MacTen (Carl Maes Tennis Academy)

Snapshot

MacTen is the training project of Belgian coach Carl Maes, best known for guiding Kim Clijsters through a formative rise and later return to the top of the women’s game. Based inside Sportcomplex Ghistelehof in Gistel, West Flanders, the academy was built to be intimate, technically demanding, and rooted in a genuine members’ club rather than a closed campus. That design choice shapes everything. Players train in a compact, high touch environment with enough court time and gym access to make progress every week of the year. Competition is close, the commute is manageable, and the coaching voice is consistent. The tone on court is practical and demanding without theatrics, which suits families who want substance over show.

How MacTen began

After major roles in professional and national team tennis, Maes returned to Belgium determined to create a program that prioritized clarity. He wanted fewer buzzwords and more observable progress. The blueprint was straightforward: stay small, hire coaches who communicate simply, keep sessions focused on how points are actually won, and build the week around a player’s real life with school, travel, and recovery. MacTen opened at Ghistelehof with a lean staff and has stayed deliberately compact. The result is a program that relies on experience and the quality of the coaching conversation rather than flashy facilities. Parents notice two things quickly. First, the head coach is present and engaged. Second, the plan in week one looks like the plan in week ten, only sharper.

Gistel and the North Sea light

Gistel sits a short drive inland from the North Sea, within easy reach of Bruges and Ostend. The microclimate matters for tennis. Summers are mild enough to work long blocks on clay without oppressive heat. Winters can be wet and breezy, which demands a rhythm of indoor training that tightens footwork, spacing, and timing. That seasonal swing is a feature, not a flaw. It teaches players to adjust height and shape on outdoor clay, then to trust first strike patterns and take time away on indoor hard courts when the weather turns. Belgium’s compact geography keeps competition close. National junior and adult events are dense within a short radius, and cross border travel to France, the Netherlands, or Germany is realistic without marathon drives. For families juggling school, that means more matches and fewer lost days.

Facilities that serve the work

MacTen operates entirely inside Sportcomplex Ghistelehof, a working club with enough of everything and not much excess. The tennis footprint includes four indoor hard courts with clean LED lighting and five outdoor courts, including four clay and one all season surface. The combination makes it possible to train on mixed surfaces across a single week. Players might repeat a serve plus one pattern indoors in the morning, then practice higher, heavier crosscourt trajectories on clay in the afternoon. The club also includes a functional strength area and access to indoor cycling, which allows conditioning blocks to be stitched into the day rather than bolted on as an afterthought. The clubhouse is simple, with viewing areas and spaces to regroup between sessions. It is not a luxury resort. It is a base of operations that keeps the plan moving.

For families who drive in, logistics are easy. The address is Zomerloosstraat 48, 8470 Gistel. Parking is straightforward, the E40 corridor is close, and the layout of the complex makes transitions quick. That practicality matters on a Tuesday evening when a player needs a bite to eat before a second hit or when a younger sibling has to set up for homework while training finishes.

Coaching staff and philosophy

MacTen’s central asset is the coaching brain trust anchored by Carl Maes. The staff shares a simple philosophy: technique serves tactics, and both must hold up under pressure. Lessons are designed to answer the question that matters in real matches. How does this player win points against the opponents they actually face, on the surfaces they actually play? Video is used to confirm a cue rather than to chase a perfect aesthetic. Shadow swings are limited. Feeding is purposeful and brief. Live ball starts early and dominates the hour.

The coaching voice is direct. Players are given a narrow focus and taught to self correct. For example, a forehand block might target launch angle and spacing. The staff will embed that single change inside a pattern that forces decisions: defend out of the backhand corner, reset to neutral, then look for inside forehand to change direction. The feedback loop is fast. If the spacing slips or the ball flattens too much, the player hears exactly why the pattern broke and what fix to try on the next rep.

How a session is built

A typical 90 minute block starts with movement and a specific constraint. That might be two crosscourt targets no deeper than a taped service box for height control on clay, or a first ball drive to the backhand at a set depth line for indoor hard. The middle third of the session layers in decision making, often with score and time. The final third is live point play with consequences. Miss the change of direction long twice in a row and you run the short punishment that fits the week’s conditioning theme. Players learn to live with managed stress.

