Tim Armstrong’s School of Tennis, now the biggest in the Peninsula, was started 45 years ago when Tim Armstrong had to make what turned out to be one of the biggest decisions of his life; to make a career out of playing professional soccer or pursuing a career in tennis. Luckily for aspirant tennis players in the Cape he chose the latter. Speaking to TAST website designer Nathan Jack, Tim describe
d how his commitment to his choice grew. “I started coaching in the False Bay area using my mother’s wicker basket which held 20 tennis balls, causing me to often be mistaken for a fruit vendor! My transport was limited to walking and using the train, and in the beginning, if I coached for two hours a day it was a lot.”
Tim is nostalgic about those early days. “Looking back I feel this gave me the grounding and determination to fulfill a dream to build, if not the biggest tennis school in the country, at least one I could be proud of. My goal has always been to coach anyone regardless of age and standard, to learn this game of a lifetime. I aim to explore and develop the potential of each pupil without losing the enjoyment of the game.”
“Children as young as four years of age can benefit from coaching, depending on his or her ability. I like to keep the squads down to either six or four pupils at a time thus giving individual attention to each player. Three quarters of an hour each week with practice time in between is a good way to begin. Once enrolled at the school, pupils have access to the courts in the early afternoons.”
To date the school has 7 fulltime professionals with centres at Meadowridge and Constantia Tennis Clubs. The school covers the area from Tokai through to Claremont. The school is also the designated host of the International Tennis School, ”Johnathan Markson Tennis Academy.” People come from all over the world to have lessons at our Cape Town Centres.
“The school is growing every term and my team of professionals is self motivated and extremely enthusiastic. It has been a great pleasure to work with Chris Potteron who runs both centres is ably assisted by Alex Anderton, Rudy Richards & Brenton Bubb at Constantia Tennis Club as well as Ryan Baines & Jaden Peterson at Meadowridge Tennis Club. While not all pupils are destined to be stars, and Tim emphasizes that young players should not be put under pressure, many pupils have risen to Western Province ranking. Tim would like to thank on behalf of his school his sponsors, DUNLOP, UNDER ARMOUR & DANDO COFFEE for the much-appreciated support they have given him over the years.
