Mouratoglou Academy opens first full-fledged U.S. facility in Florida

Longstanding coach Patrick Mouratoglou is always looking to create new opportunities. His latest: the recent opening of Mouratoglou Academy Zephyrhills, his first full-fledged U.S.-based facility. Located 29 miles east of Tampa at the former Sarah Vande Berg Tennis and Wellness Center, Mouratoglou Academy Zephyrhills’ scope is massive, including nine clay courts, two hard courts, eight pickleball courts, five padel courts, two beach tennis courts, a year-round camp for adults and juniors, as well as boarding for 90 students. While working in Los Angeles with his latest charge, Naomi Osaka, Mouratoglou took time to share his vision for Mouratoglou Academy Zephyrhills and offer insights into contemporary tennis.

What is your vision for the new academy?

PATRICK MOURATOGLOU: I always wanted to have an academy in the U.S. The U.S. is so big in tennis and has so much potential. The goal is to do the same as [my academy] in the south of France, to have both, [first] a place for people don’t have the goal of becoming professionals. They just want to play tennis, have lessons. We also have pickleball and Padel. And we also have the tennis high school program for players between 11 and 18 who want to pursue both education and tennis and either become a pro or join the universities with scholarships.

How do you define the Mouratoglou philosophy?

MOURATOGLOU: I would say that the first thing is being aware of the responsibility we have. It's an obligation to deliver all our focus, or attend our attention, all our professionalism, but also to look at [the players we work with] as the future players they can be. When I say responsibility, it's true for everyone, whether it's for a professional player or a young player.

As ’25 nears, what excites you about your partnership with Naomi Osaka?

MOURATOGLOU:The first thing that excites me is he challenge, because she’s an incredible player in terms of achievements . . . the challenge [is] to bring her back to the best, and why not even better than before? It excites me also because I feel how much she wants it, how focused she is.

What have you learned about the game from just a few of the pros you’ve worked with – Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Holger Rune, Naomi Osaka?

MOURATOGLOU: What I’ve learned is that everybody has qualities, and the game is about using those qualities to be the best possible player.

You always have a limited number of hours during the day to work. People get exhausted if you do too much. I mean, it’s good to push them, but we are limited. The question is, how am I going to use my time? And there’s always the question between developing the weapons or improving the weaknesses. I think we have to do both, but I think it’s much more important to spend more time developing the weapons.

How do you see the way tennis is played evolving in the coming years?

MOURATOGLOU: The two guys who are dominating tennis at the moment, they play incredible tennis. Sinner is a modern version of Novak, because of the way he covers the court, the way he sticks to the baseline, he doesn’t move back. He’s able to accelerate every ball, even when he’s in trouble. So I think he has a very modern game.

Alcaraz has a very, very different game, much more risky. He loves to take crazy risks. There is not one shot that he doesn’t master. It’s incredible. I’ve never seen such a complete player. If you take every shot in the game, he executes them perfectly. His challenge is more to keep his focus and stay in the moment. The matches between these two are exciting, and I think the game is going to evolve from that. We’ll see more swing volleys from baseline, taking time away as much as possible from the opponent.

When it comes to player development, what do you think are the overlooked factors?

MOURATOGLOU: The most important thing is to become the best competitor you can. If you look at the best players in the world, the qualities are the most evident . . . They will recognize the key moments, and they will be able to deliver on those key moments most of the time, where others might be tight or miss. . . It’s a learning process to become a better competitor.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.