Winning a 4.5 Tournament Over the Age of 50

Could I actually win a 4.5 tournament over age 50. Yes but that is only part of the story. After 20 years away from competitive tennis in Northern California, I returned to play tournaments with a goal. To win a NTRP 4.5 tournament over the age of 50. Was that possible? Yes, but that gets ahead of the story. This story is not just about the outcome, it is about how I adapted my training, my equipment, and especially, my technical and tactical and mental play to the circumstance. It is also a stroll down memory lane that recounts how I first fell in love with tennis, where all that led, and what motivated me to come back to the battlefield in the year 2010. Background When I first started playing tennis, 43 years ago, I had a Bancroft wooden racquet that cost 25 cents at the Salvation Army store. (Dad had three jobs and 8 kids, no mom.) The strings were made of piano wire. The metal strings were rusty and stunk of used engine oil. (Dad's idea to keep the strings from rusting.) I had to keep it in a wood press or it would warp. I used...