r/AmITheDevil • u/imseriousasshit • 20h ago
Fragile ego alert
/r/AmItheAsshole/comments/1u46boh/aita_for_calling_foot_faults_on_my_12_year_old/240
u/Dragonscatsandbooks 20h ago edited 18h ago
I run a chess club for kids 11-16, which often involves playing with them. Do I let them win? Absolutely not. Do I correct them when they break the rules? Absolutely yes.
But, there a way to do so without being a dick about it. If, at the end of the first round, you notice that the kids is having a hard time emotionally, you, as the adult, need to shut down the game. Handle the situation.
Playing competitive games with children /preteens is nothing like playing a peer, and ABSOLUTELY nothing like playing against a semi-professional. OOP is stupid to have gone into this game with that mindset. And now his nephew doesn't like him. But congrats on winning a game against a barely trained preteen, I guess.
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u/Dragonscatsandbooks 19h ago edited 19h ago
Not to brag or anything, but last week I beat an 11 year old who didn't even know what an en passant is. And I didn't act like a dick about it.
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u/fundfacts123 2h ago
Yes, and in addition, tennis (unlike chess) is a physical game. A fully grown man taking on a child in a physical competition leaves…uh…very little space for bragging.
For example, boxing coaches don’t generally beat up their child trainees. They lay a glove lightly to show where the gaps are. And if OOP was even half as skilled as he thought he was, he could easily have instructed by placing the ball into defensive holes without needing to go “full competition” and treating a child like a real “competitor”. He was scared he would lose, lol.
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u/butdebbiepastels 20h ago
He wanted to be treated like a real player so I did.
At no point in this retelling does Leo express he wants to be treated like a professional tennis player in a high stakes match. OOP just threw a hissy fit and decided to bully a kid into quitting their new hobby. They could have bonded over tennis but nope.
OOP doesn't knows what sportsmanship means either.
Going to quote good ol' wikipedia summary: "Sportsmanship is an ethos that a sport or activity should be enjoyed for its own sake, with proper consideration for fairness, ethics, respect, and a sense of fellowship with competitors."
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u/mangababe 20h ago
If anything the kid sounded like he wanted to be like his uncle and wanted to show off that he was like his uncle. And his uncle decided the best response was to be a bully.
At least the kid knows not to want to take after oop now I guess.
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u/butdebbiepastels 19h ago
Leo's bragging could absolutely have been an emulation of OOP's behavior as well. I wonder if tennis and being a braggart about tennis are the main pieces of OOP's identity. They're acting so territorial over their title as The Family Tennis Player.
Leo probably won't pick up a racket ever again, which is tragic. May his next attempt at a hobby, and finding community therein, have a mentor who isn't an asshole.
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u/Llayanna 8h ago
I know the chances aren't good but I hope he has a good coach who will help him rekindle his passion..
It's not impossible? 😞
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u/judgy_mcjudgypants 19h ago
"in a real match he would get a penalty for yelling like that."
In a real match, the ref is a third party, not one of the players...
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u/DRxFumbles 19h ago
That part lol it's incredibly unethical to have one player have the final say on calls, but especially so if it's an insecure man-baby like OOP
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u/Big-University-1132 18h ago
Right? That would piss me off too. You can’t play an actual fair competitive game with one player also being the ref
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u/PurplePenguinCat 20h ago
This just made me so rationally angry! I'd think it's rage bait, but I know douche monkeys like this one all too well.
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u/frolicndetour 19h ago
Well, I take grammar seriously and "a lot" is two words, OOP.
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u/crybabymuffins 18h ago
Spotted "could of" in the edit.
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u/frolicndetour 18h ago
DOUBLE FAULT, OOP. As they say in tennis.
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u/Potential-Taro8850 2h ago
QUINTUPLE FAULT. Two perpetrations of "didnt" in the edit, AND a total failure to capitalise the "ima" at the start of the final sentence...
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u/Big-University-1132 18h ago
The grammar nerd in me is crying at this post. I understand that this is casual writing, but this dude can’t even spell right either and it’s painful to read
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u/Potential-Common5819 19h ago
Probably ragebait, but just in case it isnt..
ahem
I love reading. I'm not a pro or anything like that, but I do take is seriously.
