Introduction
There are currently thousands of players ranked on the ATP and WTA tours—too many, in fact, according to the ITF. Unfortunately, only the top 200—at most—in the men’s and women’s game can make a real living through it. Otherwise players must rely on sponsorship from an association, club, family, and/or other donors. The economy of tennis is a steep pyramid with the top players making a ton of money while the rest are just barely surviving. If one compares this to soccer, it is evident that the 200th-best soccer player is a millionaire while the 200th-best tennis player is barely stable.
Life on the pro tour
Most fans associate fame and glamor with professional tennis, but it is totally different since it is only the top players who make huge money and live that kind of lifestyle. Even for the top players the grind of being away from home and living in hotels almost every week of the year is tiresome. Tennis is, of course, a job that involves all kinds of factors:
Getting in shape
Regardless of age, any tennis player must be fit to compete on the court since professional tennis is perhaps the most physically demanding sport in the world. Some of the thing to do to make sure an individual is fit:
- Cardio training, running a minimum of three times weekly
- Practice light weight training
- Consulting and hiring a trainer who can help through an exercise routine
Practice
Practice is the only means of succeeding in tennis; a person must put on long hours practicing in order to be able to compete in future on the court and also be able to play. A person should use leisure time (play poker online, for example) to supplement the schedule since tennis will dominate most aspects of life.
- Develop a schedule that engages the player many times
- Most player trains several hours a day for six days
- It takes five years to become an expert especially in something involving sports
Adopting the habits and approach of the pro players
Top pro players do things slightly different than others. They usually have habits and approaches that differentiate them from others thus succeeding to the top.
- They focus on improving specific parts of the game instead of being concerned with only the basics
- Setting a routine, a player should get a specific routine before attending any match
- Embracing their own approaches since a technique that works for someone might not work for another.
Thus becoming a professional tennis player is not that easy, but if taken serious an individual can succeed and make living out of it.
Conclusion
Being a popular and completive sport, tennis is enjoyed by millions of people every day. Most people enjoy tennis as a hobby but a few are aspired to be professional players. Like other sports, professional tennis needs persistence, dedication, and natural occurring talent. If one is willing to be a pro player then the above information is necessary to ensure chances of success on the court.
Interesting article. The pro at my local club would draw the line of ‘making it’ closer to the 100th ranked player than the 200th. In any case, the contrast with soccer is striking.
The sport as a whole would be served by much more equitable distribution of prize-money, but the unfortunate fact is that the business of tennis does not require it. By far the most money is generated by the Grand Slams. Most casual tennis fans don’t pay attention to anything else, and some only pay attention to Wimbledon.
The 2018 US open provides a good comparison. Last year’s singles’ winners took home 3.8 million dollars. That is nearly $600,000 more than the *career* earnings of #186 ranked Spanish player Daniel Gimeno-Traver, who is 33 and has been a pro for 15 years (with a career-high ranking of 48). So far this year, he has earned about $16k.
Unfortunately, tennis as a business doesn’t care about players such as Gimeno-Traver, who, imo, should be earning at least 2-3 times as much over a career. That dude is an amazing player, and the comparable soccer player would be a multi-millionaire.