Bethpage Park Hosts High School Clinic With Special Guests

Each year, Steve Kaplan and the Bethpage Park Tennis Center hosts an instructional High School Coaches Clinic, which brings together coaches from the middle school, junior varsity and varsity levels as they prepare for the upcoming season.

Prior to the New York Tennis Expo and the New York Open, the facility hosted this Clinic once again, and were joined by legendary coach and IMG Academy’s Nick Bollettieri, Columbia Men’s Tennis Associate Head Coach Howie Endelman, former Columbia standout and current professional Max Schnur, and Frank Dolan of Sports and Fitness Performance.

“I have been running a high school and junior high school tennis workshop for coaches for more than 15 years to help bridge the gap between clubs and schools on Long Island,” said Kaplan, Bethpage Park’s Owner and Managing Director. “It’s more important than ever that we promote such cooperation because school tennis is not thriving as it once was.”

There can be a divide between clubs and public school programs, and one of Kaplan’s primarily goals to try and close that gap by emphasizing the importance of high school tennis to the junior tennis experience.

“Nick Bollettieri has amazing energy and when he speaks, people listen,” said Kaplan. “Both Howie Endelman and Max Schnur are strong advocates of high school tennis, and they could not have been clearer that college coaches do highly value the importance of high school tennis.”

The Clinic was not just limited to coaches and also included players, with more than 160 people in total coming out to learn from these top tennis minds. Bollettieri spoke to the young players about the mental toughness and discipline needed to take your game to the next level, and Schnur and Endelman brought their extensive knowledge of collegiate tennis and the pro tour to the clinic.

“A special thanks to coach Frank Dolan who I work closely with,” said Kaplan. “He explained the value of a simple and correct form intensive functional warm-up. I plan on working with IMG, Nick, Howie, Max and Frank, and adding more high school tennis advocates for future clinics.”