Ben Shelton had never traveled abroad until he was 20. In January, months after he turned pro, he spread his wings. His father and coach Bryan, a former pro, advocates patience. Bryan and his wife Lisa focused on ‘balance’ for their kids — Emma and Ben — rather than sporting prodigies.
“For us having a normal life, going to regular school and having friends (was important),” he said. “So we tried to put emphasis on those things before the sports stuff. It wasn’t so much that we were thinking that Ben or Emma would go on and play professional sports. It was more that we wanted them to be well-adjusted kids that love life, love people and wanted to get a good education.”
