Tennis Is Life: Recent Episodes
Waikiki Cup
Tennis offers itself as many things to many people …be it a Pursuit, a Pastime, perhaps a Profession. Unquestionably … it is a Passion. Tennis. Is. Life. "Tennis Is Life” is where those who live & breathe the game engage in expansive conversation about every aspect of the game. The sport’s real players, both on & off the court, whether they toil under the glare of the spotlight, or labor intently just beyond it. Impactful people … making things happen, be it past, present or future. If you are a believer … then you have found your home. Tennis Is Life.
In this episode of Tennis Is Life, brought to you by the Waikiki Cup, U.S, men's tennis stars Mackie McDonald and Jenson Brooksby sit down with Kevin Skinner, Jared Carstenn, and Ben Goldsmith for this insightful interview.
In this episode we discuss:
- What do Mackie and Jenson think the exhibition match results at the 2022 Waikiki 株塾 Cup (December 17, 2022) foreshadows about the rest of the year? Did it bring to focus anything to improve on for 2023?
- Was the exhibition match a friendly match, even with some "tough" points?
- Are Mackie and Jenson feeling the American bump, with so many American men rising in the rankings? What is the vibe within the American players vs. other countries?
- Is there pressure to "be the guy" who is a top American tennis player again?
- The 2022 Waikiki Cup was Brooksby' s first exhibition. What did he think about it?
- What is one goal to accomplish in 2023?
This interview was recorded on December 17, 2022, after the Waikiki 株塾 Cup, a three-day tennis event held in Waikiki, Hawaii. This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Outrigger Reef, which was the 2022 Official Resort & Hotel Partner of the Waikiki 株塾 Cup.
The Men’s Singles match of the 2022 Waikiki Cup was a competitive match with Mackenzie winning both sets over Jenson Brooksby, 6-4, 6-2. Prior to the men's singles match, Claire Liu and Mackenzie McDonald defeated CoCo Vandeweghe and Jenson Brooksby 7-5 in a wildly entertaining mixed doubles set.
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Season 2 of "Tennis Is Life" is airing new episodes! For announcements on airings, follow the @WaikikiCup social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
In this episode of Tennis Is Life, American WTA tennis star Claire Liu sits down with Kevin Skinner, Jared Carstenn, and Ben Goldsmith for this candid interview. In this episode we discuss:
- What it feels like to rise in the rankings
- Claire's background and the pressure from grabbing the spotlight in her early teens
- The line between cheering on fellow American WTA players as they all push each other to rise in the rankings and simultaneously competing in an individual sport
- Goals for 2023
- Adding fun into tennis, and working in Hawaii!
- Life outside of pro tennis and hobbies
- "The Hawaii Bump" and the luck that follows those who play in Waikiki ;)
This interview was recorded on December 17, 2022, after the Waikiki 株塾 Cup, a three-day tennis event held in Waikiki, Hawaii, in which Claire Liu was a participant. This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Outrigger Reef, which was the 2022 Official Resort & Hotel Partner of the Waikiki 株塾 Cup.
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Season 2 of "Tennis Is Life" is airing new episodes! For announcements on airings, follow the @WaikikiCup social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
In this episode of Tennis Is Life, former world No. 9 CoCo Vandeweghe sits down with Kevin Skinner, Jared Carstenn, and Ben Goldsmith for this insightful interview. In this episode we discuss:
1. The mental challenges of embarking on a comeback
2. CoCo's family history in sports and competitions and the pressure to live up to expectations
3. How and why she become a pro tennis player
4. How CoCo remains her authentic self in an individual sport
5. How to deal with loneliness on tour away from family and friends
6. Hawaii adventures and making new memories
This interview was recorded on December 17, 2022, after the Waikiki 株塾 Cup, a three-day tennis event held in Waikiki, Hawaii. This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Outrigger Reef, which was the 2022 Official Resort & Hotel Partner of the Waikiki 株塾 Cup.
CoCo Vandeweghe won the Waikiki 株塾 Cup Women’s Singles title against Claire Liu. Liu took the first set, but Vandeweghe came back in a thrilling 10-point tiebreak set to win 4-6, 6-4, 11-9.
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Season 2 of "Tennis Is Life" is airing new episodes! For announcements on airings, follow the @WaikikiCup social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
In this episode of Tennis Is Life, Kei Nishikori sits down with Kevin Skinner, Jared Carstenn, and Ben Goldsmith for this insightful interview.
In this episode we discuss:
- Kei's health update going into 2023
- Kei's career motivations and his love for tennis
- Family
- Kei's predictions for the 2023 tennis season
- Kei's 2023 goals
This interview was recorded on December 17, 2022, after the Waikiki 株塾 Cup, a three-day tennis event held in Waikiki, Hawaii. This interview was recorded in the lobby of the Outrigger Reef, which was the 2022 Official Resort & Hotel Partner of the Waikiki 株塾 Cup.
Nishikori served as a chair umpire during the mixed doubles match at the Waikiki Cup. We highly recommend watching this wildly entertaining match on Tennis Channel and listening to Kei's often hilarious calls and commentary.
