It helps to think about your own tennis game and what you are doing and when you have a basic tactical plan ready it can really boost your confidence.

To start with. It’s no good give up straight away on a tactic when it doesn’t work the first time. What I mean is, like Brad Gilbert says in Winning Ugly – if you are down a set and 5-0 that’s when you change because your tactic isn’t working. Me personally, I don’t wait until I am down that far to change my tactic.

I recommend this site Tennis Mind Game for a full tennis tactic guide the best online book is Tennis Strategy Encyclopedia

Remember, if you have a plan to play a tactic or stragegy in a match, stick with that tactic.

If you are playing a match and winning and you’re only a short distance from taking the match DO NOT I repeat DO NOT try anything fancy or new!

That is the biggest mistake I see players make when they get close to a win, they get fancy and start taking chances. Don’t fall into that trap.

What ever tactic got you into a winning position is the same tactic you need to keep doing until you shake hands.

Good luck and be sure to check out  Tennis Strategy Encyclopedia for a full tennis tactic and strategy guide

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“I have used this book to coach kids and teenagers tennis, and I even use many of the drills and games for beginner adult tennis coaching too. It is full of great ideas and we have a lot of fun on the court with this. ”

Reviewer: Lillian

Rating

Book Reviewed: Coaching Youth Tennis by America Sport Education Program

The book is divided in to sections beginning with the obvious issue of having a parent as a coach and how to effectively manage your relationship with your child if this is your situation.

The basics of being an effective coach are covered thoroughly and will help you communicate well with young players.

There are games and drills for players aged 6-12 and more games for players 10-18 years old.

Also included in the book are Season Plans which outline what to teach each lesson consecutively. Be aware it is an American book so it references the USTA and US club systems and the US school calender. But it’s easy to modify it to suit your own lesson plans.

There are diagrams to go with a lot drills and games described to make it easy to follow along.

It also covers stroke technique with full diagrams and explanations which is great if you are teaching beginners (of any age)

Like I said earlier, we have had a lot of fun on court with these games, especially the rallying games where we keep the ball in play as long as we can (it is great for the kid’s concentration because they want to reach their goal which keeps them inspired and motivated to try)

Something I really like about the over all feel of this book is the constant priority placed on being able to rally with another person. It’s not just about how you hit the ball, or about winning, it’s about learning how to control where the ball lands and rallying with your tennis partner for enjoyment too.

Plus when you have a small group of players learning together it provides a great environment for growth and camaraderie.

Have fun

Check out Coaching Youth Tennis Here

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Check out more reviews on this book at Amazon.com…

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Tennis Coaching Dvds with Nick Bollettieri gives you access to the coaches coach, the tennis guru of the Professionals, the most famous tennis coach in the world and these coaching Dvd’s are perfect for serious tennis players. If you can’t afford to get coaching with him and his team in Florida then this is the next best thing for your tennis game.

Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Dvds Reviewed: Nick Bollettieri’s Stroke Instruction Series

Nick Bollettieri has developed and coached many of the world’s top players, including Andre Agassi, Monica Seles, Boris Becker, Mary Pierce, Tommy Haas, and Anna Kournikova and more.

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His teaching techniques and effective coaching methods have formed the foundation for these DVDs so you are sharing in his world-renowned knowledge.

These Dvd’s cover serves, return of serve, forehands, drop shots, and tactics to practice

This six-DVD’s include:

Killer Forehand
Bollistic Backhand
Sonic Serve
Tenacious Net Play
Right Back Atcha Returns
Deadly Drop Shots and Lobs

As you would expect these are a high quality of Dvd. They teach the modern shots and style of serve, backhand, volleys etc. Be prepared for a lot of information if you get these. This Dvd collection is a long term investment into your tennis future because you can keep coming back and watching them again, and like anything, you notice things you didn’t notice the first time you watched.

Click Here to Grab Nick Bollettieri’s Stroke Instruction Series

To begin to serve make sure you stand side ways to the net with the arm you hold the tennis racquet with closest to the fence at the back of the court.

Your front foot is not allowed to touch the base line (other wise it’s called a ‘foot fault’) but stand as close as you can to the line anyway.

