Douggo
Semi-Pro
People get wound up when somebody claims to have a higher rating than themselves.
my strokes (5.5) if interested
- Thread starter TonLars
- Start date
People get wound up when somebody claims to have a higher rating than themselves.
Fedace
Banned
I regularly play two guys who were top 200 'back in the day'. They are almost exactly Mac's age. I can play them pretty even. Tony would kill me in a 'real' match. You make the call.BHBH
Top 200 does not equal a Legendary player who won multiple slams and still plays guys like Sampras, Todd Martin, and Courier and beats them time to time.
BounceHitBounceHit
Legend
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
25ish?
J
J
TonLars
Professional
Yep Im 25, I dont feel old but the number makes me frown. But I think I should be able to move and play well for at least another 10 years, hopefully.
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
Scary huh?
I just hope the people who say "you don't stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing" are right.
J
Moz
Hall of Fame
Don't underestimate how sore everything gets when you hit your 30's when the tendons throughout your body start to say "bollocks, I've had enough of all this". It's now or never Tony if you want to see how far you can get!
No regrets my friend.
Moz
Hall of Fame
Lungs, heart, muscles and mind can be kept young - the rest of the stuff starts to give up though.
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
So you can still be strong and fast, and have good endurance, but the stuff that keeps your body held together starts giving it up?
I really have no idea, but are you saying that someone like a swimmer or cyclist would have a longer competitive life than a runner/tennis/footballer(soccer)?
Obviously baseball players can play into their 40's because they are mostly standing around (Pitchers or DH types). And some of the weight lifters are surprisingly old.
Have you done much research into this Moz? What exactly goes wrong and when, and for whom?
Or just your own personal experience?
J
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
Hey tony did you just recently go down to Sioux Falls, SD and play in the ASFORA Adult open and got beat by Alex Clayton in the finals? If so I watched that match!
Hey TonLars, you should teach me lol.. just kidding man..
but seriously, seeing your most recent video just pumped my motivation to play tennis. Especially your forehand, it seems very solid. How did you train that?
I am currently using eastern-forehand grip. Do you think I should change my grip?
I'm in ames, iowa by the way
but seriously, seeing your most recent video just pumped my motivation to play tennis. Especially your forehand, it seems very solid. How did you train that?
I am currently using eastern-forehand grip. Do you think I should change my grip?
I'm in ames, iowa by the way
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
Hey TonLars, you should teach me lol.. just kidding man..
but seriously, seeing your most recent video just pumped my motivation to play tennis. Especially your forehand, it seems very solid. How did you train that?
I am currently using eastern-forehand grip. Do you think I should change my grip?
I'm in ames, iowa by the way
If this is the guy I think it is I over heard his interview at the end of the match and he does teach year-round. WOW I feel like I know to much...
TonLars
Professional
I dont really know man, the guy is a legend though. Id like to think it would be a fun match but I dont really know what he plays like now. He is obviously way better than me. Mcenroe is playing alot and at a high level and plays close with and often beats college guys and lower ranked professionals, which is about my level.
Yep thats right, I lost in 3 sets. Was a good match, I played well overall but ran out of gas in the third. I was even up a break in the third, so I could have won the match.
Hey again! You still need to give me his contact info because Id like to talk or hit with him sometime. In the juniors I used to beat him pretty consistently but he was always dangerous with his huge serve and forehand. He got me in an important match though in the end; he beat me in the state highschool final our senior years. He was cramping up and I had a badly injured back from basketball, but he gutted out the win. Ive improved alot since then and I dont think he plays alot right now, so based on the results Ive seen and considering he is playing 4.5 and only 1 tournament Id probably win handily. He had huge potential though but maybe got burnt out. I think also he was frustrated that he didnt get to play in the lineup for the U his whole time there, that cant be fun.
dantesinferno18
Semi-Pro
Hey tony I live in St. paul as a matter of fact I saw your championship match at the St. paul tennis club about a month ago. And your win against Micky Maul last year.
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
I don't mean to take anything away from you at all, but do you think Clayton was trying a %100? From what I heard the answer was "No" but I don't know.
