Playing John McEnroe

McEnroe was like a shark. If he smelled fear he was all over you.

What is it actually like to be on the other side of the net from John McEnroe? In 1981, I drew in the first round of the U.S. National Indoor Championships in Memphis . I had no delusions: He was better than me, which meant it was critical to think about the right game plan if I wanted to play the best possible match. 

And here’s the lesson, no matter what your playing level: Preparing for a match isn’t a matter of blindly thinking about how you’re going to hit 60 winners. Planning to win requires thoughtful analysis of how your game appropriately matches your opponent’s. 

Here’s what I thought about me versus McEnroe. In 1981 he was already on his way to becoming a legend.  But he was still human after all. Like all players, McEnroe had lost matches before and has his share of weaknesses. So my challenge was to hone in on finding those weaknesses and exploiting them as much as my particular style would permit. Maybe this realism comes from having grown up in Missouri , an austere place also known as…