I’d not been on court much since lessons when I was 14. But then, 25 years later, I found myself living next to a park with tennis courts and my husband decided that he wanted to learn how to play too. We met Scott while waiting for a court and had a lovely chat, not knowing he was coaching. Then I saw his backhand and wanted it 🙂  

His encouragement has been hugely helpful as I have a tendency to get angry at myself and feel discouraged when I repeat the same mistakes, but he’s helping me be more gentle with myself and to celebrate small steps forward – playing is so much more enjoyable as a result! I also now have a better understanding of the mechanics of the game and an awareness of my own body on the court that I didn’t have before that’s led me to time my shots better and learn how to hit topspin. One of the things I’ve found super useful is the imagery Scott uses to help guide my movement. He keeps suggesting images until one of them makes sense to me in that moment, and then sometimes (a little bit of) magic happens as my body unconsciously just does what my mind is imagining.

What I perhaps enjoy most – and what I think makes Scott a fantastic teacher – is that he quickly tuned in to my specific tendencies, both psychological and physical in terms of how I move, my habits, my expectations of self with a new shot, etc. And that has made working with him really productive and enjoyable. He ‘gets’ it quick, and I always leave lessons feeling energised and as though I’ve advanced in some way. My husband and I also have joint lessons with him that are super fun and he’s able to do justice to both of our (quite different) needs somehow, even though I would find it very difficult if I were in his shoes!

Asha – returning after long break

My wife had some lessons a couple of years ago and highly recommended Scott, due to be being very calm, fun, and adapting his coaching style to meet her individual learning style.

I started lessons as a novice with no idea of how to hit a forehand or backhand, and not very confident in my hand-eye coordination having been told many times it’s not that good. I had probably only held a tennis racket about 20 times in my life until this summer, and had friends give me some pointers but I was frustrated with my lack of progress and not being able to have a rally. Despite their polite smiles and words of encouragement I think my friends were too.

I was expecting the lessons to be focused on the physical technique which they are, however what surprised me is the mental aspect to shots that Scott covers and the different strategies available until we find one that works for me.

Scott is very quick to observe when I’m too tense in my shots, and I’ve really enjoyed the feeling of becoming relaxed with Scott’s coaching as I’ve learnt to play. Feeling relaxed when playing tennis isn’t something I had thought of before starting but it makes a massive difference to the enjoyment I feel when playing.

An unexpected but great surprise to me is as a consequence of the tennis lessons I’ve had with Scott is that I’ve enhanced my overall body awareness. I’ve since been able to transfer the same feeling in to my sea swimming and as a result that has become much more enjoyable, and during a work presentation I noticed I was tensing up much like I can do in a tennis shot. I was able to identify it and relax thanks to Scott’s tennis coaching – I had to smile at that point at the benefits of learning to play tennis with a great coach in my view.

I’ve noticed my friends no longer joke about my lack of hand eye coordination, so I confessed to having lessons after my rapid progress. Probably the biggest bit of satisfaction I now have is being able to coordinate my body to hit a serve fairly consistently over the net, which felt nearly impossible to me at the start. I will always admire Scott’s patience and inventive approaches to help me find a way to coordinate my body and serve.

I’ve really enjoyed my lessons with Scott and the whole new World it’s opened up to me this summer since lockdown ended and the immense fun I have had playing with friends. Tennis is putting a big smile on my face everyday thanks to Scott, even when my shot doesn’t go to plan I immediately have Scott’s coaching in my head to fallback on. I can’t say thank you enough!
Glen

When I had my first lesson with Scott what really surprised me is that he knew what kind of thoughts I had when I was hitting the ball (which is negative of course -as you want every single shot to be perfect!). He asked me to try not to think about the way I’m hitting but relax and hit it as I can no matter if it’s bad shot or good! And it’s true, once you hit it without overthinking you actually start to enjoy the game of tennis. Other thing that I’ve never thought before while playing tennis is BREATHING. Because tennis is quite dynamic game we do forget about our breathing and once you notice it you realise you hold it most of the game. If you try to breath out on every shot you hit you can see how much more powerful and controlled they are! There are plenty of other things he is monitoring during your lesson-like filming for example -to show you how you look when hitting and what areas to work on (which I find very helpful)! Very interesting and complex lessons. Strongly recommended!

Anna 27, Hove

Before working with Scott I had very little match experience and struggled with the mindset of playing. I loved the game but my technique was poor and I found it frustrating. I tried watching videos and playing tennis with friends but it didn’t really seem to help. We had a conversation and I loved the personal approach he had. He made it feel a lot more realistic for me to improve and understood the mental frustrations I was having.

