THE LIFE OF A TENNIS COACH, TUTOR AND VET PLAYER

The state of American Tennis by Tim Mayotte

2011-09-12T14:37:00.001-07:00

Tim Mayotte
September 12, 2011

Now that we are at the end of another US Open, the sad news is that American tennis is in the sorriest state it has ever been.

After playing at the highest levels of the game and then teaching tennis for seven years and spending a year and a half running the USTA High Performance Program for Player Development at the US Open site under Jose Higueras and Patrick McEnroe, I am compelled to make a few observations.

A number of ideas as to why we are in this state have been suggested. From where I sit, the main reason we have so few good or great players is that there are relatively few top developmental coaches in our nation.

Other concerns about the quality of our athletes and suggesting our players are “soft” misplaces the blame on the youngsters and allows us grown-ups an excuse for not being smart enough to keep up with the rest of the world.

In the current situation an occasional good player may emerge like Christina McHale or Ryan Harrison, but to become a dominant tennis nation again we must first develop a large number of top coaches who can guide our players to be prepared technically, physically, mentally, emotionally to make a final assault on the highest levels of the game.

Only then will a steady stream top pros and champions emerge from our shores.

An advanced teaching method or methods must be crafted and then used to educate and develop a number of top developmental coaches who can lead our players through every stage to the top. This has never happened here, and the cost is now painfully obvious.

Sadly, the one organization with enough resources to make a significant impact on this problem, USTA Player Development, (PD) has for years, and continues, under Patrick McEnroe and Jose Higueras, to fail at this critical task.

This is not to say Higueras has not proved his mettle as a coach of players who are already pros. The critical point is that Higueras as a coach of coaches and McEnroe as manager of PD are the wrong people for the job.

One of Higueras’ cherished coaching guidelines is, “Don’t Coach How You Were Taught.” I suspect that he is teaching our coaches and players how he was taught. PD is using antiquated teaching methods and enormous resources are being squandered in the process, $60 to $70 million in the past three years is an educated guess.

In this new tennis world the most sophisticated teaching and coaching must be available to our players.

One of the USTA PD’s most ambitious projects has been to educate coaches both inside and outside PD, about Higueras’ “philosophy” (as it is known inside the program) and develop something of a unified teaching method for coaches nationwide.

Besides teaching the 30 or so coaches who train players at the 3 USTA PD sites at Boca Raton, Fl, New York and Carson, CA., McEnroe and Higueras have attempted this through the new Regional Training Centers. Higueras and other USTA PD coaches have been visiting these centers leading workshops while trying to identify top talent.

There are many problems in this plan, but most notably Higueras’ “philosophy” is so bare bones and rudimentary that it offers little insight into the complexities of getting and keeping our young players on track to be pros.

The very idea that you can materially educate local coaches across the nation with a few workshops a year reveals how simplistic Higueras’ thinking is. A telling indictment of what McEnroe and Higueras consider about the value of top coaching particularly in relation to younger players is that PD has hired as coaches people just out of college who have no other credentials than having played D-3 tennis.

This would be comparable to hiring green undergraduates to teach our nation’s most promising young scholars whether they be 10 or 12 or 14. (In this vein I probably should not have been hired to start and run a PD center with only five years teaching experience and no past working with high-performance players as well as having no training in managing a large group of players.)

That this is happening at the supposedly premier training sites in the nation is alarming.

By contrast, other nations demand that coaches study for years before working with players. (There may be budget concerns but this is hard to reconcile with McEnroe’s $750,000 plus salary.)

McEnroe has committed huge resources “educating” our coaches with Higueras’ “philosophy” without sufficiently critiquing the merits of its effectiveness.

Not surprisingly McEnroe has spent little, if any, time working with young players of any age and teaching them the building blocks of the game. (He and tennis would be well served by him getting out of the broadcast booth and on the court with young players for a sustained period of time.)

A teacher who is a close observer would come to understand that by working with players of all ages one becomes more prepared to teach those at all levels, including the top of the game.

Good coaching is enormously complicated. A good or great coach must understand and integrate (or at least be curious enough about to get help with) a wide variety of disciplines. A short list would include building and managing a culture of healthy discipline, helping players deal with frustration by using basic thinking about psychology, developmental physiology, working with and educating parents, besides the more obvious but critical elements of shot selection and finally, teaching technique.