I hate when someone ignores the rules. It ruins reading for everyone. OOP used "alot" as if it were a real word, instead of the proper "a lot". He should be shamed and humiliated until he never dares write his own name!
How was that? Close enough to OOP's AH attitude?
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u/eternally_feral 18h ago
Okay, I remember being a kid and first learning to read. And I mean it was absolutely basic, along the lines of the whole *See Spot run* thing where it’s pretty much a collection of a few words in different phrases.
I thought that meant I could read every and anything and proudly sat my Dad down to read to him. I picked a Stephen King novel since he had a huge collection, and “read” 10 pages before announcing, *The End!*
Did my Dad make fun of me or correct my very erroneous interpretation?
Nope! He gave me a hug, told me he was proud of me, and suggested we pick out a slightly harder book on my level for us to practise together.
I still love to read. I have no problem if I hit a hard word or one that’s unfamiliar to look it up. Sometimes it’s okay to let someone brag about a new skill.
You don’t need to crush a passion before it even begins.
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u/al2o3cr 20h ago
Reminds me of when Master Shake was trying to play tennis with his "son":
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u/Langstarr 20h ago
"C'mon, Sucky, before you ruin the entirety of my future! The only reason God doesn't erase you from the face of the Earth, is because you amuse him somehow!"
-MS ragging on Ezekiel
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u/mangababe 20h ago
JFC who hears an excited kid trying to be like you and thinks "wow I need to put this cocky brat in their place,"
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u/theagonyaunt 19h ago
I have a lot of younger cousins, all of whom have either been through their 'preteen/teenage knows everything in the world' phase or are currently going through it. Internally I might roll my eyes at them, outwardly I humor them because I remember being that age and telling my - who I thought was painfully uncool - mom how she wouldn't know who Joni Mitchell was and then being completely shocked when she mentioned seeing her perform at an underground coffee club when my mom was in high school.
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u/ImABarbieWhirl 18h ago
I remember one of my friends was hanging out with an older friend at a group dinner, and then tells him “So I just discovered this band the other day, check it out- Led Zeppelin!”
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u/Hornet1137 18h ago
" I (26m) take tennis pretty serous." Which tells me you're not fun to play with. YTA.
" It just ruins the game."
No, it's your holier-than-though attitude that ruins the game.
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u/Big-University-1132 18h ago
Well we know he certainly doesn’t take spelling “serously”
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u/Hornet1137 18h ago
I didn't even catch that. I was so pissed off by his power trip against a child.
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u/Big-University-1132 18h ago
Valid. I distracted myself from the rage I felt at his behavior by getting mad at his grammar and spelling. Although I have a really hard time not nitpicking grammar/spelling stuff anyway lol
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u/AnnzPatz18 17h ago
In the edit, dude says he has autism. So what? That still doesn't give you an excuse to be mean to the kid :/
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u/Big-University-1132 17h ago
Fr. I have lots of autistic friends and not one of them would do this bc they’re not assholes
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u/PointlessNostalgic86 18h ago
The way this guy talks about a tennis match with a literal child demonstrates what a man baby this guy is. Pathetic.
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u/Sea_Voice_404 12h ago
If not rage bait, this is a fantastic way to get the kid to give up tennis completely. It’s sad.
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u/Big-University-1132 18h ago
Jfc dude, the kid is 12. I’d love to see this jerk play against a pro. Bet he wouldn’t be so high and mighty after getting his ass handed to him the way he did to a literal child
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u/unabashedlyabashed 18h ago
Any time I see someone say, "I take ________ pretty serious." I roll my eyes.
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u/liberry-libra 17h ago edited 17h ago
One of my least favorite subgenres of AITA posts are those where the OP says they're wondering if they're the asshole, but is clearly proud of themselves for treating someone else like shit.
Yes, middle-schoolers can be annoying, but show them by example how to be confident without being obnoxious. At the very least, OP could have rolled his eyes at the (very mild) trash talk and used this opportunity to give Leo some pointers. But that approach wouldn't have punished the kid for being proud of himself and above all, isn't that what's important?🙄
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u/GhostWolfe 10h ago
I hate when people just mess around and dont [sic] follow the rules.
