Coaching

Many tennis players tend to "steer" the ball in the direction that they want it to go. This involves changing your swing so that it goes more towards your target. Most of the work is done by your hands and your racquet. It is much better if you can use your shoulders to direct the ball. Try to...Read more

I am a firm believer in focusing on your strengths during a tennis match. You can always get better at hitting the ball, improving a specific shot, and sharpening your technique. However, you want to hit your best shots when you are playing a match. If your forehand is better than your backhand,...Read more

Every tennis player is different. Some have stronger forehands, while others prefer their backhand. Many like to run around and hit groundstrokes, and every once in a while you run into that aggressive net charger. Regardless of the type of player, there are a few basic ideas that will likely...Read more

I never really understood the importance of the follow through in a tennis swing. Once the racquet and the ball make contact, how much difference can it possibly make if the racquet ends up in a different place at the end of the swing? The answer is, it can make all the difference in the world. If...Read more

Anyone who is considered a good competitor hates to lose. I can't tell you how many times I have felt this pain following a loss. One of the tough things about tennis is that you are going to lose a lot. You will lose points, you will lose games, you will lose sets, and you will lose matches. Then...Read more

Tennis can be a very complicated game. Over the years I have been trying to simplify my coaching and instruction so that the execution during an actual point is more likely to be successful. When serving, think one, two and three: one is the starting position, two is the toss and the racquet moving...Read more

Practicing groundstrokes seems to be the main focus of most players. Rather than just standing in the middle of the baseline and starting the rally with a feed straight ahead, use your serve and return of serve to start the point. Hit the serve very slowly at first and hit the return of serve so...Read more

Over the many years that I have coached top juniors, it's clear that some players dwell on failure more than others. Some move on after a small or even large setback, while others make excuses and remain stuck in place. No matter how good a player you may be, the simple fact is that there is no...Read more

It has been widely circulated that during this life-changing pandemic people have started evaluating what is important to them. While family is certainly number one, the circumstances of COVID has gotten me to appreciate something that I knew all along: Tennis is that friend who is always there for...Read more

Playing tennis is easy, right? Most people can hit the ball over the net a few times. Some people can direct the ball to certain areas of the court in order to make their opponent run. More experienced players can even execute strategic patterns of shots based on a game plan that is designed to...Read more