A great leader to a large group of coaches must be a good organizer, systematic thinker and implementer and have the ability to convey that information effectively to a group over time.

Higueras, and McEnroe, who has been vigilant about enforcing Jose’s “philosophy,” have mastered very few of these skills.

It's sad that the USTA has in place a coach of coaches of who by his own admission is “not a technical coach.” This might be acceptable if our nation had in place a large number of coaches competent in teaching world-class technique.

This is not the case. In his three plus years on the job, Higueras has established only a simple set of parameters about the basics of technique. Understanding and teaching world-class technique is anything but simple. Grasping elements of vision, the kinetic chain, how movement affects racquet work and determining an effective progression of learning given the developing player’s physical abilities are all essential. (Just ask any teaching pro who has tried to teach a 50 year old a kick-serve.)

Finally, a great coach helps a young player learn in the most natural and non-conscious (for lack of a better phrase) way possible. And all that is just a start.

Thankfully, both inside and outside PD there are a number of good, (some great) solid, dedicated, hard-working and curious coaches who help young people become good and once in a while, great players.

In other nations those coaches would be recognized as such and financially supported to continue their good work. (The French Tennis Fed is an example.)

Here, the USTA has for years “poached” those players who were developed in private programs (Christina McHale is a most recent example.) and left the local coaches with no on-going recognition and financial support. (They have been trying to develop talent from the ground up recently with meager results given the price tag mentioned above.)

It is no wonder that many coaches I speak with find Higueras and McEnroe arrogant and that the rift between the private coaches and the USTA PD has never been wider.

They need to bring the best coaches in the nation together and craft a world-class educational program to train a core of top coaches. Also, they must also support financially and other wise those that are doing good work.

If McEnroe and Higueras, after their three-plus years on the job, still feel their methods are the best then I think they should be willing to compete. I suggest they allocate funds to a handful of top programs and see after a few years who produces the best players.

The worst that can happen is that we learn a great deal; the best that can happen is that they all prove me wrong and show us that they were on the right path all along.

PTR Workshop Details

2011-09-07T15:43:00.000-07:00

Click here for UK dates and locations so far

New Appointment

2011-08-30T13:50:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to announce that Andy Dowsett has accepted the new role of Coordinator to assist in servicing PTR members in England, Scotland and Wales. We are fortunate that Andy has the administrative skills, tennis knowledge and prior experience to support us in our transition. You may contact Andy at ptr@ptruk.net. The former PTRuk office is no longer operating so please bookmark the PTR International webiste on your computer at www.ptrtennis.org.
One of our goals is to improve efficiency. Thankfully, technology will enable us to have a virtual office in the UK. Phone calls that are not answered and go to voicemail will be returned within 24 hours. We will have established hours from noon to 11pm via the International Headquarters where you can email or skype.
As you know from my For the Record messages in TennisPro, PTR recruited Anne Pankhurst as our educational consultant 18 months ago, to assist us in revising our Coach Education Pathway. The new programme, which began in March this year in the USA, has been well received. Anne has done an impressive job in writing the syllabus, conducting workshops and training tutors. The recently received NCACE accreditation at Level 5 for the Master of Tennis Performance programme is one example of her work. According to the schedule, Anne’s focus will shift to duplicate her US efforts in the UK, other parts of Europe as well as Asia.
As you will see on the website at http://www.ptrtennis.org/ptruk/workshops, in mid-November this year, we will start conducting the first of the new courses in the UK. If you choose to add to your current knowledge as well PTR certification (Adult Development), Anne will be conducting Junior Development (10 and under) and Performance courses. Andy will be conducting Adult Development courses for new members who wish to choose that pathway. We are working to have our new website features operational by the end of August, so you will be able to sign up for one of the new workshops online.
One of the requests from the survey we sent you recently was that we run courses in all parts of the UK. So our plan is to train a workforce to enable us to do that. This will allow us to provide more workshops near you. If you are interested at hosting one at your club, please contact Anne: anne@annepankhurst.co.uk.
In conclusion, we appreciate your patience during our transition, and we always welcome your comments and suggestions. We look forward to providing you with unparalleled service, so you can continue to... Make a World of Difference.
My best,

