Claremont F23 Update!

Written by: Staff on 12th September 2011

Claremont F23 Update! |

(Above:(L) Daniel Nguyen and (R) Thomas Shubert)

Hey folks, it’s another beautiful day in sunny California out here but there is some serious tennis about to be played at the Claremont Club pretty soon! The last round of qualifying is tomorrow and I’ve been lucky enough to find myself vying for a qualifying spot in the main draw… I’ve played 3 matches so far. My first was against a San Diego State University recruit who will be joining their team as a freshman pretty soon. I was able to use my college experience to take him out of his comfort zone and kind of cruise to a fairly error-free 6-1, 6-2 victory. My second round was against a ranked fellow, around 1500s, and seeded 11th in the qualifying draw. I happened to match up well against this particular grinder and was able to work hard to get a 6-0 6-0 result out of that one. I can’t really recall the points played, I just went out there and tried to take care of business, hustle for every ball, and take control of the net from time to time. My third match, which was earlier today, took a similar course as I played an ex-college player and found myself in a good rhythm on serve. I won the match 6-0 6-1 and was pleased with the way I returned serve and took care of my own service games. I think I’ll attribute this result to the fact I warmed-up with my good friend, 3-Time NCAA Div. 1 Champ, Daniel Nguyen of USC before this match. It’s fun to interact and be around great players.

I should comment also that Claremont boasts an elevation of 1500ft. So I think my days at BYU (where the elevation is 4200), is kind of playing in my favor because the courts are a little quick and a lot of balls are flying on some of the guys. I’ve flown my fair share of returns, but for the most part a chip return is working wonders right now… I’m the last one standing amongst the team of guys I came out here with so I’m hoping to keep going in the tournament and representing us well! Tomorrow I’m playing a Brazilian who is seeded 7th. I will try to use the quick conditions to my advantage and come out guns-a-blazing! I’ll let you know how it goes with a few more pictures and thoughts on the Open when I have more time to gather myself and my notes together. Lately the days seem to have just meshed with each other as we go from hotel, to breakfast, to practice, to the match, to the post-match stretch and cool down, to eating, to hanging out and just sharing stories, to sleeping early and taking care of business the next day. It truly is a wonderful life to live out of a suitcase and share the company of so many foreigners and friends.I’m very lucky to be in the position I am right now. Talk to you soon with good news!

Always trying to improve,

Shubert