My name is Rory and this is my story.
Who am I?
September 3rd, 2004, Mandurah, Western Australia. Yes, this is when I was born. I had big blue eyes and bright blonde hair and, fun fact, this was the same year that Yeah! by Usher was released so I was already off to a good start.
Fast forward two years my blonde hair has gone and my parents and I moved to England to the county, Kent, known as the Garden of England. From a young age, I quickly grew an obsession with sports, playing all sorts such as cricket, swimming, football, and many more.
Then one day a local tennis coach was running a small session for young kids at the park tennis courts and this changed everything.
(Mum and Dad you can blame him for all the money you’ve had to spend on my tennis)
Ever since I picked up that tennis racket I grew a huge passion and quickly began to realize that I was actually pretty good. I started getting coaching lessons and around the age of 7 I competed in my first tennis tournament.
Now I need to add that at this age you play with sponge balls on a miniature tennis court so it’s not quite Wimbledon level yet.
Fast forward a few years to 2018 after many tantrums thrown and tears shed from losing various different matches, I get picked to represent Kent in the 14 and under County Cup at age 13. Now I’ll just give a brief explanation of how County Cup works:
In England, there are around 40 counties. These 40 counties must pick 4-6 players each to represent them in the County Cup.
The 40 counties are then split into 8 groups of 5 teams across the country in a qualifying stage which is held over 2 days and the winner from each qualifying stage will go through to the County Finals which is held at the Nottingham Tennis Centre and spans over 3 days.
In 2018 Kent managed to finish 2nd overall in the country losing in a tight final to Hertfordshire.
As much as this was a huge heartbreak to finish 2nd, it was an amazing achievement for Kent and the best experience I’d had with tennis so far. This was a huge step for my tennis and it was an incredible feeling to represent Kent against the best players in the country.
Fast forward another few years to 2022 and I am now back living in Perth, Western Australia, where I’ve represented WA against the other 5 states in Australia in Pizzey Cup where WA won for the first time in 25 years.
Why am I telling you all this?
Through tennis, I have gained many priceless experiences such as competing across Europe and even being trained by the best coaches in the world at the Sanchez Casal Academy in Barcelona, Spain where the pro tennis players: Andy Murray and Grigor Dimitrov trained.
It has also given me a wide range of knowledge in tennis, which I believe many people around the world can benefit from.
That is why I have created Tennis Bulldog to share my knowledge on all things tennis related so you too can fall in love with the sport.
Final Words
I appreciate you spending the time to read my blog and I hope you can benefit from it.
I hope I can create a community where people feel comfortable and learn from what I have to say.
Many thanks,
Rory, Founder of Tennis Bulldog
