Federer only won 54% of his points

Roger Federer delivered the commencement address at Dartmouth over the weekend, and it was fantastic.

‌

An Important Point Federer Makes:

‌

Perfection is impossible. In the 1,526 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80% of those matches.

‌

Now I have a question for you: What percentage of points do you think I won in those matches? Only 54%.

‌

In other words, even top-ranked tennis players win barely more than half of the points they play. When you lose every second point on average, you learn not to dwell on every shot.

‌

You teach yourself to think: "Okay, I double faulted — it's only a point. … Okay, I came to the net and I got passed again — it's only a point."

‌

Even a great shot, an overhead backhand smash that ends up on ESPN's top 10 plays — that too is just a point.

‌

Here's why I'm telling you this: When you're playing a point, it has to be the most important thing in the world. And it is. But when it's behind you, it's behind you.

‌

This mindset is really crucial because it frees you to fully commit to the next point and the next point after that with intensity, clarity, and focus.

TennisMaps.com - Viewing the Tennis World as a Map

15 years ago I was living in Austin, TX and was starting to really get involved with league tennis through the Austin Tennis League and USTA. As a player I was given a t-shirt, a schedule of matches, and a list of the match location addresses with driving directions. I loved the tennis and getting to know people and after about two years I formed my own team. As a captain, I had to figure out which tennis centers suited our key players and often had to do last minute venue changes due to spotty rain or court problems. Maybe it's the way my brain works, but even after years of playing all over town, I couldn't visualize where court locations were in relation to one another. So, I set about drawing a map of Austin (using MS Paint) and putting all of the tennis courts on it (See http://austin-tennis-resource.com/images/AustinCourtsMap.gif)
​

It was a fun project and I especially enjoyed finding hidden tennis courts and sharing the map with my fellow league players. I printed out copies and even started a Web site (www.austin-tennis-resource.com). What was great about the map on the Web was that you could click on a location and see its information. What was not so great was the onerous process of maintaining it. Some people had asked whether I could do the same for their city, and I had to explain how my project really wouldn't scale due to its "hand drawn" nature.

But that changed in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. I read an article about how some software engineers where I work (National Instruments) used a thing called Google Maps to create a Web-based system to help New Orleans refugees find their families. It was an awesome application of technology for the greater good. You could add your information and point on the Google map, scroll around, zoom in, search by name, etc. I realized I could use the same Google Maps technology to replace my hand drawn map with a feature rich map of the world with tennis courts pinpointed on it. I also confirmed that the satellite images available on Google Maps were good enough to find tennis courts across the globe.

Mapping the United States - let alone the World - was a daunting task to contemplate, however. I had determined from my initial Web site that I wasn't going to get rich doing it - I would need to keep my day job. But, I would always imagine some kid finding a court to play on and getting out there because of the work I was doing. I truly believed that tennis is a life changing sport and I wanted to do things that would help grow the game. And so in 2006, TennisMaps (www.tennismaps.com) was born with the goal of creating a tennis courts map for every city in America.

Ten years later TennisMaps is about 40% of the way there with over 40,000 tennis court locations mapped in the United States. It is available free of charge for use on desktops at www.tennismaps.com and any tablet, phablet, phone or mobile device at m.tennismaps.com. TennisMaps also now includes all USTA tournaments on its maps as well as teaching pros affilliated with PlayYourCourt.com. Why is the job only 40% done in ten years? Well, much has to do with my own stubborness about data quality - wanting to ensure that the process of discovering courts covers every square inch of a region and follows a standard format of data collection. Have I tried more automated ways of finding courts? Yes. Have I given up on better techniques for finding and maintaining court data? No.

One of my core beliefs is that seeing tennis courts, events, and people on a map without a lot of distractions is a better way to get more people playing tennis. Finding the data itself may become easier and easier as we march further into the information age. What will be key is presenting it in a way that encourages discovery of new opportunities to play in your tennis community. I'm going to continue to look for ways to incorporate new technologies for gathering tennis information and making it available through the lens of TennisMaps. Just like playing tennis, I am greatly enjoying the challenge, personal growth, and the people I am meeting along the way.

Fixing Double Faulting

When I was in my 30's I entered a tournament in Austin Texas called the Hotter Than Heck. It was in June or July and I wasn't playing a lot of tennis - probably a match every 2-3 weeks. I practiced for about a week prior and had a strategy for playing singles. I was going to be a serve and volleyer. My first match went well. I played an inexperienced high school kid and won easily. My second match I played a guy my age and we were in a battle. Eventually, even though he was up 4-2 in the first set, he threw in the towel because it was incredibly hot and he wanted to save his energy for doubles with his dad. I appreciated the chance to advance to the semi-finals. The next day, I got up early for my semi-final match and my arm was pretty sore, but I was ok to play. I started the match and was having trouble hitting my serve in - both first and second. As the first set progressed, my serving control got worse and worse and mentally I felt lost when I threw the ball up into the air. I had no idea where the serve was going - in the net or in the fence. After losing the first set badly, I decided to serve underhand in the second set. It at least allowed me to play some points on my serve. And, at first, it threw my opponent off and I went up 4-2. But eventually, he figured out how to attack my weak underhand serve and I was playing a nervous game in all facets. I lost the set 7-5 and the match.

This was the worst my serve ever was, but I've had serving issues starting in high school. In high school, I would pat my second serve in because I didn't know how to hit a topspin serve. When I first started playing league tennis in my early 20's I was developing a topspin second serve, but I would still have patches where I would double fault at a rate of around 50% - as in half of my service points ended as double faults. It got better with more practice and experience. I eventually got to the point where I would throw my serve into the air and swing hard and expect it to land in. My #1 rule was to always swing hard on every second serve - no matter how much pressure I was under. Rule #2 is to translate all of that effort into as much topspin as possible. After a while of following these rules, I found that more often than not, it would land in.

However, I've had other patches where my serve really left me. Again, it was when I hadn't been playing a whole lot of pressure matches and then suddenly was put under more pressure than normal - like playing a tournament for the first time in 3 years and having been out of league tennis for 2 years. So, I would say one of my first rules for avoiding double fault problems is to hit serves under pressure. If I haven't served under pressure in a long time and suddenly I'm in a pressure situation, I should expect problems. In other words, there is no substitute for match pressure to "toughen" your serve and make it less prone to breaking down . You've got to find a way to hit your serve under pressure and the only way to get better at that is to practice it under pressure.

So, you can play a lot of matches and hit a lot of faults as you gain confidence in your serve. Make sure you are playing a match at least 2-3 times per week. That's the magic number. If you play that much, your consistency will be there in all aspects of your game. Eventually, your mental toughness on your serve will improve. You will develop your own tactics for dealing with pressure. Once you get your serve to where you trust it, if you are playing with that frequency, it will continue to be trustworthy.

