2012-2013 Awards, Page 3 • World Conference, Page 4 • Loving mixed doubles, Page 7 • Vision: an essential of shot making, Page 9

The official voice of Hawaii’s USPTA Professionals Fall 2012

Hawaii Division pros attended the USPTA World Conference the week of September 16-21 in beau-tiful Monterey, Calif. Pros attended educational

classes, networked and reconnected with nationwide pros, and addressed current issues and future challenges facing all tennis teachers.

The following Hawaii Pros and guests attended the confer-ence:

Kathleen BradyC G BushMarc CasperinoLiane DePontesRusty DyerRudolph EmbernateKyle KaneshiroNorma Kop

Hawaii Pros attend USPTA World Conference

Beverly Nagel, former Hawaii resident and now USPTA Florida pro John Koahou, Bruce Nagel, and Ken Nakama pose for a shot at the Hawaii division party.

Awesome and dedicated pros: Rusty Dyer and Carolyn Thibault

Randy KopBeverly NagelBruce NagelKen NakamaMax PavonDavid PorterCarolyn Thibault

Jose Higueras shares his wealth of knowledge.More pictures, Page 4

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Board of DirectorsPresident Ken Nakama808-679-3197ken.nakama@marriott.com Regional vice president Bruce Nagel 808-262-2057brucenagel@aol.com

First vice president Rick Wilson rickw10spro@gmail.com Treasurer Henry Somerville 808-395-3300henry_somerville@yahoo.com Past presidentJerry Cape 808-382-5968jerry_cape@yahoo.com Head tester Lee Couillard808-944-5835lcouillard@punahou.edu Executive administratorJulie Myers888-877-8232divisionea@uspta.org

Ken NakamaPresident, Hawaii Division

Aloha Hawaii Division Pros:

As 2012 winds down, I’m glad two things are happening: that the economy has gotten better (at least from my perspective), and we have the great sport of tennis to share with others. It’s an exciting time with our new CEO John Embree as he installs his new vision. You can count on the Hawaii Division to be in great hands with the quality, knowledge, and expertise that our Hawaii Division pros have. 2013alsobringsanewslateofofficerswhosenameswillbereleasedveryshortly.Beon the lookout for an email from me. It’s also creeping up on that time of year again when we will be hosting our Hawaii Di-vision conference. Like last year, we will have two Master Professionals coming! USPTA National Vice President Gary Trost is a sought-after speaker who will be fun, engaging and informative. Hans Romer, whose club just hosted our world conference, will continue our technological education that we started successfully last year by promoting social media. Save the date, Sunday, Jan. 27, 2012, at Le Jardin Academy.

President’s message

Save the Date!Hawaii Division Convention

Sunday, January 27Le Jardin Academy

The Hawaii Division Nominating Committee has completed their selection for next year’s slate.

If there are any further nominations, they must be submitted by December 31 to be put on theballotforaspecialJanuaryelection.He/shemustreceivefivenominationsfromfellowUSPTA Hawaii members. For more information, call Ken Nakama at 620-3256.

2013 Division Board SlatePresident: Bruce NagelRegional Vice President: Lee Couillard1st Vice President: Rick Wilson2nd Vice President: Henry SomervilleTreasurer: David Porter, Ed.D.Secretary: Carolyn ThibaultImmediate Past President: Ken Nakama

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We need your help! It’s once again time to recognize our best teaching professionals from the USPTA Hawaii Di-vision. We look forward to presenting these prestigious

awards at the January 27 Awards Luncheon to those profession-als who are truly deserving of such recognition for their contribu-tions to the USPTA, the USTA and the game of tennis in general based on the January 2012-January 2013 time period. Please take careful consideration when nominating our members and be sure to include thorough detail to support your nomination(s). Please note also that the categories mentioned below are examples of award categories we have featured in the past. The Committee recognizes the need to present only meaningful awardsandmaychoosenottofillinorpigeonholeeverycatego-ry. We need your input as to who deserves meaningful recogni-tion for their achievements in the past year. Mahalo for your votes and please email all nominations to the following no later than January 14, 2013.

