On Aug. 15, the Riviera Country Club announced it had selected a new director of tennis, Mary Pat Faley. She had replaced Pam Austin who was retiring after 12 years at the club.
“We are fortunate to have found Mary Pat!” said Jim Shumate, clubhouse manager of the Riviera Tennis Club. “She is going to enhance our tennis programs exponentially for men and women. We could not be more delighted to welcome our new team member.”
Faley, who worked as a tennis professional at Calabasas Tennis Center before coming to the Palisades, was the Southern California 2010 and 2011 USPTA Tennis Pro of the Year. She is a 25-year member of the U.S. Professional Tennis Association, one of the premiere speakers at the USPTA World Conference, a Tennis Channel celebrity and an elite member of the Babolat Advisory Team.
Shumate said she can be described in five words: “A spirit of boundless energy!”
The new director, who lives in Encino, played tennis at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, on a full scholarship and was sectionally and nationally ranked.
She has coached high school and college tennis, working with hundreds of players who have gone on to receive college scholarships and national rankings. Many of her students have become full-time tennis professionals at various clubs around the country. Faley is also the author of Winning in Tennis and Life (2009) and a series of videos (2011). She went on to develop a new program, “Mary Pat’s Force of Three,” which helps tennis professionals run tennis drills for groups of four to 10 players of any level. She is also is sought out on the professional tennis speaking circuit. On her blog, she speaks about how tennis and life are parallels and gives five tips:
1. Work hard, play hard. I love tennis and what’s better than teaching tennis?! Find something you adore, something that not only pays your bills, but gives you that inner sense of meaning. It’s never too late to reevaluate your career. There’s no rule that says that something you chose to do at 25 is the same thing you need to be doing at 50. If you desire a change of pace to make your life more meaningful, figure out how to do it, and make it a reality.
2. Be your best. No one can be you, so why not be the best version of yourself you could be? Take a few moments to think about what makes you you. When you come up with those special qualities, start practicing how to hone them and make them better.
3. Engage your passions. Schedule time into your day to make sure you’re doing something you are passionate about! The whole point of living your life is make it the best life you can—you have to enjoy every moment you are on this earth.
4. Balance. What happens when we’re unbalanced? We’re unhappy, stressed, our body is painful, our mind gets cloudy. But being balanced?! We become motivated, energized and enthusiastic! Find your balance. Whatever your balance looks like, invest in time to really tease out what specifically that means to you.
5. Find a mentor. If you’re in a funk, a mentor can help pull you out of it. I love being able to help and advise folks in their games of tennis.
Visit: marypatfaley.com or therivieracountryclub.com.
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