Tiburon man takes tennis crown, world's No. 1 ranking, at masters tournament
- Francisco Martinez
- Sep 13, 2023
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 16, 2024
Editor’s note — This article won second place for best sports coverage in the National Newspaper Association’s 2024 Better Newspapers Contest.
Tiburon’s Polo Cowan returned home from a recent trip to Portugal with another international tennis tournament victory under his belt.
The 60-year-old was part of a winning men’s pair alongside Australian Garry Nadebaum at the International Tennis Federation’s Masters World Individual Championships, held in Lisbon, Portugal, Aug. 19-26.
Cowan and Nadebaum, 55, won in the 55-and-up category in men’s doubles. Federation rules allow for players like Cowan to play in age groups their junior, but prevent players from entering a more senior age group.
The tournament win cements Cowan’s ranking as the No. 1 men’s doubles player in the world age 60 and up, as ranked by the International Tennis Federation, tennis’ governing body. And it’s not Cowan’s first time on the mountaintop either.
In 2019, Cowan paired with fellow Tiburon resident Dan Grossman to win the 55-and-up men’s doubles title at the same tournament. Scheduling conflicts prevented Grossman from participating in this year’s tournament, leading Cowan to find a new partner in Nadebaum.
Nadebaum, ranked No. 1 for men’s doubles in the 55-and-up category, had heard Cowan’s name in tennis circles before. In November 2022, Cowan was searching for a partner to play in a tournament held in Mexico City, but Nadebaum already had a partner. At the end of the tournament, Nadebaum and Cowan were on opposite sides of the net in the tournament’s final. The Australian beat the American.
“He was probably one of my toughest opponents to play against in one of the finals I’ve had in a long time,” Nadebaum said of Cowan. “And so, I knew he was good when I thought we’d be a good team to play together.”
Cowan, who was eligible to play in the 60-and-up group, tried and failed to find a suitable partner in his age group, he said. When he talked to Nadebaum, he realized Nadebaum was a “great, great partner” to play alongside.
The tournament victory in Portugal seemed to prove him right.
“We killed it,” Cowan said.
The pair, seeded second in the tournament, defeated South Africans Brian Clark and Clive Wilson 6-3, 6-1 in the final. On paper, it looked like a comfortable finish, but the wins didn’t come easy.
Cowan and Nadebaum won a quarter-final encounter after one of their opponents, former professional player Karsten Braasch, popped his elbow, Cowan said. It forced their German counterparts to retire from the tournament; the match was 6-6 in the first set.
Cowan noted that in his previous tournament win, he and former partner Grossman opted to focus solely on the match ahead. That mentality stuck this time around.
“Even when we were in the finals, I was thinking ‘OK, don’t get nervous. Focus on what you do,’” Cowan recalled.
In the final match, Cowan and Nadebaum jumped to a 3-0 lead before Clark and Wilson tied the opening set at 3-3. Cowan and Nadebaum led 4-0 in the second set before their opponents began to mount a comeback at 4-1. That was when Cowan knew the reins needed to be applied.
“It was, I think, that we more applied our finishing mentality and making sure we take it all the way to the finish line,” Cowan said.
Cowan said observing Wilson, who won the men’s 60-and-up category, provided insight on how to best counter his playstyle and prepare for the final. But he said he and Nadebaum also did a good job blocking out the noise.
“The main thing we said to ourselves was, ‘Get the ball back, put the ball back, let’s work from there,’” Cowan said. He added that because they were hitting “10% less than what we normally would,” Cowan wanted to make sure they got that extra ball into play to force an error from their opponent.
“Most matches are determined by errors,” Cowan said.
Cowan noted he had a bit of a hard time during the tournament’s earlier stages, adding that he “wasn’t quite playing my game.” Nadebaum was able to support him during the rougher periods of play, Cowan said, and soon they were able to fully gel.
Nadebaum, who had played the week prior, said Cowan got better throughout the tournament as he played more matches. By the semifinals and finals, both were in a groove and able to be “pretty solid,” Nadebaum said.
He complimented Cowan’s aggressiveness as a player, adding that he attacks well and covers well; if Cowan moved across the court, Nadebaum would cover behind him and vice versa.
“And every day, the tournament got better and better, and we communicated well and … we basically took care of tough opponents easier every day,” Nadebaum said.
Improving throughout the tournament ties into Cowan’s approach to the game. Cowan, who works as an independent tennis teacher, emphasized his constant desire to improve as a player and to pass that mentality on to his students.
“Yes, I want to win. But I’m mainly focused on improving my game — what I have to do to get to that point,” Cowan said.
When players focus on the end result of a match, Cowan said, the inevitable focus on losing and not making the serve comes in. That’s why it’s necessary to focus on technique, Cowan added, and knowing if it doesn’t work, players can pivot to something else.
Being in the moment and focusing on what’s happening on the other side of the net goes a long way, Cowan added.
“I think it’s more focusing on what’s your job, what your job is right at that moment of the game, playing the game and let the result happen,” Cowan said.
Cowan, who turns 61 in November, said he hopes to continue playing tennis for the rest of his life.
“What do you do as you get older, right?” Cowan said. “You got to have something for yourself.”
Cowan recalled a tennis lesson he taught recently, in which his student, a friend of Cowan’s girlfriend, recognized Cowan’s love for tennis, as well as his being in the moment.
“Going into the office — I hated it,” Cowan said. “For me, it’s natural to be on the tennis court. That is my office, and I feel comfortable there.”
Reach Tiburon reporter Francisco Martinez at 415-944-4634.