In this episode, Will chats with former ATP doubles player, Eric Butorac.
Eric has 18 ATP doubles titles, reached a career-high doubles ranking of #17 in the world, and played Division III tennis. During the conversation, they discuss Eric’s Ted Talk where he shares his story about making it from D3 to the ATP tour.
You’ll learn a lot about the process of improving that Eric used and advice that you can implement into your own game. Eric also shares how he got started in tennis and when he realized he had to stick to doubles to “make it.”
After that, we chat about doubles strategy. Eric has some great tips for getting the most out of your doubles partner and shares his biggest strengths & weaknesses with us. At the end, we discuss what it will take for doubles to gain more popularity. Eric also shares his favorite books, plus a funny story about being on the ATP player’s council with Roger, Rafa, and Novak.
This is a really fun conversation with someone who understands every level of our sport. Enjoy!
Interview Notes from this Podcast
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- Follow Eric on Twitter
- Eric’s TedX Talk: Don’t Dream Big
- Eric worked with doubles coach, Louis Cayer, who had them hit 10 “pro balls” in a row
- Nadal’s practice strategy blog post
- Eric played tennis at Ball State before transferring to Division III, Gustavus Adolphus College
- Eric’s dad, Tim, coaches in Rochester Minnesota
- Eric’s college coach, Steve Wilkinson
- Peter Popovic was one of Eric’s first doubles partners on the tour
- Eric also played with Chris Drake, coach at Yale
- Other people mentioned
- Favorite Books
- Tennis book: Open by Andre Agassi*
- Fiction: On the Road by Jack Kerouac*
- Non-fiction: Boundless by Ben Greenfield*
- Favorite Tournaments