It remains an ongoing debate about which shots are the most important when playing doubles: The serve, volley or the return. I won’t try to solve that debate here, but I will tell you that all three are imperative to a solid doubles game, with the return of serve maybe the most strategic. In singles…
Almost every club player I have ever seen either does not fully appreciate the importance of their non-dominant arm, or at the very least, will intermittently forget how important using it can be for every shot in tennis … that’s right, every shot! Some uses of your non-dominant or “off” arm are more obvious than…
In the last issue, we started discussing the major differences between the serve and the overhead. Hopefully you have started cleaning up your overhead technique by improving your movement, balance and preparation for this important shot. If you have, you may now be looking forward to hitting your overhead instead of avoiding it. Let’s do…
The players, spectators and fans are about to embark on a two-week journey known as the U.S. Open Championships at Flushing Meadows, N.Y., the final Grand Slam event of the year. If you are an American tennis fan, you are likely going to watch a lot of tennis on television or perhaps you will scramble…
As soon as we begin to play for points, we immediately move from the realm of practice into the realm of competition. And that simple addition of risking winning or losing a point, set, or match requires a totally new skill: Performing under pressure. Believe it or not, our ability to perform under pressure frequently…
Many tennis coaches believe that mental skills training are important, however, not many teach mental skills! Tennis to the Max is addressing this issue. In their unique program, they combine the expertise of a Sport Psychology Consultant (Tina Greenbaum, LCSW) with a USPTA Certified Tennis Coach (Fred Sperber). In an optimum learning environment, Tina addresses topics…
How many times have you seen an athlete get tight, underperform or choke in a big event? In practice, they play great—not a care in the world, going for broke on every shot, and effortlessly succeed while doing so. Yet once the competition starts, their best shots become their worst. Perhaps their big forehand, previously…
In addition to pure talent, the greatest champions of the game acquire relentless self-belief and determination through preparation. Every player has experienced a certain amount of doubt when down in the score or struggling through a match. Look at Andy Murray during the 2012 Olympics and 2013 Wimbledon Championships. There were critical points in each…
This article is not to be read by right-handed players, our opponents! After my last article in the July/August 2013 issue revealing my “lefty insecurities,” I am hereby reaching out to my lefty compadres to deliver some lefty power tips. Lefties have an advantage in the game of tennis. Actually two of them. First of…
Long Island Tennis Magazine has the unique opportunity to pose questions from our readers to tennis coaching legend Nick Bollettieri. Nick has coached 10 world number ones, including Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Jim Courier, Martina Hingis, Jelena Jankovic, Marcelo Rios, Monica Seles, Maria Sharapova, and Venus and Serena Williams, as well as a host of…