But, what can you do to simulate pressure in practice? Here are a couple of ideas

• Play a set against an imaginary opponent where if you get either your first or second serve in, you win the point, but if you double fault, you lose the game. So, you have to get a serve in play on four consecutive points to win the game. You serve every game. Can you beat this imaginary opponent? Also do this drill simulating having a doubles partner at the net. Serving in singles is definitely different than doubles, so practice both situations.
• Play a match against a real opponent where you only get one serve - i.e. if you miss your first serve, you lose the point. Again, play singles and doubles matches in this way.

When you've lost confidence that you can hit your serve in, the first thing you should do is start hitting serves into the service box. Stand at the baseline and hit very relaxed serves into the service box. Simplify your service motion - keep your general motion but do everything at about 50% - legs, backswing, toss, speed, etc. The idea is to just allow yourself to hit the ball in the box. Each time you hit a serve in very loudly say the count. When you get to 50, switch to the other side and repeat up to 50. There is no penalty for missing and you can serve at a brisk pace. You're just trying to train your muscles to hit the ball into the box again.

Next, do the same 100-ball drill but focus on two things:

• A good toss in your comfort zone
• Watching the ball like a cat

Don't worry about a perfect or overly high toss. Just get it into a spot where you can hit it comfortably. That is usually into the court a little bit and in the line made by your front foot that extends to the net post. If you want to know what watching the ball "like a cat" means, find a video of Andre Agassi's eyes returning serve. Once that ball enters your hitting zone on the serve, don't take your eyes off of it and focus on nothing else. For practice, while you are not hitting the ball overly hard, watch it all the way to the service box. The first time I tried this, I was amazed at how well I could see the ball.

Next, do the same 100-ball drill, but focus on putting topspin on your serve. Keep your motion relaxed and simple. Hit the ball up. Adjust your toss a little more over your head. Focus on brushing up on the ball. But above all else, keep your speed at 50% and everything relaxed. Keep watching the ball like a cat; try to see the ball spinning as it flies up off your racquet and then down into the service box. Can you hit the ball into the box with 100% confidence?

Lastly, add a little more pace to your serves in the 100-ball drill. Keep in mind that you should still be relaxed and that you should only be speeding up the process at the END of your swing. The END of your swing is the only time you should feel that you are moving faster than your previous iteration of the drill. Focus on putting the toss where you want it, putting lots of tospin on the ball, and watching the ball all the way to the box. If you are not happy with how the consistency is, dial things back again. Don't move on until you feel that you are hitting most of your serves in.

Second Serve Topspin

Getting good topspin on your serve is key to having a second serve that you can trust. If you have a "feel" for hitting your serve with topspin, you will trust that you can get it in with enough pace and spin to be effective.

I had to work many years to develop a second serve that I could trust. I used several visualizations to get there. One of the more powerful ones is to imagine my racquet face being horizontal to the ball at the point of contact rather than up and down. Normally, we imagine the racquet standing straight up and down (vertical) as we hit serves and overheads. In the case of hitting a topspin serve, we can imagine the racquet in a horizontal position (like for a groundstroke) that brushes up on the ball, to give it topspin. Below is a video that takes this visual to the extreme and even has some drills to practice the motion.

Tom Avery Topspin Serve
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJqqY8FDQao
http://youtu.be/SsPLPV_EcG4?t=5m57s

I am careful to call this a visualization. If you watch second serves in slow motion, the racquet is not in a horizontal position when it contacts the ball, but it is close.

With this in mind, watch this video that shows modern players hitting topspin serves:

Lloyd Second Serve Lesson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2keKndmKGo

You can also compare this to Bill Tilden and his pupil back in the days when the American Twist was being invented. I'm especially impressed with his student's racquet motion.

Bill Tilden
http://youtu.be/EUA3Yb66YSQ?t=7m

To get your racquet in the proper position to where it will snap from a horizontal position that contacts the ball in a way to impart topspin is the key. It will take practice and visualizations. What seems like a big change to you is probably a little change to your swing in reality.

Note that Bill Tilden says that your arm needs to finish out to the right instead of coming across the body to the left.

If you want to examine a topspin serve in slow motion, here are some good videos.

Slow Motion Topspin Serve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n3C8AkV7E4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hGS03eFzi0
Notice where the arm ends for the server in the slow motion video.


A pro who coached Andy Roddick a little when he was young once told me that at 9 he could hit a kick serve that would bounce over your head. Let's look at his second serve in slow motion.

Andy Roddick Topspin Serve
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTlotcSxM2I

Just like Big Bill says, on an American twist serve the arm ends on the right side of the body. To achieve this will require pronation. Pronating your wrist allows the ball to go toward the target but your arm ends off to the right. After I watched the Nick Bollettieri video below and practiced it, I started hitting big kicking American twist serves!

Nick Bollettieri Pronation Practice
http://youtu.be/CIpKx36_ork?t=1m48s

Summary
Now that you know what to look for, watch all of these videos again. Then practice. Then watch the videos again. Then practice some more. You get the idea. Here's a checklist for hitting a kick serve.

• Pronate your wrist (Bollettieri).
• Brush up on the ball with the racquet more horizontal (Avery).
• Focus on your arm finishing off to the right. (Tilden)
• Toss the ball over your head (Avery, Lloyd, Tilden).
• Arch your back (Roddick).
• Bend your knees and explode up and into the court (Roddick).

Put the toss in the proper location (above your head instead of out to your right), and then work on your motion to incorporate a fast wrist snap and arm path that brushes up on the ball and finishes to the right. Remember that your wrist snap should pronate horizontally. Then, don't forget about your legs and torso. We want legs pushing us up and into the court for free and easy racquet acceleration. Our torso faces up to the sky initially so we can brush up on the ball over our head.

"Sonic Serve" Revolutionized My Serve

A couple years ago, I found an old VHS tape by Nick Bollettieri called Sonic Serve and watched it. The major difference between my existing service motion and the Sonic Serve was the angle of my shoulders. My existing serve had my shoulders fairly level, and the Sonic Serve calls for the line of the shoulders to be in a 7-o-clock position (close to vertical). It took a couple weeks of really focusing on trying to get my shoulders in that position, but the results were dramatic. I found that my first serve became a lot more consistent because I was snapping down more and keeping it from going long. I also found that I could ditch my old second serve motion which was drastically different from my first serve motion, and use my new first serve motion with more spin (grip and wrist action change) for a second serve.

Below is portion of the full "Sonic Serve" video that goes over the fundamentals. The full video gets overly repetitive:


Drills to Practice Sonic Serve:

• Throwing Form: Practice the elements of throwing with power including getting a full stretch of the chest and using the left (off) arm to pull to accelerate.
• Throwing Up: Practice the serve without a racquet by throwing a tennis ball straight up into the air. Stand at the service line and try to throw the ball up so that it will come down on the same side of the net.
• Set To Launch: You should be able to balance in the set to launch position. Practice the service motion with the racquet and tossing the ball in the air, but freezing in the set to launch position (hip out, knees bent, arm up) and letting the ball drop.