Julie MyersHawaii Executive Administrator

julie.myers@uspta.org

Professional of the year:MadesignificantcontributionstoUSPTA Hawaii Division, USTA and actively involved in the com-munity, publications, special programs, services and the tennis industry as a whole.

Assistant professional of the year: A professional who proved to be an essential asset while assisting the director of tennis, head professional or any organizational leader or tennis program. Rookie of the year: A new professional who made outstanding stridesinthetenniscommunityinjustthefirstyearofhis/hercertification.Open player of the year (male or female): Had outstanding USPTA,USTAand/orITFOpentournamentplayresults.Officialrankings and other results will also be considered.Senior player of the year (male or female): Had outstand-ing USPTA, USTA and/or ITF tournament play results in the 45+agedivisions.Officialrankingsandotherresultswillalsobeconsidered. Facility of the year: Encouraged professional development of staff and fellow professionals, promoted tennis in a club, com-mercial tennis facility, public tennis program or hotel/resort environment. This facility supported USPTA education, hired USPTA Professionals, hosted tournament/league competition, madespecialcontributionstothegameandisaffiliatedwithvarious industry organizations. High school coach of the year: Developed enthusiasm and hadpermanentinfluenceonhighschoolteamplayers.College coach of the year: Developed enthusiasm and had permanentinfluenceoncollegiateteamplayers.Community service award/special recognition award: A USPTA professional who has meaningfully served and bettered the community for altruistic reasons, irrespective of his or her professionaldevelopment,profitoradvancement.

2012-2013 awards

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Norma Kop with famous pro Vic Braden. Laugh and win!

Bruce joking around at the Hawaii Division party.

Wailae C.C. Director Randy Kop (left), Kailua Racquet Club GM Bruce Nagel (right), and our terrific Executive Administrator Jill Phipps!

It was a nice change from Hawaii’s sunny climate to observe the classes in cool, crisp weather.

Hawaii pros and friends enjoyed dinner and camaraderie at the Loose Noodle Company.

Past presidents Ron Woods and Dave Porter, along with CEO Tim Heckler joined the Hawaii Division for some good times.

Kyle Kaneshiro and Rosie Bareis at the Hawaii Division Pa’ina.

Scenes from the World Conference

Warren Lem and Ken Nakama

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Bruce and Beverly Nagel Bruce and Ken at the Executive Committee meeting.

Kyle Kaneshiro of Honolulu, Hawaii, received the Les-sons for Life Individual Award for his all his efforts in the tennis community as director of tennis at

Moanalua High School, including raising $200,000 for the Moanalua High School Tennis Lights Project. Kaneshiro has been the director of tennis at Moanalua High School for 13 years and has done much for the tennis community during that time. The courts at Moanalua High School had been without lights since 2009 after they were removed due to safety issues because of corrosion, and as a result the facility was forced to discontinue a majority of its tennis programs. With the help of family, friends, students and parents, Kaneshiro was able to raise the $200,000 within two years by hosting golf and tennis tournaments, through grants anddonationsandtennisclinics.Theprojectwasfinallycompleted in November 2011. He continues to use the courts to give back to the community. He has hosted events supporting the Hawaii Children’s Cancer Foundation and he has hosted free clin-ics for kids in the Free Judiciary Juvenile Drug Court Clinic and at Moanalua Elementary School.

Hawaii Pro Kyle Kaneshiro honored at Awards Breakfast

Kyle Kaneshiro receives his award from USPTA President Tom Daglis at the USPTA Awards Breakfast.

