TENNIS 
TENNIS
Tennis--the sport of the gods! Of course I am biased, but tennis is one of the greatest sports that exists. My competitive tennis carrer was only about 5 years long, but it produced some of the greatest moments in my life. I started playing tennis at Alpine Hills Swimming and Tennis Club in Portola Valley, CA (right next to Woodside). I continued playing interclub and NorCal Junior League for Alpine through high school. I was also a member of my high school tennis team--the George Washington High School Eagles--in San Francisco.
With both teams, I experienced a moderate amount of success. I finished my competitive carreer by taking the 1991 San Francisco AAA City Championship in doubles, and winning the deciding match in Junior League for Alpine that helped send our team to the Nor Cal finals, where we lost a tough one in the finals. I tried out for the UCSD tennis team, and got spanked by another freshman who was trying out, so I decided to hang up the cat gut, and only play recreationally. I've been doing a pretty crappy job of staying in proper tennis form, but I am now trying to get back into the sport.
While my own time on the courts has dwindled, I have kept up with following pro tennis. I am a little disappointed that my favorite player, Stephan Edberg, has retired, but there are still a lot of great players out there. Mal Washington and Michael Chang are probably my favorite players on the men's tour, and ya've gotta love the way that Martina Hingis is lighting up the women's tour. In addition, Anna Kournikova looks like she will be building up quite a nice rivalry with Hingis. In my own opinion, women's tennis is easier to watch on TV, but that's just because they play a slower and more calculated game. Also, watching a 3-setter is a lot easier than watching a 5-setter ;-).
My only complaint with pro tennis right now is that doubles rarely ever gets any attention, and hardly ever gets TV coverage. Doubles is far more exciting and is better suited for a TV audience. The only thing that is lacking is the big names and the prize money that goes along with them. I also think that doubles is a way more strategic game. It's almost like a physical version of chess. I think that the ATP and WTA would be wise to promote doubles much more than they ever have. And last, but not least I also wanted to mention how important inner-city tennis programs have become. Pioneers like Jeff Arons and the East Palo Alto Tennis Program have demonstrated that part of what makes tennis such a great sport is the quality and character of the people that comprise the sport.
