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by Pete Bodo
It was tough for Patrick McEnroe to face his brother John in a doubles match. It was hell to have to play him in singles. (Interesting trivia question: against whom did John win the last singles title of his career, in Chicago? I think you know the answer. . .) And now it could be, let's say. . .tricky. . . for Pat to have to compete with John in the race to produce an American champion to pick up where John, Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, and Andy Roddick left off.
Pat, as most of you know, is the head of the USTA player development program. In a conference call today, John formally launched his John McEnroe Tennis Academy, which will be housed at the $18 million Sportime Randall's Island Tennis Center in New York City. Theoretically, the USTA development program and the JMTA ought to have a fraternal relationship, because Pat McEnroe has taken pains to let the various tennis academies and private coaching practices know that he seeks to have a co-operative rather than competitive relationship with them.
There's only one problem: John McEnroe's nose has been out of joint about the USTA's reluctance over the past few years to underwrite the academy bearing his name. As a result, it was hardly surprising that John McEnroe adopted a combative, critical position when he was asked about any potential interface with the USTA. He called the USTA's $150 million portfolio "obscene," implying that the institution ought to be pouring more money into player development. "What are they doing, saving it?" he asked, getting all worked up. "What are they saving it for? Why don't you (the press) check that out!"
I ought to discloses before I go on that I'm the co-author of Patrick's forthcoming book, Hardcourt Confidential: Tales from Twenty Years in the Pro Tennis Trenches. But I get along fine with John, and we sometimes bump into each other in the street, walking our respective kids to school. I hope both of them succeed, and preferably share in the glory. I just wish John would bury the hatchet he appears to be carrying over the USTA's historic lack of enthusiasm for financing his academy.
This, incidentally, is a common problem I've touched on in the past - top players often talk a good game about getting involved in player development, but they want to do it on their own terms. Whether an outfit like the USTA ought to bow to that kind of pressure is debatable, because Grand Slam champions can be an imperious lot with an allergy to rolling up their sleeves and actually doing the hard work that goes into player development. I don't know what Boris Becker is doing to revive German tennis, or how hands-on Stefan Edberg or Mats Wilander are in any Swedish effort to produce first-tier competitors, either. I get the feeling that it's not a whole lot, simply because to do it successfully and well requires an enormous amount of time and energy, team spirit, and even subservience to the cause.
I guess we'll see if John McEnroe has that kind of staying power.
The USTA, like most big institutions, is a pretty big target. But I believe Patrick is doing his utmost to move the American game forward in a fair manner, and trying to run an open tent rather than a closed shop. Whether or not the USTA's financial or infrastructural commitment is adequate is another matter, best left for another time. Pat has to work with what he's given, and an adversarial relationship between the JMTA and the USTA program helps absolutely nobody.
"Would you reach out to the USTA and see if they'd underwrite, say, a trip by some of your players who might need experience on European clay?" I asked John. "Would you have a dialogue with Patrick about that kind of thing?"
"I haven't spoken to him specifically," John retorted. "But he hasn't called to congratulate me yet."
Patrick, sensibly, had no comment. And as I understand it, John's sardonic comment is a bit disingenuous because there has been a fair amount of back channel communication on just what the relationship between the USTA and the JMTA could be. Maybe John will get over feeling like he's been slighted, and that would be a good thing for his academy because John's approach has much to recommend it.
The JMTA has 20 courts suitable for year-round play, 10 Deco-Turf and 10 Har-Tru. The program there will stress well-roundedness, academically as well as athletically. "I'm living proof of someone who lived a 'normal' life, played other sports, went to school, and still had a successful pro career," John said. "People tend to follow whatever seems to be successful, so now they think they have to go to a place like the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy. But there have been a number of successful players who chose a different option. If you read Andre's book, you know how he struggled in the academy environment. He was lucky - he survived and came out the other end. I know for myself, I never would have made it at Bollettieri's. What I did (remain at home and attend Stanford University for a year) was the perfect recipe for me."
John hopes to tap into the significant pool of talent in New York, and he'd like to re-create the atmosphere and attitude that prevailed at the facility where he developed his game under the watchful eye of Harry Hopman, the Port Washington Tennis Academy. John was there with his brothers and quality players including Vitas Gerulaitis and Peter Fleming, and said the secret to Hopman's success was his ability to "make kids want to play harder. They just oozed a love of the game over there."
Significantly, there hasn't been a comparably high-horsepower training program in the New York metropolitan area since then, and John is hoping that his will fill the void. The critical question looming for the future seems to be, can the name and presence of John McEnroe make a difference? John says he wants to be the source of "inspiration," but whether or not he's high enough on the radar of a typical 12- or 14-year old, status-wise, to provide that inspiration is an open question. It would certainly help his cause if he can generate an aura of elitism around the academy, and there's really only one way to do that: with relatively swift success.
John was a radical stylist; his game was to conventional tennis what cubism is to traditional representational painting. So I had to wonder, does he have a specific developmental philosophy?
"I'm going to insist on using the continental grip, at least for the serve and volley," John said. "I personally think it's the better way to go, and I don't think I should be labeled a Tyrannosaurus Rex for that. Still, the majority of players are using semi or full-western grips (at least on groundstrokes) and we have to acknowledge that."
But John won't be focused on the X's and O's; his own contribution will more likely be in the areas of attitude, leadership, and even a measure of experience-bred iconoclastic thinking. "If I were 12 or 13 and given a choice between going to do off-court fitness training in a gym or going out to play soccer, I know what I'd choose. I want to provide kids with that kind of option."
When John was asked if he saw anything to emulate or envy in the way successful nations like Spain and France have developed players, he replied: "It's not Albert Einstein stuff. It's more a matter of tinkering, and attitude. And they (tennis recruiters) get better athletes over there because tennis is a more important sport. When I came into tennis, in the 1970s and 80s, tennis was booming and it was a cool thing to do. I'd like to see us return to those days.
"But what it all comes down to is, what's inside your head? Whether it's a matter of strategy or will, that's what counts. If I get the right kind of kid, I believe my approach can be successful."
The qualities he's talking about are the hardest of all things to teach, which is why there's no magic bullet in player development. But as of today, there's at least another round in the chamber.