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David T. Porter, Ed.D., of Laie, Hawaii, who has been involved

in teaching tennis for more than 35 years and has been a USPTA member for more than 25 years, received the United States Professional Tennis Association’s Alex Gordon Award for the Pro-fessional of the Year. Porter was recognized during the USPTA’s an-nual awards breakfast at its World Conference on Tennis. The USPTA, the world’s oldest and largest association of tennis-teach-ing professionals, hosted its annual World Conference Sept. 16-21 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel & Spa in Monterey, Calif. The professional of the year is judged in seven areas, including: contribu-tions to USPTA and USTA; as a teaching professional, player and coach; education, research and publications; organizationalaffiliations;and contributions to the community. Porter, who is a USPTA Master Professional, played collegiate tennis for Brigham Young University, a top 20 Division I program. Porter graduated with Ed.D., M.S. and B.S. degrees before beginning his tennis-teaching career. He has been very com-mitted to the USPTA. He has been a Head Tester since 1988 and has served on the National Board from

1994-2007. This included serving as the national president from 2003-2005. In addition, he has served as the chairman of the educa-tion committee and the chairman of the testing and certificationcommittee.Hehas also been a speaker at numerous USPTA division-al conventions and national conferences. He is currently the head tennis coach at Brigham Young University – Hawaii. Porter has an impressive record of 1,193 wins and 145 losses over his college coaching career, and he

Hawaii’s David T. Porter named USPTA Professional of the Year

has never lost a conference match in women’s tennis during his entire career. His BYU – Hawaii women’s team is the three-time PacificWestConferencechampions (2010, 2011, 2012). He has also taught/worked with several nation-ally ranked players, includ-ing Zheng Jie, ranked No. 15 in the WTA, Yan Zi, ranked in the top 100 in the WTA and Li Na, ranked top 10 in the WTA. Porter has written sev-eral articles for China Tennis Club magazine and AD-Dvantage magazine. Also, as

the chairman of the USPTA Player Development Advi-sory Council, he consulted and edited “The Six General Performance Components of Tennis.” He is currently on the HEAD Penn Racquet Sports Advisory Committee and Nike China Advisory Com-mittee. His previous acco-lades include Hawaii Divi-sion Pro of the Year (2004, 1995), USPTA College Coach of the Year (2003, 2002), Hawaii Division Tes-ter of the Year (1997, 1994), and Hawaii Division Hall of Fame Inductee (1985).

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Growing up in my native Netherlands, playing mixed

doubles was, and still is, an important part of team competition. The Royal Dutch Tennis Association (KNLTB) has structured the match format in such a way that two decisive matches can determine the outcome of the entire day, even at the highest level. Four singles matches, one men’s doubles, one women’s doubles, and two mixed doubles keep a total of eight players (four on each team) busy all Sunday in the spring. Each match is worth one point, and since the mixed doubles are scheduled last, you can imagine the pressure on thesefinaltwomatches.However, no matter how fiercethecompetitionis,afterward we all enjoy “bit-ter-balls” (a typical Dutch snack) and a cold Heineken with our opponents! While competing on the weekends, I was enjoyingmyfirstyearsasa teaching professional at a medium-sized club, just outside Amsterdam. Teach-ing tennis, or teaching anything for that matter, is a very rewarding career. Seeing students, young and old, developing athletic skills and having a good time while doing it, is a goal many teaching profes-

Loving mixed doublesA true story by Hans Römer

sionals take pride in. Let’s face it, tennis is the perfect vehicle - especially for juniors - to connect with other people. Hitting tennis balls, running around the court, being with friends, participating in healthy competition in a safe envi-ronment, are ingredients that not every after-school activity can offer. Even though I was only in my mid-20s, I recognized the importance of providing these kids with more than just tennis. Good attitudes, being courteous, fair play, being polite and respect-ful, were just some of the traits I integrated in my lessons and clinics, without necessarily emphasizing it. Respecting the game, I also felt that educating the juniors about the history, rules and etiquette was one of my responsibilities as a coach. On a beautiful sunny Wednesday afternoon, dur-ing a Peewee class, I asked the young rascals if they were aware of all the differ-ent playing formats. “When two boys play together, what do you call that”? I asked.Atfirsttheydidn’thave a clue where I was go-ing with this question, so I answered for them, “That’s called boys singles.” How about two girls? Daphne, a bright girl, answered, “Girls singles!” All the other

kids recognized the logic, but were speechless when I presented them with the next question, “How about when two boys play against two boys?” For a moment I lost them again and ex-plained that was called boys doubles. Daphne took charge again, and before I even imposed the question on the group, she stated, “When two girls play against two girls, it’s called Girls Doubles!” I replied, “That’s exactly right, good job Daphne!” My last obvi-ous question was, “Now what if a boy and a girl play together?” Little Anna, who had been quietly pay-ing attention, gave me the

most precious answer in my entire teaching career. Without hesitation, she said, “Making love!”

