Tennis Tips from Justen

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Hello Members,

Well once again we are in May and we are still questioning when we will get outside and be able to play some tennis. Mother Nature is throwing a big wrench into the preparation of the courts. If you have been to the Club, you will have seen a lot of work going on down there. I know that I am excited for the summer and I hope you are as well.

We are still planning all of the events and drills running as scheduled and hope Mother Nature will start to cooperate. We have our Women’s Camp scheduled for May 14th and 15th so please get signed up. Also, we had our Junior Sign-Up Day and it was good seeing some of you again. Please continue to sign up as it will make the first day of Junior Tennis run smoothly.

Here are this month’s Tennis Tips:
Tip #1 Many players have trouble determining how close to the net they should stand in doubles when their partners are serving. Should you position yourself right on top of the net, or do you hang back close to the service line?

The answer: When standing in a comfortable position as if you were preparing to hit a chest-high volley, you should position yourself where you can at least see the T (the intersection of the service line with the center line) over the net, as opposed to through the net. Use this as a beginning point and adjust depending on what your opponents do or don’t do well. For example, if they lob regularly, you can stand a little farther back.

Tip #2 If you’re like most players, your idea of practice is getting in a few sets. While there’s lots to be said for that, the problem is that we tend to play to win these practice sets and therefore don’t make an effort to do the very thing that practice is supposed to be about: working on the weaker parts of our game. But there’s an easy way around this dilemma, one that simulates the situations you might face in a match while de-emphasizing the pressure to win. Play points instead of sets.

Try this: The server must win three points in a row to win a game; if you lose any of the points before reaching three, your opponent gets a chance to serve and win three consecutive points. This forces both of you to concentrate and become dominant. You’ll find that there are times when players compete for hours and never win a game.