Whenever I went out of my house (apartment) in the Bronx my mother would always admonish me with this saying, "Play nice!"

I thought about it while watching the "Williamsless" US Open at Flushing Meadow. The tennis was wonderful and the talent level was absolutely superb. However, one thing made me very uncomfortable and I wish there was an intelligent way of stopping this gross practice.

It is the boorish practice of "fist pumping."

The player who has just won the point, the game or the set, balls up his/her fingers into a fist and pumps it into the air. To me it represents a threatening gesture and it clashes with the genteel game of tennis.

Who is this action aimed at?

Is it a motion to frighten the gods?

Is it meant to frighten the opposition and impress the fans?

Is it a statement of superiority over a beaten foe?

Is it meant to bolster the confidence of the "pumper"?

The pumped fist can take many forms:

* the fist is held in front of the body and clenched.

* the fist (the right hand) is beaten against the abdomen in the cardiac vicinity to show "great heart."

* the roundhouse fist is a clenching of the fingers and swung in a 360 degree circle for emphasis.

* the uppercut into the air.

* other disgusting individual manifestations.

I am reminded of the NY (NJ?) Jets lineman Mark Gastineau who stood over the downed quarterback and flailed the air. The National Football League eventually banned this unsportsmanlike demonstration.

Tennis (the USTA) should ban this practice.

Not to be totally negative, there is one thing I do think is wonderful. It is the blowing of kisses to the spectators by the tennis players. It shows an appreciation for the fans who have paid good money and sat through the performance. I like it!

While I am on my "soap box," I think that John McEnroe should become the Czar of Tennis. He is straightforward and his ideas are well grounded in the game. As a player he was a "brat" but I enjoy his commentary and I am almost always in agreement.

I am very happy and unburdened after I have placed my ideas on paper and you, my reader, have seen them.

P.S. Thanks to all of my fans who attended the stand-up session at Castle Senior Living. You are wonderful and Lorraine and I love you all.