Since I am a 4.5, I think I'm qualified to respond to this
I don't claim to be a "top" 4.5, but I win more than I lose in USTA Adult league play. In league I play about 2/3 singles (winning record) and 1/3 dubs (even record).
I most certainly do not have every shot in tennis. I will sometimes flub what should be easy putaways, both at the net and from midcourt.
For the record, I played some mid-level HS tennis but was not nearly good enough to play college tennis at my school. I then stopped playing for about 15 years. So I consider myself just a good rec player.
4.5's are good but still very fallible.
Everyone makes errors sometimes. In the context of this discussion we're talking about easy floaters at the net, in this case, very close to the net, closer than normal.
I'm assuming if you stood 2 or 3 ft. from the net and I hit balls at you arnt going to miss very often. We're talking about spots claim of "I know 4.5's who cant put away volleys to save their lives" when I said putting away floaters at the net should be easy for 3.5...
Of course there will be balls that you cant put away. Of course there will be times you miss an easy shot. A 4.5 who struggles with putting away floaters at the net? I'm still calling BS. A floater at the net? No way.
Based on your prior posts, we are talking about "erratic" power. Take your first serve, the one that goes 120 mph IIRC. You admit it is Not Ready For Prime Time. That's "erratic power." And it is worthless.
I have the ability to serve well over 100. One day that serve will work. At that point in time you will still be clinging to your 50 mph super slice serve. Right now, my second serve is better than your first serve, by a huge margin. That "erratic power" is applied to my second serve in a completely different way. You just dont understand.
The "only thing that changes as you go up levels are the types of errors a person makes"? There is a breathtaking amount of ignorance in that statement.
A low level player makes errors on balls they're trying to keep in play. A high level player makes errors on balls that had realistic chances of being winners.
And the idea that a top 3.0 will never make a lob error is a joke also. "Never"? Really?
A high level 3.0 combo player who is involved in a moonball exchange will not make very many errors and these rallies can and do continue on for extended periods of time while these exchanges do not happen in higher levels of tennis. The example I gave is a 4.5 player who is trying to hit a topspin lob winner and makes an error due to the quality of shot needed.
Yes, of course higher-level players have to hit better quality shots than lower-level players, on account of how the opponents are stronger so it takes better tennis to beat them. This is kind of obvious. Does it prove anything beyond the obvious?
I find myself explaining the obvious to you and your buddy Spot all the time.
Funny thing.
I have two teaching 5.0 pros. Both have told me their volleys are awful. To me, their volleys look exceptional. They say that their volleys do not hold up well against other 5.0s.
If that is true, then I imagine there are 4.5s whose put-away volleys might look awesome to a 3.0/3.5 player but who struggle with those shots in match play against others of that level.
Oh, my turn to play dumb...
You know TWO 5.0's who cant put away floaters at the net? Wow. Hope they're charging you $85/h or less or else you might be getting a bad deal.
9.0 combo; 5.0 guy at the net; 4.0 girl ground stroke floater to the 5.0 at the net; 5.0 fails to put away ball.
Sounds legit.
Says the guy who has never played 4.0 tennis let alone 4.5.
And my statement was "I play with 4.5 players who can't PUT AWAY volleys to save their life". That is a far different statement. Talk to people who play on a 4.5 team and they will tell you the same thing.
Again- all it takes to be a 4.5 player is to be able to consistently beat 4.0 players. 4.0 players have enough holes in their game that people can do so even if they have terrible volleys or even if they have lousy backhands. Beating 4.0 players isn't nearly as complicated as you seem to think it is.
Apparently not when its on the internet.
According to Cindy's tennislink, her record at 4.0 is terrible. I wish I knew which team mate of hers you are so I could look at your record too. You should go tell her your secret strategies for winning since its "not at all complicated to win at 4.0".
Just to let you know, the team we barely beat last week has a record of 1W-4L. This team is put up a "3.5" girl who played college in 2005 and 9.0 in 2009 and is definitely took care of herself since then and came down back to 3.5. Skill levels in this match were probably closer to 8.0 even though this is a 7.0 match. If the team we barely beat is a low range team who is putting up former college players in 7.0 I must be totally off over peoples skill levels. Our team is 3W-1L and we're pretty much out of contention at this point.