What Tennis Method is Better?

Announcement About Techniques

Greetings All Tennisw.com Members & Guest ~

I thought it appropriate to post something that has come to my attention over the pat several weeks about the various Teaching Methods available to Experienced & Beginning Tennis Players.

As an Instructional Coach for High School Students, I'm frequently searching for new & improved methods of bringing out the very best in one's potential to fully enjoy this Sport. I approach my guidance on what each particular Student wants from the game.
Not all have aspirations of turning Pro someday, actually most are just hoping to simply learn the game for athletic & cardiovascular enjoyment and others are there because it provides a good social atmosphere.

Granted I learned the game of Tennis many years ago that some refer to as Conventional methods of playing which is still a solid foundation to build upon. And now we've ushered in newer methods that incorporate modifications of those theories and thus refer to them as the Modern Methods which you've undoubtedly seen offered in the MTM section of Tennisw.

It is my intention to acknowledge that I encourage all enthusiast to sample each & all training methods to see which fits your style the best. Not all styles work for all people however my purpose is to welcome any sound approach to Tennis any Instructor believes will ultimately improve your game.

This is why when I see a new Member proclaim themselves as a Tennis Instructor, I am very excited about this because I'm anxious for them to offer yet another perspective on how to get positive results.

I will never tell you or suggest what I offer is the way it should be done. Personally, I carefully watch my Kids and as a result have made several adjustments over the years on what makes sense to them and what needs to be eliminated or altered.

Our New Moderator Maximum Jack has demonstrated a sound knowledge of offering Tennis Tips and of course it goes without saying that our longtime friend and moderator Tennis Angel offers Mr. Wegners' style referred to as Modern Tennis Methods complete with Videos.

Recently, we've welcomed Conticreative as a new Member of the Community & the Services he offers. So it is obvious to me, if you're looking for advice regarding this game, you've come to the right place.

Thank You & Good Hitting,

Coach

Thank you, Coach for a great new thread! In response I am copy-and-pasting part of a post I previously put on our moderator's forum:

"Good tennis discussions are not centered aound who is correct or incorrect, right or wrong, but by what is effective for the individual, and that is very subjective. What is right for me may not be the same for someone else - I go by my own "feel" (and judgement) and only hope that others would approach tennis in the same manner. Knowledge is power in tennis as well as in life, and here we invite people to become empowered through exchange of ideas, observations, theories and techniques to improve in the game of tennis, and perhaps the game of life itself."

Wow - It would obviously appear great minds think alike or maybe I stole your thoughts and made them my own? No I would never do that but to be honest, what you wrote and what I wrote comes from a fundamental idea that we see the World of Tennis as a Sport and Career that is constantly growing in popularity and technique that has room for all as opposed to a time when it was solely for the Elite of our Society.

Taking MTM as an example, I personally believe without hesitation that it is structured in a way to make sense for a larger number of participants whereas Conventional techniques have long since made the game of Tennis, very difficult to excel at. Far too many beginners have walked away from Tennis because it was just too darn hard to enjoy and when it's too hard to enjoy, it's understandable why our sport has previously failed to become included in the list of the most favorable American pastimes like Football, Baseball, Basketball and Hockey.

Although I finally got a handle on how to play with some level of competitive success, I will admit it took far longer than many newer approaches but as one friend said, " I've been playing this way for so long, I don't want to even change my socks if it disrupts my game" Well that's dramatic of course but what he was basically telling me is, for some, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".
I would reserve that mindset solely for those weekend Warriors who change their strings once a year and have been hitting with the same Stick since the Wide-Frame came out.

But if you're a young upcoming Player hungry for whatever will give you that competitive edge and/or has aspirations of finding some place in this Sport to support a career, keep your eyes, heart and mind open to anything and everything related to technique that might click with you. I might offer one small little tid-bit that could result in increasing your service return abilities. However in contrast, my concept of how to best handle a Pusher may not work for you at all whereas MTM's version does. So you get my point I'm sure and again for any of you who are experienced Players, don't hesitate providing your help and please don't feel should you do, people like myself, Tennis Angel and Max are going to try to discredit anything you offer. That's not nor ever has been our purpose on Tennisw. If you offer something that doesn't work for some, I'd rather allow our Members to go out and report back on how it worked out for them.

I think most players never get enough court time much less any practice time.My feelings on improvement center on being able to practice any changes you are trying to make.(NOT UNDER PRESSURE) of competition.
I was taught the old way but,I really feel Oscars way offers the best instruction i have seen so far.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by haretrigger

I think most players never get enough court time much less any practice time.My feelings on improvement center on being able to practice any changes you are trying to make.(NOT UNDER PRESSURE) of competition.
I was taught the old way but,I really feel Oscars way offers the best instruction i have seen so far.

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I always tell my Kids, whatever makes you feel you're in control of your Game rather than the Game being in control of you. If you like the MTM style of approach, then try to master it in your mind and your body will follow.

one of my biggest pet peeves with the new players is the lack of effort they put into practicing what they learned. a lot of my students hit a ball once a week and that's it. parents have come up to me and complained about the lack of improvement of their kids. i fired back at them about their kids not practicing in between lessons. they have kept quiet about it ever since. so i make it a point to remind the parents to make sure they have the kids spend at least 30 mins. to an hour on what they have learned in between lessons every day. if they can't do that then i tell them you are just wasting your money on me. they got the message very quick and i even got compliments from the parents because they know that the money they pay me is money well spent. and yes students have to be comfortable with what you teach and you have to be flexible almost instantly.

I spend time every day on a rebound net with a foam ball also on a board for volley practice.Sometimes as little as 15 min and always before a match.
I find that doing this it is almost impossible for me to play poorly
Having said that i think it would be very hard for anyone to change or improve their game by just playing once or twice a week without any practice.
On another note i think too little thought is given to good string.Good string makes a big difference.
Take some time to also find racquets that suit your game and not whats popular.An example would be someone who hits a soft placement type ball should not be using a 95 sq in players frame strung at 70 lbs
I know when i am using the right setup there is nothing i have to worry about on any ball thats hit to me except myself.
So to finish up i think the science behind racquets & string is a worthwhile effort to study:p

wowwwwwwwwwwww

Hi coach, I think we already talked. In my opinion any method is the best or the worst. The coaches should use the rigth sistem dependig of the player. But anyway, always we have our favorite. In my case i prefer to make the player feel what he need trying that He get the conclusion about the correction. NLP its a good tooll to understand this.
The point is if we are telling what the player should do, then is our process. In my opinion, is much better if the player can get this knowledge for himself, if you prefere, with our guide. The real coach just have to help how to find the way, never show it. The way is different to every player. All the tennis learn process is much easier than sistems, methods, etc. Just we have to try to get that the player fell his body, everybody will find the proper "system"
Hope I could help you