If there’s one thing to know about Alex Clayton, it’s that he’s no amateur. Clayton, a freshman on the Stanford men’s tennis team, is one of the most highly-touted Cardinal recruits in some time and is already showing that he can live up to the hype.

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Freshman Alex Clayton has had a strong start to his college career and looks only to get better. #gallery http://daily.stanford.org/image/full/8062
Eddie Martinez

Freshman Alex Clayton has had a strong start to his college career and looks only to get better.

A native of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Clayton began playing tennis with his dad and brother at the age of five, but did not seriously focus on the sport until he was 12. From there, it was off and running for him, as he began to practice and train at the United States Tennis Association (USTA) center in Key Biscayne, Fla. — one of the biggest and most prestigious tennis centers in the country.

“My life in Florida was great,” Clayton said. “Key Biscayne is 30 minutes away from my home, so it was really convenient.”

Clayton competed nationally and internationally with the USTA, traveling to tournaments in Europe, South America, and Australia. Of the many highlights of his young career before Stanford, none seems bigger than his doubles victory in the Junior Boys Division at the 2005 U.S. Open. Playing on one of the biggest tennis stages in the world, Clayton teamed with Donald Young (now a professional) to claim the title.

Clayton also won the Boys 18 year-old division USTA national Claycourt Championship in 2005 and has had a semifinal appearance in another grand slam — the Australian Open.

The standout freshman is ranked in the top 50 internationally for his age-group and top-20 in the United States. He was even chosen by Stanford alum and tennis legend Patrick McEnroe to be a hitting partner with the U.S. Davis Cup team.

“That was a great experience,” Clayton said. “I got to hang out with the Bryan brothers [Bob and Mike Bryan, both former Cardinal players], [James] Blake, and [Andy] Roddick. It was great.

“Winning the [Claycourt championship], the US Open doubles and being a Davis Cup hitting partner are my biggest thrills so far.”

But the past is behind Clayton, who begins a new chapter at Stanford as the subject of quite a bit of publicity.

“I do like the attention of being hyped a little,” he said. “It gives me extra incentive to work harder.”

Usually the new freshmen need to get accustomed to playing at the collegiate level and adjust to the bigger and stronger players, but Clayton is not worried.

“I have been playing pro events so now I am playing a lot of guys that I played with in the juniors,” he said.

Clayton certainly seems to be comfortable on the NCAA scene so far. In his first collegiate tournament at the ITA All-American Championships, he made a run to the quarterfinals, taking down some of the top players in the country.

The freshman has been welcomed onto the Stanford team as a positive contribution to both practice and match play.

“Alex is a good guy and a great guy to have on the team,” said teammate junior Jeff Zeller. Zeller has been on the team long enough to witness some talented players come through Stanford and puts Clayton right up there with them.

In two weeks at the National Indoor Championships, Clayton will once again face some of the toughest players in the nation. But Clayton is no stranger to competitive environments and high-level tennis. He welcomes the challenge and is looking forward to playing with his teammates who have also qualified.

“[Clayton] loves to hang out with the guys and have fun, but when it comes down to competition, he’s ready to play and puts forth his best effort,” Zeller said. “If he keeps his play up that he showed at [the ITA All-Americans] he won’t lose many matches this year.”

Maybe that time should be extended to four years. After all, the guy is just a freshman.