Latest Posts

Secrets of Winning Tennis The USTA Encourages Double Dipping The Speed Ladder Tennis Beyond the Headlines: November 18, 2024 A Balanced Diet: Healthy Tennis Engagements A Balanced Diet: Better Nutrition for Better Tennis A Balanced Diet: Quality of Information

The Fein Points of Tennis

On By Teresa Merklin

Paul Fein is a USPTA teaching professional with an Elite rating. He is also an accomplished tennis writer with a litany of award winning tennis articles and best-selling books. In addition, Fein is an excellent Senior tennis player with a history of high national rankings. Fein recently published hit latest book filled with his copious wisdom on how to elevate a player’s competitive level. The book is also packed with first person perspectives from other renowned tennis coaches and pros.

2 responses

Ageless Painless Tennis

On By Teresa Merklin

The book I am reviewing this week came up as an Amazon suggestion when I started reviewing books about Senior tennis over the past couple of weeks. The 4.5 average star rating across 40 reviews was more than enough to convince me that I needed to take a look at it. My reactions are mixed.

Senior Tennis (George Wachtel)

On By Teresa Merklin

George Wachtel was a Senior tennis player who also wrote a blog a blog about Senior tennis and fitness. In fact, Wachtel was still actively posting on his blog right up until his sudden death in 2021. The final two posts on his site were from his son, one announcing his death followed a short time later by his obituary. Sadly, I narrowly missed the opportunity to potentially meet this obviously kindred spirit.

2 responses

Baby Boomer Tennis

On By Teresa Merklin

The review of the tennis documentary “Gold Balls” last week prompted me to focus attention on books specifically targeted at older players. “Baby Boomer Tennis” was the first in the queue. I plucked my copy off the shelf at a used book store on the basis of the testimonials on the back cover from Rosie Casals and Pam Shriver. Baby Boomer Tennis has a few redeeming qualities, but for the most part is an unpolished effort.

Doubles Domination

On By Teresa Merklin

When I published a summary of all the doubles books reviewed on this site last year, a couple of people asked me how I managed to miss “Doubles Domination: The Best of the Best” by Bob Allcorn. Quite frankly, I didn’t even know that the book existed. In retrospect, the omission is a travesty. It is very good.

1 response

Tennis and Digital Media

On By Teresa Merklin

From time to time I embark on a fruitless quest to find dynamic tennis content targeted at the tennis playing population. That particular effort pre-dates the creation of this blog. Indeed sometimes I characterize this site as the content that I would read if I could get someone else to write it. The simple fact of the matter is that there really aren’t any great tennis blogs targeted at recreational players. It is a hot take that I float out as a desperate plea: Please prove me wrong.

First Serve: Arthur Ashe: A Life

On By Teresa Merklin

The Arthur Ashe biography by Raymond Arsenault was slated for review this week. In fact, I started reading it just over two weeks ago after realizing that it is a lot longer than the books I typically review on this site. For a variety of external factors, I have yet to progress past the midpoint of the book. However, I have already had one significant “Aha” moment to share.

Citizen Ashe

On By Teresa Merklin

Citizen Ashe is a recently released documentary about Arthur Ashe. The film traces the entire arc of Ashe’s life from early childhood all the way through to his death from AIDS-related pneumonia in 1992. I was surprised at how much detail the producers managed to pack into the movie with a relatively short runtime. It delivered new insight and perspectives while remaining entertaining for a wide range of audiences. Tennis history buffs, casual players, and even people who aren’t interested in tennis or civil rights at all will likely enjoy the movie.

Whirlwind: The Godfather of Black Tennis

On By Teresa Merklin

Dr. Robert Walter Johnson was a powerful force of change in tennis that accelerated the acceptance of players of color at the highest echelons of competitive tennis. It is not a stretch to observe that the tennis careers of Althea Gibson and Arthur Ashe would not have happened in the same way without the support of the doctor. “Whirlwind,” the nickname he picked up while playing college football, is an apt moniker for both his life story and influence on tennis. Whirlwinds create turbulence. So did Dr. Johnson.

I Always Wanted to Be Somebody (Althea Gibson)

On By Teresa Merklin

In 2021, I mentioned on this site that I was interested in finding a copy of Althea Gibson’s autobiography. At that time, the book was long out of print and the only available copies were priced as a collectors items and way too rich for my blood. Later in the year, I was delighted when Randy Walker of New Chapter Press published a digitized version of the book once again making this book available to the masses.