Tennis Teaching Pro

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Introduction: Hi , My name is Ovi Dragos . I am a teaching pro and an x HS coach that gave me the understanding and drive to teach/improve skills and tactics in a short period of time. As a HS coach ,you have to get the students ready for the season, for the important league matches for the Sectional Finals or even the State Finals.My HS team has reached the Sectional final 6 times and the State Finals ,twice. My students didn't take any private lessons out of the HS program but 7 of them had /played/play college tennis. My private students improved also to play college level. Because I played and play tournaments I have the experience and knowledge to help a student to improve either the singles or doubles game. Being able to play lefty or righty( I am a righty) it helps me to feed the ball specifically and also to help lefties ,with their specific skills. Tennis : how it all started ..from soccer to tennis . I started playing tennis when I was 9 years old to be able to help my older brother, practice and train for his dream to be a professional tennis player. We inherited the love for sports from my uncle who was double National Champion at 17-18 in Romania (at the same time was playing professionally soccer !) and myself I was a very talented soccer player that was seen at a very young age as a future professional soccer player. My brother determined me to start playing tennis ,and the rest was history. I learned (soundly )to hit FH/BH and serve in 2 months( I still remember that wall..) ! From there I wanted to catch up with my brother but it took me another 9 years to win a set on him!!!Was a great cross training experience between soccer and tennis. Because of a serious knee injury ,I had to give up soccer (at higher level) but tennis was there inspiring me constantly to get better. As a junior I played local, county and national tournaments. I played some top juniors in the country and coming close to them made me even more ambitious. I followed my brother and won also the County Championship. Education: Went to College in Bucharest/Romania (there are no college tennis teams)and graduated from National Academy of PE and Sports with a National Licence for tennis. In US, I took classes at Burlington County College and College of New Jersey. In 2008 , I got the PTR/Professional Tennis Registry/ professional licence #65286. I am a CPR and AED certified. Personal achievements, on the court. When the knees allowed me to compete, I finished the year 2012 first in Middle States for 45' years old and was preparing for Nationals but my knee had other ideas...! Voted 4 times Coach of the Year for Burlington County and once for Mercer County. Three of my HS students won the BCSL trophy and one of them back to back. Two of my doubles teams made All NJ State Gr 1 team.Several of my students made All County Team and most of my top players made All Gr 1 South Jersey team.A dozen of my students played at college level and two of them D 1. Teaching methods: In teaching I use a variety of methods and instructional aids: hand guidance,video's ,coach's eye and PTR coach, the mirror, hand feeding, progressive length methods,lighter tennis balls, the wall and very detailed and clear explanations. I adapt my teaching style based on the student's age, experience, physicality,goals, pace and personality. At formation being a school teacher, beside a tennis pro I like to plan and always be prepared for my lessons. I set up goals , methods and proper steps to have a successful lesson from every aspect. During the time I worked as a Middle School teacher or coaching the HS teams ,I was tested many times having to work with autistic students, Asperger's or other conditions and most of them were successful not just academically but also on the tennis court. Some of them were brilliant but lacked social skills, and it's up to you the teacher- coach to make the difference. Life style and hobbies: Because of my injuries I studied a lot about holistic healing methods , work outs (I used to practice full contact martial arts for 8 years),nutrition . I don't eat refined sugar(ya, no chocolate or ice cream!) or take pain killers for over 3 years. Didn't drink soda for over 10 years and I don't drink alcohol or never done recreational drugs. I try to inspire my younger students to be healthy and successful! Being from Europe/Transylvania ,I was always inspired to travel ,see new places, cultures and learn. When I was in 4 th grade and reading Tom Sawyer's Adventures ,I told everyone that one day I will go to America(my great grand father came here in 1906,on Ellis Island !)..and here I am ! Beside travelling, working out and playing tennis, I love to be in nature,to go hiking , biking,picking up mushrooms. Love to read and learn new languages. I speak 4 languages but I am still working on it. Teaching and work place: Tennis coaching and teaching, grew more and more in my heart and a couple months ago, I decided to teach tennis full time. So, now I am working at the Pennsburry Racquet Club(already for 3 years) and Trenton Country Club. My tennis philosophy : I enjoy helping students improve their game and it's a great feeling to see the satisfaction of kids/parents or even adults when they learn/improve a skill. Tennis is more than just hitting a ball with a racquet. Regardless it requires: footwork, coordination, agility, speed, stamina,patience,a strong mental, fair play ,work ethic etc it gives everyone a chance to play at their one's pace, stay active and be HAPPY. Hope to see you soon to enjoy learning and playing tennis in a structured but fun way ! Tennis is a LIFE time activity so let's get moving and play, regardless your age! Game , Set , Match ? You're serve ! Thank you !

