Player Profile: Scott Bondurant

Scott Bondurant

Age: 49
Residence: Chicago, Ill.
Family: Wife: Susan; Daughters: Brooke, 13; Cara, 11
Occupation: Asset Management
Hobbies: Tennis, Golf, Travel

Do you have an awareness of the fact that you’re playing guys that could be 30 years your junior?
I’d be lying to say that it isn’t fun to be able to compete with players that are a lot younger. It’s still fun to be out there playing in the open division. The other thing is platform is very conducive to continuing to be able to play, to compete at older ages simply because it’s a smaller court and it’s all doubles. If you can find a partner that can cover a large part of the court, you can hang in there.

Do you prepare differently mentally than you have in the past?
Not really. I would just say that I probably don’t get as nervous about matches as I used to. I just go out there and take them as they come.

Has your training regimen changed over the years?
My warm up runs used to be a lot longer than they are now. I’m more likely to get tired if I run very long.

How long do you see yourself competing in the open levels of competition?
It’s a really good question. As long as I can truly compete, and feel like, on any given day, that when I’m playing with a top-notch partner that we can beat anybody.

How long have you been playing platform tennis?
I started playing basically 20 years ago and love the sport.

What about the sport keeps your interest?
The game is just a ton of fun. I guess three things, first and foremost it’s wonderful to be able to get outside in the winter athletically. Two, it’s hugely social. It’s a great group of people who play the game. It’s a tight knit community. Three, the fact that I can still compete at a high level keeps my interest as well.

What other athletic activities do you pursue?
I played very competitive junior tennis and college tennis and professionally for a period of time. It was a fairly natural transition to take on platform tennis. When I was very young, I lived in the Scarsdale, New York area, and my parents played. My mom’s sister Lucy McAvoy is a platform tennis hall of famer, and my cousin Tim has been one of the top players in the Philadelphia area for 25 years.[Note: Scott's mother, Helen Barnes, was a very accomplished tennis player. See The Barnes Sisters]

Does your family share your passion for the sport?
My wife plays, and plays Series 2 in the Chicago women’s leagues. Both kids also play a little bit.

Do you play as a family and give each other pointers?
The kids are starting to get old enough where we can begin to have a little competition, but they have been too young to play at any serious level yet. Because my wife plays, she’s been very supportive.

Do you have any role models or players who have inspired you during your playing career?
Rich Mayer stands out, along with Steve Baird, as giants of the game to me. They were the best team by far when I first started playing

Do you have any tips or advice for those just starting out in the sport?
The only comment that I would have would be that you can continue to improve for a much longer period of time than you might think. Your first 10 years of the game – if you’re 25, will continue to improve, and you’ll stay at a pretty high level for a period of time. The other thing is hey, in the end it’s all about having fun and nobody takes paddle too seriously.

Where do you find yourself learning new techniques or styles to add to your game?
I’m a big beneficiary of all the top-notch players in the Chicago area. The more you play with people with different styles and shots, that will just help your game. Getting out there and playing with real strong players is far and away the most important thing.

Any final thoughts on the sport?
I’d say that I would expect the kind of generation of players that are in their late 30s early 40s to continue to be competitive for quite a while. It’s nice that I am it’s one of things that I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more guys that end up playing well into their 40s. I’ll play in the 50s and over this year, but still think that my partner Mark Johnson and I will be competitive in the open.

Source: Platform Tennis Magazine, Vol. 10, Issue 3, January, 2009