The United States Tennis Association has announced that local mental training coach Bob Litwin has been picked for the 2005 United States Men's 55 Tennis Team. The US will compete in this year's Australia Cup international tennis competition in Perth, Australia March 27 to April 1. Litwin, a nine time USTA National Champion, is currently ranked #2 in the World by the ITF.

Litwin coaches in Great Neck and played tennis for Great Neck South High School.

Last September he helped the team win a silver medal by winning all five of his matches when the competition took place in Philadelphia. Additionally, he was a finalist in the ITF World Championships at the same site. Due to the Yom Kippur holiday he defaulted the finals to Thomas Koch of Brazil costing himself a chance to achieve the World's #1 ranking. He has been selected to the team on the basis of his 2004 record which included winning the USTA National Grass Singles and Doubles Championships, this, for the second year in a row and in amassing a 40-3 singles record. Litwin is undefeated in Eastern play in his age group since 1998. He is looking to help bring the Cup back to the US when the team competes against some of the world's top men's tennis teams on the grass in Perth. This prestigious Cup determines the World Team Champions, similar to the Davis Cup. He will be joined on this year's Cup team by Brian Cheney, Arizona, Larry Turville and Neal Newman, both of Ohio.

Mr. Litwin is a tennis professional and mental training coach who teaches athletes how to get and stay focused. He is the senior professional at Port Washington Yacht Club and a USTA High Performance Coach at Robbie Wagner's Tournament Training in Glen Cove.