Dan Santorum
CEO, PTR
P.S. If you have not already returned the member survey (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PTRukMemberSurvey), please do so by September 2nd.
MAKE A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE
Professional Tennis Registry
Dan Santorum
CEO
dan@ptrtennis.org
PO Box 4739
Hilton Head Island SC 29938
tel: 800-421-6289 or 843-785-7244
fax: 843-686-2033
Skype: danptr

The end is nigh

2011-08-29T22:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry guys i am going to concentrate on my other blog site tennismind.blog.com

Come and join me for informative articles and coaching

Andy

So let me get this straight

2011-03-23T12:35:00.000-07:00

When you have spoken and worked out via CDIEW what your player is all about and requiring (although the ablility to CDER is the better option for charting), its important to then understand the determining factors to be worked on from the ensuing GS and TI. So utilising HDDSS via direct and indirect feeds (not forgetting to communicate with your player if the appropriate incoming ball is realistic enough for them) we can understand what they are currently trying to achieve and then work on what they intended to achieve. PAS is the first port of call which is underpinned and influenced by the set up, timing, feeling and finally mechanics. Obviously SMART goal setting is also very key in this process.

Well done if you understand this but if not dont worry it was more for my understanding!

See you soon
Andy

So lets start with catching up

2011-02-27T14:35:00.000-08:00

Its been a while but not without rhyme and reason!

After all i have had to get on with some projects, always thought that i spent too much time facebooking and tweeting in between my coaching hours and tutoring and not getting other important projects completed.

Time only stops when you stop making time!

I have lectured on the modern tennis symposium recently and have written their module 6 course - The Tennis Mind. This coincides with the 12 e course and TennisMind website.

I need to put finishing touches to a co-authored book with a good friend of mine www.evolve9.com and my good friend Silvija's book on tour coaching. This is a year to get projects finished up and running for sure.

Turning 40 recently has certainly given me renewed vigour in my endeavours my one aim this year is to ensure modern tennis becomes one of the most formidable coaching courses in the UK this year and with my thousands of contacts cant see why not!

For those around the world thankyou for my messages and emails and i will be back up and blogging as of today! More articles on the way and i will blog about some of the compelling conversations i have had and learnt from in the past month!

Welcome back from me and welcome back to you!

Andy

Back soooooooooooon

2011-02-14T15:14:00.000-08:00

Hi Peoples, Friends and Collegues

Sorry i have been away i have been working on a few projects and will be back in the next few days!

Andy

The life of a tennis coach week 03-2011

2011-01-17T05:21:00.000-08:00

Geez its been a while!
Sorry i have gone into seclusion whilst i finish my Tennis Mind Project for a sneak peak you can check here
http://www.itsphotographic.co.uk/andy/index.htm
However it wont be up for long!

As soon as i have completed this project i will get back to you all! After all time is of the essence

Have a great week and i will be back with lots of interesting and great news and articles along with a potentially great life changing role that is possibly looming in the next 6 months to take over. We shall see!

Andy

Goal setting extra

2011-01-11T08:02:00.000-08:00

Okay so as promised we need to add an extra page for those of you who work with younger students. Whilst i am at it however, i may as well talk about the more advanced County and State players we have.

When working with juniors you need to have an understanding of not only what you think they need but what they also think they need. To you a forehand may look fantastic, to them they may feel it doesn't quite seem right leading to breakdowns under pressure.

For these guys we wont be talking about the terms personal, financial or spiritual (see part 1) but will cover the other aspects. This is a great time to get your students to do some homework! Click this link to get your students to fill out this form although you may want to simplify this slightly as its taken from my first book 'World Class Tennis Mentality'.

To access the Tennis tech tact list click here and click on the appropriate link www.andytennis.co.uk

As for cutting goals out, you will find that most of the goals set will be tennis related (dependant on age and their own personal environment). There will be minimal cutting away although you will need to discuss any goals that seem outlandish.

The best question to ask about their goals at this stage is the simple question 'Why?' and work from there.

Short of that you need to download the goalset masterplan and work to this with just four simple achievable goals. Don't forget once your students have achieved one goal march onwards and pick up another. When working with the higher level players then you will definately need to involve the rest of the team around them.