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Customers rated this pro highly for professionalism, work quality, and value.

Exceptional 5.0

13 reviews

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Milorad M.

Jun 21, 2020

The best coach I’ve ever had. He is very intelligent and has the craft mastered. He is very dedicated and gives 110% ALL the time. He cares so deeply to improve/grow one as player and as a person. He dedicates everything he possibly can to make sure that you reach your full potential and then some. Such a pleasure to be around and the professionalism is unmatched. Coach Dragos coached me since middle school. He dedicated a lot of effort/time into my development as a tennis player. I played for coach Dragos in high school. Coach used to scout teams/players to make sure that we did not only train to become the best we could possibly be but to train efficiently in order to know our opponents precisely. A clear story, I remember like it was yesterday, Coach scouted a player from Middlesex. This player loved to slice the ball a lot, I worked with Coach every single day hitting hundreds of slices similar to the ones my opponent would hit. I would hit them in my sleep. I was a sophomore at the time and my middlesex opponent was undefeated all year. Due to coaches dedicated effort to scout, to spend countless hours with me, I had practically mastered handling the slice and went on to beat my opponent. This is just one story but every match was the same. The same unmatched effort and dedication from Coach and always giving 110% to me/us. I went on to play D1 tennis and he prepared me exactly how I needed to be to be able to play D1. The best coach I’ve had! Thank you Coach Dragos!

Tennis Teaching Pro's reply

Thank you Milo!!! I miss that days and you guys. To reach back to CJ final with 6 so young and new players was amazing ! With match points..you won that match and the ones against New Providence...huge..and challenged Moorestown !

Steven H.

Jun 25, 2020

Coach Dragos was such an motivator for me in not only the game of tennis but for me to find my best self internally that not only shined on the court but in life. A coach who can read an individual and bring out their qualities that sometimes they themselves didn’t know they had. He did it with me my junior year of high school. He was a new to me coach that at the time took all “the fun” out of the game. Hard drills and long practices where not fun. I stopped one practice questioning his objectives not knowing at that time how important the lessons being taught by him where. We went the beginning of my junior year being the laughing stock of the district to being a state contender my senior year. Looking back the patience and the ability to foresee someones greatness is something that even almost 20 years laters still holds dear to me and what he has instilled in me. Thank you Coach. Thank you for sticking with it to a punk who thought he knew it all. Thank you for seeing something larger for me and pushing me when at times I couldn’t push myself. You made me a better tennis player easily, but even more so a better person all around with invaluable tough lessons. Much love and respect always, Steven Hummel

Tennis Teaching Pro's reply

Steven, thank you so much !!!! I This is an awesome review and such a life lesson .You succeed and I am so happy for you !!! This counts more than anything !!!! One regret...if would had have you one more year on the team, would had gotten the State Championship !

Catherine D.

