Just because you are young does not mean you cannot be great. Youth fuels the sport of tennis. To reach the top pinnacles of this sport, not only can you start early, you need to start early. Becoming a professional player takes years of hard work. The earlier you start, the better you will be when it comes to making the pro circuit.
Even before going pro, you need to play tournaments and perhaps play on your school’s team. It might be good to play in college. There are many steps to take, but what is pretty obvious by all of this is that the earlier you start, the better your chances will be to make it where you want to go.
Starting Early
You are never too young to start playing tennis. The United States Tennis Association (USTA) even suggests starting your child before they even get out of the crib!
Does this mean they should be out on the court at this age, swinging a racket? Obviously not. However, it does mean start them out on a love of tennis. Maybe you can watch tennis together. Babies are impressionable, and they soak in a lot more than you realize.
As for playing, kids can start learning as soon as they know how to walk. The day they take their first step, don’t have them out on a court taking rockets. But once they are stable, they can start playing with the racket and a ball, similar to a child with a baby baseball glove having a ball rolled to them.
As they get used to it, you can introduce newer skills to them. By the time they are in early elementary ages, they could already be on a path towards greatness.
If your child is already past these stages, do not be discouraged. No matter their age, they can become a great tennis player. It is just easier the younger they are.
The most important thing to remember when teaching kids at such vulnerable ages is to keep it fun. If you make it unbearable work, they will not want to continue.
How to Get Kids Excited About Tennis
When you love something, it’s completely natural to have this desire to pass it along to other friends or loved ones. If you’re a parent, introducing your child to tennis could end up being a great way for you to bond with one another while having a great time.
Obviously, trying to get a kid excited about tennis is much different than trying to do the same thing for someone much closer to your actual age. You need to make the thought of it appealing in one way or another. If they become a skilled player later on in their lives, then that’s awesome, but that’s not the goal here – it’s to introduce something that’s fun for them.
Here are a couple of ways to help get your kids excited about the sport of a lifetime.
Just Let Them Play
You don’t need to go over every single tennis rule with your kids before they get going. Once you have the essentials down – like how to hold a racket and hit a tennis ball, just let them do their thing.
When you lack structure at this stage in introducing tennis to kids, it allows them to have ownership of the process. It also allows them to find fun in the parts of the game that you haven’t realized. And if they have a good time doing this (within reason and without injuring others, of course), they’ll likely be more open to coming back and playing again in the future.
Keep it Short and Keep it Moving
When doing a new activity, it’s important to keep it short and fun for kids. If you spend too much time explaining rules or how to play, they’ll be too bored to play before they even get an opportunity to.
There are plenty of ways you can help them have a good time while also improving their skills, but there needs to be a focus on activity. Kids enjoy trying new things, so don’t make them wait too long before letting them jump right in.
How Old Do You Have to Be to Start Pro Tennis?
To play in a USTA professional circuit match, you have to be at least 14 years of age. That is it. While playing in a pro circuit event is not the same as being a professional player, it is a good place to start on the path towards being a pro.
These tournaments are reserved for the best, and there is a lot of prize money up for grabs. The lowest level tournament is a $10,000 circuit and can go up to $100,000. To get into these tournaments, you have to meet the qualifications for these events. Often, that means you need to be ranked and have some wins under your belt.
While you can be 14 to play in these, players from 14-18 do have stricter eligibility requirements. Because there are qualifying requirements to even get into these tournaments, you should now realize the importance of starting to play early. Even if you do not plan on playing or entering your child into these events at the age of 14, you should be working to gain the rankings needed to eventually make the tournament before the time you wish to enter.
What to Do Now
Hopefully, this has all convinced you that you should start as early as possible if you want your child to become a professional (or if you want to be a professional if you are the young person in question). There are a lot of steps you can take to get your child ready to make their own waves in the world of tennis:
- Hire a coach who knows how to train at the highest levels.
- Play in as many tournaments as possible.
- Work hard.
- Remember to keep the game fun. Passion and love of the sport make you a lot better.
- Spend summers at tennis camp.
Tennis is a fun sport, and anyone can play it. You are never too old to start playing tennis. However, if you really want to go far in your tennis career, you need to have talent, work hard, and start learning as early as possible.
A great next step is attending one of our adidas Tennis Camps. We pride ourselves on having the top coaches in the sport instructing campers every single year while also being sure that we cater to all ages and skill levels. As for the age of campers we see on an annual basis, they can range from 7 to 18. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a top high school player or a complete beginner – our programs are designed to accommodate all skill levels.
Tennis is a great sport because you never have to actually stop playing it – that’s why it’s considered the “sport of a lifetime.” The earlier you start playing tennis, the more time you have to improve and truly enjoy it for years down the road.
Ready to take your tennis game to the next level this summer? Find an adidas Tennis Camp near you and register today!
