TopspinSports Free Online Tennis Lessons, Videos, Articles, and Tips
Hey Guys,
Feel Free to post any tennis instructional type questions here. I am a USPTA pro and Owner of TopspinSports.com. I could give personal help here or feel free to friend request me. We have a large archive of articles from tennis pros around the world that I could provide.
Feel Free to post any tennis instructional type questions here. I am a USPTA pro and Owner of TopspinSports.com. I could give personal help here or feel free to friend request me. We have a large archive of articles from tennis pros around the world that I could provide.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viglione on -
USPTA and PTR are basically two different certifying organizations. For what you may be concerned with, there is no difference in quality of the professionals from each organization.
I believe the USPTA is more prevailant in the states and PTR (may be) more prevailant outside of the states. I know there are some pros who are certified in both (maybe because their job requires it). But dont worry too much about the organization they are a part of. If you are looking for good pros, let their past tennis experience and advice determine that!
hopefully this answers your question?
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Permalink Reply by JUN on -
i'm PTR certified which is why i'm asking. i'm looking to get certified with the USPTA since every pro i know here in portland is USPTA certified. there are very few of us here that are with the PTR only. kind of difficult to get on with a club if your just PTR. and i'm not even seeking a full time gig.
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viglione on
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Yea, thats strange that you are having trouble with just ptr. I do know a lot of pros do both though.
If your interested, register for the site. We are always looking for new pros:
http://www.topspinsports.com/Register.htm
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Permalink Reply by Mary Nunaley on -
Hey, any suggestions/articles for building mental toughness in junior players?
thanks for the help.
mary
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viglione on
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Mary, Thanks for the post.
Well. When the term mental toughness is used, it may more or less refer to the ability of a player to stay "smart" on the court.
Lets put it this way...is it really possible for a player to be both mentally tough and lose? I'd like to say no. So the best way to attack mental toughness is to think of it from a smart player prospective. The smarter the player, the more mentally tough they will be.
Some players will build mental toughness on the court by playing matches. This could be a long process. Therefore, I suggest reading some of the articles on the site that will take a junior one step closer to being mentally tough. I am going to include some links.
We had a question similar to your in our ask-a-pro section of our website.
View the question and answer on mental toughness
There are also several articles that will better your journey.
Click here for mental toughness articles
Lastly, click here to view some articles from daniel spatz, specifically ta...
As you may or may not know, topspinsports.com allows pros to post their own lessons, videos, and tips. The good thing about that is you get to compare many different views of different pros.
Enjoy, and hope that helps. If you like the site, pass on the word!
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Permalink Reply by JUN on
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a new high school opened up last year in vancouver, WA to ease the crowding in two nearby high schools. in the process, we practically lost all our players to the new school. how do we rebuild a program from scratch with limited support as well as trying to stay under state athletic guidelines. the students here seem to care less about tennis and a lot of the current players join the tennis team so they can look "cute" for the yearbook.
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viglione on
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wow, sounds like a bad situation. Im assuming your coaching girls, since guys might not join a tennis team to look cute haha.
In terms of building a program its not very easy. My suggestion is to think of this coming year as a building year. You cant get too caught up in trying to win matches. Therefore, I suggest working a lot on their actual strokes. Take the time to teach them semi-western grips (my theory is that a player can not improve with the modern theories without this grip) This grip will enable them to hit with topspin and eventually hit better shots.
I know that seem simple but I coach 7 high school girls and it upsets me when they go through 2 years of high school and arent hitting with the proper grips.
From there you must work on their technique. Ensure that they are hitting the ball correctly.
These are the 2 things that are essential to a players game. Those two suggestions were also more about building better tennis players than a better program.
The only way to build a better program is to get the players more involved in the game and in tennis. They must enjoy it to start practicing and improving.
Try getting them involved in camps and local clubs, this will keep their interest year round as opposed to just the season.
I hear you concerns htough, i come from a town that is a powerhouse in all other sports, but cant quite find the tennis.
What are you currently doing to boost the program?
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Permalink Reply by JUN on
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i've suggested to the AD is get a real certified tennis instructor to teach tennis as a PE class. and not just some teacher who's basically a glorified babysitter and start from there; talk with all the coaches and PE teachers about developing a speed and strength training program and use it as a prerequisite prior to joining any team in school. just a start. btw, some of the boys still think tennis is a sissy sport.
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Permalink Reply by rafael on -
i think you should just get some first years to try and join show them how fun it can be and then have them join the nearest tennis club around so they can develop there skills when there not on school them
you can show them how fun it is by getting 2 good players to play and have them watch hopefully they think its fun
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Permalink Reply by Joachim Luis on -
I'm ambidextrous, and grew up playing a lot of baseball. I throw left and bat right, shoot hoops right handed, and kick soccer balls right footed. However, I write with my left hand, and generally consider myself to be left handed on the tennis court.
Saying so, this makes my two-handed backhand very natural for me. But my forehand is sloppy and doesn't feel right. Back in high-school my father recommended trying a two-handed forehand, which, at the time seemed to instantly upgrade my game. Now, I'm back at it after a long layoff, and even though I'm rusty, the two-handed backhand was almost instantly comfortable. However, my forehand, which I tried to hit one-handed, seemed klutzy and clumsy, but when I hit with two-hands it feels much better.
I've done a lot of research online and most 'pros' and 'coaches' and 'experts' are almost universal in that a two-hand forehand is a liability (limits reach, not enough power, etc.) However, can't you say the same about a two-hand backhand? If so, why are people more ready to accept a two-hand backhand?
Should I continue with my two-hand forehand or try to learn it one-hand?
Thanks
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viglione on
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well,
I agree with the 2 handed forehand as being an extreme liability and would not recommend it!
The two handed backhand is NOT. I see where your going with your thoughts, but most players take the second hand off the racquet for that extra reach (slice) on the backhand side.
A 2h backhand is simple a forehand with your nondominant hand.
as you can see on tour, there are many many pros that are hitting with 2h backhands...so its obviously not too limiting!!
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