Since working with Scott my game has improved and my mental attitude to the game is much better. I enjoy playing tennis a lot more and have since joined a league thanks to the confidence Scott has given me. I think my mental game has improved the most which has elevated me as a player. It has helped me to improve mentally off court as tennis is a great part of my life again.

Scott is a really personable, understanding and excellent coach. He really takes time to get to know you as a person which helps in improving the game. Alongside of tennis he has such a knowledge and awareness of mental improvement techniques and other skills which have impacted more than just my game. I would recommend Scott to anyone who is looking to improve their game at any level.

– Roddy

So when relating to the lessons we had on serves, volleys, smashes and drop shots, it went really well. Scott has a very clean and methodical way of teaching. For example the serve was broken into various clean points where I learned every little step of hitting a good serve. I was also filmed and shown what I was doing. It worked really well cause nowadays I definitely have a better serve. Yes, my serve has improved, my drop shot has improved, my smash has improved and my volleys have improved. I’m very happy with the results! If you are thinking about having a lesson with Scott I say go for it bro! Scott is an amazing coach, don’t think twice, you will get improvements.

• David – competitive tournament player

I had never really played tennis before we started lessons with Scott, save for a few knockabout sessions with my wife and the kids. In fact it was during one of these that we came across Scott, who was on one of the courts nearby, and we instantly hit it off as people. Scott is friendly and open and once we realised that he was a coach, we looked at each other and knew that he was the man we wanted to ask to give us some lessons. Safe to say our initial instinct was spot on – working with Scott has been an absolute joy. Not only are the lessons super helpful in terms of timing and technique, but they’re also a lot of fun. We connect well (which is easy with Scott) and plenty of time we’re laughing and chatting about life alongside our tennis.

One of the things I’m most enjoying with Scott is the clarity he brings to his instruction. He explains very accessibly what he wants us to work on and is very able to adapt to different levels, styles and needs. This also includes using innovative ways of making particular movements or bits of positioning intelligible even for the novice like me. On top of that is the sheer positivity. I’m convinced that encouragement is a better teaching tool that admonishment and Scott is incredibly and very genuinely encouraging.

Undoubtedly I’d recommend Scott to friends. I think his coaching is ace and he’s lovely to hang out with too.

Neil Howard

‘I love Scott’s lessons, I’ve been playing three years and we started over recently on technique – and I learned so much! Most of all I enjoy his holistic approach to teaching, it’s not just about how to hit the ball, but understanding the process of learning and external factors, in a short time we’ve looked at diet, exercise, meditation, breathing, equipment, stretching, book/video recommendations, confidence building, as well as technique. I’m confident my tennis will continue to improve now and would recommend anyone to try a lesson with Scott.’

-Gordy, 39, Strong Intermediate

Scott helped me with different aspects of my game. Initially we worked on the technical part of my game. Also the mental side of the game . At Times after heavy losses I lost my enjoyment of the game and Scott is great at making you feel positive about your game.

He shared videos of me from how to play a good backhand , good doubles play and tactics in the game. 

I was looking for a coach that gave me technical knowledge about my game . Too many coaches just hit with you and don’t tell you where your game is going wrong . Scott’s likeable characters and in-depth knowledge of the game firstly puts you at ease and corrects technical flaws in the game.

Definitely the biggest thing for me is that he has improved technical parts of my game. We started with finishing short balls and he broke it down so well for me I can now hit them. I’ve pushed myself to play league singles tennis and it’s the confidence he has given me about my game that has inspired me . Also the mental side and I don’t realise how important this was and the importance of positive thinking.

I would say and I have said this to numerous people. I think Scott has 5 key positives over other coaches –

1. Likeable character very bubbly
2. Good with mental side 
3. Breaks down a shot like a backhand so it’s easier to replicate 
4. Gives you things to work on homework 
5. Summarises lesson to say 3 key areas to take away which is great

-Geoff – Runs local singles league – Hove

I wanted to get coaching to work on my all round game but particularly on how to hit a good one handed backhand as well as the mental approach to the game as I felt like I wasn’t always thinking clearly when playing and would end up rushing shots.

Scott’s coaching style worked really well for me, he incorporated elements of mindfulness and used easy to grasp mental techniques which allowed me to remain calm, focus and play with rhythm. I found this so beneficial.

Scott’s a really great guy and I always really look forward to our sessions. My mindset and technique has improved massively in a short space of time. I can’t quite match his awesome one-handed backhand yet but I’m getting there.

I would, and have recommended Scott to my tennis playing friends. Scott has sent me tennis videos to encourage me and to learn from, you can tell he really wants to see you improve and enjoy playing tennis.

• Patrick