Hans Römer, USPTA Master Professional, is the director of tennis at the Monterey Tennis Center in California. He has been a speaker at numerous tennis conventions. He also is a member of the United States Tennis Writers Association and the USA correspondent for Ten-nis Journal, a Dutch magazine. Römer graduated in his native Netherlands from the prestigious CIOS Sport College with a B.A. degree in physical education and studied pedagogy at the Univer-sity of Amsterdam.

This article is reprinted with permission from ADDvantage magazine, July 2011.

Hans Romer enjoys the game of mixed doubles – and hearing children’s unique take on it.

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Vision – an essential of shot makingFeisal Hassan, USPTA Master Professional

Technique, speed, agility, foot-work, strength, mental tough-ness and match strategies have

always been the main criteria in judging tennis ability. And all tennis-training programs have been designed with those criteria in mind, even though our body will only respond to what it can see. Despite this fact, little attention has been paid to vision. For decades, players have been told to “watch the ball” or “keep your eye on the ball.” These phrases seem to be a maxim that should solve this problem when playing tennis. Re-member, it’s not hard to know what to do, but how to do what you know! Not watching the ball is typically due to “visual wandering” and a lack of visual discipline/training. Running, acceleration, eye movement and the speed of the ball are the visual spoil-ers. Try reading a newspaper and run-ning on the spot. You will notice that therunningcauseddifficultyreadingthe newspaper. By undertaking a simple visual training program, a tennis player can improve his performance. That’s because the eye, like the muscles in our bodies, can be strengthened to perform better with exercise. By see-ing better, you can play better because what and how you see, is what and how you will do. Some of the required visual skills that can be enhanced through training are:

Head positioningDynamic visual acuityEye trackingEye teaming & depth perceptionPeripheral vision and Eye-hand coordination.

Head positioning: The average adult head weighs 12 – 15 pounds. When the head is moved excessively in order to see, we risk throwing the whole body

out of balance. Thus, players need the ability to identify and feel their head positioning during strokes.

Dynamic visual acuity: Playing tennis is a visual stress test. It requires more from your eyes than the daily activities of reading the newspaper and work-ing on the computer. The player who sees the ball late and exercises poor visual judgment is at a distinct dis-advantage. An aggressive player will move around the court, which tires and weakens your visual judgment of ball placement and speed. Running impairs visual acuity; many errors occur after a player has been forced to run for a shot. The solution, of course, is preparation. You can hone dynamic visual acuity so that you can function optimally in matches in which the ball is hit hard and you are forced to run a great deal. The two factors that make seeingtheballdifficultareyourmo-tion and the speed of the ball. Thus, players need the ability to see the ball moreeffectivelyandefficientlywhilethe player and the ball are moving.

Eye tracking: This is the ability to follow a moving object smoothly and accurately with both eyes. In tennis, it is desirable to track the ball to the moment of contact, that is to “see the ball hit the racquet.” But, according to

Jack Groppel, Ph.D., a tennis ball con-tacting the strings happens way too fast to see with the human eye. The comparison he offers is of a normal ev-eryday 60-cycle deck lamp. The light of this standard lamp seems steady enough,butactuallyitisflickeringonand off 60 times every second, so fast that it appears to be a steady beam of light. Have any of us ever seen this light either on or off? No. The reason is that it simply turns off and on too fast for the human eye to record. Accord-ing to Groppel, the moment of a tennis racquet striking a ball takes less time thana60-cyclelightflickersonandoff. It takes 1/10th of a second to relate information from the eyes to the brain. Research by the LTA shows that watching the ball only occurs 5-6 feet in front of the player, so after this (tracking the ball), de-emphasize watching the ball, emphasize getting into the right position and bring your eyes to the point of contact. We need to “anticipate” and pay attention to preparation – where the ball is going to be and when it’s going to be there.