For instance lets say my goal was to increase more power into my serve! I will need to see my coach and set some exercises to work on perhaps technically and tactically, my fitness coach may set some plyometric exercises to build some explosion into my body. My psychology coach will help set visualisation work and these may mean i have another handful of daily goals to reach my main goal of more power into my serve.

Like everything email me if you need help here but i think it is quite simple. Good luck

Goalsetting 2011 part 7 of 7

2011-01-11T08:00:00.001-08:00

Welcome back to the last day of your goal setting programme. Although for those of us who are tennis coaches and players, you will be interested in the extra sports goalsetting day i will add tomorrow.

From the remaining goals, choose the four goals which are the most important for you to work on right now and enter them onto a goalset worksheet (available at the link below).

The sheet itself will be self explanatory and help you to set a path for your career in 2011. On the back page of the goal you can chart your progress if possible.

To download a pdf of the goalset masterplan visit www.andytennis.co.uk and click on the goalsetting masterplan link under news.

Setting Goals for 2011 6 of 7

2011-01-07T07:47:00.001-08:00

Hey all. Now we are getting to the crux of the programme so lets get straight to it...

Divide the remaining goals into three categories: Short range (1 month or less); Intermediate (1 month to 1 year); Long Range (1 year of more). Mark these as SR, I or LR accordingly.

Remember:

Some goals must be big (out or reach but not out of sight to make you stretch and grow to your full potential

Some goals must be long range to keep you on track and greatly reduce the possibility of short range frustrations

Some goals must be small and daily to keep you disciplined

Some goals must be ongoing

All goals should be specific

Good work and we are nearly there one more day and you can get to work with your total goals programme.

See you all tomorrow whereby we get to choose some goals and get them to work

For my own motivation!

2011-01-06T16:16:00.000-08:00

This is from a recent forum, sometimes i will publish things for posterity. The little things keep me motivated in all that i do and this is purely for me! I am privileged and honoured to be placed in such a high category list of tennis coaches and achievers!

evolve9 kids tennis

Ok.. here is an original idea... lets pay tribute to people that we know in tennis that are doing a great and passionate job on the ground ... a kinda all stars team ...

Here is my list and in no particular order:

(1) Andy Dowsett.
(2) Kris Soutar.
(3) Mike Barrell.
(4) Ajay Pant.
(5) Butch Staples.
(6) Ed Tseng.
(7) Duey Evans.
(8) Mark Tennant.
(10) Ken DeHart.
(11) Jorge Capenstany.
(12) Joe Dinofer.
(13) David A. Abrams.
(14) Lauren Lynch.
(15) Grant Day.
(16) Ray Brown.
(17) Karl Rosenstock.
(18) Carl Shroeder III.
(19) Mike Morris.
(20) Ken Pottel
(21) Allwyn Crawford.
(22) Kevin Kaufman.
(23) Andre Christopher Smith.
(24) Dennis Christopher.
(25) Kevin Kauffman.
(26) Neha & Shika Uberoi
(27) Leah Friedman.
(28) Dave Miley.
(29) Sandi Procter.
(30) Kirk Anderson.
(31) Carlos Salum.
(32) Gary Achivious.
(33) High-Tech Tennis (Julie).
(34) Tennis Assist (Michael).
(35) Rhonda Costa.
(36) Steven Capo.
(37) Dan Carlson.
(38) Tennis Play and Stay.
(39) Mike Wolf.
(40) Marc Stultz.
(41) John C. Cook.
(42) Bill W. Cook.
(43) Erik Oberhammer.
(44) Jeff Salzenstien.
(45) Leo Tedesco.
(46) Gordon Uehling.
(47) Federico Coppini.
(48) Dan Horowitz.
(49) Doug Cash.
(50) Katherine Riebe.

I have a few hundred more, however, I simply wanted to express the names that came to mind. I also want to mention the thousands of others out there in the trenches making tennis possible for those children and families that cannot afford to participate in such a lovely sport that does in fact last for a lifetime!

Cheers,

Jason Lampione.

Modern Tennis Symposium - A Pleasure!

2011-01-06T15:56:00.000-08:00

2011 MTI SYMPOSIUM

MTI wish you and your families a very happy and prosperous New Year!

