Hawaiian Forehand Grip

[Bilbo]

Hi, im new to this forum! How's everyone doing? Anyhow, I'm a junior in high school that plays number 2 on my team, i recently changed to using Alberto Berasategui's Hawaiian forehand grip, as he is my favorite player of all time (even though i never saw him play live). Frankly, it's AWESOME. I can hit the ball as hard as i want to, and because of the heavy topspin, the ball ALWAYS (most of the time) stays in play. Most people say that this grip causes pain to the tendons in the wrist. I haven't noticed that (surprisingly)! Before changing to the hawaiian grip i was already using a deep western grip (maybe thats why the forehand transition was so easy). The most difficult transition is changing from my forehand grip to my two-handed backhand continental grip.

I was just curious, has anyone else had success with this grip?

 

[Grizvok]

I knew a pretty good player that used a Hawaiian forehand grip, but he left some balls short due to the grips inability to really drive through the ball completely and I ate them for breakfast.

 

[Bilbo]

I knew a pretty good player that used a Hawaiian forehand grip, but he left some balls short due to the grips inability to really drive through the ball completely and I ate them for breakfast.

I'm hoping that i will be able to avoid this problem come next season. I've worked on this grip every day for the past two weeks now, and have pretty much gotten the hang of it. While i will occasionally hit the occasional high bouncing (due to the topspin) short ball that sits up for my opponent to attack down the line, ive generally weeded this problem out of my forehand. I can drive through the ball pretty well surprisingly. But most of my "drives" are looping balls that dip pretty severely when they hit the ground (also due to the spin).

What other faults (if any) did you find with his forehand?

Also, if anyone else has had any experience playing against or with the hawaiian forehand grip, i'd be curious to here how that went...

 

[Grizvok]

Low balls are obviously going to be a huge problem with the Hawaiian grip, so it's up to you to learn how to handle them. I really have no clue as to how you'd neutralize the shot but against a low skidding slice your best option may even be to block the ball back deep to get back to neutral in the rally so you can begin dictating with the forehand again (which is what I assume your playstyle is).

How have you fared overall against very low balls?

 

[EC230]

My girlfriend plays with a Hawaiian Forehand grip, which she started using when she was playing DI tennis, even though she originally had a semi-western.

Regarding the depth of the forehand, she has no problem driving it deep with heavy spin or even flattening up for a heavy skitting ball. She's also able to hit the looping short court spin to open up the angles... so like her if you work on it enough you will be able to make the forehand work with you.

However, she is currently trying to switch away from it due to several reasons:

1) inability to pick up low, heavy slices

2) pain associated with hitting late balls

These two reasons are pretty lucid due to the way the racquet face is directed. However, reason #2 would be the primary reason she's switching back to a semi-western as you can imagine being late on heavy balls/serves results in significant stress and strain along the extensor tendons of the wrist.

Anyways, that's my experience with hitting against and knowing someone that uses it. Hope this helps!

E

 

[Bilbo]

Low balls are obviously going to be a huge problem with the Hawaiian grip, so it's up to you to learn how to handle them. I really have no clue as to how you'd neutralize the shot but against a low skidding slice your best option may even be to block the ball back deep to get back to neutral in the rally so you can begin dictating with the forehand again (which is what I assume your playstyle is).

How have you fared overall against very low balls?

First of all, you assume correctly about my play style, my forehand is by far the biggest part of my game and i do like to dictate play with it. When i play my dad, he hits a lot of slice forehands, and i dont generally have a problem with that, in fact i hit his slice a little better now with my Hawaiian grip than i did with my western grip. However, i have noticed that when hitting a low bouncing slice ball, i have to dramatically increase my racquet-head speed in order to increase pace, or else the ball will sit up, and be taken for a winner down the line.

The serve has also been a problem getting use to. When i played last year at number 2 (singles) i face a lot of kick first serves, however, moving up to number 1 (singles) this year, i'm guessing the better players will hit either flat or slice first serves. This is something i'll definently have to work on this summer with my forehand. At times i have trouble returning my dad's first serve (a relatively flat serve) and it really isn't even that good.

 

[mitsuki]

How ironic, I live in Hawaii and have never heard of this grip. Which grip is this similar to?

 

[prattle128]

yeah, ive heard of it, but dont really know what this grip is. someone wanna shed some light on this for me?

 

[Bud]

How ironic, I live in Hawaii and have never heard of this grip. Which grip is this similar to?

yeah, ive heard of it, but dont really know what this grip is. someone wanna shed some light on this for me?

It one more bevel rotation from full western.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

How ironic, I live in Hawaii and have never heard of this grip. Which grip is this similar to?

Would not imagine that there are all that many kanes & wahines using this grip in The Islands. The grip got its name due to the fact that the hand postion is further West than Western -- (whereas the SW grip would be East of Western). I supposed that it could have been called the Alaskan grip or the Aleutian grip, but "Hawaiian grip" is easily more exotic-sounding.

 

[Bilbo]

Low balls are obviously going to be a huge problem with the Hawaiian grip, so it's up to you to learn how to handle them. I really have no clue as to how you'd neutralize the shot but against a low skidding slice your best option may even be to block the ball back deep to get back to neutral in the rally so you can begin dictating with the forehand again (which is what I assume your playstyle is).

How have you fared overall against very low balls?

although i do handle the slice well, very hard flat balls do give me difficulty. All i can do on these is punch the ball back deep. The hardest thing to do for me when the ball is hit hard and flat to my forehand is to maintain technique and form. If i do this, i think ill be able to manage.