Strength and conditioning is connected to the tactical plan. If a player is building a heavier backhand crosscourt to pin opponents, the gym may emphasize rotational power and footwork patterns that create space early. If serve plus one is the focus, the gym might emphasize vertical force and posterior chain work. That connection keeps the week coherent.

Programs and who they fit

MacTen stays agile by keeping a compact menu and tailoring the load to each player’s season.

• Full Time Performance Pathway
  A year round track for tournament juniors and early pros. Expect four to five on court sessions per week, two to four strength units, and match play on both indoor hard and outdoor clay. The tournament calendar is individualized, with the staff advising on national events and international opportunities that match readiness. Video sessions are scheduled as needed rather than as a ritual, so they sharpen the coaching point rather than distract from it.

• After School Performance Groups
  For regional and national juniors balancing school and competition. Sessions run late afternoon or early evening two to four days per week, with optional weekend match play. Emphasis falls on reliable volume, serve and return clarity, and decision making under fatigue. Coaches keep group sizes small to preserve feedback quality.

• Holiday Camps and Intensives
  One week blocks that combine technical tune ups with lots of hitting. Players leave sharper than they arrived. Expect scenario training, scoring constraints, and a closing match day that converts lessons into results.

• Adult Competitive Clinics
  Small group sessions for motivated adults who want more than casual rallies. Clinics target serve patterns, return quality, net approach choices, and doubles court craft. The tone is still serious, and the feedback is honest.

• Pro Blocks and Preseason Weeks
  Concentrated training bursts for pros and collegiate players. Coaches identify one or two patterns that cost games last season, strip them down with feeding, rebuild with live ball, and carry the new habit into match play. Conditioning is tailored to the upcoming calendar, with taper and recovery planned into the block.

Private lessons can be paired with any track when a player is rewriting a stroke or making a grip change that needs extra oversight.

Player development framework

MacTen organizes development around five pillars that are simple to describe and demanding to execute.

• Technical: Make small, observable changes fast, then test them under live ball. Players learn what a good miss looks like and how to keep margin while raising pace. On clay, that often means height and shape with depth control. Indoors, it means early preparation and trusted first strike mechanics.

• Tactical: Every player learns two or three core patterns that win them points. Those patterns are adapted by surface and opponent. Sessions stress neutral to offense decisions, protection of weaker patterns, and how to build pressure without gifting short balls.

• Physical: Strength and conditioning underpins the tactical plan. Sessions target on court demands rather than generic fitness. Players build repeatable acceleration, rotational power, and endurance that transfers to long matches.

• Mental: Pressure is woven into training with score, time, and consequences. Players practice between point routines, acceptance of disciplined margins, and quick resets after neutral errors. Simple tools, applied consistently, tend to hold in tournaments.

• Education: Communication with families is frank. If volume dips, if the calendar is too ambitious, or if school demands outstrip recovery, the staff says so and helps reorganize the week.

A week inside the academy

While every plan is customized, a representative week for a full time junior might look like this:

• Monday: AM indoor hard technical block on forehand spacing and first strike. PM gym session on lower body power and medicine ball rotations.
• Tuesday: AM clay patterns with heavy backhand crosscourt and height targets. PM study and mobility. Short evening match play.
• Wednesday: AM serve and return focus with clear percentage goals. PM aerobic conditioning on bike with short intervals.
• Thursday: AM defensive skills from the backhand corner into neutral. PM private lesson to lock a small technical cue.
• Friday: AM pattern consolidation indoors with live scoring. PM recovery with light mobility and video check.
• Saturday: Tournament or club match play, then recovery.
• Sunday: Rest or light movement depending on load.

Competition and tournament pathways

The academy takes advantage of Belgium’s dense calendar. Players can stack national events and club matches without exhausting travel. When a run of events is needed abroad, the staff helps map a series that makes sense for the player’s level and style rather than chasing points at random. The club setting helps juniors see league tennis up close, which normalizes pressure and teaches how to compete in front of people who know you. That matters more than most families expect.

