Disclaimer

This post reflects our personal family experiences with junior tennis tournaments and should not be mistaken for professional sporting advice. All opinions are our own and written with a large cup of coffee in hand, some laughter, and mild parental exhaustion

Intro

Back in August, while we were still on holiday and our son was benched thanks to the now-legendary “Great Slide Incident of 2025”, my wife and I began scouting tennis tournaments for September and October. We wanted something that would push him a bit but still keep it fun.

This weekend’s event was one of those — spotted by chance on the LTA tournament website listed as a “Regional Linked U9”. I thought, “Perfect, let’s enter him!”

As entries grew, I realised this wasn’t just a casual local event — it was a Grade 3 qualification tournament for the upcoming Regional Grade 2 in Bath this November.

A Quick Word on Tennis Grades

For those not fluent in LTA hierarchy speak:

• Grades 7–5 = local knockabouts with biscuits.
• Grades 4–3 = regional showdowns with mini-Federers and backhands from another planet.
• Grades 2–1 = the elite realm. There are usually coaches with clipboards, parents with spreadsheets, and kids who grunt louder than Wimbledon pros.

We were at Grade 3. Aka, serious business.

So yes, this wasn’t a walk in the park.

The Draw and the Challenge

Twenty-five players entered. Only sixteen would survive the Hunger Games — sorry, make the main draw. Our son squeaked in at 16th but mysteriously rose to 14th seed by the start. (We assume divine intervention or an Excel sorting error.)

The format: four groups of four, round-robin style, best of three sets to seven. If tied at 6–6, play continues until parental anxiety reaches critical mass.

My wife had a hair appointment, so she missed what I can confidently call one of his finest hours — both as a player and as a calm, composed miniature human.

Group Stage Highlights

Match 1 – vs. Montgomery Jenkins (Oxfordshire)
Montgomery, who went on to win the entire tournament, was tall, strong, and had a serve that could knock your hat off. Our son fought valiantly, losing 6–8, 3–7, but kept his composure, no tears, no drama. Post-match analysis followed (naturally) with Dad’s commentary.

Match 2 – vs. Che Chao (Avon)
Che — the ever-present nemesis. Every tournament. Every draw. Somewhere in Avon, there’s probably a “Eddie & Che Derby” WhatsApp group.
The score: 3–7, 8–6, 3–7. But the middle set was epic — saving three match points and flipping it to 8–6. Hollywood scriptwriters, take note.

Match 3 – vs. Jack Scott (Dorset)
Jack wore his cap backwards, which in tennis usually means “business mode.” Great serve, less great consistency. Our son, being allergic to short matches, played another three-setter: 2–7, 13–11, 3–7.

Yes, our son saved four match points this time — he clearly enjoys parental heart attacks.
At this point, I was wondering if I should pack a tent and start paying council tax to the tennis club.

The Knockouts (and the Oreos)

Post-group-stage caffeine consumed, new pairings revealed:

Match 4 – vs. Theodore Gray (Somerset teammate)
You guessed it — another three-setter!

Our son finally notched his first Grade 3 victory: 3–7, 7–4, 7–4. Theo was devastated, but our son (ever the diplomat) consoled him with Oreos.

Match 5 – vs. Samuel Gray (Theo’s twin)
Cue dramatic music. Samuel avenged his brother’s loss (7–4, 7–5) and restored family honour. Our son stayed calm — possibly thinking about more Oreos.

Match 6 – vs. Millard Lai (Devon)
They’ve met twice before, both losses. This time was different. Another nail-biting three-setter: 11–9, 5–7, 8–6. Once again, he saved three match points — and this time, my wife arrived just in time to witness the heroics.

By now, I’d stopped checking scores and was just monitoring my pulse.

A Mental Turning Point

He finished around 11th overall, but rankings aside, this felt like a turning point.

What impressed us most wasn’t the wins or the near-misses, but his mindset. Calm, analytical, focused, and even smiling. His serve looked sharper, ready position consistent, and his stamina was off the charts.

He still needs to work on swinging through fully to generate more power, but technically and mentally, something has clearly “clicked.”

Final Thoughts (and Parental Heart Palpitations)

This matured display came out of nowhere — and I’ll admit, I wasn’t emotionally prepared for it. Watching him play like that was incredible.

As I’ve said before, when our son gets his emotions and mindset fully under control — both during and after matches — he’ll be an absolute force to be reckoned with. Yes, he’s still U9, but this might just be the cornerstone of his tennis journey.

At the moment, no tournaments are planned (mostly for the sake of our nerves), but after today… I might “just browse the LTA site,” purely out of curiosity, of course.

PS: As I mentioned in my last post, I’ve also entered the Barnstable Rapid chess tournament next Saturday — so expect a rapid-fire report soon!