Kuhlman Has Her Game Back in Business : After Surgery, She Returns to USC Tennis

Ever since Caroline Kuhlman has been playing tennis, she wanted to be a professional tennis player. Until her junior season at USC, she seemed well on her way.

From 1981 through the fall of 1986, Kuhlman was one of the United States’ best amateur players. As a sophomore she was named female college player of the 1985-86 season.

But that season, she was playing in pain.

At the end of the previous summer, her knees began hurting. Initially the pain was minor and she continued to play, but as she continued to play her sophomore season, the pain increased. By the summer of 1986 she decided that she needed some time off to rest her aching knees.

She planned to take the first semester of her junior year off and resume playing the next spring. But the rest did not help. After five matches, her knees were no better and she decided to take the rest of the year off.

That break was the first since she began playing 10 years earlier and at first it was unsettling.

“Not playing that year was hard,” Kuhlman said. “The team had two great years in a row and that season we were 13 and 13. We were national champs in ’85 and runners-up in ’86. It was terrible not being able to help.”

The time off was all she needed, Kuhlman thought, but by the fall of 1987 she realized that something other than rest was required. Even not playing, her knees hurt and surgery was recommended.

As it turned out, Kuhlman’s knee problems were the result of her style of play. According to Barbara DeGroot, a former coach, Kuhlman hit the ball as it was rising off the bounce, instead of waiting until it was at its apex. To play that way, Kuhlman had to crouch to hit the ball and the constant crouching put extra strain on her knees.

So in October of 1987, she had surgery on her right knee to relieve the strain. Then in March of 1988, she had the same operation on her left knee.

Although there was no doubt that Kuhlman would play again, the question was when. Normal recovery time for such an operation is a year, but normally only one knee is operated on.

Last May, Kuhlman graduated with a bachelor’s degree in finance, but she still had a year of eligibility. She was accepted by USC’s MBA program, which left her able to compete for the Trojans.

There was still some question whether she would stay, though, because she wanted to pursue a professional tennis career. Kuhlman had to choose between school and competition or concentrating on further recuperation of her knee. She chose school.

“The two years I was not playing changed everything,” Kuhlman said. “I realized school was important. I realized people were important. As much as I missed tennis, I loved being a regular student. I stayed in school, because I liked it, and because I loved being on the team my first two years here. I wanted it to be like that again.”

For the first time since 1987 she was playing every day last fall. Initially she just practiced, but on Jan. 26 Kuhlman and Lupita Novelo won their first match. Recently Kuhlman began playing singles again.

Just having Kuhlman play has had an impact on the Trojans, Coach Cheryl Jones says.

“We didn’t think she would be back so soon, playing this well,” Jones said. “But more than that, she has inspired the team to play better. Having her on the court is great.”

Jones is not the only person who is impressed with Kuhlman’s comeback. Last Tuesday night she was named USC’s outstanding senior woman athlete.

Kuhlman is 4-2 playing at No. 6 singles, and 10-7 with Novelo at No. 1 doubles. Although her game is not what it was, she has not lost much. DeGroot thinks she is just lacking endurance.

“She still has the same aggressive style of play and her strokes are still there. I think she is just not in as good shape as she was,” DeGroot said. “She still has great court sense.”

Kuhlman agrees. Returning to the top will be difficult. Kuhlman thinks she can do it, but she is not sure she will.

“I still want to play professionally, but I’m going to decide after this summer,” Kuhlman said, “I know there is so much more than tennis, but I still love tennis.”