Toss the ball up above your head about five feet in the air, position the toss above and a little bit in front of you aiming for an imaginary 1 o’clock if you are right handed or 11 o’clock if your are left handed.

Your racquet position while tossing the ball is best dropped behind your head while you are waiting for your ball toss to come into your hitting zone.

To have a good strong service swing just imagine you are throwing a baseball – For example, notice that when you throw a baseball what happens is, after the ball has left your hand, your hand keeps moving to what’s called ‘follow through’ – it’s the same in tennis, so after you hit the ball let the racquet keep swinging through. This will help your speed and spin.

After you have got your serve in quickly get into ready position (Ready position is when you stand in the middle of the court behind the baseline, your knees slightly bent and springy, facing the front of the court with both hands on the racquet – you are ready for the next shot, hence the name ‘ready position’)

When practicing your serve it is a good idea to practice your ball toss. Stand as if you were going to serve, toss the ball up but don’t hit it, just see where it lands. Ideally it should land within 1 foot of your own feet – in front of you but slightly closer to your racquet holding hand.

Once you are confident with your serve then the rest of your game will also get better too.

I  recommend you get some tips from a coach one on one if you are serious about getting your serve working for you. Go and practice some basics on an empty court if you have time, this is another way to get better. Or if you would like more online instruction have a look at this online coaching course that is immediately downloadable and has video instructions CLICK HERE

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Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Website Reviewed: Brent Abel WebTennis.net

Brent Abel gives a lot a great coaching away free when you are a subscriber.  The free newsletter and video lessons are jam packed with coaching tips that can help most club players.

NOTE: You need to sign up to the newsletter to gain access to free lessons,  you will be sent directly to Brent’s FREE Video & Audio Tips Series which is a page full of Free Video Tennis Lessons.

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Here is a sample of one of Brent’s Tennis Lessons…

As you can see this is real coaching that is specific and professional.

Brent is an active tournament player (and winner) and gives regular coaching tips on his blog with 4-5 new posts a month.

The level of coaching is broad. Most lessons are great quick tips for any beginner, club player or tournament player. He gives good solid advice and opinion on tournament strategies and frustrations experienced by most social and club tennis players form time to time.

You can also buy all his lessons on DVDs so you don’t have to stay at your computer. Plus when you purchase the DVDs you get additional bonus lessons that aren’t available free online, plus get an ebook and ongoing support backed by a money back guarantee.

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Brent’s site provides a tennis coach at your beckon call. Check it out Here.

Enjoy

Click Here to Go to WebTennis.net

Or Click Here To Return To Tennis Lessons and Books Home

Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Dvd Reviewed: Becoming a Champion Tennis Player: The Serve Dvd

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This is a dvd for all levels of player. It’s a well produced dvd that moves through progressively everything about serving from start to finish.

It starts with the basics about grip, foot placement, ball toss and racket head position. Then from there he builds on this foundation of fundamentals.

For coaches, this dvd is perfect because of the drill sequences. He is specific with drill sets for serve  practice and application.

The recreational player will gain confidence with coordination if you practice these drills and apply his advice.

Comprehensive and easy to understand and high quality dvd.

Bill is a well renowned USTA National Tennis Center Director of Tennis and USTA.com article contributor.

Buy ‘The Serve’ Dvd by Bill Mountford

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Buy ‘The Serve’ Dvd by Bill Mountford

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“Ultimate Tennis Serve Dvd with James Jensen is a perfect tennis serve instruction Dvd for beginner players. You will have made a wise investment in your tennis game because  seeing these serve skills demonstrated properly will really help you learn quickly and easily”

Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Dvd Review: Pro Tennis Lessons “Ultimate Serve” by James Jensen

Pro Tennis Lessons Ultimate Serve is an instruction dvd to show you exactly where to change your service motion so you get more serves into play and as a result gain more confidence in yourself and your serve.

Most high-level college players and tournament players would already be aware of these fundamentally important serve information on these dvds. However for beginners and intermediate players you will have made a wise investment in James Jensen’s lessons.

Anyone who’s ever struggled with their serve and gets frustrated over it being their weaker shot will be able to turn it around with the help of James Jensen’s tips. You’ll definitely get a lot out of it that’s for sure.

