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Mel S.

Brooklyn, New York (5 locations)
1023 Completed Lessons
  • USPTA Certified
Lessons Starting at $121/hr
Schedule First Lesson

About Me

Hi, my name is Mel. I like to work with adults who are looking to improve their skill level as well as those who are looking to have fun and play recreational tennis with friends and family. I especially look forward to working with adults that would like to play in USTA leagues and competitive tournaments. I have been a recreational coach and USPTA member since 2004. I specialize in teaching the forehand and backhand, but lately I have found myself enjoying teaching the serve because of the hours spent improving my own serve. I am also founder and executive director of the Brooklyn Junior Tennis Clinic, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides year-round tennis lessons to youth between the ages of 6-18 within Clinton-Hill Fort Greene community of Brooklyn.

Teaching Style

Teaching Locations

Travel Radius
Court marker
Court Location
Decatur Park
272 Mac Donough Street
Brooklyn, New York 11233
South Oxford Park
404 Cumberland St.
Brooklyn, New York 11238
Cunningham Park (Indoors Winter)
19600 Union Tpke
Fresh Meadows, New York 11366
Cunningham Tennis Indoor
19600 Union Tpke
Fresh Meadows, New York 11366
Queens College Tennis Center
150 35 Reeves Avenue
Flushing, New York 11570

Photos

Latest Reviews

99%
Overall Rating
(190 Ratings)
Teaching Skill
99%
Communication
99%
Reliability
100%
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Mingrui Zhang
Verified Student

Mel was punctual, knowledgeable and very encouraging, also focus on details! He taught us basics to start tennis as a new comer and also shared good materials . Will choose again!

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Molly Jensen
Verified Student

My teenage son, an advanced beginner, has been taking lessons with Mel for about 4 months now. Mel is a fantastic coach! My son, who was lacking in confidence and motivation, now looks forward to every lesson! Mel is punctual, kind, a good communicator, and a very knowledgeable tennis coach. And he keeps it fun! I highly recommend Mel!

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Molly Jensen
Verified Student

My teenage son has had 2 sessions with Mel so far—both have been positive and productive! My son is a beginner, and not very confident in his athletic ability, but with Mel’s kind and supportive teaching style, my son’s confidence is growing. We look forward to more sessions with Mel—we’re excited to see my son’s tennis skills continue to improve!

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Annie Bernstein
Verified Student

Mel was a fantastic teacher. I’m a lefty player and although he’s a righty, he made sure to send links of lefty players doing whatever he covered in the lesson. I’ve been playing casually for years and finally feel ready to play in a league. Overall, Mel is incredibly patient and consistent. Thank you Mel!

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Anita Xu
Verified Student

Mel is a fantastic coach and great to work with - highly recommend to anyone and everyone!!

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Annie
Verified Student

Mel was a knowledgeable, kind, and patient teacher. I am an advanced beginner and Mel knew just how much new technique to share with me each lesson, which allowed me to advance quickly without feeling overwhelmed. He is a great teacher and a really nice person!

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Catie Prendergast
Verified Student

Excellent coaching! Highly recommend.

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Sarah Mills
Verified Student

Great start!! My daughter had her first lesson with Mel today. He was prompt, professional, and covered a lot of instruction in a very productive and positive way. She’s looking forward to building her skills at their next lesson.

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Alyson Feltes
Verified Student

Today I learned to enjoy the feel of the game, enjoy the feel of the ball. I've never had a coach make me feel psychologically and emotionally connected to the ball, my body, and the game. I feel like I made a LEAP in progress today.

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Andrei Sirabionian
Verified Student

Amazing teacher. Great lessons!!

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Elena Bergeron
Verified Student

Mel is an awesome coach. He's patient and explains things in an easy-to-apply manner. His lessons are always organized well and tailored to specific areas of focus. He's also very prompt and has an encyclopedic knowledge of courts around the city. I'd highly recommend Mel!

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Ivana Ilic
Verified Student

It was an absolute pleasure to learn tennis from Coach Mel. He is patient, kind, and very helpful with his pointers. The lessons were fantastic and I would recommend him to anyone who wants to improve their tennis while also having lots of fun. He is amazing!

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Rusudan bochorishvili
Verified Student

Excellent coach!

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Christina Megill
Verified Student

Mel is very patient and thorough. He is approachable and supportive of working with you whatever your skill level. I highly recommend him.

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Malky
Verified Student

I had a wonderful experience with Mel. He was patient, professional and friendly. After only 6 lessons, I feel comfortable on the court. I hope to take some advanced lessons with him in the future.

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Glen Gregorio
Verified Student

Brooklyn loves Mel Swanson tennis! He's been so helpful for my individual game and is well respected in the community for both adult and youth tennis!

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Jonathan
Verified Student

Worked with Mel for a total 6 hours to help me pick up basic tennis. We worked on forehand, backhand, serve and volley. Mel is patient coach. Recommended

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Rina Othman
Verified Student

Mel is an excellent coach. He is patient and works with my weaknesses to turn it into my strength. I am very inspired by him and would recommend him to anyone as the best teacher I have encountered. Thank you Mel!!

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Carina Lukas
Verified Student

I worked with Mel for 6 months and he was very punctual, professional and responsive. We would set up the lesson a week or so in advance and he would confirm with me the day before the lesson. Each lesson started with a honing in on and improving a new skill and then finished with serving and rallying. I was a beginner who had never had lessons before and Mel helped me feel comfortable on the court, in tune with what I need to continue to work on and taught me about how the game works.

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Chris Gabb
Verified Student

Mel is excellent and a true gentleman. My wife and I purchased lessons from Mel during the summer / fall of 2015. We did not have any tennis experience prior to our lessons. He was able to provide us with basic tennis fundamentals that allowed my wife and I to hold matches on our own. More advanced lessons were provided as we progressed and improved upon our skill level. We would absolutely consider purchasing additional lessons for the 2016 season. Mel is always on time, professional, and truly cares about his clients. I would be hard pressed to find a better instructor for beginner/moderate tennis players such as me and my wife. Thanks Mel.

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Adam Alshin
Verified Student

Amazing! Mel was great with my 6 and 8 year old girls. He made it fun and they improved a ton!

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Leon Volchyok
Verified Student

Mel is fantastic! He is prompt, patient and he taught me more in my first lesson than friends of mine have learned with other instructors in a month.

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Bryan Mahoney
Verified Student

Mel was exactly what I was looking for in a coach, especially after such a long layoff. We hit a ton of balls, and he picked up on the area of my game that needed the most work after a few short minutes. I'm already looking forward to our next seesion.

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Rina Othman
Verified Student

We loved our first lesson! Mel is very professional, thorough and great with adults and kids alike! We are looking forward to our next lesson!

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Chris Gabb
Verified Student

Mel is simply the best! My wife and I love our tennis lessons!

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Kym Norman
Verified Student

It's been a long time since I picked up a tennis racket. Mel started with the basics. He was patient and explained every position/form. I enjoyed my lesson. Great instructor. Highly recommended.

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Lee Winikor
Verified Student

Mel was a great tennis instructor. We learned a lot very quickly with Mel, and he also provided us with great resources for in-between lessons to help reinforce and expand upon what we did during the lesson. I would highly recommend Mel.

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Tim Dumbleton
Verified Student

I have had 2 lessons with Mel so far. After both of them I left feeling like I had learned a lot. Mel is an excellent communicator - he has taught for a lot of years and he is very good at explaining things a number of ways until he finds the one that makes the lesson click. He finds a way that makes the lesson intuitive and also fun. I am very happy with him and feel like he has a lot more to teach me. Mel is organized and is easy to schedule lessons with.

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Joelle
Verified Student

Mel is not only a great tennis instructor but a great person that I am so happy to have been introduced to through MyTennisLessons. He was always punctual and in fact tended to be there early for our lessons which I appreciated. He was very patient with me while I was getting through my beginning jitters. He sent me helpful tools such as Youtube videos to help further reinforce his instructions and to get down to the basics. I was very pleased with him overall and would recommend him to anyone interested in improving their game, no matter what level of tennis you are at.

FAQ's

Can I bring more than one person?

Yes! I often work with groups of families or friends with 2-4 people.

Are there any other fees?

Nope! All fees are already included in the price. (tennis court fees, taxes, etc)

Can you travel to me?

Yes, I can travel up to 10 miles to a tennis court in your area.

Do you offer a trial lesson?

There is a 6 hour minimum commitment, but if you are not happy after the first lesson, I offer a 100% money back guarantee.

Can we speak before the lesson?

I will contact you shortly after signup. You will NOT be charged until we have spoken about your schedule and other important details.

MTL Satisfaction Guarantee

If you are not satisfied after the first lesson, we will set you up with another coach or refund your remaining lesson credits.

Easily get set up by phone: 512-766-6225 (8am - 7pm CST)
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