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Founder of 359.tennis and developer of the 359 Method.
Roland Laurense has used tennis for over 25 years as a vehicle to develop people. From his experience in coaching, academy building, player development, teams and tennis education, the 359 Method emerged: Fit · Fun · Focus — focused on visible progress as a player and as a person.
For Roland, tennis has never been just a sport. Tennis makes visible how someone moves, learns, makes choices, deals with pressure and finds joy in development. That is why 359 is not about perfection, but about progress.
359, not 360 degrees: perfection is never the goal. There is always room for improvement, growth and progress.
The 359 Method uses tennis as a vehicle to build visible progress — as a player and as a person.
A career built in practice: his own academies, international player development, events and clinics, and ultimately one organisation with one method.
CIOS, the KNLTB A and B coaching qualifications and later the PTR qualification in the United States formed the technical base. What followed — building academies, international projects and events — shaped the rest.
Worked in the United States at Hilton Head with the Dennis van der Meer Academy and obtained his PTR qualification there.
Worked for a total of 8 years at Amstelpark, at the time a leading tennis academy in the Netherlands. He worked with many groups, organised events and coached competition teams up to top-division level in a high-performance tennis environment with strong players and young talents.
Obtained the KNLTB C licence — unusually early in his career.
Started his own academy under the name Laurense Tennis Academy BV at Amstelborgh / Borchland in Amsterdam.
The academy moved to Tennispark Buitenveldert.
The academy grew toward a second location at TV De Kegel in Amstelveen. Today this is still the home base where Roland coaches and where 359.tennis is active.
The foundation of the 359 Method was ready — born from a high-performance tennis environment, but developed for everyone seeking visible progress.
The first 359 coaches were trained internally according to the method.
More than 10 years on, the 359 Method is ready for broader growth and application — within tennis and potentially beyond.
Alongside coaching, Roland Laurense built several tennis organisations, brands and events over more than 25 years — both national and international. Laurense Tennis Academy, Tennis Academy Amsterdam, OUATT and Tennisteam Amstelveen were step by step merged into one organisation: 359.tennis at the National Tennis Centre (NTC) in Amstelveen.
Founded in 2005 at Amstelborgh / Borchland in Amsterdam, later continuing at Tennispark Buitenveldert and TV De Kegel. The foundation under everything that followed — and the company name the academy operated under for years.
The international high-performance line, with full-time players from Greece, India, England, Australia and the Netherlands among others, with tennisacademyamsterdam.com as its international platform.
→ Tennis Academy AmsterdamBuilt as his own events brand (ouatt.nl) for tournaments, clinics and PRO camps. Under this banner Roland organised the OUATT tournament and annual clinics around the ABN AMRO tournament in Rotterdam.
→ Clinics and events at 359Acquired and developed further (tennisteamamstelveen.nl): the local coaching organisation in Amstelveen grew into a structured programme for kids, juniors and adults — today part of 359.tennis.
→ Tennis lessons in AmstelveenRoland Laurense worked with former pro and Roland Garros finalist Martin Verkerk on clinics, events and tennis projects. That mix of high-performance atmosphere and an accessible set-up still shapes the 359 clinics and corporate events today.
International top coach (Monica Seles, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki, Bianca Andreescu and Botic van de Zandschulp among others) and involved in the international ambitions of Tennis Academy Amsterdam. Together with Roland: the OUATT tournament and annual clinics at the ABN AMRO tournament.
Former ATP professional (1994–2007, career-high world number 62, fourth round of Wimbledon 1998) and later a coach and commentator. He too was connected to the international ambitions of Tennis Academy Amsterdam.
What started as separate organisations, brands and projects now works as one system: 359.tennis. Lesson programmes for kids, juniors and adults, an academy line for talents, private and duo private lessons, international tennis camps at the NTC and clinics and corporate events — all built on the same 359 Method with Fit · Fun · Focus.
Alongside the coaching organisation and the academy, Roland Laurense built his own events business for years. Under the brand names Laurense Events, Martin Verkerk Tennis & Events and Tennis @ Night, tennis clinics, corporate events and experience camps were sold and organised — with Roland Garros finalist Martin Verkerk as the figurehead. That events experience now lives on in the clinics, corporate events and tennis camps of 359.tennis at the NTC in Amstelveen.
The events brand offering tennis clinics, corporate outings, team days and sponsor events. The accompanying domains were laurenseevents.nl and laurense.nl. The offer at the time, literally: “Experience a unique tennis lesson from Roland Garros finalist Martin Verkerk. DVD recording included.”
Set up together with former pro Martin Verkerk as a bookable concept: clinics, exhibition matches, meet-and-greets and corporate events with a genuine Roland Garros finalist on court. That mix of high-performance atmosphere and an accessible set-up is the direct blueprint for today's 359 clinics.
Provider of tennis-in-the-dark clinics: playing under black light with disco lighting, fluorescent balls and music. An in-house event format that turned tennis into an evening experience for teams, companies and clubs.
The tournament and clinic brand (ouatt.nl) behind the OUATT tournament and the annual clinics around the ABN AMRO tournament in Rotterdam.