Jul 9, 2020

Ovi was my tennis coach during high school/college. Like any beginner, I had many bad habits. Ovi was a very patient and knowledgeable coach. He broke down my play and helped me develop good technique. We had a regular training routine and he would come critique my high school practices and many of my matches. He takes training very seriously and our sessions were both demanding and rewarding. In addition to having great skills as an instructor, he is also an extremely talented player who will help develop any player regardless of their current level of play. I had a very good varsity career in both high school and college due to his coaching efforts. I have nothing but fond memories of my training sessions. He is an excellent coach, athlete and a very genuine individual.

Tennis Teaching Pro's reply

Thank you so much Cat !!! Your hard work and talent payed off ! One of my best students ! Winning the BCSL was very rewarding for me as your coach too !

Arnold P.

Jun 19, 2020

Ovi is a great tennis pro! We worked privately, in high school, and at Pennsbury Racquet Club. He knows the ins and outs of tennis and able to adapt his teaching methods to the abilities of the person he’s giving lessons to in order to progress their skills in the best possible way. If you’re looking for a tennis pro, look no further. He’s the guy to go to!

Tennis Teaching Pro's reply

Thank you ,Arnold !

Chen Z.

Jun 19, 2020

My daughter is a rising HS freshman and we are preparing for varsity tryout. Coach Ovi has been helping us with her techniques, physicality and game strategy in the past month. I am very happy with what I have seen from the past few lessons. She was motivated, working hard and improving each time. I play tennis myself and loving learning and teaching tennis, too. But I felt not able to bring my daughter's tennis to the next level. I am so glad to have Ovi as her coach now so I can play a different role. He possesses the great insightful observation on players and prescribes specific drills and training instructions that are tailored for them. Best coach we have had.

Tennis Teaching Pro's reply

Thank you so much for you kind words ! Always a pleasure to work with you . I am sure she will be ready for the challenge. Great work ethic !

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Ovi Dragos

FAQs

What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
Being also a teacher it helps to understand how to treat my customers , provide confidence and make it easy for a new comer in the game or made the transition easier for someone who is accustomed to the game but lacks proper technique or consistency . I asked questions to learn about the goals and and type of game looking to improve. Baseliner ,serve and volley, offensive or defensive style. Next step I will evaluate the skills and explain what choices are there and based on my customers wish will proceed onto the teaching process. I provide demo to each shot, explain the mechaniques and the way to achieve the right technique in the shortest period of time. A very important step is to do hand feeding next to the person to be able to see all the mistakes and be able to correct it right away.Probably this is one of the reasons a lot of students learn wrong or it takes too long to build up decent skills .Most of pro's are going on the other baseline or to the net to early in the learning process.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I studied in Europe/Bucharest-Romania the National Academy of Sport and PE and finished with a professional license for tennis. .I study all the time and also I improved my skill level working against the wall/the key to get better. Its amazing to be able to hit shots that look and have the same effect like the pro's!!! Slices...drops shots..american twist serve.!!! Being a HS tennis coach too/Florence HS it helped to have a different approach than the regular tennis lessons. Why? The season is 3 months/March-May and being a competitive nature had to work on a schedule based on each students abilities to be able to compete closest to our team goals. Is important to have a goal for each private lesson; it goes from achieving the correct skills/technique to the level of play each student desire. Singles, doubles player, recreational,HS or college or USTA leagues and tournaments. During my tenure(14 years) at Florence, our team won 5 Freedom division titles ,came second 5 times ,we were in 5 CJ GR 1 finals,but won 2 times and came only one point away from winning the State Championship. Five of my students who took lessons only with me played college tennis. Considering they started playing only freshmen year..is quite an achievement.I also trained 3 girls from Cinnaminson HS who played nr 1 spot in the team and won BCSL or came second. Before getting injured (4 years ago) I was ranked no 1 player in Middle States for 45 years and was playing tournaments with intention to go to Nationals,but my knee injury it stopped me.I am on my way of playing tournaments again and getting in better shape.
How did you get started doing this type of work?
I had played tennis all my life(beside soccer)and as a adolescent I was asked to teach younger kids or even adults..at that time I was hitting the ball mostly flat and my shots were very sound.