Photo by Kamp Fender.
Homewood Tennis Club founder Stephanie Ginsburg during a practice with her women’s tennis program. Ginsburg has plans to grow her club within the Homewood community as she takes on larger projects later this year.
Kim Luttrell had never held a tennis racket until 18 months ago. But the mother of three from Mountain Brook had known for a while that she wanted to.
A Facebook post promoting a women’s tennis course, taught by Stephanie Ginsburg, flashed on her screen one day in 2017. It prompted Luttrell to give the sport a try.
“I just fell in love with her and the program and tennis itself,” said Luttrell, racket in hand on a brisk, sunny spring afternoon. “It’s been a fun sport, and I’ve been able to meet a lot of different women in the community.”
Luttrell is not alone in her newfound enthusiasm. Close to 50 women train under Ginsburg, a longtime local tennis instructor who recently founded the Homewood Tennis Club.
Ginsburg coaches juniors and men, but the majority of her pupils are women. Many of them are either completely new to the sport or haven’t stepped on a court in years.
“If I took a poll on how many I started from scratch, like they had never played before, probably at least 75 to 80 percent had never picked up a racket,” she said.
Ginsburg, a former tennis player at Birmingham-Southern College, hosts clinics almost every day of the week. She usually devotes half of each one to teaching the basics, such as how to grip and swing a racket properly, and the other half to coaching strategy.
Many of Ginsburg’s players end up competing — and doing well — in U.S. Tennis Association tournaments.
“I think it’s a lot of her coaching,” said Rebecca Sheffer, a golfer turned tennis player. “She teaches not just the techniques but how to play.”
Sheffer, a Homewood resident, traded in her golf clubs for a tennis racket because she struggled to find enough people to play golf with. That hasn’t been an issue in her new sport.
At a clinic in early March, she shared a court with Courtney Grill, Karen Allen and Ginsburg, who lobbed balls across the net to initiate a series of rallies. Sheffer, Grill and Allen all began working with Ginsburg in 2017.
“It’s exercise that is fun,” said Allen, a former runner. “With running, all I was doing was thinking about how much farther I had to go.”
Ginsburg teaches tennis year-round and lauds the sport’s many benefits. It provides an outlet for socializing, competing and challenging both body and mind.
“It’s such a good feeling when you start doing it, and it’s so addictive,” Ginsburg said. “Being out there and running around, it’s just awesome. I’m so lucky. I have an awesome job.”
Training with Ginsburg doesn’t require membership at a country club or fitness facility, as is often the case in adult tennis.
That’s one of the qualities that Luttrell likes most. She called Ginsburg a “blessing.”
“It’s such a great gift for Homewood to have a ladies coach that wants to reach out to the community and raise up some tennis players,” she said.
Ginsburg said the Homewood Tennis Club has a dynamic marked by positivity and inclusion. It’s reflective of the community it serves.
“Everyone is loyal, and it’s just kind of like a tennis friend group,” she said. “If someone new comes in, they’re just welcomed in with open arms.”
The Homewood Tennis Club will operate out of newly renovated West Homewood Park beginning in May. For more information, email Ginsburg at hwdtennisclub@gmail.com or visit hwdtennisclub.com.
