The paragraph below is a must read for those currently coaching college tennis in America. Those coaching kids who want to play college tennis should also take note. All these years later, if one did not know, they should now. Vic Bradens work was the core curriculum for Tiley and his teams. If one were to read the core curriculum of tennis Australias player development program and knew Bradens work they would easily see the influence. An excerpt from Toms article: Craig Tiley, the CEO of Tennis Australia and a former Braden employee, says he still refers to Bradens 1977 book, Tennis for the Future. He was 20 years ahead of his time, Tiley says. In 1992, Tiley became interim tennis coach at the University of Illinois. The team went 4-23 in his first season on the job. By 2003, Tiley had lifted the Illini to 32-0 and the national title. Illinois players also captured individual NCAA titles in singles and doubles. The first person I brought in to run a workshop was Vic Braden, Tiley says. We did things the Vic Braden way: Get the technical aspects right, work your ass off, and do something good every single day. After Bradens death, Tiley wrote a letter to former pro Todd Martin, now the CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, urging that Braden be inducted for his lifes work. A spokeswoman for the Hall of Fame said Braden had been nominated by several people and could be chosen as a candidate for the class of 2016. The hall has 240 members; just three of them are career coaches, including Nick Bollettieri, who was inducted last year. Tiley was never a Braden staff member. He did not have to be. I remember Craig helping Vic for seven days in Cape Cod and seven days in Aspen. Lots of my students were sent to lots of places to help Vic. But Tiley indirectly spent seven years under the tutelage of Vic Bradens core curriculum. At Tyler Junior College, where Tiley was a student and student-assistant, he was immersed in a daily Braden process. Vics books were our textbooks. Vics tapes and visits were part of the mix. I was a former employee of Vics and several of my co-workers from my days on Vics staff visited on a regular basis. Jennifer Moortgat (formerly Roberts) served as an assistant of mine. Upon leaving the program, Jennifer served as the head coach at Vics tennis college in Utah. Then she went back to her alma mater, Illinois, as the head womens coach. Several years later Craig was hired by Illinois to be their new director of instruction at their new Atkins Tennis Center. When the mens coach was fired, Jennifer orchestrated the door opening for Craig to be the interim coach. From there, Craigs non-stop work ethic, charisma, salesmanship and deep Braden background built one of the most amazing stories in the history of college tennis. Not only did Illinois win, they won nationals with a roster of 100% Americans. In summary, coaches can no longer spend time with Vic but they can spend time with Vics work. We did things the Vic Braden way. Keep in mind there is a difference between reading a book and living a book. Tiley and the rest of us lived it. Throughout the 80s, I led a group that lived the Braden system. An enrollment of career-minded tennis teachers, that at one time exceeded a hundred plus, taught tennis for tots, physical education classes, community clinics and goal-oriented juniors. Stories behind stories. Two of the programs guinea pigs won NCAA national division one titles before Tiley moved to Illinois from Texas. We all knew the Braden formula worked. Craig Tiley barely knew Vic Braden the man before going to Illinois. Sure over the decades Craig like so many became one of Uncle Vics nephews. Point being, Craig knew Vic Braden the resource. Trust me, there is a mountain of Braden information that most only pretend to know in a two minute courtside conversation. Vic was so nice. I used to tell Vic that ninety-eight percent of coaches do not even know the length of the court. Vic after speaking at a conference would tell those traveling with him, We just shared fifty points that will be misinterpreted fifty different ways. (Vic preferred the pronoun we versus I.) Stories behind stories. Craig was offered the position as the USTA director of player development in 2008. He declined and Patrick McEnroe accepted. The paragraph from Tom Perrottas tribute is not news to a small, small percentage of tennis insiders. The decision makers within the USTA that offered Tiley the leadership position, in my opinion, did not know the significance of Tileys Braden background. I heard and read that Tom Gullikson is a candidate. It would be great if Tom is promoted. He has a wealth of experience, is well liked and would have everyones respect. It is important to have a connection from the trenches to the world-class stage. Beginning players and beginning teachers need help. Player development is a numbers game. More participants need a better entry-level education. I think Tom would welcome the right assistance. I also have heard and read that James Blake is a candidate. James brings a lot to the table. I would think James would think that Tom is a great choice. Certainly there are a number of tasks to be completed and positions for both could be designed. But I think a coach should be hired to lead coaches. My vote, if I had one, would be that the new chief understand and honor Braden principles. The dimensions of the court and physical laws dictate stroke-production, no coaches opinion or any unique theory. Granted the majority may laugh at my suggestion but the majority has not even given one tennis lesson; let alone developed a player from a beginning to a competitive level. If you think I have a tennis perspective worthy of consideration with the matter at hand, please share this post. The short attached video will help. Tennis needs to re-visit a wealth of information that was not accepted, understood or implemented to the level it should have been. By sharing this post, hopefully someone in the decision making process with the USTA will be curious about the validity of my message. Like my mentor, I like to deal with facts. Thank you. Steve Smith
Posted on: Sun, 18 Jan 2015 22:31:37 +0000
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