Bellmore Student Competes in U.S. Open

He may not have gotten the result he wanted, but tennis player Noah Rubin fulfilled a lifelong dream last week by having the opportunity to compete in the U.S. Open.

The 15-year-old, who completed his freshman year at  Kennedy High School, lost in the final round of qualifying for the Boy’s Singles Competition, but found his way onto the U.S. Open courts after receiving a wildcard into the main draw of the Boy’s Doubles Competition, where he lost in the opening round.

“It was kind of surreal because a lot of the kids who are ball boys here are friends of mine, and they were the ones handing me my towel and holding the umbrella at change-overs,”  Rubin said. “Even though we lost, having the chance to play in the US Open was an unbelievable experience.”

The experience was surreal for Rubin’s father, Eric, as well, who has been an integral part of his tennis career from the beginning.

“We used to take him to the US Open as a kid and now I’m here, but actually watching him play on these courts,”  Eric Rubin said. “You can’t even put it into words.”

Tennis has been a part of Rubin’s life almost from birth. Eric Rubin was the No. 1 singles player at Martin Van Buren High School in Queens, and wanted to instill a love for the game in his son. He put a ball in Rubin’s crib as a baby and by the time he was seven-months-old, Rubin was hitting the ball from a rope hung on to the ceiling.

Rubin shifted his time between Merrick and Rockville Centre while training at several of the Sportime branches throughout Long Island with his long-time coach, Lawrence Kleger. By the time he was seven, Rubin was already competing in 12-and-under events. By the time Rubin was 11, he had won international events in his age-group.

“I can safely say that of the kids born in 1986 in the U.S., Noah is the No. 1 kid,”  Kleger said, in an interview with Newsday. “And with his international results, he is, I’d say, one of the top 10 kids [of his age] in the world.”

Most recently, Rubin has been getting advance from former world No. 1 John McEnroe at his Sportime branch in Randall’s Island, with the tennis legend referring to Rubin as the most talented player in the academy.

After winning an international event in California earlier this year, Rubin’s family made the decision to take the tennis prodigy out of  Kennedy High School  and enroll him in online classes so that he can play more tournaments throughout the year.

“In some ways, online school will be more beneficial for him because I was going to his school twice a week and picking up these huge packets of homework, then sending it by snail mail to where ever he was in the world for a tournament,” Eric Rubin said. “He was having to teach himself, which is almost impossible for certain subjects.”

For now, Rubin is looking at playing in a series of top-level junior tournaments this fall. He plans to play college tennis in the future, but the long-term goal has always remained the same.”

“If I could play professionally someday, that would be a dream come true,” Rubin said.