My first stab at tennis.

I found a tennis racket at Good Will for only $2.50, and I bought a can of balls at Walgreen's. So I headed over to the Golden Gate courts, where there's a couple of practice walls.

At the wall I noticed that too often, I hit the balls over the fence. I kept at it for a while, and though it was fun, someone started practicing next to me and since I have so little control over the ball, I decided to leave him in peace.

The next morning I met with one of my new partners, Trish. We decided to practice hitting the ball back and forth without worrying about keeping score. It was a blast, and a few times we were able to keep the ball going back and forth for a while, which felt great!

Both of us tend to hit the ball too high and too far, so this weekend, when I'm meeting Joel for some practice, my goal is to think about where I intend the ball to go after I hit it, and to visually focus on the ball and my racket.

I love tennis!

0 members like this

Next Post >

Comment

You need to be a member of Tennisopolis : Tennis Social Network to add comments!

Join Tennisopolis : Tennis Social Network

Comment by Ingrid on November 14, 2008 at 1:46pm: Mark:

Yes, I really enjoyed walking home AFTER tennis, too, holding the racket - I felt really tough. I'll think about how I hold it when I'm playing - first, though, I think I need to develop a little more strength in my hands and arms. Today, even my hands are sore (which is great!).

___________________

Jazz:

Thanks! I tried out your test, and as far as I can tell, I lucked out on my handle size. I'm playing with brand-new balls, so I'm good to go!

You'll love playing in the park, if you haven't done so before. It's lovely!

Comment by Jazz Burks on November 14, 2008 at 1:25pm: Make sure you have the right sized grip. After you shake hands with the raquet keep your grip turn your palm up. Your opposite index finger should fit snugly between your fingertips and the padding at the base of your thumb. Too much space = too big, too little space =too small. Too big may affect your control as it will be hard to grip the raquet propely. Too small may lead to injury problems as you start to hit the ball harder. However the pro's like the smal grips because it let's them put soooo much spin on the ball.

One more thing, know when to stop using flat balls. As a beginner I'm not saying pop open a new can every time you hit, but when the bounce is affected and play is affected by the ball. Toss 'em or only use them to practice your serve. Also, only use name brand balls Wilson, Penn, Prince, Dunlop, Slazeger, Tretorn, Gamma etc. Getting a geat deal on target and walmart balls can only hurt you when you go out to play and find out that they are dead, hard, or sometimes even square!

Good luck, I may even see you at GG park when I visit my bro in 'frisco
JB
(disclaimer: Target and walmart do not sell square tennis balls. That was a little jokey joke!)

Comment by Mark / The Mayor on November 14, 2008 at 12:36pm: This is great! It is cool to hear from someone new to the game that is now hooked on it. I think just having fun is the most important part at first, and before too long, try to make sure your grip on the racquet is right. (Act like you are "shaking hands" with the grip. This is one of the reasons that beginners knock the ball too high as you mentioned.
Have fun and keep us posted. Does anyone else have some helpful tips for Ingrid?

My first stab at tennis.

You need to be a member of Tennisopolis : Tennis Social Network to add comments!

Like Us!

Marketplace