Tennis-Bargains 2012 Award Categories
#1 DC Pro Shop of the Year:
Tennis Topia (Rockville, MD)
Great selection, expert advice from pro staff led by Terrell with our Tennis Bargains endorsed specials almost every week with their email newsletter.
Our favorite Tennis Bargain on-going deal is their weekday $25 off $50 Groupon special.
Owned and run by Darrell Haines (DC's Tennis Drilling and Golf) - they have been a staple of Washington Tennis for well over 20 years.
Owned and run by Darrell Haines (DC's Tennis Drilling and Golf) - they have been a staple of Washington Tennis for well over 20 years.
#1 DC Academy or Club of the Year
Four Seasons Tennis Club (Merrifield, VA)
Great junior program, lots of lessons, USTA leagues and programs for adults at great rates for winter indoor courts. Good quality court surfaces which are relatively new and not too fast. Outdoor facilities includes har tru and hard courts outdoors. Central location off I-495 with very senior staff run by Bob Pass.
- Honorable Mentions:
- Rock Creek Park Tennis Center (Rock Creek, DC) - Great public outdoor hard courts created for DC's ATP 500 Citi Open is held here annually, with brand new practice courts this year; The tennis complex also has bubble for 4 indoor courts in the winter
- TCCP (College Park, MD) | TennisPlex (Germantown, MD) - *brand new facilities*
#1 Tennis Racket Stringer in Washington DC Area
Scott Nilsen from Tennis Topia (Rockville, MD)
We've tried many different stringers from clubs/shops all across in MD/DC/VA. This place is without a doubt the most consistent and dependable quality string jobs in the DC Metro area with an excellent turn around time (same day). They were also our official stringers for all the 2013 Tennis Racket Play-Testing
World #1: Novak Djokovic's racket
DC's Tennis Coach and Trainer of the Year
Yann Auzoux and Dan Riser - FifthSet.com- Washington Post's Coach of the Year (2008, 2010)
- Excellent YouTube videos - footwork technique
- Entire Tennis Library of Online Courses available
- Dan Riser (US Men's Fitness) "Prepping Like a Pro" - training course provides expert professional advice for keeping tennis athletes strong, fit and ready for competition
2012 Tennis Racket of the Year
Head Speed (18x20)World #1: Novak Djokovic's racket
Excellent all-around racket at 100 sq. inches and for players looking for a 11oz+ racket that is still manuverable and allows the player to hit from many different positions and even when late (as you see Djokvic do from all sorts of contorted stances).
Honorable Mention for most innovative 2013 racket:
Narrowly beats out Babolat Tonic+ Gut - the new BT7 coating adds some durability to Natural Gut, but we felt it did not seem to keep the elastic qualities of fresh gut strings as long as Wilson.
However, Babolat VS Gut was a bit more durable before fraying. For those who want the best, Wilson Gut is simply unbeatable when it comes to playability and spin when you add it to the Main strings. That way you can get two uses out of a single bag (~$42)
Great all around string, softer poly and solid durability for string breakers; recommended string of choice for the 2013 Wilson's Steam 99S.
Affordable prices from the top polyester string brand in the ATP/WTA tour.
We would also recommend you try Luxilon Ace 18 and ALU Power 16 to get a good comparison with spin and power potential, respectively.
Award Criteria and Selection Process
Winners and Honorable Mentions were be selected based on:- Our fan reviews and feedback
- Tennis industry expert opinions
- Our own "mystery shopper" report cards
Congrats to all of this year's winners! We also want to say Thanks to all our fans, students and friends online for providing your valuable input to us.
