Q&A with Coach Enoch Thompson

Enoch Thompson has been a pillar in the DC tennis community for decades. Last year, he was named a USTA Local Hero for his work on the court and acting as a positive role model for youth. We caught up with Enoch to ask about his tennis journey and tennis in Washington over the years.

What brought you to DC?

I came to DC in 1970 to study architecture at Howard University from the Exuma Islands in the Bahamas.

How long have you been playing tennis? How did you get started ?

I was gifted a set of racquets my junior year at Howard University. I was no longer playing baseball and needed something to do. I have never taken a tennis lesson. I taught myself to play by watching others and reading.

What or who inspired you to learn and continue to play tennis? What inspired you to teach?

Growing up in the Bahamas, tennis was looked at as a “girl” sports, and I admired Arthur [Ashe] and Pancho Gonzales. My entire family plays tennis; that includes my wife and four children. When my children began to take on tennis competitively, I caught the coaching bug.

How did baseball play a role in the development of your tennis career as professional tennis instructor?

In baseball you can foul off a million balls and still have the chance to hit a home run, unlike tennis where the ball is either in or out. Baseball taught me to focus and life lessons from being on a team

How has tennis changed since you started teaching and playing? What is the most profound change you have seen?

Just with technology tennis has changed so much. There is no way you could play with a wooden racquet now. You would have all kinds of tennis elbow. The biggest change I’ve seen is the 10U format. 10U tennis has made for an early start into to tennis for kids, just like other sports have. With the modify equipment we [tennis instructors] are able to make more with less and be creative when it comes to teaching. Tennis can be played outside of a regular court and even without a net. That was the real game changer when it comes to accessibility.

Being in the nation’s capital where the most political decisions are made, do you think politics has played a role in how tennis has changed here ? How so or why not?

In some ways politics has changed tennis here in DC. Tennis has always been powered by the people. With the different pockets of tennis all over the city the community isn’t really cohesive .

What would you consider to be the turning point in tennis for players of color?

After the age of Arthur, Althea and Poncho, came a lot of great players of color. People of color had a face in the tennis. Serena and Venus have been just great. Things really began to change for players when people like you [USTA MAS staff member Ebonye Jones] began to take on roles with the USTA. Information and resources like trainings became easier to access to be in the community.

What do you love the most about tennis?

The love that comes with the game . Friends become family with tennis . My entire family plays tennis and the game has been the consent activity that brings us together. A family that plays together stays together.

If you had one advice to your younger self what would it be?

Be flexible when people offer criticism.

League Captain of the Year

Meet Amy O’Brien from Leesburg, Virginia. She captained 13 teams in 2016 and has already signed on for more this year, in addition to her commitment to growing tennis throughout her community. She has won 2 tickets to the 217 US. Open along with $500 for travel spending for this honor! This is what others had to say about Amy:

“She is tireless and a great captain helping both rookies and advanced players. She sacrifices so much of herself to the sport of tennis…it is the fabric of her soul and she truly is deserving.”

“She manages so many teams from doubles, mixed, singles to juniors. She is on the tennis board for our neighborhood, coordinates classes and schedules for contract time–the list just goes on and on!”

Here’s a deeper look at our Captain of the Year!

When did you first pick up a racquet? I decided to take lessons five years ago when our new pro arrived at River Creek Tennis Club. I thought it would be a good way to get some exercise but not realizing that I would really enjoy the game.

How long have you been captaining USTA League teams? I’ve captained teams for about 4 years.

What do you enjoy about captaining a USTA League team? Meeting players and making new friends not only from our club but other clubs as well.

What’s been your favorite or most unique “captain” moment so far? I have several favorite moments. One of favorite moment ( or a sense of accomplishment) of being a captain is seeing the growth in our membership and teams. In the past everyone in our community played for other clubs. We didn’t have a men’s, junior or mixed doubles team. But now we have over 16 teams for all ages and level of players. It is nice to see our tennis community and membership grow at River Creek Club.

What do you think your players or other players should know about what it’s like to captain? I welcome feedback and being a captain is easy when you have a great network of support system from not only your teammates but parents as well.

What is your strategy on recruiting new players? How do you find and fill your team with new players each year? We recruit by a lot of networking. Sometimes, I see people playing that I don’t know at our club, I will ask them for their names and phone numbers and invite them to play in our round robin or at our social events. We try to be very inclusive. Other times we discovered that new players are nervous to play with others and we tell them all levels are welcomed as we all started from somewhere. We want to make sure everyone feels welcome.

Why do you like to give back to the sport of tennis so much? Because I made some true and long lasting friendship due to tennis. Also,regardless of your age tennis is a sport that everyone can enjoy . It is a sport that my kids really enjoy and I want to support them as much as possible.

If you could have any professional player (current or retired) on your league team, who would it be? Why? Federer because of his mental toughness and how he always stay calm.

Congratulations, Amy! USTA Mid-Atlantic would like to thank all of our outstanding USTA League captains for their service to the program. From scheduling lineups to making calls to players at the eleventh hour, we know and definitely appreciate all they do to keep the USTA League program fun for everyone!

To learn more and get involved in USTA League tennis, click here.

What’s Your Reason Why for High School Sports?

It was two days before the high school tennis state championships.

*Snap.* I broke my wrist.

As I heard the words “You can’t play for eight weeks,” I was devastated and more importantly I was disappointed for letting down my team. My disappointment vanished quickly as my teammates rallied around me and I rallied for them cheering on from the sidelines that year. This unwavering camaraderie and friendship with my tennis teammates on and off the court was a major dose of motivation for me. The following year, we came back even stronger and we became the second public school since 1987 to win the team State Championships.

This is high school sports. This is #MyReasonWhy.

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) is celebrating National High School Activities Month with the launch of the #MyReasonWhy campaign. They encourage people to share their reasons for participating in high school sports and activity programs in an effort to highlight the benefits of these activities.

Tennis provides myriad of benefits for youth and high schoolers that mirror many of the benefits NFHS touts. From physical activity benefits to strong academics, tennis develops life skills and teamwork at an early age that carry on to adulthood.

Often people may not think of tennis as a typical team sport, but with high school tennis, Junior Team Tennis and USTA League – team tennis is abundant. Personally, I couldn’t have built a better, stronger team through tennis than I did in high school.

Lindsey Keeler, second from left, with her Red Mountain High School Tennis Team.

I had been playing tennis competitively in USTA Junior Tournaments most of my life and found that high school tennis was the perfect complement to my junior play. It provided me the team component I wanted while also increasing my play experiences against other top players.

Those experiences and friendships formed with teammates is what motivated me to then play tennis in college and have continued to motivate me to play USTA League tennis now.

I asked around the USTA Mid-Atlantic office and here are a few reasons why our staff participated in high school sports and activities:

“I played tennis in both high school and junior high because I loved the team component it provided me and it kept me active.”

“My reason why I did high school sports was the teamwork, healthy competition, character building and fun of it all!”

If you participated in high school sports or activities, especially tennis, what was your reason why? Or if you currently are involved in high school sports and activities – players, coaches, program supervisors, what’s your reason why? Share it with us on USTA Mid-Atlantic social media AND share it with NFHS using #MyReasonWhy.

Lindsey Keeler, is the director of adult programs at USTA Mid-Atlantic and a proud Red Mountain High School Tennis Hall of Famer.