Martin Verkerk reached the Roland Garros final in 2003 and rose to world number 14 that same year. After his professional career he worked on clinics, events and tennis projects, including with Roland Laurense. In interviews (AT5, Trouw) he spoke about raising the level of Dutch tennis and about paying more attention to the individual in player development — exactly the principle 359 applies today as Fit · Fun · Focus.
Coverage and footage from the Laurense Events and Martin Verkerk Tennis & Events period:
The events business did not disappear; it was absorbed into one organisation. Clinics, corporate events, team days and tennis camps are now organised by 359.tennis, with the same approach: a high-performance feel, a tight run sheet and a programme in which everyone takes part.
Laurense Groeneveld Events (LG Events) was the events company of Roland Laurense and Sven Groeneveld. Under that brand they ran the OUATT tournament (Once Upon A Time Tennis, ouatt.nl): an international junior tournament in which players competed only against peers born in the same year. LG Events also delivered tennis clinics and tennis events at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam and on grass in Rosmalen, a Masters in Amsterdam and the international country final in La Baule, France.
Footage from the LG Events and OUATT period. Click to play.
OUATT — Once Upon A Time Tennis (video record)
Footage of the OUATT junior tournament and the finals week around the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament.
LG Events — Roland Laurense and Sven Groeneveld
Video record from the LG Events period: clinics and events run by Roland Laurense together with Sven Groeneveld.
OUATT attracted a wide field of Dutch and international junior players. Among the participants were players who later moved into the professional circuit, including Jesper de Jong, who played the tournament several times. The full draw and results are still available in the tournament archive on toernooi.nl.
Participation in OUATT is historical context. 359.tennis makes no claim to the later results of individual players.
The tournament no longer exists, but its principle lives on at 359.tennis: compare players with their true peers rather than with a random age group, and treat tennis as an experience with a tight run sheet. The clinics, corporate events and tournament support 359 delivers at the NTC in Amstelveen come directly out of this events practice.
In 2012 Roland Laurense introduced floater tennis for the youngest children at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Ahoy. Floating balls, soft rackets and a low net: three- and four-year-olds hit their first ball within seconds.
That approach sits at the heart of how 359 works today. More movement, more fun and more learning moments per minute — Fit · Fun · Focus™ in practice, long before the method carried that name. What was tested on court in Ahoy with thousands of children now shapes our youngest groups at the NTC in Amstelveen.
The ball floats, the child moves. Queuing is replaced by hitting, running and catching.
Hitting the ball from minute one creates success. Fun drives the learning, it is not the reward.
Many repetitions in a short time. Children build hand-eye coordination, timing and confidence.
Our academy players travelled to the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam every year. Not only as spectators: they were given an exclusive look behind the scenes, at the production, the match statistics and the organisation around centre court.
The 359 Method did not come from theory, but from years of practice. Roland worked with children, adults, competition teams, young talents, recreational players, ambitious players and coaches. The same question kept returning: what does this player need to truly progress?
The answer became Fit · Fun · Focus — a practical system that aligns every lesson with the player's underlying drive. For young players with ambition, that takes shape in the Academy development pathway.
Energy, movement, body and resilience.
Joy, motivation, connection and experience.
Attention, learning, choices and confidence.
"Tennis has always been the vehicle for me, never the goal. The principles behind Fit · Fun · Focus — energy, enjoyment and focus as drivers of progress — work just as well off the court."
Roland intends to make the 359 Method available beyond tennis in the years ahead: other sports environments, education, teams and organisations focused on developing people. The method stays anchored in tennis as proven practice; applications beyond tennis are being explored step by step with selected partners.
Today 359.tennis is a premium tennis school and development environment at TV De Kegel / NTC Amstelveen. The approach is broadly applicable: for kids, juniors, adults, beginners, private lessons, the academy, tennis camps, expats, events and coaches.
High performance, development programs, presentations, entrepreneurship and events. From ABN AMRO Open clinics and corporate events to championships, beach tennis and daily on-court coaching — a visual impression of 20+ years of coaching, entrepreneurship and passion for the game.
"I don't believe in perfect players. I believe in people who want to grow. For me, tennis is the vehicle to make that growth visible."
Roland Laurense, founder of 359.tennis
From 359.tennis, Roland works daily with players, parents and coaches on visible progress. The 359 Method and Fit · Fun · Focus were developed through years of tennis lessons, academy-building and talent development — and continue to be refined here every week.
For players and parents who want to work directly with Roland on technique, mentality and progress within the 359 Method.
Plan an introductionFor coaches who want to learn how to apply the 359 Method and Fit · Fun · Focus — from lesson planning to player handover.
View coach educationCompany outings, team events and clinics at NTC Amstelveen — tennis as a vehicle to make energy, enjoyment and focus visible inside a team.
View tennis clinicsFor tennis schools, clubs, sports organisations and teams interested in the 359 Method, Roland develops broader applications through 359-Performance.com. 359.tennis remains the flagship proof environment where the method is applied daily.
Beyond tennis: the 359 Method for organisations