Lesson #13 with Eldon

4/6/09  Monday  1:00P.M.

Chico Racquet Club

 

Eldon wanted to work on my forehand drive and some short balls today.  We also talked strategy throughout the lesson.

 

 

1.         Forehand Drive  Keep the knees flexed throughout the stroke.   Stay low even when the ball is high.  You can always adjust if the ball arrives high.  Staying low has the benefit of allowing you to see the ball come in and towards you instead of peering down at the ball when you don’t flex your knees sufficiently.  You will be able to line everything up better and have better racquet preparation if your knees are already flexed.  Also, you can deliver more power to your shot this way.  Power comes from the bottom up through your legs.

 

2A.      Returning a short ball requires a shorter backswing to keep it in the court.  You get compression by having forward momentum and a short concise backswing.

 

2B.      An important principle in hitting short balls is the funnel.  As you keep moving forward into the court your backswing should become shorter and shorter just as a funnel becomes narrower and narrower proceeding to its spout.

 

2C.      As you move forward into the court to take a short ball the opposite baseline doesn’t visually appear to be shorter in depth.  This is an illusion that you have to counteract by taking a shorter backswing stroke in order to keep the ball in a court that in reality you have shortened with your movement forward.

 

3.         Step into a shorter ball (forehand stroke) with you left foot using a closed stance.

 

4.         Move diagonally to shorter balls.  Don’t turn your shoulders 90 degrees, but 45 degrees as you change directions on the court.  This allows you move up to a short ball more effectively and efficiently.  It also allows you to see more of the court.

 

5.         As a general rule, approach the net going down-the-line on a short ball.  It’s best to keep the ball in front of you.  That is an easier shot than going crosscourt.

 

6.         Eldon says I’m at that point where it is common to not execute after having set up the point.

 

7.         On overheads take practice behind the service line when you warm up.  It is easier to move forward to hit an overhead smash.

 

8.         3.5 players will often crack if you bring them up to the net.  They will think they have to cover too much of the court and their regular ground strokes will start to cave.

 

9.         It is important to be able to hit the short ball with placement and pace to get past 3.5 players and to get to the next level.

 

10.       On the return of serve for a dink serve aim for just past the service line.  This insures that you either hit a winner or force your opponent to move forward to retrieve and hit your ball up so that you can volley it away for a winner.

 

11.       It is easier to hit and get compression on an inside-out forehand ball.

 

12.       Eldon is trying to teach me to get good compression on balls that are 3 strides wide.

 

 

The main point that Eldon wanted to make in this lesson was that——– I must learn to really flex my knees well throughout my strokes.  I need to focus on hitting with a lower stance consistently since a lower stance will create a power base that will ensure more penetration on my shots.  Eldon wants to see me develop that shot.  He says I need that shot in my repertoire in order to move to the next level.