Lessons From 1991 US Open Edberg v Courier

The video below provides many examples of my core principles for winning points in singles play.

Really Good Forehand (and General Tennis) Concepts from Florian Meier

Florian Meier has some excellent advice for improving your forehand in this video series:

http://www.theforehandblueprint.com/fe/27675-more-power-with-less-effort

There are three videos and they are all quite useful. The important take-aways are:

• Go down (knees bent) and up (knees extend) on your groundstrokes for power.
• Turn fully (off arm parallel to baseline) on groundstrokes for power.
• Hit through the ball (extension) for depth on groundstrokes.
• Slow things down and do shadow swings to teach your body the right movements.

Very concise and sound advice.

If there was a magic 'Play Better' Pill, Would you take it?

Of course you would! Or, you might ask: "What is the catch? Does it give me an irregular heart beat or features of the opposite gender?" That is a good question, and I hope you would at least ask it before swallowing any magic pills.

Let's talk about what a "pill" is. A pill is something you eat which helps you play better tennis. Obviously, you don't want to take a pill that has horrible or life threatening side effects; but would you take a pill to play better if it tasted bad? I bet you would. Would you take a play-better pill if you had to take it at a specific time before your match? Yeah, that's not too difficult. Would you take a pill if you had to experiment with which type and dosage worked best for you? That requires a little work; but if it means you'd win more, you'd do it.

Magic Pill #1: Proper 24-hour Pre-Competition Meals
You can improve your athletic performance if you come into the event with your body in the following state:

• Fully hydrated
• Mostly empty stomach
• Muscles loaded with glycogen (fuel)

Here's a plan you can follow to arrive at the net in that state.

The Day Before Competition

• Force yourself to drink nothing but water. If you are a caffeine user, you are allowed one caffeinated beverage (12 ounces); caffeine withdrawl starts 12-36 hours after stopping usage and you don't want to enter withdrawl. Other than that, you should drink only water, and in the amount of 48 to 64 ounces (based on your size) throughout the day. Start with a big cup when you first wake up. Drink water with lunch. Drink water with dinner, and not after. You don't want to have your bladder disturb your sleep.
• Eat meals high in complex carbohydrates and low in fat. Complex carbohydrates get converted to glycogen which is the fuel for your muscles. The more complex carbs you eat, the more glycogen gets packed into your system. Fats leave the stomach slowly and slow down the digestion of other foods. Examples of complex carbohydrate foods are: rice (brown is best), pasta (spinach, whole grain, rice are maybe best), oatmeal and other whole grains products (e.g. whole grain bread), beans, potatoes, peas, vegetables, and fresh fruits. Here are some sample food ideas:
  • Breakfast Ideas: whole grain cereal with skim milk, instant unrefined oatmeal, whole wheat toast with apple butter, whole wheat apple bread or raisin bread, bran muffin, buckwheat pancakes (no syrup!), banana, prunes, raisins.
  • Lunch & Dinner Ideas: baked potato (no butter! can use plain yogurt to top), sweet potato, raw or steamed vegetables, brown rice, pasta (with low fat sauce like marinara), soup (split-pea, bean, or lentil).

The Day Of Competition

• Six hours prior to competition, eat a high carbohydrate meal. Use the guidelines from the "Day Before" rules. Drink 8 ounces of water with this meal.
• Two hours prior to competition, eat a small meal that consists of half your weight in carbohydrates. So, if you weigh 150 pounds, eat 75 grams of complex carbohydrates. You can find the amount of grams of carbohydrates on the nutritional info label on your food. For instance, whole wheat pasta has around 20 grams of carbs per ounce. Whole wheat bread has around 15 grams of carbs per ounce. A large baked potato has around 60 grams. Don't eat ANY Fat with this meal. Everything should be plain. Eat one piece of fresh fruit (apples are great). Drink 8 ounces of water with this meal. You should still be hungry.
• 45 minutes prior to competition, if you are a caffeine user, drink your caffeinated beverage.
• 15 minutes prior to competition, drink 16 ounces of water.
• During competition drink 8 ounces of water every 30 minutes - not all at once - but gradually.
• During competition eat 2-3 ounces of fresh fruit every 30 minutes. Banana, apple, and raisins are great.

Magic Pill #2: Caffeine
Caffeine is a commonly used drug that has physiological and psychological affects. Generally it has positive affects when it is administered and withdrawl symptoms for regular users who stop taking it. Excessive use (see below) is banned by collegiate associations (NCAA, NJCAA, NAIA).

• Caffeine in excess of 15 micrograms/ml in urine is illegal in NCAA & NJCAA (perhaps NAIA) competition. You have to drink around 8 6oz cups of coffee to reach that level (800 milligrams of caffeine). But be careful, some coffee is stronger (up to 200 milligrams/6 ounces), so, never drink more than 4 cups in a 6 hour period of time.
• Caffeine reaches peak blood levels at 45-60 minutes and takes up to 6 hours to completely leave the system.
• Caffeine withdrawl symptoms begin 12-36 hours after the last dose and peak at 20-40 hours. Withdrawl symptoms will generally end after a week. Your mental and physical performance will suffer if you are experiencing caffeine withdrawl.

If you are a habitual caffeine user, you will for sure want to make sure you have caffeine in your system when you are playing. You may be a habitual caffeine user and not even know it because it is found in so many products - soft drinks, chocolate, energy drinks, etc.

Caffeine can have quite different effects on different people. For instance, for me, it greatly improves my mood and mental clarity if I get about 200 mg (1-2 cups of coffee), but makes me overly nervous if I drink 4 cups of coffee. I've also noticed that I don't get the same effects from other sources of caffeine as I do from coffee.

Caffeine can be a magic pill in two ways.

• Always avoid caffeine withdrawl if you are a regular (3 or more times a week) caffeine user. Give yourself at least a small dose 45 minutes prior to competition.
• Even if you aren't a regular caffeine user, you may find that a dose from a particular product at a particular amount improves your tennis game. Start with something like a 5-hour energy drink (200 mg) or a cup (6 ounces - approx 120 mg) of coffee 45 minutes before a match. Note how you felt and how well you hit the ball. If you felt a big difference in your balance, you may want to try a smaller dose. If you felt little at all, try increasing the dose, but be VERY careful once you get past 400 mg, and if you are a college player, never go over 700 mg. Keep a notebook of what you took and in what amount and then how you played and felt.
• Since caffeine causes you to process more water out of your system, make sure you are drinking plenty of water - perhaps an extra 8 ounces for every 200 mg of caffeine.

