Having grown up in a segregated environment in the south I know what it's like to be stepped on, I know what it's like also to see some black hero do well in the face of adversity.

I keep sailing on in this middle passage. I am sailing into the wind and the dark. But I am doing my best to keep my boat steady and my sails full.

I take the good with the bad, and I try to face them both with as much calm and dignity as I can muster.

Regardless of how you feel inside, always try to look like a winner.

Always have the situation under control, even if losing. Never betray an inward sense of defeat.

I don't care who you are, you're going to choke in certain matches. You get to a point where your legs don't move and you can't take a deep breath. You start to hit the ball about a yard wide, instead of inches.

I guess I started too early because I just thought it was something fun to do.