Eye teaming & depth perception: This is the ability to use both eyes together (in unison) and to judge

Eyes, like the muscles in our bodies, can be strengthened to perform better with exercise.

Continued next page

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relative distances of objects and to see and move accurately in three-dimensional space. Although we look at the world with both eyes, we are aware of only a single impression of the environment. When the eyes work together as a team, the perceptions of each eye are coordinated. Depth, for example, is perceived when two-dimensional images received by each eye are fused in the brain into one three-dimensional image. As a result, we can judge distance easily and locate objects in space. On the other hand, anyone whose eyes do not teamupfindsitverydifficulttojudgedistance.

Peripheral vision: This is the ability to maintain and interpret what is happening on the court (in your side vision) while attending to the ball (thespecificcentralvision).Thinkof a wide receiver in football. When a pass is thrown in his direction, he must focus on the ball, the opponent

trying to prevent him from making the catch, and his feet in relation to the sideline. If he does not account for all three things, he won’t be consistently successful. The same thing applies to tennis. A player must concentrate on the incoming ball, account for his own position on the court and what his opponent is doing across the net. All three are crucial for a player’s “triple vision.”

Eye-hand coordination: This is how the visual system guides the motor system. The eyes lead the hands – not the other way around. Coaches and play-ers who refer to “hand-eye coordina-tion”havemissedthesignificanceofthis relationship. The visual system leads the motor system. We all use eye-hand coordination in our daily lives and take this skill for granted. Driving a car requires constant coordination between vision and hands and feet. Turning a car at an intersection requires the processing

of visual information by the brain and an immediate reaction by the hands on the steering wheel to the brain’s command. Parallel parking, a more difficulttask,requiresaseriesofquickadjustments between the visual sys-tem and the hands and feet. Braking is a good example of eye-foot coordina-tion. When we want to stop or slow down, the foot controls the brake pedal,butourvisionfirstprocessesthe information that tells us where and when to brake.

The goals of this article are:1. To demonstrate a simple on-court

vision training program which will improve the performance of a tennis player.

2. To coordinate the proper eye movements with the body.

3. To make quick and accurate deci-sions on the court.

The vision training program The vision training program is broken down into six types and levels of exercises:

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Level 1: head positioning exercisesLevel 2: dynamic visual acuity exer-cisesLevel 3: eye tracking exercisesLevel 4: eye teaming & depth per-ception exercisesLevel 5: peripheral vision exercisesLevel 6: eye-hand coordination exer-cises

Level 1. Head positioning exercisesPurpose: to help players identify and feel the head positioning during strokesA. General head positioning The head should remain above center of gravity and stay relatively still at all times. The more your head is over your center of gravity, the more efficientyourvisualtracking,balance,strokes and recovery. If the head gets too far off the center of gravity as you move to the shot, you will have dif-ficultyhittinginbalance,controlandrecovery.

Drill: upside-down cap (or folded towel) Place a cap upside-down or a folded towel on your head. Balls could be hit to you, or points played out. Your goal is to keep the cap or folded towel on your head.

The dominant eye is the eye that sends information to the brain quicker than the non-dominant eye. The brain gets the information a few millisec-onds faster. And since the brain gets the information quicker, the body reacts quicker. Research shows that the dominant eye’s connection with the brain is 10-13 times faster than the non-dominant eye. The test to determine the domi-nant eye is a simple one. Make a circle with both hands about the size of a tennis ball. Then look through this circleatafixedobjectabout15-20feetaway. Next, while holding your line of sight on the object, close your left eye and look through the circle at the object with your right eye. If you can still see the object through the circle, you are right-eye dominant. On the other hand, if you can no longer see

the object through the circle, you are left eye dominant.

