Our own local Tennis Pro, John Mclean III, was awarded the prestigious Mary Milam Lifetime Achievement Award in Tennis for 2014 by USTA/NC on January 24, 2015. He is the current President of DOCTA (Durham Orange Community Tennis Association). His invaluable contributions to the growth of local tennis includes his many years of service on the DOCTA Board, his many years as a Junior Team Tennis coach, and his countless hours of lessons with tennis players of all ages and skills. If you play tennis in the area then you have run across John Mclean and his family members participating and helping with tennis in Chapel Hill and in Durham.
John’s own journey to the game is an interesting one. It shows his persistence and his aptitude for the game. The following is an excerpt from the DOCTA article on John’s achievements:
“After a high school football injury to his right arm, John could no longer play contact sports. He had to learn to write and play left handed. During his senior year of high school, he took up tennis after losing his college football scholarship due to the injury. He started learning the sport on his local community tennis court in Maxton, NC. He practiced day in and day out to learn the game. When he entered college at NC Central University in Durham, he decided to try out for the tennis team. He served as team manager his freshmen year and by his Sophomore Year, he was one of the Top 6 players on the NCCU Men’s Tennis Team. He played with NCCU for three years before leaving the University.”
To learn more details about John’s contributions and about his journey to learn the game of tennis please read the DOCTA article on his achievements.
Very interesting blog entry about John! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for reading the article.