Scholarly Articles on Caffeine
Dr. Roland R. Griffiths, John's Hopkins, 2011 Publication
Dr. Roland R. Griffiths, John's Hopkins, 2003 Publication


Magic Pill #3: Pineapple
Almost everyone who plays a sport competitively will have to deal with some sort of "itis" like tennis elbow, jumper's knee, and thrower's shoulder. "itis" means inflammation which is usually accompanied by pain which is almost always accompanied by a loss of performance. Usually what is inflamed is a tendon where it attaches to the joint or in its sheath or one of the bursa (sacs of fluid) that cushions a joint. These types of injuries often occur because of overuse of a particular joint or sudden use after months of inactivity. Whenever you feel any pain, the first thing you should do is see a trainer or a doctor. However, among all of the advice you are going to get on how to fix the problem - rest, ice, heat, massage, specific strengthening, bands, anti-inflammatory drugs like naproxen sodium - eating pineapple may never be mentioned and is perhaps your most effective option.

Eating pineapple reduces swelling and promotes healing. It's that simple. Google it and you'll find articles talking about how it has enzyme Bromelain which plays a major role in the body's healing process. I have personally found that it is more effective than taking over the counter anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Nuprin) and Naproxen (Aleve). In one accidental experiment, I found that eating pineapple the night before made it less painful for me to count out numbers with my fingers to my 6-month-old son. It was easy for me to see the difference because I did the same thing every morning and experienced the same discomfort except on the days where I ate pineapple the night before. In another case, I injured my right knee playing basketball. It didn't hurt right away - only two days later, but the pain and swelling got progressively worse and lasted for two weeks. Taking Naproxen Sodium for four days helped but I was still barely able to walk into the third week. The fourth week I was at the NJCAA National Championship and had a hotel breakfast every morning. Each morning I ate about 8 ounces of pineapple chunks. After 3 days, I was walking without major pain and by the end of the week my knee swelling was much better. This was particularly amazing because I was not able rest much that week - a lot of walking at the tournament. When I got home, I got cocky and ran a 5k race with no training. The next day I could barely walk again when I first got up because I had strained my knee and calf muscle. Each morning I experienced the same pain and stiffness until the 6th morning after I ate pineapple the night before.

I would recommend eating 8 to 12 ounces of pineapple the night before any major contest. And heck, why not have some in the morning too. Being pain free and having less swelling and therefore more range of motion is going to help your performance greatly. And, if you are dealing with any sort of "itis", eat pineapple every day. It will help you heal faster.


Appendix A: Reading Labels to Determine Complex Carbohydrates
To determine how many grams of complex carbohydrates you are eating, you can look at the Nutrition Facts of any packaged food. The formula is as follows:

• Complex Carbs = Total Carbohydrate - Sugars

Appendix B: Foods High in Complex Carbohydrates

Whole Grains
Whole grains are high in fiber, have moderate protein levels, are low in fat and are also a good source of complex carbs. Specific examples include millet, oats, wheat germ, barley, wild rice, brown rice, buckwheat, oat bran, cornmeal and amaranth. Any product that is made from these grains is also complex as well. Whole grain bread, bagels, buns and rolls are examples of these. Also pasta, macaroni and breakfast cereals that are made from whole grains are complex carbohydrates.

Fruits
Fruits are high in water content, fiber, vitamins and they have virtually no fat at all. Fruits packed with complex carbohydrates include apricots, oranges, plums, pears, grapefruits and prunes.

Vegetables
Vegetables are high in water, low in fat, have multiple vitamins and minerals, and most varieties are complex carbs. Broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, turnip greens, eggplant, potatoes, yams, corn, carrots, onions, all types of lettuce, celery, cucumbers, cabbage, artichokes and asparagus are all examples of these.

Legumes
Legumes are oftentimes called pulses. These are characterized by seeds that have an exterior pod surrounding them. Beans are a type of legume that is a complex carbohydrate. Specific examples include lentils, kidney beans, black beans, peas, garbanzo beans, soy beans and pinto beans.

Source

Doubles Rock, Paper, Scissors

We all know that Rock beats Scissors, Paper beats Rock, and Scissors beats Paper, but did you know that a similar relationship holds true for doubles formations?

There are three basic doubles formations: Both-At-Net, 1-Up-1-Back, and Both-Back. We'll call any formation where a player is in no-man's-land a transition, because you don't want either player to stay there because deep volleys and half-volleys are low percentage shots. Here's what-beats-what:

• Both-At-Net beats 1-Up-1-Back
• Both-Back has a chance against Both-At-Net
• 1-Up-1-Back beats Both-Back.

Simple, eh? If you can remember these simple rules, it makes decision making easy in doubles. Notice that Both-At-Net never completely loses, and that's why conventional wisdom says to try to get to that position. However, there is a transition cost every time a player has to move through no-man's-land. Also, 1-Up-1-Back is better than Both-At-Net against the Both-Back formation.

Both-At-Net beats 1-Up-1-Back because the guy at net in 1-Up-1-Back is useless. He can't react quickly enough to volleys from the other side to be anything other than a target. The guy at the baseline has to cover the entire court and hope his partner doesn't get hit outright.

Both-Back has a chance against Both-At-Net because both players on the baseline can react to volleys and overheads and split the court. How much of a chance depends on how good the baseline players are at lobs and how good the net players are at overheads. To a lesser extent it is also a matchup between the baseline players ability to hit passing shots and the net players ability to volley against pace.

1-Up-1-Back beats Both-Back because the net man can selectively pick off any weak shots and short lobs that come his way and protect half of the court. The net man can let hard hit shots toward the middle go (something that is not an option in Both-At-Net) because his partner can still get to it. And his partner on the baseline can deal with even well hit lobs aggressively. Every time the Both-Back side hits the ball, they have a good chance of messing up and giving the net man a sitter. Because of that major disadvantage, they lose.

Once you have those simple rules in mind, the rest of the strategy in doubles is about minimizing the affect of your transitions and taking advantage of your opponents' transitions. For example, serving and volleying is a transition from 1-Up-1-Back to Both-At-Net and therefore has some disadvantage to it. It comes down to a matchup between the net rusher's volleying/half-volleying and the returner's ability to hit with pace and keep it low. Also is it a test of the returner's ability to lob the net man. If you can't find serves that force weak enough returns to allow you to hit the transition volleys consistently, then you should stay back and see if your groundstrokes can match up better with the returner's. By the same token, if you can't prevent the returner from lobbing the net man (by serve choice or by moving the net man back a little), you should probably stay back.

Let's say you are staying back on the serve, though. If the returner can hit a return and transition to the net, now you are in a losing position (1-Up-1-Back vs Both-At-Net). You have to find ways to prevent the returner from doing that by looking for serves that make it harder for him to do it or having the net man do more poaching if the return is more of a chip.

Keep in mind that transitions are about having the time to cross no-man's land before you have to hit a shot. You can successfully accomplish a transition by being closer to your target (e.g. standing closer to service line if you are the returner so you have less distance to get to the net position) or by hitting a shot that takes longer to arrive at its destination (e.g. a high lob that lands deep giving you lots of time to rush to the net or for your partner to retreat to the baseline). You can also manage your transitions better if you recognize the need to make one quicker. If you keep the simple rules of what-beats-what in mind and think about how you want to transition, it is the basis for very high percentage doubles.