B. Head positioning for ground-strokes: The goal on the ground-strokes is to get the dominant eye closer to the ball.

TIP: Make sure your opponent can see both your eyes when you are tracking the ball.

C. Head positioning for volleys: The goal is to get your head at the same level as your racquet head when lining up for the ball.

D. Head positioning for serves/over-heads: players typically drop their head prior to hitting the ball.

Tip: Keep your head up by keeping your non-dominant hand up “longer” (until the follow-through). Think of anoutfielderinbaseballgettingreadyto catch the ball.

All stroke drill: Keep a pencil behind your ear. Play points. If the pencil falls anytime during the point, the oppo-nent wins the point.

Level 2. Dynamic visual acuity exer-cisesPurpose: to help players see the ball moreeffectivelyandefficientlywhilethe player and ball are moving.

Drill: two-ball rally Players have a ball in one hand. On the count of three, both players feed their ball to the other player and try rallying cooperatively with two balls in play.

Drill: colored ball Have a basket of balls with dif-ferent colored balls in it, e.g., yellow, orange and white. If the ball fed to you is an orange ball, you hit a forehand; a white ball, you hit a backhand; a yellow ball, you hit a lob. Another variation could be using the same stroke. For example, if you get a white ball, you hit a forehand crosscourt; if you get an orange ball, you hit a forehand down-the-line; if you get a yellow ball, you hit a forehand lob.

Level 3. Eye tracking exercisesPurpose: to develop the ability to follow a moving ball smoothly and ac-curately with both eyes.

Drill: ball characteristics Use command words (or trigger words) to identify the ball character-istics. Shout out the words as soon as youhaveidentifiedthecharacteristics.Initially do one characteristic at a time:

Ball Trigger words characteristicsSpin top,slice,flatSpeed slow, med., fastDirection right, leftDepth short, middle, deepHeight low, medium, high

Drill: distraction rally Rally normally from the baseline, while two other players are diagonally across from each other at the net hit-ting volleys (or touch shots) back and forth simultaneously.

Level 4. Eye teaming & depth per-ception exercisesPurpose: to develop the ability for your eyes to function in unison and to judge relative distances of the ball and to see accurately in three-dimensional space.

Drill: “in-out” You are at net. Coach or another player feeds from the opposite base-line with different speeds, heights, spins, directions and depths. You call “in” or “out” based on ball going past you. A third person can stand on the baseline acting as the line judge.

Drill: 4-quadrant Divide court into four quadrants by extending the center service line all the way back to the baseline. With the line extended, the court has four boxes or quadrants. Number each quadrant from one to four. As the ball goes over the net, you must call out the quadrant number that the ball is going to land in.

Level 5. Peripheral vision exercises

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had approximately 2,400 members and an annual budget of $700,000. Today, the association is the world’s oldest and largest organization of its kind, serving more than 15,000 mem-bers in 66 countries, and operating on an annual budget of $6.5 million. Also, the association’s equity has grown from $60,000 in 1982 to more than $4.2 million today. Heckler, who began playing tennis at age 3, started his tennis-teaching career in 1970, the same year he joined USPTA. He was elected president of the USPTA Texas Division in 1974 and served as national president of the organization from 1980 to 1982. With Heckler’s guidance, USPTA becameoneofthefirsttennisorgani-zationstoembracetechnology,firstthrough the computerization of the business itself as early as 1982, and then later through its use of the Inter-net and email-based communications and education. USPTA introduced its firstwebsitein1995. The USPTA honored Heckler in 2000 by naming him a grand inductee in the Association’s Hall of Fame. He also received the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Tennis Educa-tional Merit Award in 2002 and was inducted into the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005. In 2008 he received the highest honor awarded by the United States Professional Tennis As-sociation, the George Bacso Lifetime Achievement Award. “We are pleased to welcome John Embree into the USPTA family. His vast tennis industry expertise, contacts, and company management skills will serve the USPTA well,” said President Tom Daglis. Embree has held a wide variety of

influentialten-nis industry roles for more than 30 years. They include serving as President of Prince Sports, The Ameri-cas; President of Balle de Match LLC; and Vice

