by Pete Bodo
Anyone in business or any other form of enterprise knows that timing is all, and given the arc of Ryan Harrison's career recently, it seemed like a good time for the Harrison brain trust (consisting of Pat Harrison, Ryan's dad and original coach, Nick Bollettieri and his academy's director of tennis, Chip Brooks) to make a major move. So Harrison has hired Martin Damm, last seen in his doubles swan song at the U.S. Open a few weeks ago, as his full-time mentor.
Originally developed by Pat Harrison, Ryan entered the Bollettieri combine just about two years ago. Bollettieri became the overseer and facilitator, and eventually Ryan also received a good deal of help from the USTA player development program, mostly in the form of on-the-road coaches. Now, Damm will the man in charge on a day-to-day basis, organizing and structuring Ryan's training, scouting opponents, and developing match-by-match strategies as Harrison tries to improve on his career-best ranking of No. 170. He'll be out on the Challenger circuit in the coming weeks.
This move has been some time coming, now that Ryan's 16-year old brother, Christian, has recovered from a bone infection in his leg and is ready to resume his junior career (the Harrisons live near and train at the IMG Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy). Christian just started playing points this week, under the watchful eye of Pat and Ryan, who plays an active role in his kid brother's life. In fact, Ryan insists that Christian hits a better ball than he did at a comparable age, which is saying quite a bit. Ryan is as smooth as he is versatile. What we have in the makings is a variation on the Bryan brothers theme, sans the shared toothbrush and genetic twinship. (Note that Damm enjoyed his greatest success and highest ranking in doubles.)
But even with the closeness of this family (the Harrison boys have a sister, Madison, who also plays), the obligations and sometimes conflicting demands on Pat Harrison have grown along with his kids. And as a high-quality teaching pro in his own right (Pat has worked with aspiring as well as made pros at the academy), his time has been stretched thin. He told me, "I've been wanting to take a back seat, be more of a dad to all of them than a coach for some time. Having Martin Damm as Ryan's coach will make that easier, and it will help avoid conflicts within the family. But I'll always be there in the background, because whenever Ryan gets into a rough patch he usually calls me to come out and watch him, and talk through whatever seems to be his problem."
Damm, a native of the Czech Republic, may seem an odd or even exotic choice. But many Czech players, including Radek Stepanek and his recent bride, Nicole Vaidisova, have made Bollettieri's academy their home and training base. Damm has been there for some years as well (although his "official" residence is Monaco) which is how he developed a relationship with the Harrisons. "We know him well," Pat told me, "There's a lot of trust and confidence there."
Now 38, Damm, who's career high rankings were No. 42 (singles, 1997) and No. 5 (doubles, 2007), is taking on an interesting challenge. Harrison is a mature young man with a well-developed, flexible game. Lame duck U.S. Davis Cup captain Pat McEnroe recently told me that Ryan is a bit of a rarity among today's ball-banging youngsters in that he's a "student of the game." And Harrison, who's 18, talks—and acts—like he belongs on the main tour. He's astute, mature and confident, so the relationship with Damm is mostly likely to be a partnership, rather than a mentor-apprentice engagement.