Move Your Feet! Practice Requirements

Getting to the right position to hit the ball is perhaps the most important part of hitting a good shot. If you know where you want to be on the court and are quick to get there, your positioning will be superior and therefore your shots will be superior.

You've heard this so many times; it starts to lose its meaning. But, it cannot be overemphasized. If you are not in the right position on the court, you will have to adjust your balance and your swing and that leads to inconsistency and weak shots.

Let's also be clear that there are two parts to this:

1) Identify where to be on the court.
2) Get there!

#1 is tricky because you are tracking a moving object. The computations that go on in your head to ascertain the ball's velocity and trajectory as well as your own to determine a target location for you to be to hit the ball is something that must be done unconsciously but learned through practice. That is a subject for another time.

#2 is easier. Move your feet! Improve your speed through training! Learn techniques to keep your feet moving in pressure situations.

Here are some things that I REQUIRE at all times during practice to help with #2.

• No double bounces!
  In groundstroke drills you are NEVER allowed to let the ball bounce twice. Letting a ball bounce twice gets you in the habit of just standing there. We want to immediately react when we see a ball is going to be short.
• Bouncing is resting!
  During drills where you have to wait your turn you are NEVER standing; you are always bouncing on your toes like you are jumping rope - both feet coming off the ground at once. This not only tones your legs and helps cardio but also reinforces the habit of being on your toes and keeping your feet moving at all times.

Tebow Got Me Out of Bed This Morning

What does Tim Tebow have to do with me getting up at 5:30 to run five miles this morning? And, what does this have to do with tennis?

Last night I watched the Broncos/Jets game in its entirety due to the fact that I started Willis McGahee on my fantasy team. It was a pitiful game for Willis, and he garnered me a whopping -1 for the night! I don't mind though, because what I saw and heard was inspirational. Tim Tebow (QB for the Broncos) led his team on another last-minute, game winning drive over one of the toughest defenses in the league. That was exciting and fun to watch, but what stuck with me was what he said after the game.

He threw out so many cliches like "We just said, here's our chance to be great." "When I miss a pass, I just tell my receiver, I'll get it to you next time." "We are just focused on improving every day." "We are taking it one game at a time." "I don't worry about things I can't control. I'm just blessed to have so many people supporting me and pulling for me." But, what really got my attention was that he seemed to really understand them and BELIEVE them. I get the sense that his whole life he has been practicing, learning, and applying that understanding and belief.

At one point he mentioned that winning a football game is great, but what really gets him excited is his project to build a hospital in the Philipines. That really got my attention and was the point where something clicked in my brain. I can't really say why, but that pressed my inspiration button. Here's a guy with a plan - win football games and use it as a platform to change people's lives for the better. I can understand why people follow him. He's only 24 and he's got the maturity to know what he wants and use all of his focus every minute of every day to work toward that goal.

It may have gone unnoticed to many, but directly after the game when all of the players were finishing up handshakes, I saw something I'm not sure I've seen before. There was a group of around 20 players from BOTH teams on the field on their knees with joined hands and bowed heads in circle. Tebow was among them, and it looked like another player was leading a prayer. You can agree or disagree with the tennets of particular religions, but I imagine there were players from multiple faiths in that circle. I think the important thing is that those players were inspired to give thanks for their blessings, and I think they were inspired by Tim Tebow.

I don't have be a Christian or a Muslim to buy what Tim Tebow is selling. He's selling Belief, Hard Work, Focus, Empowerment, Giving, Learning, Gratitude, Humility, Courage, and the list goes on. As a scientist, I'm always looking for evidence and analysis before I believe in something. Tim Tebow is proof that if you live by and work to understand all of these cliches that we all know, you WILL be successful. Ironic that a man of such faith is providing me such a concrete example of how to live a better life. Who says I don't go to church on Sunday?

Betsy Smith's Yoga

In March of 2011 Betsy Smith held and informal class on yoga with the Men's team at Lewis & Clark. This is a transcript of what she covered.

Betsy's Themes
* Hands, Feet
* Balance, Breathing
* Water
* Posture, Attitude

Walking
You alternate going up on your toes on one foot while remaining flat footed with the other. Do this exercise as a warm-up and as a resting exercise between other exercises.


Warm-Ups
* Arm Swings
Looking down at the floor, slowly swing the arms back and forth around the body. As you swing around look at the opposite heel to obtain relaxation in the shoulder and neck areas. Do 6 times each side.
* Knee Lifts
Raise the knees to the chest and pull knees with your hands towards the abdominal area. Do 2 series of 8 (4 each leg) 1 series very slowly - 1 series faster.
* Side Bends
Hands on your hips, standing straight and looking forward, bend to the right and then to the left. Try to keep the motion continued and rhythmic such as a pendulum in a clock. Do 4 times on each side.
* Back Arm Circles
Starting with the left arm out in front slowly bring the arm around backwards with the right arm following. Keep the elbow slightly bent in doing this warm up; it is similar to the backcrawl stroke in swimming. 6 times each arm.
* Shoulder Rotations
Slowly bring the shoulders up, head back and then drop the shoulders, bringing the shoulder blades together and down. Do as relaxed as possible letting the shoulders do all the lifting. 4 to 6 times or until relaxed.
* Squat Position
Slowly go to a squat position by going down on the toes, then forward (up) on your toes, then back on your heels, and slowly stand-up - crawling up the body with the head last to come up. 3 to 4 times.
* Alternate Stretch
Raise the right arm up adn go up on the left foot toes, such as in a climbing motion. Look up at the ceiling and try to keep the upper torso as straight as possible.

Balance Exercises
Remember to look at a spot 6-8 feet in front of you to keep your balance while doing these exercises.
* Slowly bend right knee up, slide over to touch left knee. Slowly extend left arm up, grasp foot in hand and pull to buttocks. Do opposite side. 2-3 times each side.
* Slowly pull left foot up and place on right thigh. Place hands on waist and slowly bend right leg and then raise up again. do 8 times per leg.
* Slowly pull left foot up and place on right thigh. Place thumb on bottom of left foot, fingers on top and slowly extend left leg out in front and then pull back in. Do this 8 times per leg.
* Slowly pull left foot up and place on right thigh. Take left hand on foot (thumb on sole, fingers on top) and extend back, left hip goes out, leg goes out to the left side. Do this 8 times per leg.

Sun Salutes
* Salute
From a standing position, rotate straight arms up above head with fingertips touching and head leaned back to look at hands while inhaling. Exhale as you rotate arms down and into a prayer position lowering head to face hands.
* Stretch
Do two salutes and then on the third rotate your arms to your side and bend at the hips. Bring your palms to the floor on either side of your feet while bending your knees as little as possible. Inhale as you rise half-way; exhale down to the floor again. Inhale into salute and start process again. Do 8 times.
* Cobra
Do two salutes and then on the third rotate your arms to your side and bend at the hips. Leaving your palms on the floor, jump your feet straight back (or step one at a time) on your toes and try to bring your hips to the floor in the cobra position. Then put the tops of your feet on the floor and hold. Then, step one foot at a time back under your hands and rise into a salute and start process again. Do 8 times.
* Downward Dog
Just like Cobra above but take your feet back one at a time onto your toes and then try to move back so that your heels are touching the floor.

