Megan Bradley And Todd Widom Respond To Your Questions

March 10, 2003

Todd Widom Responds

Tomas Trotti
Miami, FL
Todd, you should remember who I am, from when you trained at Pierres. I wanted to ask you how many hours a day you practice with the team and how many days a week. Good luck against your next opponent.

Hey Tommy, it’s great to hear from you. We usually train for about 3 hours per day depending on whether we have a match coming up. Obviously, we will train fewer hours the day before our matches. Here’s a tentative schedule of our workouts:

MWF 2:30 pm – 5:30 pm

TH 8:00 am – 10:00 am (tennis), 10:00 am – 11:00 am (weightlifting), Afternoon practice is optional. If you want a private lesson with the head coach (Bryan Getz) or the assistant coach (Ari Widlansy)

Sat. 10:00 am – 12:00 pm (tennis)

Take care; hope to see you at some of the matches!

Derrick Rockman
Miami, FL
I’m an aspiring tennis player who is having trouble juggling tennis and women. I am very interested in a girl that plays in my club but I am worried that it might interfere with my tennis because I see her everyday. Seeing that you are such a big time athlete at UM and you probably have many women coming up to you all the time, how do you propose I deal with my dilemma? Thank you Todd for taking the time to read my question and I can’t wait to come out and see you play this weekend!!

I think it’s great that you are interested in a girl at your club. You probably didn’t know that I am dating a girl on the tennis team here at UM. If you like her a lot you should go for it…Good Luck!

John Smith
Coral Gables, FL
Do you like your racket? (Or are you forced by your sponsor to play with it.)
How to you hit your forehand so hard without it going out or going in the net? What is the secret to the mechanics and technique on that shot?

I love my racket! I’ve been playing with the Wilson 5.0 Hyper Carbon Stretch for about four years now. I won’t use a racket if I do not feel it is best for me. I can’t really tell you any secrets about my forehand. If I did it wouldn’t be a secret. Here’s what I think. If I’m on the baseline or inside the baseline and the ball is at my waist or higher I’m going to end the point on that ball or the next ball. My opponents need to know that I’m going to pound that shot. It’s all racket-head speed through the ball. I just try to turn and unleash my racket through the ball. That’s all I think about…thanks for your e-mail!

Megan Bradley Responds

Eric Koch
Miami, FL
What are your goals for the team this season? What are the goals you have set for yourself?

My goals for the team this season are to play to the potential that we have and play to the level that represents the hard work and dedication we have put in this season. The most important goal I have for the team is for all of us to come together as a team so the other goals can be accomplished.The goals I have set for myself are to work hard, stay healthy, and to do well at the NCAA’s.

Marc
Deerfield Beach, FL
What made you decide to go to college while other juniors were going on the pro circuit? Do you like the deuce or the ad court when playing dubs with Melissa?

I went to college because I felt like I still had a lot of tennis and personal developing to do before I could have a professional tennis lifestyle and be as successful as I would like to be someday.When I am playing doubles with Melissa, I like playing the ad court because I am more confident with my backhand return.

Thomas Boykin
Atlanta, GA
Congrats on a great season last year! Why did you decide to leave UCLA and transfer to Miami? You seem to have a world of potential; do you plan to play pro tennis some day?

Thanks a lot for your support! I left UCLA because I thought UM and the coaching staff would be able to develop my game to the level I see myself playing at.Yes, I do plan on playing pro tennis in the future.

Michael Uribe
Miami, FL
What two qualities do you think will follow you through life?

Hi Michael! Two qualities I think will follow me after tennis are discipline and perseverance. Both of these qualities I learned through tennis, but they will be useful in life.

Mike
Panama City, FL
I do not know a whole lot about the tennis team, are you guys ranked?

Yes, we are ranked. At the moment we are 21 but we have had some big wins and have been ranked as high as 13. We have some important matches coming up that can hopefully help our ranking as well.

Samantha Logue
Melbourne, FL
I am a thirteen-year-old junior tennis player who wants to be a CANE in college. How can I get noticed by Hurricane recruiters? Who coached you as a junior?

My advice would be to write a letter to the coaches when it gets closer to recruiting time. That way they will know you are interested and look for you at tournaments to watch you play. I had a lot of different coaches as a junior, I could never find just one to stick with.