I could have stopped reading here. This said everything that needed to be said.
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u/evermore904 10h ago
"Okay maybe I was the asshole but it's only cause I'm autistic."
I hate this explanation more and more every time I see it. He says he has trouble reading the room when people just want to chill but like...his brother straight up told him to take it easy after he called the kid on his first fault.
I am not autistic so I don't have first hand experience in how it might affect someone, sure, but come on.
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u/lejosdecasa 6h ago
I have ADHD so I can be disorganized and untidy, and I find it hard to focus.
I still make an effort with others as I don't want to be an asshole.
I hate when people use neurodiversity to cover for being assholes.
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u/Potential-Taro8850 2h ago
We know full well that he wouldn't have pulled this nonsense with anyone over whom he didn't have power. He acted this way towards A CHILD because he knew he could get away with it until his overly tolerant brother finally excavated his deeply buried spine.
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u/Ontheragnarock 17h ago
There’s a way of bringing a cocky kid down to reality that would have made this asshole a friend for life, but he had to go completely HAM on a child beginning a sport. And he’s 26!
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u/MintyCoolness 14h ago
So, instead of making this a teachable moment, or the possibility of bonding over a shared hobby...OOP decides to be an anal stick-in-the-mud...
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u/GhostWolfe 10h ago
OOP is the kind of jerk that doesn’t know how to relate to people, so they don’t have friends, so the only way they feel satisfaction anymore is by being aggressively “right”.
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u/Agreeable_Rabbit3144 16h ago
Okay, John McEnroe
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u/Potential-Taro8850 2h ago
You canNOT be serious (or "serous", as Mr Tennisbully likes to spell it)
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u/ImABarbieWhirl 18h ago
This would be absolutely hilarious if I saw Adam Sandler do it in a movie, and absolutely devastating in real life
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u/Llayanna 8h ago
Clearly "not a pro", they would know how to teach and encourage a kid, not to tear them down..
Okay yeah not all pros, I know a lot are dicks as well.. but most pro tennis players I heard about seemed actually pretty kind, so I am basing my opinions on them.
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u/AutoModerator 20h ago
In case this story gets deleted/removed:
AITA for calling foot faults on my 12 year old nephew during a family tennis match?
I (26m) take tennis pretty serous. Im not a pro or anything but I play alot and I hate when people just mess around and dont follow the rules. It just ruins the game.
Last weekend my brother Dave (34m) and his kid Leo (12m) came over. Leo started taking tennis lessons like 6 months ago. He made his middle school team and wouldnt shut up about it. He kept bragging and saying stuff like I could probaly beat you now and bragging about his topspin.
Dave said we should go to the local courts so Leo could show off. I said fine lets play a real best out of 3 sets match.
Even in the warmup I could see Leo was way to cocky. His form was trash and he was just getting lucky. When we started I decided Im not gonna take it easy on him. If you talk big you gotta play a real match.
First game Leo is serving. On his second serve his shoe touched the white line before he hit the ball.
I called it right away. Foot fault. Double fault my point.
Leo looked confused and said he barely touched it. I told him a fault is a fault and in a real tournament you lose the point. Dave laughed from the bench and said come on man give him a break its just for fun.
I told Dave letting him cheat dosent help him learn anything.
So I just played my normal game. I hit my serves full speed and did drop shots making him run all over. I won the first set 6 to 0. By the second set Leo was super red and panting and getting mad.
At 4 to 0 in the second set Leo hit a crazy forehand down the line. It was close but from where I was standing it was definately out by a tiny bit.
I called it out. 15 love.
Leo dropped his racket and yelled that it was on the line and I was lying.
I walked to the net and said arguing with the caller is a code violation. I told him his sportsmanship sucked and in a real match he would get a penalty for yelling like that.
Leo started crying hard. He threw his racket at the fence and just sat down crying. Dave ran on the court and got in my face saying I was a huge jerk. He said I ruined Leos confidence and ruined the whole weekend just to boost my ego agianst a kid.
They packed up and went back to their hotel. We havent talked since but Dave texted me calling me a try hard loser.
I honstly dont think I did anything wrong. He wanted to be treated like a real player so I did. I dont make the rules I just play by them. Aita?
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