About Kei Nishikori:
Kei Nishikori is a Japanese professional tennis player and former world No. 4.
Kei Nishikori was born on December 29, 1989 in Matsue, Japan, and started playing tennis at the age of five. Nishikori's career highlights include winning 12 singles titles, and becoming the first male player from an Asian country to reach a Grand Slam singles final at the 2014 US Open. He also won the bronze medal in singles at the 2016 Summer Olympics, bringing Japan its first Olympic tennis medal in 96 years.
Kei Nishikori was the 2018 Hawaii Open champion (now Waikiki Cup). Nishikori defeated Canadian Milos Raonic, 76, 76.
Kei Nishikori's rise to the top of the sport as a player from Japan helped inspire a new generation of tennis players in the country and has helped to grow the sport in Asia.
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Season 2 of "Tennis Is Life" is airing new episodes! For announcements on airings, follow the @WaikikiCup social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
RKT GROUP, INC.RKT Group, Inc. was created by Ryan Redondo, Erik Kortland, and Khuong Tien in 2021. Our vision is to promote an innovative and holistic approach to the tennis and racket sport industry. We support and create a space for our clients to provide lucrative business models, strengthened community development, and the tools to be on the cutting edge of processes and systems within the industry. Our services include organizational strategy and structuring, club/center management, on and off court program development, 1 on 1 coaching and mentoring, tournament planning, fundraising and development strategy and planning, and more.
https://www.rkt3.com/
Originally from Scotland, I moved to the Bay Area when I was eight. A graduate of San Diego State University with a BS in Business emphasis Marketing and more recently UC San Diego certified in digital marketing. I have lived all over San Diego starting in La Costa, Point Loma, Solana Beach, Coronado, Rancho Santa Fe and currently in Del Mar. I fell in love with San Diego and its athletic lifestyle. Tennis, mountain biking, hiking, sailing, horse back riding and paddle boarding, with San Diego’s terrific climate at least one of these can be done year round.
I was a VP in Private and Business banking and have owned and managed investment properties in Coronado for over ten years. I have boundless energy and thoroughly enjoy helping people find a home that is the right one for them. I have successfully represented both buyers and sellers in Rancho Santa Fe, Solana Beach, Del Mar, La Jolla and Coronado closing over $37 million in sales over the past three years not including rentals and leases. I help in all aspects of the home selling and buying process including providing clients experienced trades people to ready their home. This ensures my clients get the best possible price and home.
I have two adult children who are thriving in Austin, Texas and the other near Los Angeles. We are avid travelers and enjoy experiencing other cultures and learning quite a bit in the process.
Brian Teacher,
1980 Australian Open Champion
Pro Tennis Coach
Hall of Fame inductee
Teacher was born in San Diego, California. He attended Crawford High School in San Diego, graduating in 1972. He later lived in Beverly Hills, California.
He later studied for his MBA at the USC Marshall School of Business.
Tennis career
Junior, high school, and college
Teacher won a CIF singles title in 1972 while at Crawford High School.[8]
In 1972, he won the boys' 18 singles and doubles titles.[9] At the University of California-Los Angeles, where he studied economics, he won the Pacific-8 singles and doubles championship in 1974, was an All-American from 1973–76, and was a member of the UCLA teams that won the NCAA championship in 1975 and 1976.[7]
Professional career
He reached the finals in the South Australian and New South Wales Opens in 1977. In 1978, at the Seiko World Super Tennis Tournament in Tokyo, Teacher upset UCLA graduates Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe before losing in the final to Björn Borg 6–3, 6–4.[10]
In 1980, he won the Australian Open, becoming the second Jewish player to win a men's Grand Slam Singles event (after Dick Savitt).[1] He won the final over Kim Warwick of Australia in straight sets.[11][12] With his Grand Slam victory, Teacher is one of only five American male players in the Open era to have won a single Grand Slam event (along with Michael Chang, Vitas Gerulaitis, Andy Roddick, and Roscoe Tanner). Seven more Americans have more than one Slam (Stan Smith, Arthur Ashe, Jim Courier, Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi, John McEnroe, and
John ChanfreauGeneral Manager at Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club
San Diego, California, United States
Tournament Director Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Tournament.
https://www.rsfassociation.org/club/scripts/view/view_insert.asp?GRP=41635&NS=TENNIS&IID=492315
Lisa Stone is the founder of ParentingAces, an invaluable resource for parents to help guide them (and their children!) through the complex world of junior tennis here in the US. When she's not writing, you'll find Lisa at the tennis court, either as a player, fan or an organizer
Jill N. Craybas
(born July 4,) is an American former professional tennis player.
From the 2000 US Open to the 2011 US Open, Craybas competed in 45 consecutive Grand Slam main draws; her best result coming in the 2005 Wimbledon Championships where she reached the fourth round, which included wins over Marion Bartoli and Serena Williams. By the time she retired in 2013, she was one of the oldest players on the WTA Tour at 39 years of age, as well as the longest serving, having turned pro in 1996.
