FAQs
Q. Is it too late to start tennis if you are going into middle/high school? I am afraid my child will be too far behind the kids who went through the 10U program or started sooner.
A. Older children tend to have greater attention spans and many have played other sports which helps them to transfer athletic skills already learned to tennis. Kids this age are motivated to catch up with their peers and want to join up with them on the Middle School team. Your child will start where they are and move up as they are ready.
Q. My child is not athletic and just wants to play for fun. Is that okay?
Q. My child is not athletic and just wants to play for fun. Is that okay?
A. Tennis is all about fun! We encourage children of all ability levels to gain the skills needed to have fun and make tennis their lifetime sport and are welcome in Mac Advantage as much as the most talented kids.
Q. Should I insist my child play in tournaments even if he says he doesn’t want to compete?
Q. Should I insist my child play in tournaments even if he says he doesn’t want to compete?
A. While it is okay to not compete, we do try to make match situations competitive and not put the most advanced players against the beginners as much as possible. Just be sure your child knows you are proud of their effort and the results are secondary. And hopefully she will try tournaments, as the focus during match play tends to bring about improvement quickly!
Q. My child has never played a match. Should I enroll her in Middle School Team Tennis?
A. Middle School Team Tennis is for all ability levels and skill levels are matched up for play experience. It is appropriate for all players. Middle school team tennis is a fun and social way to get match play experience. We combine with Lindsborg and some matches will be played there for a total of 5 meets on Monday evenings. We finish the season with a pizza party!!! Please indicate on the registration form if your child intends to play or not.
Q. Can I sign up for just camp and wait and see if my child enjoys tennis before I sign up for the rest of the summer?
Q. Can I sign up for just camp and wait and see if my child enjoys tennis before I sign up for the rest of the summer?
A. Of course. And as you add more sessions you will get a discount on the pricing all summer long. You don’t have to commit prior to the start of the season.
A. Of course. And as you add more sessions you will get a discount on the pricing all summer long. You don’t have to commit prior to the start of the season.
Q. I looked over the website and I am still so confused about all the options. How do I know what is best for my child?
​A. The ideal program would include all we have to offer, including private lessons and tournament play, as we think that will help your child become as accomplished as possible at tennis. However, we realize you may need to pick and choose how your child spends her time and your money this summer and there are many conflicts. Please contact Janie Bremyer or another Mac Advantage coach for assistance with building the best summer tennis schedule for your child.
Q. We are gone on vacation and my child has camp two different weeks. I don’t want to sign up for a whole month when he can only attend for 2 weeks in June and 2 weeks in July.
A. We have a weekly registration so you can customize your membership. There are discounts for additional weeks beyond 4. Check the individual registration forms for details.
Q. Can I join Mac Advantage if I only want to purchase private lessons.
A. We recommend that you directly contact the instructor of your choice and pay the hourly rate for lessons. Packages are only available through the club.
Q. Does my child need private lessons?
A. No and yes! No, private lessons can be a budget breaker! And some kids learn enough in group instruction to satisfy themselves. Yes, private lessons will help a lot because understanding of tennis technique is much easier to learn in a private lesson. Improvement is quicker and technical skills can be honed in a way that can’t be addressed in group instruction.
​Q. The expense of tennis for one child is more than I can handle, let alone the cost for my other two children who want to play. Are there any breaks or financial assistance available?
A. Yes. First, a 10% discount is given on the Mac Advantage programs you purchase when there is more than one family member enrolled. Each time you add standard program to your child’s registration, the pricing goes down with the best value being the Tennis Ticket. If your family qualifies for Free or Reduced Lunches, there is a sizable CHS sponsored scholarship available. Also, if you don’t qualify for that scholarship, there is also a Mac Advantage Scholarship available for anyone who might have a need for financial assistance for anything tennis related. Please find these scholarships on our website.
​Q. I want my child to take private lessons but I don’t know what instructor to choose. How do I decide which one and how long should the lesson be?
​A. In middle school the attention span is generally long enough to do a one hour lesson. The Private Lesson Registration form lists both adult and assistant instructors, who have all been through the Mac Advantage Program. Generally, the skill to teach strokes is greater with the adult instructors and the energy to hit with your child is greater with the younger players. That is not to say that the younger players don’t know strokes and can’t help with that because they can. We encourage hitting with one of our assistant coaches as they have great strokes and can really help advance your child’s ability to play in tournaments.
So you may decide to go with an adult and also a youth assistant instructor if you can afford it. Private lessons are becoming very important to many of our players and some of the instructors sell out all of their time and cannot take on more students. It is common to sell 2 packages of 5 lessons, basically one per week for the summer, to students. You can purchase more packages as the summer goes on. I recommend all of our instructors. They are very caring and have many years of experience teaching tennis.
Q. My child wants to play on the Middle School Team next year and wants to play tournaments to prepare. How do I know what tournaments there are for her to play in?
A. We try to make it easy! If you look at the Mac Advantage Summer Calendar, we have built in several possible tournament dates. The MS program includes tournaments on two Wednesdays each month during the group lesson time. All who come to lessons will be put in a draw with players of similar ability. We also have 4 tournaments which are in McPherson that are free to members. In addition we have chosen to travel as a group to selected NET and Kansas District Junior Open tournaments. See the red car on the calendar! Skill level and experience will determine which tournaments your child should play. But you are not limited to those events. Learn more under the Tournaments tab.