darthpwner
Banned
I like both of these guys. Roger is the greatest player ever. Alex is a great college player. Both have some similar games. All-court games, big serves and forehands, and 1 handed backhands. Who's a better model?
Better player to emulate: Roger Federer or Alex Clayton?
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darthpwner
Banned
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10 char
10 char
What tastes better, filet mignot from a five-star restaurant or a hamburger from Hardees?
Seriously, is this a question? Federer is literally the greatest person to ever pick up a racquet and has a totally textbook , classic game, so why in god's name would someone not pick him as the model for the ideal game?
Seriously, is this a question? Federer is literally the greatest person to ever pick up a racquet and has a totally textbook , classic game, so why in god's name would someone not pick him as the model for the ideal game?
darthpwner
Banned
Because Federer has supernatural talent and his shots are difficult to copy because they require superhuman timing and feel. Clayton is a much easier model to copy. Also, I could tell you are from the East Coast of the U.S.? Am I right? Hardees=Carl's Jr?
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HunterST
Hall of Fame
I'm not sure it's a good idea to "emulate" any player. That can lead to you imitating small, somewhat insignificant things and clutter up/over complicate your strokes. Like FYB says, imitate the big things that are common to all players. Not that small differences between them.
The only thing I would say is on the serve, I would adopt Federer's platform stance rather than Clayton's sliding pin point stance. For me anyway, that platform start sliding to pinpoint has too many moving parts.
The only thing I would say is on the serve, I would adopt Federer's platform stance rather than Clayton's sliding pin point stance. For me anyway, that platform start sliding to pinpoint has too many moving parts.
darthpwner
Banned
I copied Alex Clayton's serve, but I want to try to copy Federer's motion. Here's a vid of me and Alex serving http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fGrD90azYs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Edx_u-uvJP8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Edx_u-uvJP8
autumn_leaf
Hall of Fame
sounds like you already decided...
darthpwner
Banned
Nah, I like Federer's style more because it looks much more beautiful and efficient than Clayton. Federer uses the slice and drop shot much more effectively than Alex. Alex's returns also aren't that great. I'm still contemplating which one to choose.
Federer is not a superhuman. All it takes to emulate his shots is practice. It's not his shots or his technique that makes him who he is, it's his overall ability to play the game and beat anyone.
darthpwner
Banned
I agree with you. I use the same forehand grip and backhand grip as Roger, and I'm trying to copy is motion now.
CptnRiceKrispy
New User
Emulating the playing styles of pros can be both good and bad. On the good side it can help you develop your own playing style but on the other hand it may not suit you best. You should try and develop a style of your own.
CptnRiceKrispy
New User
But if i could play like federer i would xD
D
Deleted member 25923
Guest
You will always be crappier than the player you imitate (well, true for 99% of the tennis population), so emulate someone better so your crappier is better than the other crappier. (I hope someone understood that).
darthpwner
Banned
So I should copy Federer.
ninjatennis
New User
this thread makes me lol.
i thought op was joking when i saw the thread title but sadly i was mistaken.
i thought op was joking when i saw the thread title but sadly i was mistaken.
ProgressoR
Hall of Fame
I think you will also find it beneficial to start wearing the same kit as your idol, especially the sweat bands.
Seriously, take positive things where ever you find them, emulating a certain player all the time in all strokes is a little naive in my view, but if someone has a great FH, sure copy it if you can, but you might need to adjust a bit to suit you, or there may be parts you just cannot copy.
Why be an inferior clone of a good player? mix and match so you develop your own game and strokes in the end.
Seriously, take positive things where ever you find them, emulating a certain player all the time in all strokes is a little naive in my view, but if someone has a great FH, sure copy it if you can, but you might need to adjust a bit to suit you, or there may be parts you just cannot copy.
Why be an inferior clone of a good player? mix and match so you develop your own game and strokes in the end.
orangettecoleman
Professional
I think the best strategy is to emulate players with glaring weaknesses to see how they work around them to win matches. Dementieva's serve, Lopez's backhand, Gasquet's forehand etc... 
aimr75
Hall of Fame
whether you emulate a pro or not, this will be the case
Fedace
Banned
I don't think it is a inferior clone. It is not a bad idea to emulate a great motion or a classic motion that works and has been proven. I do have a similar motion to Sampras and it seem to work well for me since it is one of the more classic serving motions out there. I do that toe pointing thing in the beginning not because i want to copy him but it seem to help me get the center of weight in the right spot. But the dumb people think i am just trying to copy his motion, of course....
ProgressoR
Hall of Fame
but picking a whole game of a pro to emulate makes little sense for most of us, take what is good and what works for us, if you end up with FH, BH, Serve, volley each based on a different player, it doesnt matter as long as it works for you. That was my point, naturally if its based on a pro each stroke will be inferior.
Or you can just follow what a good coach shows you, text book stuff, that works for most people too.