Craybas was born in Providence, Rhode Island.
She received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where she played for coach Andy Brandi's Florida Gators women's tennis team in National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and Southeastern Conference (SEC) competition from 1993 to 1996. As a senior, she won the 1996 NCAA women's singles tennis championship. She was the 1995–96 recipient of the Honda Sports Award for Tennis, recognizing her as the outstanding collegiate female tennis player of the year.
Craybas graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelor's degree in telecommunications in 1996, and has said in interviews that she hopes to enter film or television production when her playing career ends. She was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2008.
SoCal Pro Circuit aims to revive Southern California's rich tennis legacy
According to SCTA president Bob Hochstadter, all the money for the circuit was raised locally by a committee chaired by Christopher Boyer that included Paul Annacone, Lindsey Davenport, Peggy Michel and Marianne Werdel. Major donations were made by prominent members of the SoCal tennis community, including Bruce Kleege, Heliane Steden, Toby Crabel, and others. Wilson Sporting Goods and Crabel Investments are major SoCal Pro Circuit sponsors.
The SoCal Pro Circuit kicks off in San Diego County at the Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club on Monday, May 30 with the finals set for Sunday, June 5.
The remaining dates include:
- June 6-12: University of San Diego
- June 13-19: Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego
- June 27-July 3: Jack Kramer Club in Rolling Hills
- July 4-10: Los Caballeros Sports Village in Fountain Valley
- July 11-17: Lakewood Tennis Center
Catherine Cartan "CiCi" Bellis is an American former tennis player. In early 2018, she was the second youngest player in the top 100 of the WTA rankings. Bellis has a career-high of 35,
Hi! My name is Shatoo Mohamad. I’m 18 years old and I am a professional tennis player. My mother is from Duhok and my father is from Slemani but I was born and raised here in San Diego, California. I started playing tennis at the age of seven. Fast forward to November of 2018, I began playing professional tournaments. I train anywhere from 4-6 hours every day, and I am constantly traveling due to the fact that many of the professional tournaments are national and international. It hasn’t been a full year of playing professional tennis, but I’ve made a lot of progress. Due to match wins I’ve had, I’ve been able to obtain a WTA ranking which is the official professional ranking system. As far as I know, I am the only Kurdish player with a WTA ranking. To top it all of, last week I had my biggest win so far, beating a player who was 28 years old and had a career-high ranking of 170 in the world. Right now my biggest problem is finding a sponsor(s). I’ve tried reaching out to some people in the Kurdish community, but they don’t take me seriously, and I think it’s largely because a girl playing a professional sport instead of going to college is just something they’ve never heard or seen of. When I tell people in our community that I play professionally, they either congratulate me, judge me or don’t take me seriously. I have a unique platform that will only grow as I become more successful, and I really do believe I can empower so many girls and women to get involved in a sport or to just stay active. I personally have not seen many girls in our community getting involved athletically and I want to change that. I would love to see Kurds more open and understanding that playing a professional sport is also a great career. Currently, my team and I are working on becoming number 1 in the world. I want to prove to everyone that anyone, especially a Kurdish girl can become a professional athlete and be the best at it. It’s definitely not easy, I’ve been my biggest supporter throughout this entire journey, but the most important thing is, I know I can make it. My parents have sacrificed a lot for me to be in the position I am in now. Every single day, our focus is on tennis and how to improve. My goal in the upcoming months is to win a professional tournament and ultimately, for now, I’m working hard to build my ranking up so I can qualify to play in the Grand-slams such as the US Open
Kleege grew up in La Jolla, California, but was born in Frankfurt, West Germany.[1] He is of Latvian descent through his father Robert, who worked at the time for the United Nations.[2] After attending Clairemont High School, Kleege went to Brigham Young University from 1972 to 1977.[3] He had a noted varsity tennis career, which culminated in winning the No. 1 singles conference championship in 1977, a year he went undefeated and ranked sixth nationally.[3] For his efforts he was awarded All-American honors, in both singles and doubles.[4] Graduating in 1977 with a business management degree, Kleege made the decision to turn professional and made his first appearance on the Grand Prix circuit at a doubles tournament in Basel in October 1977
Professional career
Most of his singles matches in 1978 came in ATP Challenger events, but he made the main draw of the end of year Australian Open, in which he lost in the first round to Arthur Ashe, who was making his last appearance at the tournament.[3] He started 1979 by winning the doubles title at the Lagos Open, a Grand Prix tournament, with Joel Bailey.[5] A few weeks later he was a singles quarter-finalist in San Jose, Costa Rica.[6] The following year his best performance was when he made the third round of the 1982 Australian Open.[7] He suffered the disappointment of losing a five-and-a-half-hour match in the final round of qualifying for the 1983 Wimbledon Championships, to Tian Viljoen, 11–13 in the fifth set.[8][9] However he got to enter the main draw when sixth seed Gene Mayer had to withdraw.[8] Later in the year he had an upset win over world number 14 and top seed Steve Denton at the 1983 Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport.[10]