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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 19, 2005 Nate Schnugg celebrates after winning the Boys 16s title and earning a wild card into the junior U.S. Open. Schnugg shines at nationals Medford navtive wins USTA Boys 16s singles and doubles titles in Kalamazoo, Mich. By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune Having just won the U.S. Tennis Association’s Boys 16s singles and doubles crowns in Kalamazoo, Mich., Medford’s Nate Schnugg heads, as a wildcard, for the Junior U.S. Open in New York in early September. Seeded fifth, Schnugg Sunday took down third-seed Steve Forman of Del Mar, Calif., 4-6, 6-1, 6-2. Schnugg, 16, confessed to a case of the jitters on the first set. "That’s why I lost, but then I loosened up and I knew I could win," he said. In an article on the USTA Web site, Forman described how the game turned in the second set. Advertisement "I started out a little too sloppy, and he took advantage," said Forman. "I built myself a big hole and the momentum shifted, and he got a lot of confidence. In the first set, I kept him down, but once he got confidence, he was too good." With Dennis Lajola, Schnugg won the Boys 16s doubles on Saturday. "Kalamazoo is the most prestigious tourney in the nation for juniors," said Schnugg. "I grew up hearing about it. My brother Scott played it seven years ago, and it was my goal to win it. It was my third time there. I was really ready to play. I wasn’t messing around at all." Schnugg grew up in Medford and began playing tennis about when he learned to talk, said his father, local cardiologist Steve Schnugg. Nate Schnugg trained at Rogue Valley Swim and Tennis Club and a year ago, when he needed stronger competition to develop his game, left North Medford High to attend Roddick Moros International Tennis Academy in San Antonio, Texas. Frank Inn, Schnugg’s coach at Rogue Valley Swim and Tennis from ages 11 to 14, credited the boy’s powerful one-handed backhand and serve (clocked at 120 mph in Kalamazoo) with giving him an all-court game — and the makings for greatness. "Nate was a court rat all his life. He always loved being out there," said Inn. "He definitely has the makings of a world-class player — with the gifts of shot-making, especially with the one-handed backhand and serve." Schnugg works out on the academy court four hours a day with nine other boys, five of whom are rated in the top 100 in the world for juniors, he said, followed by an hour of running and pumping iron. Classes are home school and Internet-based. "I’ve had a disappointing year, but the last month or two have brought it up and everything started clicking for me," said Schnugg. Playing tennis in Africa for five weeks and encountering very different styles of players raised on clay courts helped his game a lot, he added. "A lot of it (improvement) is getting good players to hit with. That’s why I had to leave Medford," said Schnugg. "I’ve played tennis since I was 2. It’s the outstanding thing in my life that I’ve taken seriously. I’m glad I did. It’s paying off." Schnugg’s parents were not "court mothers" and didn’t push their son. "It’s been his deal and he’s dedicated his life to it," said his father, Steve. "It’s been nothing but tennis, tennis, tennis. He’s had great ambition, but to make it to the professional ranks, you have to have more than ambition � and he’s got it. There’s no way to say how far he will go, but he’s as good now as any 16-year old in the country." Nate’s brother Scott, formerly a noted tennis player on the Georgia Teach team, said the wins make Nate "one of the most recognized players in the country in up-and-coming tennis." The wins at USTA 16s are something that greats like Pete Sampras and Andy Roddick fell short of winning, Scott Schnugg added. Schnugg’s Medford pals, Darren Bruhns and Kyle Lamson, say they’re not surprised he took his dream tourney. "I didn’t expect anything less," said Lamson. "He’s always wanted to be as good as he can be. In elementary school, every day after school he’d get dropped off at the court and wouldn’t be home till 7." "He’s really focused," added Bruhns. "He puts a lot of hard work into what he does, and I knew he’d eventually do it. We played tennis just once. It wasn’t very good, not for me. We still joke about it." Schnugg has his sights set on attaining a national championship in college, likely at University of Georgia or Georgia Tech, then going professional — with the U.S. Open as the "big prize." Getting to the top 50 in the world, he said, can mean a $10 to $15 million annual income. What does it take to be a tennis great? "The main thing is to be smart, to know how to win, to see your opponent’s flaws and hide yours." John Darling is a free-lance writer living in Ashland. 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