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Click Here To Buy Ultimate Serve Dvd with James Jensen

More Reviews On The Ultimate Serve Dvd

Or for online tennis lessons check out Tennis Beginner Lessons Online Coaching

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Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Book Reviewed: The Best Tennis of Your Life by Jeff Greenwald

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Mental tennis books claim they have the keys to getting you to the next level but how do you know if they really work? Is it just hot air?

Jeff was number one in the world in 2002 in the men’s 35s age division which is no small accomplishment. As well as being a world-class tennis player, he is a performance coach and psychotherapist. In his book he talks about his own experience with nerves on court and his journey into tennis success. This is not just a book on psychology, it’s absolutely practical.

This book teaches specific strategies that help create peak performance on the court.

The book contains extremely helpful information, check out some of the chapter headings to get an idea…

Find Pleasure in Pressure
Play With Gratitude
Separate Unproductive Worry From Productive Worry
Use Winning and Loosing as Springboards for Future Success
Behave Your Way into the Zone
Momentum is with You if You Think It is
Focus Your Attention on What Matters
Loosen Up When It Counts
Focus on Your Game, Not Your Opponents Ranking
Build Your Game With A Vision
Engage in the Learning Process
Don’t Get Too Satisfied After a Big Win
Be Patient Against Pushers
Give Yourself Permission To Miss
Leave Your Expectations off The Court
Establish Your Presence Before Serving
Play For Yourself
Get Comfortable With Winning
Create Your Ideal Intensity Level
Narrow Your Focus In the Warm Up
Don’t Let Your Emotions Run The Show
Keep Your Cool When A Bad Line Call Happens
Treat Sitters with the Same Intensity as Other Shots
Channel Your Anger
Trust Your Body
Quiet Your Mind
Train Yourself To Be Loose
Play With Controlled Aggression
Choose Your Tennis Coach Wisely
Be Patient With The Process

Your investment will pay you many returns so take the time to read this cover to cover and use what Jeff teaches on the court. The advice in here is cutting edge sports psychology added with practical application guidance.

Jeff really knows what he’s talking about and what he has written is knowledge for those of us who want to learn how to play with confidence and keep steady on the court without sacrificing the game experience. He stresses that when you become more aware of yourself on the court you will free yourself up to go for your shots, enjoy playing more, trust you body more and watch balls start landing in.

This book is so comprehensive, you don’t need to scramble for more information elsewhere because provides you with virtually everything you need to know to get your mindset healthy and stay cool on the court.

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Click Here To Get, what is now nick named ‘Best Tennis’

Click Here To Get The Best Tennis of Your Life from Amazon

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Reviewer: Lillian
Rating
Book Review: Tennis For Dummies by Patrick McEnroe

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As I was thinking about how much there is to rave about Tennis for Dummies and when I sat down to write my review, I wandered off and had a look on amazon and I found the review of a new-to-tennis reviewer who is fourteen years old, see for yourself…

“I’m fourteen but I bought this book entering my freshman year of high school to get acquainted with the game. It really does a thorough job of introducing one to the tennis world, covering everything from gear, tennis racquets, grips, strings, and the different types of strokes (forehand, backhand, volley, lob, serve, spins), and what the strokes ARE, but does not focus on how they should be implemented during matches.

“Advanced tennis players will probably already know most of the info in the book, but absolutely superb for beginners. It really helped me get started with tennis and reduced a LOT of beginner’s confusion (eg. what stroke is that again… which is my forehand/which is my backhand, and what they should look like, how do i score, what in the world is a volley??

“There is really detailed information on gear, how to score, what the grand slams are, short bios on historical players, and a lot more. It’s really, really helpful and a must read for all beginners, a good reference book for intermediate players.

“After attending 6 weeks of tennis camp and hard work outside of tennis camp, I got into my school’s JV team, muchly thanks to this book but also thanks to the fact that we didn’t have cuts this year because too many people dropped out of tryouts.”

This review really says it all (and good on you who ever you are for getting on the team )

Tennis For Dummies table of Contents…

PART 1: Tennis Anyone?

Ch 1: What is Tennis?