TonLars
Professional
good luck man! I use a semiwestern grip bordering close to western, but anyways just practice being aggressive hitting through the ball especially on anything above the waist, use open stance and your whole body to get more power.Hey TonLars, you should teach me lol.. just kidding man..
but seriously, seeing your most recent video just pumped my motivation to play tennis. Especially your forehand, it seems very solid. How did you train that?
I am currently using eastern-forehand grip. Do you think I should change my grip?
I'm in ames, iowa by the way
TonLars
Professional
I apologize for the final this year, I was just physically and mentally exhausted from playing every weekend all summer and training in between. That was the worst match ive played in years. Last year against Mickey though I played great!
TonLars
Professional
Lol, do you believe that? Unless he wanted to lose then maybe, considering I was in prime position to win and we were playing for $600. I never heard anything like that though. Also its quite obvious he was trying considering several games he served 3 to 4 aces with his very good serve and was hitting plenty of winners. My game is right there with him, he is a little better than me but its mainly in the serve the rest we are fairly even.
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
How do you stack up against jolly?
TonLars
Professional
Lol, dude he lives in New York. What do you know about him then? Anyways, no, Ive never played with him but I hope he comes this way someday for a hit. Ill let you ask him that question if you like. Look up our results otherwise and youll get a better idea
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DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
I was more or less talking about the vidoes you posted vs his...
TonLars
Professional
I guess I dont really understand the question then. What do you want to know again?
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
Who would you pick to win if you saw your newer vidoes and jollys Bombay video? If you were in someone elses shoes.
TonLars
Professional
lol! So, assuming I dont know his approximate rating level or tournament results (which I do), and pretending to be someone that only has the videos to look at? Also, why may I ask? If your point is that video of people hitting right to each other can sometimes be hard to assess completely, then I agree.
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TonLars
Professional
YES! Very much so, and probably more so the strings I switched to Luxilon Alu Power and at the right tension it has good power and control. Im confident I will be using this racquet for a while now, maybe a few years. I actually saw Slapshot tonight at my drill that I teach and we hit for a while afterward. He still likes the Pure Storm ltd.
I'm right here. Actually hit with Tony tonight - I'm loving the PS Ltd.
Still got my butt kicked around the court, but that's nothing really new considering...
bad_call
Legend
good choice. me using the Pro since i need a little more (being old and all). gotta love those polys...Thanks for the suggestion
I have one more question. When we are practicing our ground strokes, do you think which one should come first? hit the ball as hard as we can (but more unforced errors) or hit with less power but try more with keeping the ball alive?
TonLars
Professional
Thanks for the suggestion
I have one more question. When we are practicing our ground strokes, do you think which one should come first? hit the ball as hard as we can (but more unforced errors) or hit with less power but try more with keeping the ball alive?
100% without question build consistency first, whatever pace that may be, so that you will basically be able to miss rarely, and then up the pace gradually as you continually improve the base consistency. This is what I did, and what most top players did.
Moz
Hall of Fame
Okay......my thoughts are coming from someone who trains and plays mainly on hard courts.
There are plenty of studies which back up the fact that strength can be maintained through a weights program, speed is retained pretty well if continually trained (look at all the old top class sprinters) and endurance can even improve (although VO2 max will decrease in older athletes they often experiences increases in their running economy).
Tennis is a pretty unique sport because of the elasticity required to move properly and the continual changes in direction.
In particular - and this is my experience - there are very few other sports that involve all this, require you to do it on your own and to do it on a hard surface with no give. Running can be done mainly on soft surfaces and involves only one plane of movement, soccer players play on grass and aren't subject to the constant changes of direction and the match isn't as intense. Cycling and swimming doesn't involve impact so can be done to an older age.
Basketball is an interesting comparison. But if you were to compare the number of changes of direction if an individual player, the average length of personal participation in a match and the average give in a playing surface (this is a guess) I think there would be considerable differences. Team sports don't offer a comparable repetitive physical examination that an individual one does.
In my own case I obviously suffer from chronic golfers elbow but that isn't the injury I refer to. I am talking about connective tissue of the ankles, hips, knees, back - those parts of the body which experience significant and repeated impact and which benefit from elasticity in connective tissue. The problem is exacerbated by the fact you often have to play 2 matches in a day and do this for a few days in a row.
