Private Tennis Lessons & Coaches in Ashton Sandy Spring, MD

Passionate tennis player and experienced coach dedicated to helping players of all ages and skills levels take their game to the next level. My coaching blends precise technical training, modern match, strategy, and high-energy conditioning tailored to your personal goals.

Coach AJ Yamin hails from Caracas, Venezuela, better known to his students as Coach AJ, is widely known as one of the top tennis coaches in the DMV area. As a junior player AJ traveled in the South American COSAT tour, played #1 for North Allegheny High School in Pittsburgh, PA and college tennis in the Midwest. With over 38 years of playing and 27 years of coaching experience under his belt, AJ is presently a tennis instructor at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and The Country Club of Fairfax in Fairfax County Virginia. Prior to moving to the region, Coach AJ taught at Sutton East Tennis Club in New York City and Total Tennis in Saugerties, at the beautiful Catskill mountains of upstate New York. Attended Graceland University on a full tennis scholarship between 1997 and 2001, where he was a nationally ranked NAIA Division player and team captain, leading the Yellow Jackets to its highest team ranking of #7 in the nation. Coach AJ is currently a member of the International tennis team for the Departmental Tennis League or DTL. The DTL is composed of federal agencies and other government organizations in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. The league was founded in 1915, DTL is consider the oldest tennis league in the US. Coach AJ has been a DTL champion 3 times, 2007 & 2008 with the United States Patent & Trademark Office team , 2022 with the World Bank team. Coach AJ has been a USTA Certified Tournament Director since 2003, and has served in that capacity at hundreds of events in the junior circuit, averaging, over 2,000 players a year. Coach AJ is also a Universal Tennis Rating Tournament Director and in 2023 became a certified UTR Paid Hits professional. Apart from his two current roles, Coach AJ has volunteered two seasons as the former Head Coach at Hayfield Secondary High School in Alexandria, Virginia, leading the HAWKS twice to the Virginia High School League Tennis Regional Tournament 2006 & 2021. AJ holds a dual degree in Business Administration and Information Technology, with a Master of Science in Management of Information Systems.

I began playing tennis before I could walk. By age 11 I competed year-round in the Texas Junior Circuit. From age 9 to 13 I was coached by the greats John Wilkerson and Edgar Arnold and was on track to begin competing nationally by age 14. I have competed in tennis, football, and baseball at the collegiate, and professional levels for the majority of my life.

I’ve been a Floridian my entire life until I made the move up to Virginia last Spring with my wife and 3 dogs. I’ve been a certified athletic trainer, high school teacher and tennis coach for the past 20 years. I became a USPTA teaching professional about 10 years ago and have taught kids as young as 5 to adults as old as 65. I’ve coached the Gainesville High School girls tennis team the past 2 years. I believe tennis is truly a sport of a lifetime that can be enjoyed by all ages and abilities.