Heinberg Muscles Up, Climbs in Rankings

Ryan Heinberg, a surfer in his free time, is riding a wave of success on the tennis court that is unlike any he has enjoyed at the beach.

The slender 16-year-old from Agoura Hills blossomed into one of the top players on the U.S. Tennis Assn.’s junior circuit after years of unremarkable results.

Heinberg, who last year was ranked 19th in Southern California and unranked nationally, has advanced to or beyond the round of 16 in every event this summer and has beaten four players rated in the top 10 in the nation in his division.

“This has been the best year of my life,” said Heinberg, who had struggled because of a lack of size and power. “I’ve never had anything like this happen for me before. It’s been exceptional.”

Heinberg, 5 feet 11 and 145 pounds, finished fourth in the boys’ 16 division in the U.S. National Hardcourt Championships two weeks ago in Kalamazoo, Mich., where he lost to top-seeded Jesse Witten of Naples, Fla., 6-4, 7-5, in the third-place match.

Seeded fifth, Heinberg advanced to the semifinals of the 256-player field before losing to No. 2-seeded and eventual-champion Robby Ginepri of Marietta, Ga. He beat No. 3-seeded Hamid Mirzadeh of Lake Worth, Fla., 6-1, 1-6, 7-6 (7-3), in the quarterfinals.

Heinberg has a 33-5 record this season and has risen to No. 5 nationally in the boys’ 16s. He is the No. 1-ranked boys’ 16 player in Southern California, a status he attained in June by winning the Southern California sectional tournament in Fountain Valley.

Heinberg finished second in the Copper Bowl tournament in Tucson, Ariz., in January, won the Southern California Tennis Assn. mid-winter tournament in January and an event in Long Beach in April.

“He had skills, but he was small and weak, and the combination of small and weak is brutal,” said Heinberg’s father, Craig, who has coached his son since the age of 4. “I always thought he was good and that he could do something like this. . . . I just didn’t know when it would happen.”

The transformation was slow, but began three years ago under the supervision of personal trainer Dakota Mitchell.

Mitchell emphasized weight training to help Heinberg gain strength despite his size, which was 5-5 and less than 100 pounds.

“He just didn’t have the ability to compete with bigger guys,” Mitchell said. “I think he didn’t always play with heart, almost, because he didn’t want to keep getting killed.”

With added strength, increased stamina and improved lateral movement, Heinberg also benefited from steady growth spurts.

“Right now, he looks athletic, but he still doesn’t look imposing or threatening,” Mitchell said. “In a couple of years, he’ll have the adult’s body to go along with the adult’s game that he’s starting to play.”

Until this year, Heinberg had never won an age-group tournament or advanced far into major events. He would spend time skateboarding and surfing. A junior at Bridges Academy in Sherman Oaks, he concentrated on his studies and considered becoming a doctor.

Heinberg’s recent success is not surprising given his bloodlines.

His father is a coach and his sister, Krissy Hamilton-Heinberg, 19, plays at USC.

She was a junior-circuit phenom who began playing in the girls’ 18 division when she was 12. At 13, she won the girls’ 18s sectional tournament, and finished with the No. 1 ranking in Southern California from 1993-95. By 15, she went from the junior circuit to satellite and challenger events.

“I was never 100% interested in tennis,” Heinberg said. “I’m not going to put a lot of work into something and spend all my time on it if I’m not going to be any good.

“I definitely have a different approach now. I’m not one of those people who’s going to go right out and try to play the pros. But I definitely think I could have a future in it, at least in college.”

Heinberg, who puts in 35 hours a week of practice on the family’s backyard court, has lately shown an uncanny ability to come from behind. . It started at the Copper Bowl, where he was down, 3-6, 1-5, and love-40 in the second set but defeated Jeff Kazarian of Rolling Hills Estates, 3-6, 7-5, 6-1.

“I think that surprised Ryan,” his father said. “But after that happens, you start to believe you can do a lot of things.”

Heinberg, in fact, pinpoints the Copper Bowl comeback as the start of his transformation into a top-notch tennis player.

“That was a great match,” he said. “Nothing was working, but then everything snapped into place just in time. It totally set me up for the rest of the tournament. I definitely felt like I could win after that.

“I always wanted to do well. I just couldn’t. But I’ve been working pretty hard the past year or so, and it’s starting to pay off. Now I know what it takes to win.”

He’s learned to appreciate the view from atop the rankings as much as he does from a large wave.