Claude Grady
Even when he was younger, Claude Grady showed a unique feel for the game of tennis. He was ranked in the top 3 in the Boy’s 18s Mid-Atlantic section as a junior, and also played under legendary coach Jack Schore as the #1 player for Bullis School, the number one ranked team in the IAC. He would later play as high as #4 singles for the University of Kentucky, where he also majored in Management Studies.
At 15 years old, Claude first started coaching as a volunteer for the Arthur Ashe Fila program in Southeast D.C. He would later coach periodically for the Washington Tennis and Education Foundation until 2003. At the request of one of his former Bullis School coaches, Jason Rainer, Claude started working at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, MD, where he would coach for a year. Claude then continued his coaching career at the Aspen Hill Club, and after a few years, coached and traveled with the National/ITF Invitational Group, where the requirements for players entering the program included having a top 20 sectional ranking, meeting rigorous fitness goals, and playing several high-level local and national tournaments. Claude would then create and become the director of The Elite Performance Group at Aspen Hill for five years. Following his tenure at Aspen Hill, Claude became a Senior Coach for the Hong Tennis Training Center before joining his former coach Jack Schore at the Montgomery TennisPlex.
Claude has privately trained numerous players with impressive accolades, some of which include: Lauren Lucido (most wins ever in Division I Bucknell University’s tennis history for singles and doubles), Chris Goodwin (national titlist in singles and doubles for Division III Emory University), Mike Goodwin (national titlist in singles and doubles for Division III Emory University), and Nobuyoshi Tanaka (only tennis player to be nationally ranked for Division I Longwood University). Coach Claude has an incredible feel for the game and is well-known for the high level of care and attention he gives to all his players.