Alumni and outcomes

MacTen is not a factory. It is a boutique, coach led program whose story is best understood through the career of the director. Maes has worked with world class athletes and has led multi tier programs that mix aspiring professionals, strong juniors, and committed club players. The practical value for families is the filter. He knows which details carry into matches and which do not, and he makes those distinctions daily. Many players use MacTen as a stable home base while stepping out to train or compete elsewhere for specific phases of the year. Others stay for years because the structure fits their life. The common thread is that progress is measured in patterns held under stress, not in hype.

Culture and community in a real club

Because MacTen lives inside a members’ club, players share the space with league teams, recreational players, and families. That ecosystem keeps athletes grounded. Juniors learn to be good citizens on court, to manage warm ups around other groups, and to compete with people watching from the next bay. Parents can observe without hovering. Younger siblings have places to sit, read, or do homework. The vibe is purposeful and calm. Training groups are small, typically two to four players for development blocks, with individual lessons scheduled at critical points in a player’s cycle.

Costs, accessibility, and practicalities

The club publishes court and membership pricing by season, which keeps facility access predictable for commuting families. Indoor lighting charges are transparent, so winter budgeting is not a surprise. Coaching fees vary based on program intensity and private lesson volume. Full time plans and pro blocks are quoted on request so that the schedule can align with school and travel. Most families arrange accommodation independently in the Ostend or Bruges area, where short let apartments and homestays are plentiful. The nearby E40 and regional rail connections keep weekend tournaments practical.

What sets MacTen apart

• A senior coaching voice: Sessions are organized by a coach who has worked at the top of the sport and who understands how to build durable habits without overcomplicating the message.
• A real club environment: Players train alongside a living community. The presence of league matches and club nights teaches athletes to handle noise, expectation, and accountability.
• Surface variety that develops complete players: Indoor hard sessions refine first strike clarity and timing. Outdoor clay builds height, shape, and patience. The weekly mix helps players translate form across surfaces without a shock when tournament season shifts.
• Sensible logistics: The address is easy to reach, the layout is efficient, and the schedule respects school demands. Less time lost to commuting means more time improving.

How MacTen compares on the European map

Belgium is rich in tennis expertise, and families often compare options before choosing a base. For a larger campus experience with extensive on site amenities, some look at the scale and visibility of the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy. For a Belgian alternative with a different structure and history, the high performance focus at the Justine Henin Academy offers a useful contrast in size and setting. Families who want to understand the broader development landscape in the country may also explore the Belgian Association for Tennis Development as part of their research. MacTen’s niche is smaller by design. It suits players who thrive in compact groups with a clear coaching voice and who prefer a real club atmosphere to a dedicated closed campus.

Future outlook and vision

MacTen is likely to remain small and ambitious. The program will continue to prioritize individualized schedules, surface specific learning, and the kind of simple, durable habits that survive scoreboard pressure. Technology will be used selectively to make coaching conversations sharper rather than noisier. The academy’s growth, if any, will track quality rather than headcount. That steady approach appeals to families planning not just a season but a multi year journey.

Is MacTen for you

Choose MacTen if you want a coach led environment where feedback is precise, training groups are small, and the weekly plan adapts to school and tournament commitments. It fits juniors who respond to direct instruction and who are ready to do a lot of live ball work on both clay and indoor hard. Adult competitors who want structured patterns and honest feedback will also find value. Families looking for a large campus with on site boarding and packaged services may prefer a different model. If your priority is a stable base in northern Europe with a high coaching standard and a grounded club culture, MacTen belongs on your shortlist.

Key facts at a glance

• Location: Sportcomplex Ghistelehof, Zomerloosstraat 48, 8470 Gistel, Belgium
• Courts: 4 indoor hard, 4 outdoor clay, 1 outdoor all season surface
• Lighting: LED indoors for consistent winter volume
• Gym and conditioning: on site functional strength area and indoor cycling
• Clubhouse: simple viewing and regrouping spaces
• Access: close to the E40 corridor, with easy links to Ostend and Bruges

In an era of glossy brochures and oversized promises, MacTen’s value proposition is refreshingly clear. It is a boutique academy anchored by an experienced coach, grounded in a real club, and organized to convert effort into habits that travel to matches. For many families, that is exactly the point.