President/General Manager, Racquet Sports Division for Wilson Sporting Goods Co. Most recently, he launched a tennis consulting practice to assist endemic brands, associations and new corporate entities in maximizing their impact in the tennis marketplace. His client list included the USTA, Inter-collegiate Tennis Association, Peter Burwash International, Off the Grid Technologies, and Donnay USA. Embree has served on many na-tional USTA Committees, including the USTA Nominating Committee in 2005-2006 and currently as the Vice Chair of USTA Professional Circuits Committee. In addition, he recently served as Presidential appointee of the Board of Directors of USTA Middle States section, is a past member of TIA Board of Directors and Execu-tive Committee, member of the Board of Directors of American College of Sports Medicine Foundation, and past President of the Chicago Tennis Patrons Foundation. One of his proud-est achievements in tennis was the creation of the USTA Adult League Tennis program in 1980, when he servedasthefirstUSTAAdultLeagueTennis Administrator for two years. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Washington & Lee University in Lex-ington, VA, and was inducted into the W&L Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005.

The USPTA has announced plans to move forward following Tim Heckler’s retirement as chief ex-

ecutiveofficereffectiveDec.31,2012,after 30 years in the position. Heckler an-nounced his intent to retire earlier this year and the Board of Directors also offered Heckler a one-year severance package through the end of 2013, whichwasratifiedby a vote of the entire Executive Com-mittee in April. The Board of Directors and Search Committee recently hired industry veteran John Embree as the new CEO/Executive Director. Embree began transitioning into his role as of Oct. 1 and will be relocating to the national officeinHoustononNov.1. The association conducted a search for the new CEO/Executive Director, and after interviewing several candi-dates in conjunction with the execu-tivesearchfirm,GSIExecutiveSearchInc., the USPTA Search Committee offered the position to Embree. The contractwasratifiedbytheUSPTAExecutive Committee in late August. “The USPTA is indebted to Tim Heckler for taking USPTA to the next level, and his 30 years of service as CEO is a demonstration of his passion, his commitment to the association, and his endless hard work for helping and improving the well-being of the tennis-teaching professional,” Presi-dent Daglis said. When Heckler, who is a USPTA Master Professional, was tapped as USPTA CEO in 1982, the organization

USPTA announces plans to move forwardTim Heckler to retire in December 2012 and John Embree named as new CEO/Executive Director

Tim Heckler

John Embree

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Purpose: to develop the ability to monitor and interpret what is happen-ing on the court (in your side vision) while attending to the ball (the spe-cificcentralvision)

Drill: ball training Have a partner (holding two balls) standing 3 to 4 feet from you. The balls are thrown to you simulta-neously, and you must catch one ball in each hand. As you improve, cross your arms to make the catch.

Drill: hand signals While rallying, have your partner makehandsignals(fist,openfist,thumb up or thumb down) to see if you can recognize what the signals are.

Level 6: eye-hand coordination exer-cisesPurpose: to train a player to effec-tively develop how their visual system guides their motor system

Serve drill: two-ball collision Have a ball in each hand. Mimic the serve motion and release both balls to try to make both balls “collide” or

hit each other. This is great, not only for an eye-hand coordination drill but also great to develop synchronization of the hands on the serve.

Return of serve drill: racquet handle return You must return serve with the racquet handle (or grip).

Groundstroke drill: rally Rally from the baseline, but rotate the racquet around your body two times after each hit.

Net play drill: volley-rally Players volley back and forth switching the dominant hand from the grip to throat of the racquet after each volley. This drill emphasizes eye-hand coordination with respect to the point of contact and getting used to muscle tension and relaxation. Another variation is to switch the racquet from one hand to the other after each hit.

