Raw talent and physical fitness can only get you so far as a player.
The difference between a good and an elite player often boils down to hiring a highly qualified coach.
A coach isn’t there to just teach you how to swing a racquet or fire a cracking ace. Beyond that, a good coach not only refines technique, but also helps develop a winning mindset, provides valuable insight and feedback based on their own experience, works towards injury prevention and strengthens mental resilience.
It’s coaches, such as the recipient of the Australian Tennis Awards Coaching Excellence – Performance, presented by Culture Amp, Chris Mahony, who are not simply coaching but building elite players.
READ: Australian tennis linchpins to be recognised at tennis awards
Mahony, among other standout coaches and clubs, was honoured for the impact his coaching made on home soil and abroad at the 2025 Australian Tennis Awards last December.
“It means a lot,” said Mahony on receiving the award. “We've got a rich tradition in Australia of high-performance coaching, so just to be in the mix with the other finalists and to have won this award means the world.”
Mahony, who was nominated for the second straight year for the award, guided Newcombe Medal nominee and world No.34 Maya Joint through a breakout 2025 season.
The Queenslander oversaw Joint’s rise to Australian No.1, two WTA titles and maiden Billie Jean King Cup selection. Mahony’s guidance saw the teenager, at just 19 years old, experience a meteoric rise from No.135 to a career-high ranking of No.28 in a season.
Upon winning her second WTA title at Eastbourne, Joint referred to Mahony as a “lifesaver” during her on-court interview. This second title came shortly after her first in Rabat, proving her aptitude on both clay and grass courts.
“A lot of young players you see kind of ups and downs through the course of the year on the different surfaces,” Mahony said of Joint. “[Maya] was very consistent on all the surfaces.
“She's been a sponge and has just taken all the information that I've tried to give her and done something with it.
“Her resilience has been outstanding as well. Anytime she's had a tough loss, she never wastes a day.”
It’s the psychological side of coaching that builds up this mental resilience, which time and again proves to be that edge that defines champions.
Capping off his 2025 coaching season, Mahony was also appointed interim coach for the Culture Amp Australian BJK Cup team for the Play-offs last November.
“To go down there and just help out, even if it was just for the one time, that's it for me, I loved it," he said. "And to see them win and get through to the World Group for the next year was fantastic, that was the goal.”
Another marker of an excellent coach is the transcendental shift from coach to mentor. It’s going beyond the physicality of the sport to an investment in players’ overall wellbeing and career pathways.
Between 2020-2024, Mahony stood at the helm of the National Tennis Academy (NTA) College Program, which is considered the pinnacle of the Tennis Australia talent development pathway.
His role as director made him key in crafting the program’s objectives, with the aim to develop aspiring players into successful professionals. The program has seen the likes of Tristan Schoolkate, Talia Gibson, Taylah Preston and Rinky Hijikata participate, among many more.
Beyond his role as director, Mahony's dedication to shaping tomorrow’s top players continues through his current position as NTA Coach and Head of US College.