. Extreme Heat Policy: It's known for its scorching temperatures. The Extreme Heat Policy can be invoked when temperatures exceed a certain threshold to protect players' well-being.

4. Margaret Court's Record: Margaret Court holds the record for the most singles tles in Australian Open history, winning 11 tles from 1960 to 1973.

5. Night Sessions: The Australian Open was the first Grand Slam to introduce night sessions in 1988, allowing cooler playing condi ons and a rac ng larger crowds.

6. Rod Laver Arena: The center court, Rod Laver Arena, is named a er the legendary tennis player Rod Laver, who won mul ple Grand Slam tles, including the Australian Open.

7. Remote Loca on: Un l the tournament moved to Melbourne in 1972, the event was held in various ci es across Australia, including Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth, and even New Zealand.

8. Equal Prize Money: In 2001, the Australian Open became the first Grand Slam tournament to offer equal prize money to male and female players across all rounds.

9. Novak Djokovic's Dominance: Djokovic holds the record for the most men's singles tles in the Open Era, winning mul ple championships at the Australian Open.

10. Record A endance: The Australian Open has consistently a racted huge crowds, se ng an a endance record in 2019 with over 800,000 spectators across the

Page 15

The Written Word The Lo ery Winners Greatest Ride

by Skip Johnson, USPTA Master Professional

Skip Johnson is a long me USPTA member, that is a Master Professional. He was a coowner and manager of mul ple Gold’s Gyms in the Atlanta Georgia area, that were rounely recognized as top 10 in the world for customer sa sfac on and service to the membership. Skip has wri en a series of books that are all inspira onal with a goal is to empower, inspire, and enrich the lives of his readers. His books have reached #1 status on Amazon, and have received numerous awards.

found wealth. Jack's transforma on from an cends the mere portrayal of a rags-to-riches ordinary ci zen to a person of significant tale; it's an explora on of the human condimeans is portrayed with a mix of excitement, on, shedding light on the complexi es of disbelief, and bewilderment. Johnson cra s a happiness, fulfillment, and the true essence compelling narra ve that ar ully dissects the of wealth. impact of wealth on Jack's rela onships, iden- Beyond the glitz and glamour, "The Lo ery ty, and personal values. Readers witness Winner's Greatest Ride" serves as a poignant Jack's exhilara on in living out his dreams, reminder that true riches extend beyond majuxtaposed with the complexi es of naviterial possessions. It's a narra ve that resoga ng an unfamiliar world where money nates with readers, urging them to ponder seems to hold all the answers. the real treasures of life: genuine connecHowever, the story's depth lies beyond the ons, personal growth, and finding purpose surface allure of wealth. As Jack treads this beyond the allure of money.

In "The Lo ery Winner's Greatest Ride", you uncharted path of abundance, he encounters Johnson weaves a cau onary yet upli ing unexpected challenges and moral quandaries. narra ve, portraying the dichotomy between embark on an extraordinary odyssey alongthe allure of wealth and the genuine pursuit side Jack, an everyday guy whose life is forev- The narra ve takes drama c turns as he er altered when luck smiles upon him, gi ing grapples with betrayals, learns invaluable life of happiness. Ul mately, the book invites lessons, and confronts the limita ons of mon- readers on a thought-provoking journey, prohim an unexpected lo ery windfall. Jack's etary solu ons in the face of deeper emo on- voking reflec on on the deeper aspira ons narra ve unfolds as a thrilling roller-coaster that fuel the human spirit and the pursuit of a ride, whisking readers into the dazzling world al and ethical dilemmas. meaningful and fulfilling life. of sudden affluence and the labyrinth of chal- Through Johnson's cap va ng storytelling, readers become emo onally invested in lenges it brings.

Jack's journey, sharing in his joys and empa- NOTE: This review was created by ChatGPT From the outset, the tale captures the essence of the human experience amidst new- thizing with his tribula ons. The book trans- and approved by Skip Johnson.