Sitting Stretches
*Butterfly. Put feet together, bring in and force knees to the ground (or as close as you can). Do very small fluttering of knees. Lean forward bending at the hips to put your forehead on the floor (or as close as you can get).
*Straight Legs. Put your legs straight out in front of you. Lean forward bending at the hips to put your hands as far out as your can.

Bridge. Lying on your back, bring your knees up hip-width apart and put your hands behind your shoulders with your fingers under your shoulders. Lift up and balance on the top of your head.

Back Bend. Lying on your back starting from the same position as the Bridge above push up with your arms and legs to put your chest as high into the air as possible.

Put your arms out in front of you. Inhale. While exhaling bend your knees all the way until you are nearly sitting (but not touching) while keeping your feet flat on the floor. Keep your arms out in front of you for balance. Hold, then stand up and reach up with your arms as high as you can rising onto your toes.

Squatting on your toes, put your arms straight out behind you grasping hands. Pull them up as high as you can. Then put your arms straight up above your head, grasping hands and push them back as far as you can. Stand up keeping your arms above your head and reach as high as you can rising onto your toes.

Squatting on your flat feet, drop your butt to the floor to be seated keeping your arms extended out in front of you. Stand back up without touching the floor with your hands.

NJCAA Rules About Playing In Money Tournaments

Based on the 2010 NJCAA handbook and from a conversation with the person who wrote the rule, here is what you need to remember about playing in tournaments and keeping your amateur status:

1. You cannot make any money from playing in tournaments. If you win a cash prize, you can accept enough to cover your expenses as defined in the ITA/NJCAA Amateur Reimbursement Form. You must return the rest or become ineligible.

2. If you play in the main draw (qualifiers don't count) of a tournament that has a cash prize, that counts as playing in a professional tournament regardless of whether you qualify for any cash prize. If you play in main-draw doubles and singles in the same tournament, that counts as playing in two tournaments.

3. If you have played in 10 or more pro tournaments (see 2 above) you become ineligible to compete in the NJCAA. There is an exception for very young players who have just left high school where they only lose 1 year of eligibility.

4. You must file an ITA/NJCAA Amateur Reimbursement form for each professional tournament (see 2 above) you play in regardless of how you finish.

ITA/NJCAA Amateur Reimbursement Form
http://www.itatennis.com/Assets/ita_assets/pdf/ITA_AMATEUR_FORM_NJCAA.1.20.09.pdf

2010 NJCAA Handbook Excerpt:
Student-athletes shall not have competed on the men’s ATP Professional Tennis Tour or the women’s WTA Professional Tennis Tour or with any other professional tour, circuit or league that provides prize money or salary or any other form of remuneration beyond actual expenses. The ITA expense form is to be used for those amateur student-athletes that have competed in professional tour events or on circuits/tours that provide expense money, not prize money based upon winning, however,
a. Any student-athlete having played in 10 or more professional events after his/her high school class has graduated, shall have one year of eligibility remaining if the ITA expense form is properly executed and approved.
b. Any student-athlete having played in 10 or more professional events two years after high/her high school class has graduated, shall have no eligibility remaining.

NOTE 1: “Professional events” are those main draw events that provide prize money or other forms of remuneration based on winning, whether or not they are sponsored by the ATP/WTA or any other professional tour or circuit.
NOTE 2: An “event” is a main draw singles or a doubles entry in a professional tournament. Entry in a singles and doubles draw in a single professional tournament would count as two (2) events.

Set Your Expectations High for Success

At the level of 4.5 tennis and below, success in doubles is about two things: serves and returns. Success in singles is about rallying and finishing. In other words, in doubles, if you can serve effectively and get almost all returns back in play, you will beat most other teams at your level. Your other shots come into play, yes, but you can be mediocre with those if those first two are extremely solid. In singles, the returner has a lot more freedom to get the ball back in play and there's not a guy at net, so longer rallies are much more common. You have to be able to sustain long rallies, and when your opponent makes a mistake, you have to know how to finish. So, to sum up:

Doubles: Serving and Returning
Singles: Rallying and Finishing

The first step in achieving mastery of those skills is to set your expectations extremely high. The following phrases sum up the mindset:

Doubles
Serving: "Nobody breaks me."
Returning: "I don't miss a return."

Singles
Rallying: "I'm gonna hit 50 balls."
Finishing: "I am going to end this point."

The importance of setting your expectation high is to motivate you to reach that goal. The expectation should be with you at all times - especially during practice. If you practice or play and accept failure, you will continue to perform at the same level.

When you fail, the expectation needs to be aggravating - not in any negative way, but in a motivating way so that you know what to do to not fail in the future. This is a very important point. Many tennis players get mad when they miss a shot, but they make several mistakes with this anger. First, they let their opponent see that they are emotionally out of control. This energizes their opponent and sends even themselves a defeatist message. Second, they let the anger feed into negative thoughts like "I suck." or "Why me?" I'll answer both those statements. You don't suck, you just made an error - now figure out WHY you made that error. Why you? Because you are in control of your own errors. Don't forget that - you are in control of your own shots and the opportunities you give your opponent.

So, again, the important point is your high expectation should put you in an aggravated state when you don't live up to it, but that aggravation should lead to positive action. For instance, losing a match because you couldn't hit 50 rally shots should motivate you to practice your groundstrokes for hours until you can. Or, getting your serve broken in doubles, should motivate you and your partner to carefully examine why you lost that many points and make adjustments in the next service game to avoid those same problems. Or, missing an approach shot should motiviate you to figure out exactly why you missed it - was it the right shot selection, did you decide what do do quickly enough, were your feet in position, was your racquet ready in time for the stroke?

This aggravation should be internal and any external display should be one that indicates control and thought. No negative body language. No whiny tone. If you realize that you missed the shot due to poor footwork, you should at least say "Feet!" in your head and smile. Why are you smiling? You're smiling because you know why you missed that shot which means you are less likely to make the same error the next time. That means you are in control and a very dangerous opponent.

Playing The Net Drill #1

The key to becoming a master of the net is to relax, be confident, and know what you want to do in different positions on the court. Being relaxed helps you react quicker. Being confident helps you stay relaxed. Knowing what you want to do keeps your opponent in a disadvantageous position.

This drill designed to have players practice hitting volleys from different areas of the court so that they get better at hitting volleys at different depths and begin to memorize where to hit the volley based on their own court position.

