Forehand Takeback

[CCH4TENNIS]

Hi All

Do you recommend a small 'C" take-back so as to aid a low to high swing across the body ?

Thank you.


CCH4Tennis
Biomimetic 200 (18/20), static wt 390g, 12pts HL
Solinco Vanquish @62lb

[OldFedIsOld]

C take back is a preference.

I personally always use an abbreviated take back with this. Start at open stance, Pull racquet until arm is extended and body has rotated 90 degrees, drop arm and point racquet butt cap at ball(not exactly pointing at it), Up and out, then profit.



Either is fine, as long as you can reproduce the results

[Mountain Ghost]

People who visualize an actual "C" forehand tend to not have an adequate racquet-head drop before the forward swing. A rounded loop back with a (low-to-high) flat-bottom forward would be a better mental picture.

MG

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Mountain Ghost

People who visualize an actual "C" forehand tend to not have an adequate racquet-head drop before the forward swing. A rounded loop back with a (low-to-high) flat-bottom forward would be a better mental picture.

MG

"A rounded loop back with a (low-to-high) flat-bottom forward . . . ."

Doesn't help paint any mental pictures for me.

[Mountain Ghost]

Perhaps you don't need that mental picture yourself ... which might lessen your desire to see it.

MG

[LeeD]

There's a thread close to here that says the round is maybe not the best.
C with a low oval shape.
Straight is fine, if you can hit hard, consistent, and place the ball well, with good timing.
Everyone is different.

[Limpinhitter]

Originally Posted by Mountain Ghost

Perhaps you don't need that mental picture yourself ... which might lessen your desire to see it.

MG

Not at all. I'm a lifelong student who appreciates every opportunity to learn something I didn't know before.

[Mountain Ghost]

So funny, this reminds me of lesser players who watch the big backswings of better players and focus on the flash and not the function of what is happening. They often think the forward stroke starts higher than it does because the racquet-head drop happens so fast, and so in their eager quest to imitate, they swing more from high to low to high than from low to high like they should.

Without restricting (or distracting) the student with a strict "shape" of the takeback, which can have many variations as long as the racquet head eventually gets to a REAL racquet-back position (as in Back and Down!), the point of the description (which has helped every one of my students who has ever needed it) is to differentiate between the relatively rounded path of the backswing and the pretty much straight-line path of the forward swing. Using the words "a rounded top and a flat bottom" gets even idiots to understand completely!

The OP asked for opinions on a "C" takeback, which I don't like because I want there to be a much more clearly visualized change of shape in the mind of my students ... at the racquet drop ... before the forward swing.

MG

[rkelley]

Originally Posted by Mountain Ghost

People who visualize an actual "C" forehand tend to not have an adequate racquet-head drop before the forward swing. A rounded loop back with a (low-to-high) flat-bottom forward would be a better mental picture.

MG

I think I get what you're saying. If so this is the visualization that I have been using on my fh. It helps me get my racquet down into the slot with the face parallel to the ground before I start the forward swing. I can tend to hold the racquet up in the high part of the "C" too long (as you mention above) and then I don't get the head much below the ball during the forward swing, sacrificing topspin, which I really need given the pace that I'm trying to put on the ball.

I do try to flow the two parts of the swing into each other however. I've seen players really separate those two parts of the swing to the point where the first part, the top of the "C", didn't really matter. They might as well just start low and rip the racquet up. However you loose all of the loading that you can get from the top part of the "C" if you do that.

[Federererer]

When people say 'drop the racquet', is it dropped using the whole arm? Elbow? Or just wrist supination?

[Mountain Ghost]

A, B or C? If only it was that generically simple! Different players have different issue requiring different corrective visualizations and methods.

I get every student to place their racquet in the "perfect" racquet-back position, close their eyes and learn to recognize what it feels like. Basically all they need to do is get it there, recognizing what is going on behind them, no matter what in "front" of them is trying to consume their attention ... like the ball , the opponent, the court, the score, etc. Until their muscle memory is locked in, they need to split their attention between what their eyes see and where their racquet head really is.

MG

[CCH4TENNIS]

Originally Posted by Mountain Ghost

People who visualize an actual "C" forehand tend to not have an adequate racquet-head drop before the forward swing. A rounded loop back with a (low-to-high) flat-bottom forward would be a better mental picture.

MG

Hi MG

Do you mean an "O" instead of a "C" take-back ?
I have tried it but somehow ended up hitting long

[CCH4TENNIS]

Originally Posted by OldFedIsOld

C take back is a preference.

I personally always use an abbreviated take back with this. Start at open stance, Pull racquet until arm is extended and body has rotated 90 degrees, drop arm and point racquet butt cap at ball(not exactly pointing at it), Up and out, then profit.

Either is fine, as long as you can reproduce the results

By instinct, I tend to have a simple take-back and the forward and wrap across my body just below my left shoulder.

[CCH4TENNIS]

Originally Posted by Federererer

When people say 'drop the racquet', is it dropped using the whole arm? Elbow? Or just wrist supination?

Should it be a deliberate drop or a gravity drop ?

[ATP100]

Originally Posted by CCH4TENNIS

Hi All

Do you recommend a small 'C" take-back so as to aid a low to high swing across the body ?

Thank you.


CCH4Tennis
Biomimetic 200 (18/20), static wt 390g, 12pts HL
Solinco Vanquish @62lb

IMO, the take-back is important (what ever you choose) but your finish tells the story most of the time.

[pkshooter]

Just make sure the racket is below the wrist

[CCH4TENNIS]

Originally Posted by OldFedIsOld

C take back is a preference.

I personally always use an abbreviated take back with this. Start at open stance, Pull racquet until arm is extended and body has rotated 90 degrees, drop arm and point racquet butt cap at ball(not exactly pointing at it), Up and out, then profit.



Either is fine, as long as you can reproduce the results

Hi OldFedIsOld

By instinct, I am already using the same take-back as you but I have the tendency of not dropping my arm before swing forward.

[OldFedIsOld]

Originally Posted by CCH4TENNIS

Hi OldFedIsOld

By instinct, I am already using the same take-back as you but I have the tendency of not dropping my arm before swing forward.

The arm dropping should come naturally when your finish the natural body rotation.

Its sort of a like a whip, beginning from the ready position you rotate your upper body and let your arm naturally swing back. When your arm is finished naturally swinging back, it should have dropped as well to a good low position to start the stroke.

[ace_pace]

the important part is that you get the racket under the ball (with lowish balls), and swing upward. For high balls the racket can be at the same level as the ball and just swing forward. The angle at which you swing up doesnt have to be so vertical. If done correctly, will give you a nice consistent forehand.

[CCH4TENNIS]

Hi Guys

Thanx for all the useful tips that you have given.

What works for me is just to track the ball with the racquet strings with 2 hands on the stick. Then when the ball bounces, I just take back the racquet straight back and then feel the stick drop before swinging forward and finish with WW motion just below my left shoulder. This I have tried hitting 300 balls this morning with my Tennis Cube Ball machine.

Cheers