Annie Timm is a Junior member of the women’s tennis team. This week she hopes to hit her 100th win. I sat down with Timm and talked about what’s made her successful.
Q: What motivated or inspired you to pursue a career in tennis? Was it a personal goal or experience, or did someone encourage you to pursue tennis?
A: “When I started playing at three years old I just wanted to do it for myself because it was fun. Over the years I just kept winning matches and tournaments, which led me to push myself harder to become better and continue playing at the collegiate level.”
Q: Given your 18 years playing tennis, what do you feel makes a successful and great tennis player?
A: “Hard work for sure. If you push yourself to constantly improve your game and never settle for less, you’ll eventually start coming out on top.”
Q: Tell about any training you had that helped improve your tennis play. What kinds of things did you do everyday that helped you keep your focus and energy into being a leading tennis player?
A: “During the off season, especially during the summer, I do weekly private lessons with a coach from my hometown. I work on something different about my game every time– even things that may seem perfect need some minor improvements to make things such as my serve better. I try to implement the things I learned in every practice at Augustana.”
Q: Who were your role models and inspirations in tennis?
A: “My role models would be last years tennis captains, Maddie Lombardi and Caitlyn Schaffer. They taught me how to be a better leader on and off the court, and I’m forever grateful for the things they taught and did for not only myself, but our whole team.”
Q: What has been your toughest competition and why?
A: “My toughest competition has been myself actually. When I get inside my own head, it really can bring me down during matches. When I do overcome that though, I realize that nobody can stop me on court, and there’s never an “impossible” opponent to beat. Everyone is beatable, but that doesn’t mean you’ll win every time.”
Q: What was one of your best moments in competitive tennis?
A: “One of the best moments has to be winning conference as a team last year. The feeling is indescribable, just absolutely amazing. The feeling we all had that our hard work paid off can’t be beat.”
Q: How competitive is tennis? Does the public realize how much goes into being a good tennis player?
A: “Tennis is very competitive. Way more than people think, there’s a lot that goes into being a successful tennis player. I feel as if people don’t realize how many hours we put in, not just on the court, but in the weight room, while making decisions about what to put into our bodies, as well as the mental preparation.”
Q: When you lose a match, how do you deal with it so that you continue on?
A: “I take every loss as a lesson. I learn from my mistakes, and use them to further improve my game for the next match. A loss is just a loss and doesn’t mean the end of the world in the long run.”
Q: I know this week is important and you are pursuing your 100th win, which may happen by the time this interview is published. What’s the key for you to achieving that 100th win? How are you going to do that?
A: “I feel that if I just play my game, and not get so worked up about that 100th win, then I’ll succeed in doing so.”
Q: In addition to playing tennis, what academic field are your hoping to pursue, and why? Did you ever hope to be anything else like a doctor, or a lawyer or was being a part of tennis always in your blood?
A: “I am currently a Business-Finance major, and hope to one day be a collegiate level tennis coach. I also hope to implement some sort of business aspect into that field as well. I don’t think I was always meant to be involved in tennis, but I really cannot imagine my life without it.”
Q: What advice would you give anyone who also aspires to a career in tennis?
A: “Just keep going. There is always room to improve and become better. If you put in the preparation, time and effort, you’ll be set.”