Glen Ellyn Holds First Free Viking APTA Clinic of Season

September 18, 2014
Glen Ellyn, IL

While the weather certainly didn’t cooperate, the pros’ and the players’ spirits never dampened. Pros Matt Lemery, Brian Heil, Marty Engel, Marek Czerwinski, and Peter Berka led a lively clinic and exhibition that was well attended and well regarded.

Mark Malec said, “I thought the clinic was a huge success. Regardless if you were new to paddle or a seasoned player, the pros were engaging at every level and everyone walked away learning something. New players were talking afterwards in the hut about how excited they were to play a new sport—something at the age of 40+ most of them thought they never could do. Seasoned players were thrilled that they were able to pick up a few tips from each of the four stations. The instructors were amazing for gutting it out in the cold rain for several hours. They really made it fun and were completely engaged!”

Another participant, Betsy Bush, wrote, “The APTA clinic recently held in Glen Ellyn was incredible. Even though we only had an hour with these exceptional paddle pros, they wasted no time organizing us into four groups based on skill level and experience. I’ve been playing four years and can honestly say I took away a great, new tip on all four courts/stations, even though we only had 10-15 minutes on each court. They made it fun, but got right to business, zeroing in on things that they knew they could improve upon in a short time. They touched on strategy and technique, as well as court position and effective communication between partners. I never knew I was supposed to “absorb” my volleys, coming from a tennis background, and that the net person on the ad side directed the point in most cases. I would strongly recommend these clinics; we had a really great group of instructors.”

Thanks to Steve Morris for organizing the event, to the pros who ran another great clinic, and to Viking for their continued support of this great game.