Here are the general rules to remember:
1. The farther you are away from the next, the less aggressive you should be with the volley. Just be content to get the volley back in play. Aim for a spot as deep as possible maintaining a margin for error. Aim for a spot that is directly in front of you (so if you're in the middle of the court aim for the middle of the court).
2. The closer you get to the next, the more aggressive you should be with the volley. Concentrate on placement instead of power. If you are fairly close, but not on top of the next aim for a deep corner. If you are very close to the net, aim for a short angle winner.
3. Hit your overheads with authority. You have just as much a chance of missing a tentative overhead as an overhead hit with power. And a tentative overhead means your opponent will probably get it back. The only exceptions to this rule are if you can barely reach the lob or you are extremely deep in your court.
4. If you don't have time to get under a high ball or overhead, lock your right arm and swing through it like a volley. This typically happens when you are coming to the net after a serve. If your weight is still moving forward hitting a full overhead is very low percentage.

One player stands at the baseline. The other player starts a step back from the service line in the middle of the court. The player at the baseline feeds a ball in play; the feeds should be varied so that the player at the service line has to hit both volleys and half-volleys. From the starting position, the net player should put the ball back deep to the center of the court with a high margin of safety. After hitting the shot, the net player should take a step closer (which may be part of the act of hitting the volley or half-volley). The player at the baseline is now free to try to pass or lob the player at the net. The player at the net should hit a volley according to the rules above and move a step in until he she is a racquet-and-arm length from the net.

To practice what to hit in each position, the player at the baseline can play points where he only hits balls to the middle or forehand or backhand side for the entire point.

You can also have the net man stay at a certain court depth (i.e. not take a step in) to practice what to hit at that depth. This is probably a good way to start when the player is just learning the rules.

Team Footwork Drill #1

The following drill is designed to do the following: 1) Get players on the balls of their feet 2) Get players to practice a split step 3) Get players to take little steps to adjust to the ball. It can also be used to get players to practice getting their racquet back early and letting their arm swing freely for groundstrokes.

You need at least two players to do this drill. However, you can have an entire team do it. Split the players up into two teams positioned on either side of the court. When the drill starts everyone should be bouncing on their toes (holding their racquets) as if they were jumping rope.

One player from each team is positioned at the baseline and the ball is put in play. The objective of the players is to hit an appropriate rally shot to the other side. Groundstrokes should be struck with high racquet head speed imparting a lot of spin and a lot of arc. The purpose of these groundstrokes is to move the opponent around with a high margin of error. If a player is pulled way out of position, he should do whatever he can to just keep the ball in play deep. The coach will award a point for each appropriate groundstroke. The coach can use his judgement on this. If a shot was hit too tentatively or too short he can choose not to award a point. When a shot is missed (in the net, long, wide), then the coach deducts a point. Also, when a shot is missed, the player who missed it goes to the end of the line on his team and the next player moves to take his position. Ideally, this transition is done with no break in play. The game ends when 20 points have been scored in total (so both teams are cooperating). Let the players rest a little bit and then start it up again.

ALL players should be bouncing on their toes like they are jumping rope at all times whether they are in the rally or waiting in line. The player in the rally should do the following: 1) bounce on toes at all times while waiting on opponent, 2) bounce a little higher just as opponent is about to hit the ball, 3) move racquet back as fast as possible after determining forehand or backhand, 4) take medium steps to get to the general position to hit the ball, 5) take exaggerated little steps just before hitting the ball (4-6 squeaks should be heard), 6) hit the ball with a free swinging arm with the intent of generating spin and arc.

If a player fails to do any of the six steps, no point will be awarded. The coach should say the score if a point is awarded or something like "steps" or "bouncing" to indicate why a point was not awarded. When a shot is missed and a point is deducted, the coach should say the decremented score.

The 90% Zone

Unforced errors are arguably your worst enemy when trying to play winning tennis. Putting the ball in the net doesn't even give the other guy a chance to make his own mistake. Making an error saps your confidence and removes pressure from your opponent. Why give him a mental advantage? Imagine if you made no errors, and your opponent had to hit a winner for each point he won. That would be impressive even if you lost. Well, it's within your control if you understand what you can and can't do consistently and have the discipline to make the right shot selections.

Nobody's perfect, and trying to make absolutely no errors might lead too far down the path of timidity. So, what if you targetted being 90% error free. We'll call that being in "The 90% Zone." That means for every ten shots you try, only one is not in play (in the net, long, wide, etc.) Arthur Ashe used to say that you should expect to hit at least six balls to win the point. So, what happens if two players are in the 90% zone. If neither hits a winner, that means that after one shot there is a 90% chance the ball will be in play, after two shots 81%, after three 73%, four 66%, five 59%, six 53%, seven 48%, etc. This shows that Ashe's rule of thumb is generally in line with the 90% zone. In fact, if one player expects to hit six shots, then that would mean a 12 shot rally which only has a likliehood of 28%. So, it's arguable that at the professional level, the percentage should be even higher - like maybe 95%. But, let's start with a reasonable goal at 90%. After all, wouldn't we feel like we're playing good tennis if half of our points lasted at least seven shots.

Achieving 90% Zen

So, how do we achieve the 90% zone? The first step is to expect it. You should be disappointed when you miss a shot and thinking about why you missed it. For every missed shot, you should review your footwork and your stroke. You should also consider the type of ball your opponent gave you; For example if you tried to rip a backhand passing shot cross court off of a deep approach shot and missed horribly, that should tell you to try a different shot next time. Deep approach shots put you on the defensive and you should be thinking lob. On the other hand, maybe your opponent gave you a sitter in the middle of the court, and you went for a winner but put it in the net. Commonly, this is caused by not moving your feet enough to get in the right position. So, concentrate on getting to the right spot AND give yourself more margin next time.

It's also important to know what shots you can make 90% of the time. You should know this going into your match and adjust based on how you are playing during the match. A lot will depend on the type of ball your opponent is giving you, so you have to be tracking how well each of your shots is working that day and make adjustments. For instance, if you know you are about 30% on down-the-line, flat backhands, you shouldn't even try it in the match - not even once. If you want to try to hit that in a match, spend some time during practice learning to hit it. Otherwise, use another option like a slice backhand down the line.

Here's Bollettieri's Thoughts on Knowing Your Game:
Becoming Aware of Yourself

Making Adjustments

Here's a table of adjustments to make to your shot selections based upon a typical 4.0 to 4.5 player.

Shot	1st change	2nd change	3rd change	4th change
forehand	more topspin	more arc	more margin	more relaxed
backhand	slice	lob	more margin	more relaxed
approach	slice	down the line	more margin	more relaxed
volleys	let ball come to racquet	small tap	angle off high balls
overheads	stay aggressive with power and placement		use straight arm if stretched or moving forward

more topspin: hit the ball with more topspin
more arc: aim for a higher spot over the net (e.g. 3 feet)
more margin: aim for a spot further inside the lines
more relaxed: take some pace off by relaxing your entire stroke
slice: hit a slice shot instead of coming over it
lob: hit a lob that is either very high or will land deep
small tap: just barely tap the volley, using placement instead of power

You should make adjustments quickly. So, for instance, if you miss a shot badly the first time, immediately make the first change. If you miss a shot twice in a row, definitely make the first change. Stick with your adjustments until you've hit nine in a row successfully. Then consider whether you want to change back. For instance, if you have switched to your slice backhand, and you're having success, stick with it. However, if you're opponent is teeing off on the nine shots you've hit, you need to change it up in some way such as: switching back to a topspin backhand, going for more depth, switching to a lob, aiming for a different target, etc. But don't panic; if you're putting 90% of your shots in play, congratulations - you're playing real tennis!

