Third singles, Division I, no tournament appearances 

You're not the best player on the team and you haven't quite realized it yet. Looks like your best chance at making it in professional tennis is as a ball person. But even that might be more difficult than you'd think.

First singles, NCAA Division-III Tournament appearances 

You had a great tennis career at one of the nation's top D-III programs, but you recently received your degree in mechanical engineering from the nation's top program. You can chalk that one up in the win column.

First singles, NCAA Division-II Tournament finalist 

You're a great player who took D-II tennis by storm. However, when you compare yourself against players from all over the world, that storm was more of a light drizzle. You'd make a great coach, though.

First singles, NCAA Division-I Tournament appearance 

You've played the NCAA tourney a few times but kept losing to the eventual champion. Unluckily for you. But there's still a chance—maybe you should ask them if they need a doubles partner?

First singles, NCAA Division-I Tournament finalist 

Your tennis swing is legendary, your tennis grunt makes small children cry, and your stats are Williams-level. Also, you have a pretty dazzling smile. Chances are, you'll make the cut at the ATP level, but good luck ever cracking the top twenty. Or fifty. Or one hundred. Hey, you've never been one to back down on a good challenge.

Ever hear the phrase, "one in a million"? Well, you'll need to be exactly that if you want to go pro. Think about the best high school athlete in your district of 10 high schools. The absolute Big Man in the area. He gets headhunted so hard by colleges that he can barely spare time for his school work, let alone friends. Then, he gets into college and is a total all star there...of the 12 best all stars on his team that year. Well, guess, what? Only one of those guys will be a pro in five years...if this is a top class of athletes out of the the past several years. 

So, even if you're in the 95th percentile of all NCAA athletes in your sport, you've still got a snowball's chance in a microwave of going pro. Not to mention actually mattering at all. More than likely, you'll still be struggling to eke out a living on the bench for a year or stuck on a farm team until you're forced to look for other work. We could bludgeon you with more data and stats, but as you dream about success, just make sure you're hedging your bets.

In other words: enjoy that "alternative" career, Shmooper. (#realtalk)