Tennis Lessons With Tommy O'Donnell

I officially began teaching tennis in 1985, while I was attending college at Temple University in Philadelphia. The club where I taught was located in Langhorne, a suburb of Philadelphia and it was owned by former Philadelphia Eagle's quarterback, Ron Jaworski. During the first year my career, I taught primarily children and teens, but then in year two I slowly began incorporating adults in to my schedule.

By the early 1990's I was teaching all skill levels, from adults, to pre-school kids, to nationally ranked high school and college players. I've been teaching tennis for 20 plus years now and I am certified through the Professional Tennis Registry. During my playing days I achieved an NTRP rating of 5.0, a personal best for me. I competed on a local and regional scale for several years and won enough tournaments that I ranked in the top 20 of the USTA middle states division for a three year stretch. Which was no small feat considering the level of competition in the northeast.

I have enjoyed a successful career teaching tennis for a few specific reasons. Of course I understand the mechanics of the game better than most, but it's my philosophy that makes the biggest difference. And it's very simple. Just like in life, I treat every student as the individual that they are. People have different personalities and they don't all learn the same. In other words I don't believe in using a cookie cutter approach to teaching. Yes there are core mechanics that are utilized when teaching, but that doesn't mean the particular mechanics will work for every one. My main gripe about fellow pros is that they embrace the latest teaching fad and apply it to all their students. I don't. I will not teach a 45 year old house wife in the same fashion I would teach a 15 year old athlete. Doing so typically leads to dejection, which leads to failure. And in many cases, injury. When I first meet a student, no matter the age, I like to discuss the student's objectives. Then I teach accordingly. My goal is for the student to maximize their learning experience while having fun in the process.

My goal is not only to teach students, but to get them involved in tennis programs where they can execute what they learn, in a fun, stress free environment. Drill and plays, Find a Friend, and Team Tennis, were all programs I introduced to the local area when I was teaching in Philadelphia and they were extremely popular. My plan is to start those programs here in the central Florida area as well.