Frequently parents of potential students ask us when is the right time to get their kids started playing. In most cases the earlier people get started the better they become, but in recent years parents have raised the stakes and consequently taken junior tennis to another, more serious level. Years ago coaches licked their chops at a parent willing to enroll their kids in tennis lessons at 7 years old. Today parents are deciding "pros or bust" at the young age of 5. That's a level of seriousness tennis coaches were not prepared for and are still trying to manage. Coaches are now faced with the challenge of not only teaching kids with limited communication skills and hand eye coordination, but also managing the expectations of die hard tennis parents that have decided that they want their child to play pro tennis. Which brings us to the burning question: How young is too young?

We've trained everyone from juniors with aspirations of playing in college, to those who (or who's parents) hope to earn a living on the tour. It's a competitive environment, and the players are getting younger. 5 years ago the USTA eliminated all national 10 and under tournaments, due to lack of participation. But today, players as young as 8 are competing in the 12 and under division nationally and having some success.

When children come to our academy, we set them up with short-and long term goals. The short term goal for a 5 year old is simply one thing- to make the game fun. Everything about the experience, from games to instruction, should be completely positive. As the child and his or her tennis mature, you can establish a new set of goals based on their progress. But if you've already determined that it's the pros or die, it eliminates all short term goals-like having a good time on court.

There are too many unknowns when it comes to young kids. You have no idea how they will develop physically and mentally. You don't know how long the parents will be able to satisfy the financial commitment. You have no idea whether he or she has the toughness to play an individual sport. Plus, the competition has gotten too great to assume that showing promise at an early age is enough. Ten years ago you could predict that a young Andre Agassi had the skills to succeed. Now, with a greater number of gifted players sprouting from parts of the globe you've never heard of, the depth of talent makes such an assumption way too risky.

But most of all, it's not fair to the child. Perhaps not now, but eventually he or she will realize that their entire family is completely invested in his or her tennis future. When parents stop their lives and pin the family's future on a young kid becoming the breadwinner, it puts tremendous demands on the child. And when you publicize it with personal websites and videos on YouTube, you're only compounding the pressure. PRESSURE THAT'S MEANT FOR AN ADULT, NOT A CHILD.

At XS Tennis Academy we train everyone, kids (as young as 3 yrs) and adults to be the best THEY can be. We understand that each student has different gifts and grasp our teachings at a different pace. Obviously the earlier we get them, the better chance they will have at a college scholarship or playing professionally, but we don't get there by making premature predications. We get there by working tirelessly on every detail, every lesson.