Doc's Tip of the Evening -- movement/positioning.

Moving your feet and getting into position to hit the ball is probably the most important factor in the game of tennis once your strokes become proficient. Moving your feet means running to the ball and judging the correct space or distance you will need to establish body balance prior to striking the ball. Always run or get into proper position before starting to swing at the ball. Even when the ball is hit right to you there is footwork to be done to position properly before starting your swing. Usually the footwork done once you are at the ball is referred to as adjustment footwork. Jkd

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Two handed BH stance

If you have a two handed backhand, the easiest foot stance to use on a ball hit towards the sideline is the OPEN stance. The key is to get your outside foot(if facing the net) behind the ball or back at a substantial angle to the baseline. This stance allows you to prepare quicker than a closed stance and gives you more distance space from your body to contact the ball. Remember to load the back leg or outside foot so you can turn your hips when starting your swing. bhut

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- FH drop shot

When hitting a forehand drop shot, remember disguising the shot is the most important factor. This means when preparing try to stay in your forehand drive grip when turning. You will first need to compact the turn or preparation a bit, like when you make the adjustment attacking a shorter lower forehand. Then you will probably need to change into the continental grip as you drop the arm down and bring the stings in behind the ball. If you have more of a eastern grip, you may not need to change grips as you start down to contact the ball. There will be some ulnar deviation of the wrist but very little prior to and after contacting the ball. But, overall I would not characterize the wrist as loose AT ALL on this shot. Remember, to stop your follow through very succinctly after contacting the ball. The bottom edge of the racket should slightly cup underneath the ball after contact. afdd

Forehand Volley - Wrist Reflex Angle

As I have stated before, your first movement when hitting a forehand volley should be a pivot move from your split step while maintaining body balance. I want to talk about the degree of reflex angle position that the wrist should be close to when opening the face or tip of the racquet when pivoting for the forehand volley. I am estimating that the wrist angle in the ready position is close to 190 degrees reflex angle to the forearm. This wrist angle is maintained during the pivot. An additional wrist reflex of 10 degrees to approximately 200 degrees with a radial movement of the wrist during the body pivot preparation is desirable for the correct position of the racquet face. This of course assumes one has a universal continental grip. vsp

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Core Strength

If you want your core and back to get as strong as a donkeykong, first learn how to properly do a back squat. Then, build up to a working set of 20 (twenty) back squats where your quadriceps are parallel to the floor (minimum) at the bottom of the movement AND your heels are on the ground. Now, the kicker is to be able to squat 1.25X (times)your BODYWEIGHT twenty times in perfect form. lgwp

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Double Hop Approach

When attacking a short low ball to transition to the net learn to use the double hop method as a component to keep your body momentum moving forward. The double hop method is when you step into the ball with your front foot whilst still on balance but after you hit the ball you hop or skip forward on your front foot (same foot) then continue moving into the service box area to do the split step. The two things you must do well to make this method work are balance when stepping into the ball and staying turned with your shoulders when contacting the ball. Also, this transition method will probably be done only on low balls. afdd

Doc's Tip of the Evening -- Modern Forehand

In general, if you want to get more power out of your forehand remember to reach back and away from your body with your racquet hand when turning in the preparation phase. More specifically, the distance from your back hip to your hand or racquet handle could be in excess of 24 - 30 inches*^. That is a great distance. Tip to remember, try not to reach straight back behind your hip/body, reach more away from your body and that distance may be over 14 - 18 inches*. So, just turning your body will not necessary guarantee you to be totally prepared, you must remember reach back and away with the racquet as well. *limb length will vary. ^excludes the full western donkey grip. afdd