Hawkesbury tennis tournament will sort men from boys says David Renaud

Inside The Lines Tennis Academy, which until recently was called Advantage Tennis Academy, will host nearly 150 tennis players from across Australia from Friday to Sunday at the Hawkesbury Bronze Australian Money Tournament. Renaud coaches at the academy.

He said the tournament would include talented youngsters alongside seasoned pros.

He said it was these events, where young players found out whether they had what it took to consider a career in tennis.

‘‘It is a good experience for the young players at 12-13,’’ he said.

‘‘They get to play against the harder guys. They do get cleaned up on the court sometimes but it is a good learning experience.’’

Renaud said it was rare to see a young player do well at these tournaments, however, the point at that age was not to succeed but to learn.

‘‘They have to really respect the older guys,’’ he said.

‘‘Coming from junior tournaments and playing against adults you learn a lot of on court things but also off court, like respect for the older guys.’’

Renaud said there would be a few of his students competing at the tournament and he would be there to watch and hand out some advice.

‘‘The difference between older guys and the young kids is the mental state,’’ he said.

‘‘The difference between some of the young kids is you can see they are not mature enough yet. Even if they are really confident if they start losing a bit they lose it in their head.’’

Inside The Lines centre manager Gavin Yip said the tournament was one of two major tournaments hosted in the Hawkesbury each year.

There is a total prize pool of $3000 and the tournament would feature both singles and double matches for men, women and mixed teams.