It is with great pleasure that I invite you to our 2011 MTI Symposium on the 20th January at David Lloyd Club, Chigwell, Essex, UK

All coaches will receive 5 CLS points. You do NOT have to be an MTI qualified coach to attend.

The course fee is great value at only £17

Our guest speaker will be Andy Dowsett who is a specialist in sports psychology and in particular tennis. He is published worldwide and was a senior instructor for the PTR. We are delighted to announce that Andy will be running his courses on our behalf starting this year.

We will also have a morning brainstorming session, followed by an on court drills session after lunch. We would ask you that each candidate bring a drill for any level of play for the rest of us to share.

Please follow the following link for full details and to book;

http://playmoderntennis.com/MTI-Symposium.html

Please book as soon as possible so that we can organise definite lunch orders.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind Regards, John

John Littleford
Managing Director
Modern Tennis International
www.playmoderntennis.com

Return of Serve Training

2011-01-06T15:35:00.000-08:00

“OK, do you want to get broken first, or do you want to let me hold?” —What cheeky world No. 1 Martina Hingis quipped at the coin toss before a 1997 match against Lindsay Davenport.

Advantages of returning serve

If your opponent is a slow starter, you have a better chance of getting an early service break.
If you are a slow starter, you have a better chance of avoiding an early service break.
If you serve on even-numbered games, you serve immediately after every changeover. Then you are physically and mentally rested—albeit your opponent also is—and that gives you a better chance of holding serve, especially in the latter stages of grueling matches.
If you choose return of serve to start the match, you still have about a 50 percent chance—depending on whether sets total an even or odd number of games—of serving to start the remaining sets. And if you start the match returning serve and you play a first-set tiebreaker, you will serve to start the second set.
If you boast an excellent return of serve and your opponent has a poor serve, you may want her to serve first so you can try to gain an early service break and get off to a fast start.
The same thinking holds true (in reverse) if you have a weak, attackable serve and your opponent has a terrific service return. You can avoid a demoralizing early service break by selecting return of serve.
If your opponent wins the toss and selects a side of the court so that you’re looking into a bright sun and/or you’re against a heavy wind, you may not want to risk losing your serve in the opening game.

THE TECHNIQUE IN PROGRESSIONS

Basics

Utilise a Wide Athletic Stance - Positioning towards the ball

Work out opponents range of serves zone

Lower level players can only serve to specific areas on the court, take not of this and use this to your advantage!

Set up your Y-formation in relation to the above

Change your return position to force your opponent to serve to the areas they don't like!

Timing

Everybody has a timing on the return of serve however i find the best sequence is to step forward on the ball toss and then to split step forward as the racket reaches the lowest part of the throwing action behind the back. From here cut off the angle to return (Y-Formation).

THE TACTICS

Utilise the following tactics to enhance your return of serve game

First, stand far behind the baseline. This often encourages your opponent to overhit the serve in an effort to get it past or through you.
Second, stand closer to the service line. Many players take this as a sign of disrespect for their serve and become unnerved. Often it triggers a more aggressive, riskier serve than the server might otherwise attempt.
Third, a variant of the previous tactic, stand close to the service line before your opponent serves. This can create pressure on the server, then just before the serve, move back to a safer position to actually make the return.
Four, stand nearer to one side. Invite the server to serve into the open area of the service box. This tactic can often force a serve to your stronger side.

Return Targets using the 4-Square basic routine

Tactical choices for the receiver in terms of 4-Square.

If you don’t know the server’s capabilities, at the beginning of the match, it’s wise to use percentage tennis and target the back two squares using topspin or well-struck underspin shot that drives the ball deep into the court.
As the match progresses, you should start varying your return locations. To hit to the wider squares.
If you’re looking at a slow, shallow second serve into the service box, you can also use a drop shot to 1 or 4.

Consider the following tactical points also…

Borrow pace from the big first servers

Make something happen when returning second serves. Here, patterns of play enter the picture. Either drive the return deep into the corner or chip and charge and take control of the net. When driving the return of the second serve and remaining on the baseline, simply play the ball crosscourt. No real reason to return down the line, for in that case the net is high, the court is shorter, and most importantly, the recovery footwork is magnified.