Going For More

Once you've established consistent play in your match, there may be times when you want to go the other direction and see if you can get a rythym for your more aggressive shots. The key is to look for strategic opportunities. One of the best times to play a more aggressive point is when you are down 0-40. If you are down 0-40, you've really got nothing to lose. If you're serving, go for a big serve (maybe an ace). If you're returning, take a good cut at the ball with the aim of putting your opponent off balance. The key is to practice hitting the shot in the match. You may find that those shots go in. That doesn't mean that you should try for that much every time, but now you know whether you should try those shots on a big point like say 30-30 or break point. Another good time is when you are up 40-0, but be careful that you don't play a loose point - play aggressive and focus on taking the point from your opponent.

The Magic Number

Often times, as a competitive tennis player, you'll ask yourself, "How much time should I be practicing and playing to put me at the top of my game and to improve?" The obvious answer "As much as you can without injuring yourself." For example, in Brad Gilbert's book "Winning Ugly", he explains that when he was a kid, he figured out that he should play 40 matches before a tournament. If you generously figure 30 days between tournaments, that's over 1 match per day. And that doesn't count his practice time. That's a lot of tennis, but Brad was driven to win - obsessed with tennis and its competition. In another example, Blake Strode - a pro Futures player from St. Louis - explained that he spends about 4 hours per day on the court practicing and then more time off the court on his strength and conditioning. Blake has qualified for the U.S. Open qualifying tournament this year, played for the University of Arkansas, and has been accepted to Harvard Law School. Blake is obviously also a very disciplined and driven individual. When asked what motivates him to practice so hard, Blake explained that he just loves tennis and being out on the court.

As I said before, playing and practicing as much as is physically possible is an obvious answer. But look at the payoff. You get to do something you love and you can get much of your college education paid for. And, if you are especially committed and talented, your tennis skills may allow you to play on the pro tour and see the world. But, I will reiterate, as a young player, if you really commit to tennis, regardless of your athletic ability, at a minimum you will be able to play tennis on scholarship at some college or university.

But what about for older players who want to be competitive in league or ladder play? There is a magic number that was told to me my old mixed doubles team captain Jeff Bohm - one of the smartest people and tennis players I've met. It's 2.5. Jeff explained to me that to be competitive in our league, I needed to play a match 2 to 3 times per week. So, to be clear that's playing a full match where both you and your opponent(s) care about the outcome two to three times per week. And, the more at stake in the match the better. For instance a "fun" match between you and a buddy is good competition; you can increase the value by upping the stakes and putting a coke on the line. Ladder, league, and tournament matches all provide added pressure and give you even more experience to draw upon later. The more pressure involved in a match, the more valuable it will be to you as a competitive player.

Let's not get away from the magic number, though - 2.5. If you want to make sure that your game is at a reasonable level, that you can hit your first serve hard, that you can rely on your second serve, that you can execute touch shots and lobs, that you can hit consistent returns, that you can hit overheads and volleys consistently, etc., average 2.5 full matches per week. Over time I have found it to be very true for myself and for players that I've observed. 2.5 may not seem like a lot, but if a match and it's preparation (driving time etc.) is 3 hours, that's 7.5 hours per week which can be a lot for someone with a job, family, etc. So, you have to make time for it and plan accordingly. Also, it takes time finding good opponents and scheduling them. 2.5 matches a week is a good commitment.

Now, as to the magic. As I mentioned before, I have a lot of empirical evidence that tells me that 2.5 gets your game to a consistent level. I believe it works because it doesn't allow for your brain and your muscles to forget how to hit shots. Playing that often means you won't go more than 3 days in between matches. This allows you to remember how to hit your shots without having to overthink it. Does this mean you shouldn't be thinking during your matches? Of course not! You should think about whether you want to hit a hard pass or a lob, but when you go to hit either, the shot should be there if you're adhering to the magic number. If the shot is not there, then you don't have that shot and shouldn't be trying to use it.

I have also found that my game will improve playing 2.5 times per week. I will get better and better. A shot that I couldn't rely on 3 weeks ago, might become something that I can add to my arsenal. But, an even faster way to add and shots and improve footwork is to drill. The magic number relies on match experience to get you practice, but that can be random. For instance, you may play a guy that never makes you hit a passing shot or a backhand return. If you play opponents like that for an entire week, now you're going to forget how to hit those shots. Or you may find that certain players have just enough pace on their serve that you can't attack it and you just can't seem to get ahead of the ball. Drilling specific shots and footwork scenarios helps you supplement your match play to make sure you don't forget how to hit shots and learn how to hit new ones.

So, to summarize, the minimum commitment to be a good competitive player at your level is:

• Play an average of 2.5 matches per week.


• Play a variety of players in these matches.


• Make the matches as competitive (pressure packed) as possible.


• Add drilling to take your game even further.

Drills I Like

(in work)

Run Around Forehand Drill (Nick Bollettieri)
forehand drill (active.com)
This teaches a player to move his feet to hit a forehand.

Technique For Hitting Backhand Slice

As discussed in another post, the slice or "scapel" or "chisel" shot is important to have your arsenal for many reasons. First, it is more accurate. Second, it extends your reach when pulled wide. Third, it naturally brings up lower balls much more safely than topspin shots. These physical differences allow you to use it effectively for returning big serves, hitting approach shots, hitting running shots, handling low shots, and as a dependable rally shot that you can use to control points.

This article is devoted to the technique of hitting the slice backhand.

(in work)...

4 min video on how to hit slice backhand - Mario Llano - ("safe" motion)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHMeXWsNbOM

3 min video on how to hit slice backhand - intosports.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eb2mpB8te7k

Penetrating Slice Backhand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5uULTkpcRE

Nice slow mo of slice backhand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVedzdKdpz8

Difference between Federer Slice and "He's Safe" Slice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZurMTUzJztM

High Backhand Scapel - Federer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHPdlGW4vEE

Stretch Backhand Scapel - Federer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXXM3I9E4E8

Backhand Slice Pass - Federer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AF3CaBu_ec

9 minute analysis of Federer, Haas, Youzny slice backhand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II7Wo0y6fC8
1. Starting position (racquet behind head, 90 degree bend in arm)
2. Contact point with ball closer to body than for topspin shot

Slow mo of Roddick slice backhand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI-5Unf3Zxc

Using slice to control the point
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRERNpbrcEY

Slow mo of Henin's slice backhand
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GzW401yri4