Former Daniel Islander daring to dream big

Daniel Island-raised Shelby Rogers has made quite a name for herself and her tennis-loving city since turning pro over six years ago. She’s made the quarterfinals of the French Open, won four tournaments and heading into next week’s seminal Charleston tennis event, the Volvo Car Open, she’s ranked an impressive 61st in the world.

Injury affected the 24-year-old Rogers’ play in the 2014 season, but fresh off an excellent 2015 the now seasoned professional has learned on the job. The result is perhaps her best pro run yet in recent months. And the timing couldn’t be better leading up to what the former Family Circle Cup ball girl calls “her favorite tournament of the year,” the Volvo Car Open (VCO) coming to Daniel Island April 1 – 9.

“Last year was a great season for me, I’ve been healthy and I was able to play this whole season,” Rogers recently told The Daniel Island News, fresh off a pair of victories in the first two rounds of the Miami Open last week. “In the past, I’ve struggled with some injuries, so that was definitely the focus for me, and this year is no different. I had a good pre-season trying to get really fit just so you can withstand all the traveling and the amount of matches you have to play and so far, so good.”

For Rogers becoming a tour-playing professional in the true sense meant learning on the job, and not only on her first serve percentage or cross-court two-hand backhand shots, she had to learn how to live the life. Her evolution as a player and a pro has been one part looking herself in the mirror and realizing she’s got the stuff to compete with the best in the world, and one part learning how to live as a professional woman who travels for work. She says both have proven a challenge.

“I feel pretty good. I’ve learned a lot of things from being on tour six years now and I definitely feel like I can compete with these girls,” she said. “It’s just a matter of doing it consistently throughout the year...I need to figure out how to deal with the jet lag and the different surfaces and...how to bring my best game more times throughout the year.”

Travel on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) tour is utterly grueling. Being a proper tour player necessitates that players like Rogers, especially those trying to carve out a name for themselves, travel extensively. In Rogers’ mind, learning to deal with that has been critical in her development.

For Rogers, “especially if you’re going deep into tournaments,” players on the WTA go through a lot of time zones in their travels. From Hawaii, to Indian Hills, California, to Europe, to Australia, the jet lag is a factor for all the players on tour, she said.

“Every player has their own way of kind of dealing with that...I think for me a big thing that helps is if I get on the local time zone and eating schedule and eat at the proper times,” she laughs. “That helps me adjust a little bit but it can be a challenge. Not only that but the changing of surfaces, the changing weather. If you get sick, it’s a lot and nobody really understands how much we have to adapt to week in and week out. Every week is different.”

Another part of the evolution from ball girl to world-class tennis pro, according to Rogers, has been learning to play with less than her best. Learning to persevere through matches with what Rogers calls her “B” game has proven a difference-maker.

“To be honest, I’m not playing the best tennis I’ve ever played right now, but I’m finding ways to win,” she added. “I feel like my ‘B’ game has come a long way, which is great for me because I really tried to work on that. Hopefully that means good things going forward but there are a lot of positives to take away from finding other ways to win, either with your ‘B’ game or your ‘C’ game, because if you get through those tough matches it sets you up for a chance to play better in the next round.”

“I’ve had a bunch of tough matches this year, one quarter-final already, and I made it through the first round of the Australian, so that’s a big improvement from some of the previous years,” she continued. “I’d like to make a little bit of a deeper run but I’ve run into some tough opponents as well. There a lot of positives to take away from that and staying healthy is one of them.”

One thing not lost on the 24 year-old Rogers is perspective. She remembers that before she’d ever had a “B” game or a “C” game, before she’d played Wimbledon or Roland Garros, before she raked in thousands of hard-earned dollars touring the world as a professional tennis player, she was just a teenager growing up in Mt. Pleasant and Daniel Island. But even back then she had big-time choices to make, namely whether to turn pro.

“It’s been the best decision I’ve ever made,” said Rogers. “I did the whole college process, thinking about going to Clemson or Georgia, but I decided to give myself a chance on tour and it’s been the best decision ever. I’ve been to so many cool places. The people I have met and the experiences I have had are just unbelievable.”

“I wanted to be a professional because I just love the sport and I wanted to continue playing, but now that I’ve gotten to experience so many different cultures and people and connections, I’ve gotten really cool opportunities. I spent some time on a Navy boat, I got to meet the President… it comes with the territory but it’s just been above and beyond what I ever expected.”

Also unexpected for Rogers has been the growth of her hometown into a world-class tennis city, growth that’s seemingly coincided with her own.

“I’d like to think I have something to do with that,” she giggled. “It’s such an amazing city to be from because I feel the support no matter what city I’m in, it’s pretty incredible. I take so much pride in being from there.”

And on the topic of Charleston, her upcoming appearance at the Volvo Car Open, and her return home to Daniel Island, an already cheery Rogers perks up all the more.

“It’s my favorite part of the year,” she said. “It’s just the little things. I’m away from them all year so just kind of getting that home treatment, getting to sleep in my own bed, having mom cook for me.”

“The whole crew that is behind me, supporting me, is just amazing every year. I just look forward to playing in front of them. It’s so much fun having the crowd behind you and just knowing that so many of your friends and family are in the stands. I know they watch me all year but seeing you in person is a little bit different.”

And while Rogers will surely be the top draw for fans of local tennis, there are other players with Holy City connections to keep an eye on. Some will surely back 26-year-old Alison Riske who won the Junior Family Circle Cup on Daniel Island in 2009. She enters the Volvo Car Open’s main draw this year ranked 38 in the world. Also competing on the VCO courts will be Charleston native Elizabeth “Ellie” Halbauer, who spent many years training on Daniel Island at the Family Circle Tennis Center. Halbauer will enter the tournament on a wild card in the qualifying rounds on opening weekend. She is currently ranked 279 in the world at the tender age of 19.

In the case of Halbauer, Rogers can attest to the double-sided aspect of being a hometown favorite.

“It can be tough though because I do put a little bit more pressure on myself, but every year that I play there, regardless of the results, they continue to support me.”

Rogers’ local fan base, led by her own cheering family, has turned into quite the home court advantage when playing in front of her beloved Charleston crowds. When Rogers takes to the clay on Daniel Island next week, expect a raucous audience to greet her, pulling for the “First Lady of Charleston Tennis” as if she were their own.

And she is.

The Volvo Car Open will be held on Daniel Island from April 1-9, 2017. For more information or for tickets, see http://www.volvocaropen.com/.