Approach up the line

THE PSYCHOLOGY

Pay attention to what happens after double faults (3 in a row is winner)

Now consider the server who double faults, and then misses the subsequent first serve – assuming they would not care to deliver consecutive double faults they generally let up on that next second serve. The aggressive receiver knows this is coming, steps in and makes something happen, working always to apply more and more pressure against the second serve.

For anticipation information on the return of serve check out my latest article http://thelifeofatenniscoachandplayer.blogspot.com/2010/12/art-of-anticipation-serve.html

Overall aim - to play at 60-70 percent of return stroke capability so you can get a high percentage of returns in.

Setting Goals for 2011 5 of 7

2011-01-04T08:31:00.000-08:00

f you have reached day 5 then you really are ready for a great 2011, but we have more work to do and more cutting down of goals. After all lets really face it, how many goals can you achieve in a year?

After each remaining goal ask yourself these questions and these relate to session one:

1. Will reaching this goal make me happier?

2. Will reaching this goal make me healthier?

3. Will reaching this goal make me more prosperous?

4. Will reaching this goal make me more friends?

5. Will reaching this goal give me peace of mind?

6. Will reaching this goal make me more secure?

7. Will reaching this goal improve my realationships with others?

If you cant answer yes to at least 2 of these questions then eliminate them from your list. Be sure to consider your family when you answer these questions.

What remains now are our true goals and tomorrow we will divide these up into workable chunks. Remember and inch is a cinch but a mile is a trial.

Results for tennis organisation Survey

2011-01-03T08:21:00.000-08:00

Okay here are the results for the Survey

Question 1 - Which tennis organisation has given you the most knowledge as a coach to be the best you can be?

1. Modern Tennis / PTR
2. LTA
3. RPT / Inspire2coach

Question 2 - Which organisation is most important for your career as a coach?

1. LTA
2. All others with 0%

Question 3 was for me but a resounding note on drills was key in continuing education courses.

The winner of the Barricade Trainers has been emailed.

Setting Goals for 2011 4 of 7

2011-01-03T02:07:00.000-08:00

Day 4.

I have had many questions on goal setting already and although i have answered these individually for you all, i will use examples in my next blog to show you all how easy these can be.

But before i digress, you are doing well if you are at this stage, although yesterdays work wasn't difficult.

Now I want you to take further goals away from your list as we continue to cut away the naff stuff.

Ask these four questions, ALL of which must have a ''yes'' answer:

1. Is it really my goal?

2. Is it consistent with my other goals?

3. Can i commit myself to finish this goal?

4. Can i see myself reaching this goal?

Remember this will help to reduce your goals on your i really want to be, do or have sheet and make the whole process more manageable. We are now one more step away from realising your true goals list and that will become the focus of tomorrows session!

Using Ball Machines for Singles Practice

2011-01-03T02:03:00.001-08:00

Ball Machines – Using them for Singles Practice

by Ken DeHart

USA High Performance Coach

PTR & USPTA Master Professional

Go to www.kendeharttennis.com for additional tips on improving your tennis & teaching

Ball machines are great for practicing your singles shots – if positioned correctly.

5 things NOT to do when using a ball machine:

1. Do not place the ball machine only on the baseline in the center of the court

2. Do not have the ball machine oscillate only from deuce court to ad court

3. Do not use the ball machine to practice only your ground strokes

4. Do not stand still after each of your shots

5. Do not return random shots of the in-coming ball

5 things TO consider doing when using a ball machine:

1. Place the ball machine off center where the opponent might be when making a shot

2. Have the ball machine direct the shots where the opponent might hit based upon their position on the court or particular tendencies of a know opponent

3. If you wish to have the ball machine oscillate, have it direct he ball within the options available if it were playing from that position in a rally.

4. After each shot recover to a new position on the court based upon where you place your return of the ball then recover quickly based upon where the next ball is coming from the ball machine.

5. Direct each ball you receive back toward an intended target. Aim for a direction and depth using the appropriate spin as you send the ball back over the net.

There are many options to consider in planning your practice to improve the quality and effectiveness of you practice time with the ball machine.

