Staff

Leo Liendo, Facility Owner

Leo leads Lakewood with an incredible passion for tennis that he has carried with him throughout his 40-year career. Leo is a Tennis Canada Certified Coach 3 and a member of the Tennis Professionals Association. As well, he is a Tennis Canada Course Facilitator and a Certified Wheelchair Tennis Instructor. As the facility owner, Leo brings an extensive coaching background with experience at provincial, national, and international levels.

Leo began his coaching career working with nationally-ranked junior players in Venezuela. He moved to Ontario in 1987 and coached at several top clubs in Toronto before being selected as a Provincial Coach for the Ontario Tennis Association. After moving to Saskatoon in 2003, Leo worked as Director of Tennis at Lakewood for 13 years, and has owned the facility since 2005. Leo was chosen as the National Wheelchair Tennis Coach for Tennis Canada and led our Women’s team at the 2010 World Team Championships. As well, Leo has represented Saskatchewan as the Head Coach of our Provincial Teams at three Canada Summer Games (2009, 2013, 2017), three Western Canada Games (2004, 2011, 2015), and many National events.

Leo has been recognized for his work and commitment to the sport with four Tennis Canada Coaching Excellence Awards (2006, 2008, 2009, 2010). Leo’s goal is to further the development of Lakewood at both the competitive and recreational levels. He hopes our facility will be a place where you can both further develop your tennis skills and feel at home.

LUKE MANLEY, Director of Tennis

Luke Manley grew up in Edmonton, Alberta playing junior tennis at an international level. Luke has played tournaments around the world as a top 5 junior in Canada with multiple national appearances and played in the Canadian Summer Games. That led to the opportunity to play for the University of Denver division 1 men’s tennis team for 2 years, playing as high as #4 in singles and #2 in doubles for the team. While in Denver Luke studied Business Management. Luke also has a men’s singles career high of #1 in Alberta and #27 in Canada with the highlight being winning the Alberta Open provincials. Luke’s men’s doubles career high was #1 in Alberta and #43 in Canada.

Luke has spent the last 8 years finishing his business management degree and coaching at multiple tennis clubs. Luke has worked as a professional at the Royal Glenora Club, the head professional at the Capilano Tennis Club and the Laurier Heights Tennis Club. He has his coach 1 certification and has coached multiple senior national champions as well as a player that was top 4 in Canada in juniors.

Brandon Smith, club Manager

Prior to joining Lakewood, Brandon completed his Recreation Management Diploma through Saskatchewan Polytechnic and a Bachelor of Sport and Recreation Studies, Sport Management Major from the University of Regina. This is Brandon's tenth year at Lakewood and in addition to being the Club Manager he is a Tennis Canada Certified Instructor and a Member of the Tennis Professionals Association.

Coaching Team

Mark Halsted, Tennis Professional

Raised in Thornhill, Ontario, Mark grew up playing tennis at Panoma Valley Tennis Club, eventually becoming a summer tennis camp instructor for the Town of Richmond Hill. After moving to Saskatoon in 2006, Mark trained and mentored under both international coach Lubos Dostal and Lakewood’s own Leo Liendo. Mark is a Tennis Canada Certified Club Professional 1 and a member of the Tennis Professionals Association. In addition to coaching, Mark also works as a Racquet Stringer, both at Lakewood and the Saskatoon Professional Futures Event, and is a member of our Front Desk Staff.