Trying to develop watching the ballandjudgingtheballflightskillsare challenging tasks for any player. This article is an example on how this might be achieved. The drills presented are just some on-court

examples and should only serve as guidelines. I have had success with this program. In summary, I believe a good vi-sion training program should always lead to:• controlling the head positioning

and movement• developing the following visual

skills:• dynamic visual acuity• eye tracking• eye teaming and depth perception• peripheral vision and• eye-hand coordination

Feisal Hassan, a USPTA Master Profes-sional, is a member of the HEAD Penn Rac-quet Sports National Advisory Board and Speaker’s Bureau. He holds USPTA specialist degrees in Competitive Player Development, Facility Management and Little Tennis. He is also a USTA Recreational Coach and Quickstart Trainer, and a member of the National Cardio Tennis Speakers Team and the USPTA National Education Committee. He co-chairs the USPTA National Diversity Committee and was also the Director of Cer-tification & Testing for the USPTA Middle States Division.

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Hawaii pros were invited for a free dinner by Kailua Racquet Club chef Dave Kaminiski and an educational seminar provided by Mark Kovacs, Ph.D., on Friday, Nov. 2. Mark was on his way to speak at the Inter-

national Tennis Federation’s Conference in Thailand. He shared his wealth of knowledge as the USTA Manager of Sport Science and Director at the Interna-tional Tennis Performance Association.

Attendees at the pop up clinic were:

Bruce NagelKen NakamaHenry SomervilleRick WilsonCarolyn ThibaultLee Couillard

Ben EricksonJamie DelacruzFred WongLynn VoslooJoe CurcioWindy Cummings

Free dinner and pop-up clinic

Mark Kovacs

USPTA Hawaii Pros enjoy free food and education at the Kailua Racquet Club.

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Hawaii happenings

Welcome New Members:

Ismael Fernando of KiheiWill Heaven of Pearl CityJason Hester of HonoluluIkaika Jobe of HonoluluJohan Loo of HonoluluDiego Miranda of KahukuJean Mueller of LahainaAaron Tada of KapaaGarrett Tanouye of Pearl City

Reinstated members:

Lono Beamer of MililaniSteve Campbell of KamuelaSheldon Kennell of HonoluluCheryl Shrum of Kailua Kona

Need to upgrade?If you’re a Professional 2 or 3 and want to upgrade on the written, grips or stroke analysis exam, you now need to retake the entire section, not just the missed portions. To schedule an exam or for more informa-tion, please call the World Headquarters Membership Department at 800-USPTA-4U.

HELP WANTED!

The division board is always looking for articles, announce-ments, pictures, etc., so if you are interested in contributing please contact any board member. All contact information can be found on Page 2.

Is your email on file? Between newsletters, the Hawaii Division sends out notices about upcoming events and other important an-nouncements to division members via email. If you have not been receiving these emails and would like to, please log into the “Members Only” section of the USPTA website and update your information there or call 800-USPTA-4U. Youremailwillremainconfidentialandonlybeusedfor USPTA business. USPTA never releases members’ email addresses to outside parties.

SAVE THE DATE!

2013 Hawaii Division Conference

Jan. 27, 2013

Le Jardine AcademyOahu, Hawaii

More information coming soon!

Find-a-Pro. Visit USPTA’s free job listing service, Find-a-Pro,

at www.find-a-pro.com, to find a job, list a job or find

other USPTA Pros near you.

If you would like to place a job listing in the newsletter, please contact Julie at divisionea@uspta.org or

888-877-8232.

Pro Network16

Hawaii’s Pro Network is published quarterly by the Hawaii Division of the United States Professional Tennis Association, Inc.

The opinions expressed in Hawaii’s Pro Network are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Hawaii’s Pro Network or the USPTA Hawaii Division.

Copyright© Hawaii Division/United States Professional Tennis Association, Inc. 2012. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of the newsletter is not permitted without written permission from the USPTA Hawaii Division.

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Editor Julie Myers

Contributors Feisal Hassan, Ken Nakama and Hans Romer

Discounts are given for ads whose frequency rate is two or more per year. Contact Julie Myers at 800-USPTA-4U, ext. 142 for a rate card and circulation information.

Hawaii’s

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