5 things to consider when PLANNING your practice:

1. Getting advice from someone on how to adjust the ball machine and how to vary deliveries of the ball

2. The length of time you want to practice – half an hour or an hour based upon your goals, shots you wish to work on and conditioning level

3. Having a friend join in with you to practice volleys off your ground strokes, lobbing off your volleys when at the net or alternating hitting after a certain number of shots or pattern has been completed.

4. It also helps when it comes time to pick up the balls when the machine is empty so you can spend more time hitting. That may include taking turns putting balls in the machine while either of you are hitting then rotating turns. Consider serving all the balls that did not make it over the net when you do have to pause to pick up the balls to work on your serve as part of your practice.

5. Write down drills you create or ask your tennis professional to suggest some drills that would be good for your singles game.

10 options to make your PRACTICE PRACTICAL:

1. Select real singles targets using the 4 squares on the opposite side of the net. Square 1 is the deuce service court, square 2 is the space behind the deuce service court, square 3 is the space behind the ad service court and square 4 is the ad service court. This will help you with the direction and depth of your intended target and make your practice more practical.

2. Even though the ball machine is set to send the ball to you as a ground stroke, practice moving forward after your initial shot to play a half-volley and then moving in further to play a volley or two.

3. As you play shots moving in toward the net, select targets for direction and depth that you would actually use if your opponent were on the baseline where the ball machine is located and your were attempting to capture the net.

4. When you get to the net, recover back quickly and retreat back toward the baseline as though you were put on total defense by your opponent. Pause to make a shot from your position and then retreat further back until you choose to advance forward again.

5. Vary the speed of your shots. Use the 3 speeds mentioned in other articles: level 1 is slower and has lots of spin, level 2 is a rally speed and level 3 is as hard as you can hit – without missing.

6. Vary the spin of your shots. Use varying degrees of topspin and underspin to improve your weapons in match play.

7. Vary the frequency of the shots delivered by the ball machine. Allow little time between shots or too much time like an opponent who plays softly and slowly with their returns.

8. Vary the spin of the shots delivered by the ball machine to help you learn how to receive different shots that may be difficult for you in your matches.

9. Limit the number of shots you make without pausing. Hitting 3oo balls in a row just because that is how many the ball machine holds is not effective not efficient practice. After about 40 or 50 balls, use the remote and turn off the machine and reset some feature of the ball you are receiving – change the direction of the in-coming ball, speed, spin or depth of the ball.

10. Change your targets often. Practice enough returns to specific targets until you feel comfortable with that target then move on to a new target that demonstrates your ability to control the direction, depth, spin and speed of your returning shot.

Ask your tennis professional to use a ball machine in your next lesson to see how it can be used effectively in your practice session. Ball machines are great ways to permit repetition in receiving particular balls and learning a response to that ball. Ball machines also assist in developing confidence in your strokes so you can use them in match play without having to think about “how” to hit. This will allow you to focus more on the strategy of “where” to direct your shots and enjoy playing the game – TENNIS.

Go to www.kendeharttennis.com and click on Blog for additional tips to improve your game.

Ken DeHart
SJSRC Director of Tennis
PTR & USPTA Master Professional
408-892-3806 cell
www.kendeharttennis.com

Borgs Mental Lessons

2011-01-02T15:09:00.001-08:00

Borg's mental lessons

By Bjorn Borg
Winner of 11 Grand Slam titles

I used to be one of the worst behaved kids on the tennis court.
When I was 11 or 12 years old I played for my hometown club outside Stockholm where I grew up and one day the club arranged a meeting with my parents to do something about my behaviour.

I practised five hours a day and I wanted to win every single point in those five hours
Bjorn Borg

Swearing, throwing racquets - you name it, I was doing it. My parents were really embarrassed.
The club decided to suspend me for six months and I was really sad and disappointed because I loved to play tennis.
That was a great lesson for me at the time. When I came back after six months I did not open my mouth and that's probably where I got my temperament from.
Sure you have feelings and you get emotional and angry but I kept everything inside because I think I still had that thought in my mind - I didn't want to get suspended again.
My dream as a kid was to play Wimbledon and maybe one day to win Wimbledon but to win it five times in a row, I remember my match against John McEnroe in 1980 walking off that court, it was the best thing to happen.
To win that last point in the Wimbledon final - that's the most wonderful feeling you can have as a tennis player. That was the best that I could perform.
Of course I felt sometimes inside that I could show an outburst of emotions but I kept them inside and I could still focus and concentrate on the game.
It is a learning process. When I was practising as a kid, I always wanted to win.

