Tennis aficionados were treated to a star sighting at theLake Club when Tom Gullikson brought his “Gully Camp” to Reynolds Lake Oconee, a three-day clinic run by the former world-class player, Davis Cup Captain and Olympic coach.
Gullikson won 16 top-level doubles titles in his playing career, 10 with his identical twin brother Tim, who died of a brain tumor in 1996. He has remained closely tied to the game since retiring in 1987, following 30 years on tour, serving as one of the original coaches of the United States Tennis Association Player Development Program. He worked with Todd Martin, Andre Agassi, Jennifer Capriati and Andy Roddick, among others, and served as Director of Coaching from 1997-2001.
“Tom Gullikson has always been one of the most personable people in tennis,” said Reynolds Lake Oconee Director of Tennis Dave Neuhart. “He makes everyone feel extremely important when you are in the clinic with him. You go away feeling not only that you have been taught by a top touring pro, but you feel like you might be able to play with one of the top touring professionals.”
“The goal is to have fun,” said Gullikson. “Tennis is a great sport, so I am out here to help people improve their game, get a great workout and have fun. The tennis program at Reynolds Lake Oconee is very active and engaged. When Dave asked me to come, it was a no-brainer.”
An avid golfer as well as tennis player, Gullikson was thrilled to squeeze in a couple rounds of golf in between camp sessions.
“Reynolds is a virtual mecca of golf, tennis and boating,” said Gullikson. “My visit was a [Tom Gullikson at Reynolds Lake Oconee] little too short.”
Gullikson kicked off the camp at Reynolds with a two-hour session on doubles play. Gullikson, who won the 1984 U.S. Open Mixed Doubles with Manuela Maleeva, worked with campers on the fundamentals of the doubles game.
On the second day, Gullikson spent personal time with each camper, on and off the courts. A Pro Exhibition followed in the afternoon with Neuhart and Gullikson taking the court.
“The whole weekend was great, “said Reynolds Lake Oconee member and camper Peggy Ruzika. “Tom is very entertaining and a good motivator. The instruction was great – you picked up something on every court.”
“Gully Camp” wrapped up with round robin play on the third day, when campers put their top-notch instruction to the test and found that they indeed had a better tennis game.
