We are excited to have Bill Schillings join us for part three of Sports Parenting – Don’t Go Bat Sh*t Crazy.

Bill played at Penn State University where he was the captain and played #1 singles and doubles. Later, he went on to play professional tennis in the United States and abroad. He owned and directed the Charlotte Tennis Academy from 1989-2022 where he coached and mentored juniors and sometimes their parents. He is a USTA High-Performance Coach and USPTA Elite Professional.

Why Do Parents Get So Emotional Watching Their Kids Play Sports?

Bill explained the reason parents get so emotional about watching their kids play sports is that it’s hard to imagine watching your child fail at something. Parents are wired to protect their kids and want to make sure their emotional well-being is protected. Since there is always a winner and a loser in sports, it’s hard for parents to sit back and watch their child in a competitive situation.

Tennis is a Tough Sport for Kids

Tennis can be a lonely sport and it spotlights your child front and center of what is happening. It’s unlike most sports. In most other sports, there are multiple kids playing at the same time (i.e. basketball and football). Tennis is a sport where there is only one player (or two in doubles) to cheer for and hope to watch them win.

It’s also a sport where very little coaching is done, people have to make their own line calls, and there’s not a group of other teammates surrounding them at all times. It may literally be the hardest sport for parents to watch!

How Can You Purchase Bill’s Book “Sports Parenting – Don’t Go Bat Sh*t Crazy”?

If you would like to purchase Bill’s book or read his blog you can do so at his website. Purchase the book here or read his blog.

We recorded two other episodes with Bill. You can find them here:

Tennis Warehouse’s Tip of the Week

We hope you’re enjoying our Tennis Warehouse’s Tip of the Week segments with Michelle. Use discount code SECONDSERVE in your Tennis Warehouse cart and get $20 off clearance apparel orders over $100. Clearance apparel can be found here!

For more in-depth discussions about gear, check out Michelle’s Talk Tennis podcast.

We hosted Michelle for several great podcasts too. You can find them here: