Vic Braden Explained

Vic Braden
Fullname:Victor Kenneth Braden Jr.
Birth Date:2 August 1929
Death Place:Trabuco Canyon, California, US
Birth Place:Monroe, Michigan, US
Turnedpro:1952
Retired:1955
Coachyears:20
Tennishofyear:2017
Tennishofid:vic-braden

Victor Kenneth Braden Jr. (August 2, 1929 – October 6, 2014) was an American tennis player, instructor and television broadcaster for the sport. He earned a PhD in psychology and was married twice. He had 2 children, 1 grandchild and 3 step-children.[1] [2] [3]

Biography

Introduced to tennis at age 12, he became good enough to earn three Michigan state high school championships, a scholarship to Kalamazoo College, invites to play in River Forest, Illinois, and in Milwaukee. He told Sports Illustrated in a 1976 interview that he once hitchhiked to Detroit to watch Don Budge play Bobby Riggs, because he wanted to learn how Budge hit his backhand.

Braden graduated from Kalamazoo College,[4] where he was Captain of the Tennis Team, and won the MIAA Conference Singles Title. He married a model, Joan, upon graduation.[5] He was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by his alma mater in 2008.[6]

Vic Braden died of a heart attack on October 6, 2014, at the age of 85. He was married for many years to his 2nd wife, Melody.[7] [8]

Career

Braden became a tennis professional after graduating from Kalamazoo College in 1951.While serving as Assistant Basketball Coach at the University of Toledo. Harold Tenney hired him to become the Head Tennis Professional at the Toledo Tennis Club. Besides teaching, he joined the pro tour and played against Jimmy Evert (father of Chris Evert) and George Richey (father of Cliff and Nancy Richey).[9] He moved to California in 1956 and obtained a master's degree from California State University, Los Angeles[10] and an honorary PhD from Kalamazoo College.[11] Braden joined Jack Kramer's pro tour in 1959. In 1961, he and Kramer started the Jack Kramer Tennis Club in Palos Verdes, CA where Braden helped direct construction and sell memberships to the club and then served as the Head Tennis Professional. He started Tracy Austin in tennis, and developed his "Tennis College" concept.[12] In 1986, Kramer said, "One Vic Braden is worth a lot of Champions in helping promote the sport. The McEnroes, Borgs, Connors, they've been great. But I don't think any one of them has created the interest in the sport that Vic has."[13] Braden was a patient and good friend of Dr. Toby Freedman, who was prominent in Space and Sports Medicine at North American Aviation and Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic, and was an avid Tennis Player.

Professional accomplishments[14]

Awards

Videos

Vocational highlights

Licensed psychologist (California), author, sports educator and researcher, cinematographer, videographer, sports, television commentator.

Books authored

He has authored five books with Bill Bruns whom he met in 1973.[21]

Books: other

Featured in print media

Vic's Vacant Lot

Braden hosted a short-lived television series, Vic's Vacant Lot, which ran from 1982 to early 1984 for 26 episodes on ESPN and rerun on Nickelodeon until May 1985.[27] The premise was to send Braden out with a group of children to show them how to organize competitive sports on a vacant lot, as specified in the title. Due to the show not receiving much recognition, no recordings were available online, at least until January 3, 2022, when an Internet Archive user uploaded an episode of the show in two parts.

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Vic Braden's Mental Mojo Experience . 2008-11-12 . The New York Times . 2006-10-29 . Paige . Williams.
  2. Web site: Author:Vic Braden . 2008-11-12 . isbndb.com . https://archive.today/20130127014903/http://isbndb.com/d/person/braden_vic.html . 2013-01-27 . dead .
  3. News: Schudel. Matt. October 8, 2014. "Vic Braden, innovative tennis coach and sport science pioneer, dies at 85". .
  4. Web site: Kalamazoo College Celebrates 175th Anniversary . 2008-11-12 . Kalamazoo College . 2008-04-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080704205852/http://www.kzoo.edu/pr/press/042408.htm . 2008-07-04 . dead .
  5. Web site: Champions List:1950 . 2008-11-13 . MIAA . https://web.archive.org/web/20080517080002/http://www.miaa.org/mte/mtedoubl.html#1950 . 2008-05-17 . dead .
  6. Web site: Honorary Degree List . 2008-11-12 . Kalamazoo College . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100527144925/http://www.kzoo.edu/college/history/honorary.htm . May 27, 2010 .
  7. Web site: Vic Braden, tennis instructor, dies at 85. The Orange County Register. 6 October 2014 . 30 July 2015.
  8. Web site: Sports News. ABC News. ABC News. 30 July 2015.
  9. https://archive.today/20121130051622/http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ipb-Wa62SPIJ:sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1091074/5/index.htm+%22Vic+Braden%22+married&cd=12&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&source=www.google.com "'Problem Solving Can Be Beautiful'" SI.com
  10. Web site: Perrotta. Tom. January 15, 2015. "The Tennis Legacy of Vic Braden".
  11. Tom Perrotta January 15, 2015 "The Tennis Legacy of Vic Braden" Grantland.com
  12. http://www.jackkramerclub.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=34 "Club Profile" The Jack Kramer Club
  13. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-08-25-sp-16153-story.html Los Angeles Times
  14. Web site: Products. vicbraden.com. 30 July 2015.
  15. http://www.psych.ucla.edu/center-and-programs/clinic UCLA Psychology Clinic
  16. News: Orange County Roundup . https://web.archive.org/web/20121021001017/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/64541638.html?dids=64541638:64541638&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Sep+27,+1985&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=Orange+County+Roundup&pqatl=google . dead . October 21, 2012 . 2008-11-05 . Los Angeles Times . September 27, 1985.
  17. News: Problem Solving Can Be Beautiful . 2008-11-12 . Sports Illustrated . May 10, 1976.
  18. http://www.midwest.usta.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=6618512 USTA
  19. Web site: Clijsters, Roddick elected to International Tennis Hall of Fame . Tennis.com . January 23, 2017 . 2017-03-24.
  20. Web site: Garrison Sports Videos. garrisonsportsgroup.com. 30 July 2015.
  21. Web site: Two pros on winning at doubles . https://web.archive.org/web/20121025181920/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-83931937.html . dead . October 25, 2012 . 2008-11-05 . Joe Jares . Daily News (Los Angeles, CA) . March 25, 1996.
  22. News: Vic Braden's Way of Making Tennis a Love Game among the Younger Set . 2008-11-05 . Arnold Schechter . Sports Illustrated . 1980-12-15.
  23. Web site: The Sports Network - Men's Tennis . January 21, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111102191734/http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=tennis-m%2Fmisc%2Fbraden%2Findex.htm . November 2, 2011 . The Sports Network
  24. [Paul Assaiante]
  25. News: Teaching Tennis to Toads Vic Braden, Coach Extraordinaire, Uses Humor and Physics to Show Nonstars How to Improve Their Moves on the court . https://web.archive.org/web/20070306103538/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,958781,00.html . dead . March 6, 2007 . 2008-11-05 . Time Magazine . 1989-10-16 . Leon . Jaroff.
  26. Book: Foster Wallace, David . Infinite Jest . 1996 . Little. Brown and Company . 1996 . 978-0-316-92004-9 . First . United States of America . 1032.
  27. Web site: TRAINER STEPS TO BEAT OF OWN DRUMIF YOU GO . 2022-03-25 . Sun Sentinel . en.

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