Or you can just follow what a good coach shows you, text book stuff, that works for most people too.
aimr75
Hall of Fame
what i meant was that regardless of whether you emulate or not, our games relative to a pro will always be inferior.. it cant hurt to try things the pro's do.. after all, their fundamentals are fantastic
having a coach is always a good idea, though it depends if youre lucky enough to get the right coach.. too often i see coaches feed ball after ball to students with bad technique and they rarely stop to point them in the right direction.. some self analysis watching what pro's do from a technique perspective can be beneficial
darthpwner
Banned
I used to use the K95 but now I use the BLX 95. Also, I tried to copy Clayton's motion. I serve about 40 mph slower though
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fGrD90azYs
35ft6
Legend
In general, I don't think Fed has a good game to emulate. Of course, he executes stroke fundamentals well, like all pros, but beyond that, the idiosyncrasies of his strokes and the way he constructs points, not good for regular people to emulate. Trying to play like him, hitting very severe arhythmic slices and going for a huge forehand whenever you feel like it, can hold a person back for a long time.
Man, that vid....
Can you guys hit slower? I can read the label on the balls from here!
And can you move slower, use less energy, and poke around longer?
You'll live forever at that pace, never running up anywhere near your anerobic or aerobic maxes.
No wonder no one's watching your hitting. They'd fall asleep.
Can you guys hit slower? I can read the label on the balls from here!
And can you move slower, use less energy, and poke around longer?
You'll live forever at that pace, never running up anywhere near your anerobic or aerobic maxes.
No wonder no one's watching your hitting. They'd fall asleep.
darthpwner
Banned
Well LeeD, why don't YOU post of a video of yourself playing. Besides, I won that match 8-2 and those were only two points of the whole match. And the reason nobody is watching is because this is Jr. team tennis, not a high level college match. It may be at Indian Wells, but the place is pretty empty when the BNP Paribas Open isn't going on.
darthpwner
Banned
I think the best strategy is to emulate players with glaring weaknesses to see how they work around them to win matches. Dementieva's serve, Lopez's backhand, Gasquet's forehand etc...
This is a serious question.
prattle128
Semi-Pro
Crappy Federer > crappy Clayton, I gotcha!
Ultra2HolyGrail
Hall of Fame
I can't imagine trying to copy a pro's stroke to try to look exactly like them. But i can see pretending to be your favorite pro when you play. I do pretend i am pete sampras when i serve and volley i have to admit
ttbrowne
Hall of Fame
The Clayton serve is actually the Fernando Gonzalez serve..copied perfectly.
Fedace
Banned
I used to use the K95 but now I use the BLX 95. Also, I tried to copy Clayton's motion. I serve about 40 mph slower though
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fGrD90azYs
Not to worry, power will come to you as you grow and get stronger.
ttbrowne
Hall of Fame
Yeah, You don't want to be lugging around all those titles and championships.
They get too heavy, just like Fed, and can hurt your arm.
Shangri La
Hall of Fame
SoBad
G.O.A.T.
Maybe he should look into not being so cheap and tipping bellboys so he doesn't have to lug his baggage around. Slim chance, I know.
EikelBeiter
Professional
LOL.
Who is Clayton anyway? Some college player?
I'm sure Clayton has a solid technique, but better than a 16 grand slam winner?
Federer shankes and whiffs when it counts? Again how did he get 16 grand slams?
The question by the OP was pretty funny, but some of the answers! You guys crack me up!
Oh wait, I hope you weren't being serious here.... ?
DLee has answered this question so many times for you guys, :-?
10ACE
Professional
HAHA that guy really emulates federer- the running forehand the backhand even his little motions all trying to be like federer instead of letting his talent play it's game. that was interesting to see
man some of those strokes ugh-- that forehand small bend
darthpwner
Banned
LOL, no I'm an Asian kid. All my videos are on maximagq's youtube.
darthpwner
Banned
Why would I want to regress to a level I have already surpassed? I'd rather copy elite players, not some hackers you find at the park.
stanfordtennis alum
Hall of Fame
yes, Clayton is a college player, plays for Stanford and is nationally ranked.. hard to put him in the same sentence with the greatest player of all time
darthpwner
Banned
Clayton plays similar to Federer with slight differences. Federer uses between an eastern and a semi-western on his forehand. Clayton uses a full western grip and hits on the same face of the racket for his forehand and backhand. Clayton also has a slightly different serve. Alex keeps his front foot parallel to the baseline and his back foot at a 45 degree angle outwards, kind of like Sampras. Then, he rocks forward, then back and his serve is a pinpoint stance. It looks cool. Federer is more traditional in my opinion. Front foot at a 45 degree angle to the net post and his back foot parallel to the baseline. Alex seems much more mechanical when playing because it looks like he uses a lot of shoulder rotation on his groundstrokes, more then Roger. Alex also struggles with the forehand return since he prepares for a backhand because he is a 1 hander like Roger. Neither player really attacks the return; they both try to chip it back and go from there. Both Federer and Clayton has super sweet 1 handed backhands.
120mphBodyServe
Banned
I'm not a big fan of emulating anyone.
The great thing about tennis is that you can be yourself, make your own style of play.
The great thing about tennis is that you can be yourself, make your own style of play.
darthpwner
Banned
If LeeD was so good, then he wouldn't be talking **** like that. This shows how little class he has. Take me for example. I don't brag about how good I am to weaker players. It is very rude and unsporting. I find that the ones who talk crap are the ones who suck at tennis. They over inflate their abilities and think they know it all. Nobody likes a show-off or a bragger.
Pisolino227
Rookie
Is this like some ashton kutcher "punk'd" type thread? You're comparing the best of all time to some college hitter. Sighhhhhh.
darthpwner
Banned
I'm not comparing these two. Federer is obviously way better. However, some of his techniques such as his slice are very hard to applicate into my game. Alex has simpler technique which is more easily copied.
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