do you spread your fingers on the grip and why?

[morten]

pros,cons? I know Edberg did,who else?

[morten]

What i mean is the opposite of a hammerlike grip.

[Cruzer]

I spread my fingers when I grip the racquet and why you ask? Because my pro tells me to do it. But really, it provides more feel and control of the racquets as opposed to the hammer grip. It takes a little getting used to if you have been using the hammer grip but it is a fairly easy transition.

[kreative]

i do on my forehand grip, and it helps me be less "wristy" on my shots, making me more consistent. only problem is that i have a 2 hand backhand, and i'm usually over the top of the grip handle w/ my left hand (std. length racquet). extended racquets help w/ the grip, but they're a bit difficult for me to manuever on vollies.

[Camilio Pascual]

I do with the Continental grip to give it more stability. I think there was a tip in TENNIS recently about spreading the grip on the Continental.

[Tim Tennis]

It all depends. With my Semi-Western grip from the baseline I have a fairly closed grip. On short balls using the SW grip I will spread my fingers slightly to get more leverage because I will shorten the range of motion and hit with a more vertical swing path. I seem to be able to get a lot of action on the ball this way and keep it in the court. I also practice my serves using different grips and spreading the fingers differently on the handle. It really does seem to make a lot of difference on the action you can put on the ball. It is a lot of fun to practice and experiment and see what works for you. The problem comes when you hit on something that really works, can you duplicate it and carry it over to a match play situation.

You got to love the game.

[jayserinos99]

I'm with Camilio; I use it on my continental grips when I am at the net. It really helps with the volleys IMO; just can't explain why.

[kreative]

most likely b/c you tend to be less wristy w/ the shot. also more stable. first hold the racquet w/ your fingers not spread out. try holding the racquet up like you're about to hit a forehand volley, and have someone push the racquet face. now spread your fingers out, and do the same thing. feel any different? well, that's why i do it, feels better to me, and helps keep my wrist locked.

i agree with kreative, i've discussed this with my coaches and several other seasoned players. what i've heard everytime is the extra leverage and stability gives you more control and also makes it easier to keep your wrist stable on hard volleys. the only grip that seems to be an exception sometimes is the western grip and depending on the person the semi-western. i'm no expert, but the some of the people telling me this are. thats my two cents anyways...