BJORN BORG

Born: 6.6.1956 Sodertalijie, Sweden

Wimbledon titles: 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980

Grand Slam titles: 11

Career titles: 61

Prize money: $3,655,751

It didn't matter if it was a practice, I wanted to win every single point. I practised five hours a day and I wanted to win every single point in those five hours.
Still in my mind I had the suspension when I was a kid and I think by being very serious on the court, learning how to play well under pressure, I could play really well on the important points in the match.
I think that was probably one of my strongest points.
I lost my motivation a little bit when I lost to John McEnroe in the 1981 Wimbledon final.
I still played good tennis but I did not have the same focus that I had for many years. I always gave 100% and loved to win and hated to lose but if you lose that little bit of an edge it is very difficult to do well.
Something was missing and for me as a person that is not right.

2011-01-02T10:14:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce World renowned tennis coach and educator Ken Dehart to my blog!
To find out more about Ken and his products and articles visit his site http://www.kendeharttennis.com/

I look forward to some of his many articles!

Andy

Great Reading on Focus and the younger generation

2011-01-01T15:39:00.001-08:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/technology/21brain.html?_r=1&emc=eta1

Check this great article out on why kids this day and age struggle to focus!

Coach Organisation Survey

2011-01-01T14:41:00.000-08:00

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.

The life of a tennis coach week 01-2011

2011-01-01T10:37:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to you all!

So having personally completed all my goalsetting many things have happened
1. Opportunities have already shown themselves to me in the form of contacts and jobs!
2. I am more focused with many mini goals throughout the next 2 months

Coming this year i have the next priorities
To get Tennis Mind up and running for Coaches, Parents and Players
To run a new venture for lower level players called 'The Fun Level Cup'
To start the Tennis 2020 venture
Write, plan and run a week long 'Tour Coaching' attendance course
and finally
Having planned and programmed Tennis90 this will be up and running in a postal format

For myself i have managed out of the blue to land a lucrative six month contract providing tennis articles for a company in China.
Had a phone call out the blue again about running a county wide programme on badminton courts for munchkins and mini reds! The courts are available and signed and sealed the programme that i have been working on prior to the phone call is ready and this particular deal will be signed this Friday!
Finally, i have two centres that wish for me to place a programme and coach into.

All these derived after i had set and clearly thought about my goals. Coincidence? Who knows but i do know that give enough energy to a project and then the project will grow. One of the best quotes i learnt was where goes your attention so goes your energy!

I will leave you with that thought

Andy

Setting Goals for 2011 3 of 7

2011-01-01T10:06:00.000-08:00

Lets continue....we have our dream list written down at this stage and what a list some of us may have! My goals this year are only 4 work related ones but from here i have a mountain of mini goals/daily goals to get through!

You may find that you have written down many goals but your job is to start cutting out from your list to what you believe is the most important or the most beneficial in your life right now.

For each item you have written down answer the question ''WHY?''. If you cant verbalise in one sentence why you want to be, do or have, then it truly is a dream and not a real goal. at this point you should cross it off your list.

Good luck and see you all tomorrow. Once again i would like to welcome all the new guests from around the world, i am in awe of the different countries that check here and feel blessed to be able to bring you what i think is helpful information weekly to you all.

If there is anything you want me to blog on just ask and it will appear!

Have a great day

Andy

Setting Goals for 2011 2 of 7

2010-12-30T07:47:00.001-08:00

So to week 2...

Having taken stock i want you now to make a list of everything that you want or need, desire or wish for in your life, environment and career that will enhance it this year. Anything that will enhance your current situation or take you to new heights in your career..

Write these down (as that is important for the following days to continue on) or type if you feel the need, all that you want to be, do or have. If you have a family, be sure to include your better half and children when you set your goals. This entire goal-setting process helps channel your logical left brain and frees your creative right brain for more effective use of your imagination. Note: you gotta 'be' before you can 'do' and you gotta 'do' before you can have.

Take action TNT – Today not Tomorrow