Weiss Shows Fiery Taste for Tennis

Nicholas Weiss loves tennis so much he can taste it.

This much is revealed when the Calabasas High junior flips a retainer from the roof of his mouth and proudly shows off the tennis racket etched in color on its bottom.

Weiss also loves the game so much he feels it intensely, which has its merits and drawbacks.

On the plus side, he has traveled the world playing in tournaments, spent nine months last year at the prestigious Chris Evert Academy in Boca Raton, Fla., and was ranked No. 1 in Southern California in the U.S. Tennis Assn. boys’ 16 division.

The downside to his passion is that his emotions are as evident during matches as his orthodontics are when he smiles. The tennis stereotype of the brash, fiery phenom is alive and well with Weiss.

“I get annoyed easily,” he said. “I have to work on that.”

Weiss, 17, displayed flashes of temper during both of his matches in the Southern Section doubles division at the Ojai Valley tournament.

In the first round, he and partner Alex Menichini made short work of Charles Doa and Michael Peng of El Dorado High, 6-0, 6-1, but in the only game the Calabasas duo lost, Weiss blew up, questioning a line call by Doa. He then made errors on two shots, cursed himself and directed a sarcastic remark at Doa.

Between games, Bob Holycross, the Calabasas coach, told Weiss to relax and put it behind him. Weiss took a sip of water, shrugged and finished the match without a hitch.

Lesson unlearned. Weiss again became agitated during a 6-3, 6-4 loss to Blake Baumgarten and Ricky Rollins in the round of 16 on Friday. He was assessed a penalty point early in the second set for knocking the ball off the court in anger.

“We just played really bad, we were awful,” Weiss said. “Those guys shouldn’t even have been on the same court as us. I can’t believe this.”

Weiss admitted he was upset at line calls, which are determined through the honor system. Weiss requested a line judge, but his complaining did not cease.

“We worked on the mental stuff a lot at [the Evert Academy],” Weiss said. “They kind of stressed that.”

The experience was double-edged, however. Composure and poise were emphasized in the classroom, but competition was ratcheted up to a level beyond what Weiss was used to on the court.

“There were 30-40 kids who all want it bad,” he said. “So there is a lot of that kind of fighting and a lot of intensity. We were friends, but we were competing. It was a hard situation. People make fun of you. You want to show them up.”

Weiss, 6-feet-1 and 180 pounds, has little problem with his game. His serve can be dominant, his backhand is devastating and he returned from the Evert Academy with an improved forehand.

Now all he needs to do is grow up.

“I love Ojai because I get to watch the Pac-10 guys,” he said. “It’s like a tease; it looks so fun. I’m anxious to contribute to a college team and play in great tournaments like the Ojai at center court.”