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.

DEREK VAN DEN BERG, Director of Tennis

Derek comes to us from Edmonton where his last role was as Technical Director of Tournaments and Provincial Programming with Tennis Alberta. Derek has been playing tennis since he was fourteen years old and coaching for more than fifteen years. He obtained his Club Pro 2 certification by the time he was twenty two, while he was coaching at the Royal Glenora Club. Since then he worked and trained at an academy in Barcelona working with professional level juniors and adults. He has also recently completed the first level of his GPTCA certification, an ATP-level accreditation for working with internationally ranked juniors who are looking to transition to the pro tour.

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 eleventh 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.

aNDY nGUYEN, Tennis Professional

Andy has over 25 years of tennis experience, starting his coaching career in 2000 with the Ho Chi Minh City children's team. After graduating with an MBA in Malaysia, he moved to Saskatoon in 2020. Andy is proud to join the coaching staff at Lakewood Indoor Tennis Club for the 2021-2022 season. Andy’s tennis achievements include Runner-up MS4.0 HCM Industry Open 2015 and winning both MS and MD 3.5 at the Riverside Provincial Open in Saskatoon in 2021.