By Sydney Sadick
From Slovakia to the South Fork, Kiki Hajkova has turned her love for tennis into a thriving coaching career, bringing discipline, strategy, and soulful balance to the Hamptons courts while making the East End home.
Tell us a bit about your tennis journey. How did you get started in the sport?
I started to play tennis at the age of 10, in Slovakia, where I am from. I was playing lots of tennis tournaments, mostly in Europe, as I was growing up. Later, I received a scholarship to play college tennis in the U.S.
What brought you to the Hamptons?
My first tennis coaching job in Hamptons was at East Hampton Indoor Tennis, then Hampton Racquet, and now I’m teaching at the private beach and tennis club in Water Mill. I’m also offering my services at my private clients’ residences.
How has coaching here shaped your career?
Tennis taught me so much about life in general. It’s one of the best and most complex sports for a child’s development. It’s not only a technical sport that requires discipline, but it is also tactical as the player needs to learn the structure and strategy of the points through competition and match experience. Competing on the court will test the player’s physical fitness and mental toughness; it challenges them in every aspect of their life while unfolding their true identity.
How would you describe your coaching philosophy in a few words?
Alignment with a healthy balance.
What do you love most about coaching in the Hamptons?
Teaching tennis in the Hamptons gave me the opportunity to meet interesting and successful people from all over the world. Also, living in the countryside with beautiful beaches around is my place of sanctuary. The Hamptons helped me to create a healthy balance between work and pleasure, which I struggled with in the past.
Is there a sense of camaraderie among local coaches and players, or is it more competitive?
The tennis world is small out here in the Hamptons and most coaches/players know one another. I don’t feel like there’s competition among coaches; if anything it would be more between tennis clubs.
What’s one lesson you hope every student takes away from working with you—on or off the court?
A lot of times after my lessons, my client and I review three things that we worked on during our session, and I want them to verbalize to me in a mindful way what their focus will be moving forward. I find it helpful to get the body and mind in alignment, while rewriting the old habits of the subconscious system and developing new habits that are more effective and efficient to improve their tennis skills or game. Many players have tendencies to overthink or make things more complicated than they are. In my experience, the answers are usually simple. It comes down to establishing a strong foundation.
What makes the tennis community Out East unique from other places you’ve taught?
The clientele in the Hamptons is unlike anywhere in the world. I get to meet so many different people who are passionate, driven, and motivated while achieving success on their journey. It’s a nice feeling seeing other people succeeding, and it motivates others like me to pursue my passions.
