Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Ball Movement at Surface Contact

Did you know that a tennis ball will slide across the surface of the court at impact when it is hit with a lot of underspin?
As the incoming rate of underspin decreases, a point will be reached where the ball begins to roll across the surface at the END of impact.
With an increasing rate of incoming topspin the ball will impact with a mixture of sliding and rolling.
At higher rates of topspin the ball will tend to roll more than slide.
Note that the ball will never fully roll upon impacting the surface of the court as today's players are not capable of generating fast enough spin rates. dd

DOC'S TIP OF THE EVENING -- PRACTICING

If you are in the learning stages of maturing into a good tennis player you must practice and play with many different levels and ages of players.
This simply means that it does not matter what level or how old or what gender you practice with.
You must understand that every time you walk out onto the court to practice you have something you can improve whether you play against someone a lot better than you or someone considerably weaker than you. In fact, it is often more productive to practice with weaker opponents as it is easier to control game situations where you can practice shots you need to improve. However, this implies that when you practice you have a purpose or a goal or goals you want to accomplish.
I do know this is true because when I was a youngster at the tennis club where I learned, I would go up to the club every day after school and on weekends and play with anybody that wanted to play. I did not care who I played with and neither should you. I became the best player in my state as a junior, one of top two juniors in the country, one of the top college players in the country and achieved a pro ranking of 125 in the world in men's singles.

DOC'S TIP OF THE DAY -- STRING TENSION

Remember these key adages that relate to strings in a tennis racquet:

a. tighter strings give you less power and more control.
b. looser strings give you more power and less control
c. string gauge does not affect power. (15g,16g,17g)
d. string tension has little effect on ball spin. dd

DOC'S TIP OF THE DAY -- WIDE FOREHAND

Remember these points when playing a wide forehand safely back into the court.

1. run at an angle behind the bounce of the ball. this will give you time to take a fuller swing at the ball.
2. try to contact around the outside of the ball.
3. try to aim back down the middle of the court and higher over the net IF your opponent is NOT approaching the net. (If your opponent is approaching you have two choices, one is to go for the heroic winner and really buggy whip it or hit a HIGH LOB.)
4. recover quickly. dd

Doc's Tip of the Day -- Hydration

Drink 6 - 12 oz of water or electrolyte enhanced carbohydrate fluid every 15 - 20 minutes as tolerated DURING practice or matchplay.
Drink 14 - 22 oz of water or electrolyte enhanced sports drink TWO HOURS BEFORE practice or matchplay.
Drink approximately 20 oz of electrolyte enhanced sport drink PER POUND OF BODY WEIGHT LOST within a two hour period AFTER practice or a match.

DOC'S TIP OF THE EVENING: SERVE SWING

When in the loaded position prior to extending the arm and elbow straight up to contact, you must first externally rotate the shoulder and drop the racquet down behind your back before you start to extend up to contact the ball. dd

Doc's Tip of the Day -- FH Volley

It is generally a good benchmark when preparing or moving the racquet into position for the forehand volley to not let the racquet go past your shoulder.
So remember, if the ball is hit to you, pivot your feet and body for good balance and simultaneously keep the racquet face open but don't take it past your shoulder. ay