The older you get the more these things don't spring back quickly. I am fitter than 95% of players out there but give me 2 matches in a day and I will start the second stiff with vastly reduced mobility around the key joints and stiffness in areas which are not suffering from injury. Last year I played 5 singles matches in 2 days on hard courts and it took me 20 minutes before I could stand up straight.
I have talked to many players when I was on the seniors tour and nearly everyone conceded that with each day that passes in a tournament their body degrades - and that is with just one match (often comfortably won) per day.
Show me someone old who doesn't experience this and it is almost certainly that they play at a standard which doesn't demand proper movement and footwork and / or they play mainly on softer surfaces.
bad_call
Legend
I'm right here. Actually hit with Tony tonight - I'm loving the PS Ltd.
Still got my butt kicked around the court, but that's nothing really new considering...
gotcha. no yonex for u.
gotcha. no yonex for u.
No sir. Never got 100% comfortable with some of my shots, despite how solid it felt off of the ground. I'm hitting much better with the LTD.
maverick66
Hall of Fame
i pick tony to win big. Hes way to nice and modest to ever say he is better than someone. J011y hits hard but watch his vids its 2 shots and a miss. Tony gets those back so j011y no win this one.
Sup2Dresq
Hall of Fame
Tony. You are right. Looking at the results is big in determining how someone stacks up against each other. NTRP ratings are based on results which give a good indication on how someone like J0lly would stack up against you.
Guess such questions are due to the hype around J0lly. I knew the day would come were peeps thought he could compete against you or another 5.0-6.0.
If you get a chance DowntheLine. I have a thread about a tennis player and what his rating should be based on his record. Maybe you can chime in. Would like to hear your thoughts.
http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=289240
TensProfes
Banned
This is definitely true, but I'd point out that there are some notable tennis names who did the opposite. To name one, Andre Agassi is famous for having been taught to hit the ball as hard as possible for an early age, and not worry about getting it in. His father and coaches told him that they would eventually start dropping in. They did.
I think either order can work as long as your technique being learned is solid. The problem with hitting hard first is that the effort to hit as hard as you can often causes breaks in form if you're not really disciplined.
Sup2Dresq
Hall of Fame
He was taught to hit it as hard as he can at the rip age of what.. 3-4? By the time he hit his teens he was no longer hitting into a huge court but more proportional to his size. Nick and the other coaches got him to use his eye coordination to hit it hard and keep it in.
So sum up. I think hitting it hard works if you start very very young and have tons of talent.
Tony has enough talent.... nuff said.
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
I have been fortunate enough to play against a few players of tony's caliber.
If I serve well I can win a couple of games, they usually have to screw up for me to get a break, the best I can manage is around 2-6, 1-6 with 0-6, 0-6, being a distinct possibility, especially if it counted for something.
I suppose that if you are genuinely curious, the best thing to do would be ask BHBH as he has hit with both of us in real life. (And is I think the only one who has although I have hit with 40+ boardmembers.)
All I can do is guess based on players I know who are around T's standard, but there aren't too many people I know who can play 3 close sets with Alex Clayton.
Hopefully I can meet up with T one way or the other.
J
film1
Semi-Pro
Strings and tension
Hi Tony,
What is your current set up? Strings and tension?
Thanks Man
Hi Tony,
What is your current set up? Strings and tension?
Thanks Man
TonLars
Professional
At 5.0 nationals at Indian wells, really fun again and our team is 2-0 right now! I played real well in my match against Nor Cal and beat a guy who played in the middle of the lineup for USC a couple years ago 6-1 6-0.
Drakulie, we play Florida tomorrow. Im fairly certain I will be playing some guy named Olivier Lorin. I looked him up and he is 45, but looking at results he seems decent. Know anything about him or the rest of the Florida team?
Drakulie, we play Florida tomorrow. Im fairly certain I will be playing some guy named Olivier Lorin. I looked him up and he is 45, but looking at results he seems decent. Know anything about him or the rest of the Florida team?
Knightmace
Professional
Florida is a solid team, good luck tony!