Ch 2: Meet me on the Grass, Clay or Hard Courts

Ch 3: The Well-Equipped Tennis Player

Ch 4: Scoring in Tennis: Love Means Nothing

Ch 5: Knowing All The Rules and Regulations

Ch 6: Tennis Etiquette: Do You Really Want to Throw That Racquet

PART 2: Playing The Game

Ch 7: Mastering Your Tennis Fundamentals

Ch 8: The Forehand: Your Bread and Butter

Ch 9: Your Backhand: Use It or Lose It

Ch 10: The Volley: An Exclamation Point

Ch 11: The Serve: It’s Entirely in Your Hands

Ch 12: Completing the Arsenal: Lobs, Overheads, and Drop Shots

Ch 13: Winning Strategies and Tactics

PART 3: Taking Your Game To The Next Level

Ch 14: Enjoying Your Amateur Status

Ch 15: Practice: The “P” Word

Ch 16 : Physical Conditioning for Tennis

Ch 17: When the Machine Breaks Down: Common Tennis Injuries

Ch 18: Improving Your Game with Lessons

PART 4: Tennis Aficionados Only

Ch 19: The Pro Game

Ch 20: I’ll Take Four Grand Slams and a Cup, Please

Ch 21: Tennis from the Stands and on TV

PART 5: The part of Tens

Ch 22. Ten Tennis Tips

Ch 23. The ten Best Men Players of the Open Era

Ch 24. The Ten Best Women Players of the Open Era

Ch 25. The Ten Greatest matches of the Open Era

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Click Here To Grab Tennis For Dummies From Amazon

More Reviews on Tennis For Dummies…

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If you prefer to get on with learning right now I recommend this Online Coaching Here…

Game scoring looks like this:

0 points = the word “Love”

1 point = 15

2 points = 30

3 points = 40

1 point each you say 15 All

2 points each you say 30 All

3 points each you say the word “Deuce” (not 40 All)

At Deuce the person who wins the next point has the “Advantage” and depending on what country you are playing in you might say this differently, some players say “Your Ad” or “My Ad” or “Advantage Receiver” or “Advantage Server”

If the player with the advantage wins the very next point too they then go on to win that game. But if the player who has the advantage looses the next point then the game continues and the score goes back to Deuce, then the game is played until the player with the Advantage wins the point and so wins that game.

But if the game doesn’t get to Duece then the player who won 4 points first wins. For example if the score was 40-15 the player with 40 wins the game if they win that next point.

When you say the score out loud you always say the score of the server first. Eg. ‘40-love’ would mean the server has 3 point and the receiver has zero points.

You change ends of the court every second game starting from the end of the third game in the first set. In a tie break you change ends after every 6 points. (Sometimes in social tennis you don’t change ends, it just depends on what you and your partner decide on and how seriously you are competing.) Officially change end time frames are 90 seconds between games, 2 minutes between sets, and 20 seconds between points.

Each point the server gets two chances at getting a serve in. If the server misses it is called a ‘fault’ if the server misses both tries it’s called ‘double fault’. When a player double faults the other player wins the point.

When scoring, if you play tournaments, most the time you play best of three sets. In social tennis though it is popular to only play one set.

A set is won by the person who wins 6 games first. However if the score reaches 5 games all then the match has to be won 7 games to 5 but if the score ties at 6 games all the players then play a tie-break. A tie break is won by the first person to win 7 points and they must win by 2 points eg. 7-5 but if it ties at 6 points each they play on until one player wins by 2 points.

If you’re new to tennis and have been invited for a hit, basic tennis is to hit the ball so it lands inside the lines. If you are just having a social hit and you are not keeping the score it is polite to hit the ball straight to the person (not away from them). In that case try to make the tennis ball bounce about 1-2 metres (3-7 feet) in front of where they are standing on the other side of the court.

As you play more and more you will get better at controlling where the ball lands. If you are a real beginner please remember that it’s not just about hitting the ball hard so try to go for placement first before power. (Don’t worry though, you will soon be able to hit the ball hard if you get some coaching then you can learn how to hit the ball hard and still make it land where you want it to. But for now, just go for placement and hit the ball to the person you are playing with (that way they might still ask you to play with them again )

(Feel free to let me know if i’ve forgotten anything and also ask me any questions by adding a comment below)

For more rules and many more tips you should take a look at the book Tennis For Dummies. Click Here for my review or Click Here to go straight to Amazon.com

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