 

[Bilbo]

How ironic, I live in Hawaii and have never heard of this grip. Which grip is this similar to?

yeah, ive heard of it, but dont really know what this grip is. someone wanna shed some light on this for me?

it's 45 degrees more western than the western forehand grip... and it's AWESOME

 

[Sublime]

For return of serve, I'd think you'd want to work on your continental grip slices (FH and 1HBH) as this is the Hawaiian grip.

Low skidding serve, hit a continental slice. High Kick serve, use the other side of the racket face and hit with the Hawaiian grip.

This is how Berasategui played. He hit with a continental grip 1HBH and never changed his grip shot to shot. Then again he also never had much success off of clay.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

^ Yeah, I wouldn't really recommend either the Western or the Hawaiian (Far Western) grips for those not playing exclusively on clay. Sure, some ppl will have some success on faster surfaces with these extreme grips, but I really wouldn't suggest it for most.

 

[Sublime]

It should also be noted that Berasategui was 5'7". At that height you get a lot more shoulder/head high balls than a six footer does.

 

[SystemicAnomaly]

^ True dat. The extreme grips are often preferred by shorter players, which is why so young junior players adopt it. As young players get taller the extreme grips can become a liability.

 

[salsainglesa]

its the same as a continental grip, you just hit with the other face ofhe stringbed...
to me that sounds painful!

but changing to a 2hbh grip shouldnt be a problem since you dont have to change grips for the dominant hand.

 

[Bilbo]

For return of serve, I'd think you'd want to work on your continental grip slices (FH and 1HBH) as this is the Hawaiian grip.

Low skidding serve, hit a continental slice. High Kick serve, use the other side of the racket face and hit with the Hawaiian grip.

This is how Berasategui played. He hit with a continental grip 1HBH and never changed his grip shot to shot. Then again he also never had much success off of clay.

if one has not had experience with a western grip, then i completely understand why the hawaiian grip would hurt. I actually use a two handed back-hand, so i change my grip to a continental for that wing. Ur right about the height thing, i'm 5'8 and have already hit my biggest growth spurt so im not getting any bigger. This also helps me get under the ball to generate pace and spin. I understand where ur going with the continental grip slice. But, when i change grips i usually twist my hand counter clockwise around the racket. Therefore, after returning a serve with a continental grip, i'd most likely be caught in the transition back to the hawaiian grip. It is my honest belief that with constant practice and training, anyone can use any grip. Believe it or not i've never hit my forehand cleaner than i have in these past two and a half weeks using the hawaiian forehand grip.

 

[RoddickSampras22]

Are there any current pros who use this Hawaiian Forehand Grip?

 

[hyogen]

omg sounds painful..

why not just use a more open string pattern or strings with more bite?

this can't be healthy... there have been pro players who needed surgery due to the injury caused by full western grip...

 

[pvaudio]

yeah, ive heard of it, but dont really know what this grip is. someone wanna shed some light on this for me?

Take a continental grip (sometimes a bit further towards eastern backhand), and flip your wrist over. It's a poor grip because it begs for injuries, you can rarely hit low balls with depth and will ultimately have to do something different if you're over 5'6. I used to use a full western and couldn't even imagine using a Hawaiian. It just stresses your wrist and forearm too much.

And TS, don't decide what grip to use based on what your favorite player uses. I'm not one of them, but many have Federer as their favorite, but hit semi-western, or some like Nadal but hit eastern.

 

[yanyan]

Please watch Peter Luczak on youtube.
He uses the Hawaiian grip and can generate lots of power.

 

[DavaiMarat]

However, she is currently trying to switch away from it due to several reasons:

1) inability to pick up low, heavy slices

2) pain associated with hitting late balls

These two reasons are pretty lucid due to the way the racquet face is directed. However, reason #2 would be the primary reason she's switching back to a semi-western as you can imagine being late on heavy balls/serves results in significant stress and strain along the extensor tendons of the wrist.

E

Same reasons I'm going from a western to a semi-western.

 

[Slazenger07]

I used to use it, then I got smart and realized I can hit an even better and a more topspin heavy forehand with an Eastern Grip and a very loopy swing. My forehand is definetely my best shot and the grip change is the main reason why.

If it works for you then I say keep it, however I think you'll have trouble putting balls away with your forehand because you cant flatten it out when you may need to.

 

[soyizgood]

Wow... TT has everything including a thread devoted to the wrist-killing grip. Hey if it works, more power to you. But that grip cut your alpha-daddy's (Berasategui) career short.

 

[SirSweetSpot]

I'd steer clear of it. Tennis is the sport for a lifetime...not the sport for the next couple of years because you blew out your arm/wrist.

 

[mental midget]

when i think of all the great players, past and present, amateur and professional, who used that grip, i can't help but think 'go for it.'

 

[Manus Domini]

yeah, ive heard of it, but dont really know what this grip is. someone wanna shed some light on this for me?

From what I understand, to get it you:

1. take a continental grip
2. twist the wrist upside down

You can unwind for slice shots, which is good, and you can add topspin to serves w/o changing grip. I have tried it once, didn't hurt. I could only get one ball in (which, btw, had a huge amount of topspin). But I play mostly against my friend, who uses slices, so it would only be a liability for me.

 

[yanyan]

I’m a righty and use the full western grip. I think the Hawaiian is to extreme. I found a use for it though, which is in serving since you make contact with the ball at a very high level. The result is a reverse twist serve.

 

[acintya]

omg sounds painful..

why not just use a more open string pattern or strings with more bite?

this can't be healthy... there have been pro players who needed surgery due to the injury caused by full western grip...

this isnt painful - if you dont hold it tight.

 

[tlm]

I’ve went from western to Hawaiin in the last year or so and I really like it. Just like you I love being able to swing away and still keep most shots in.

 

[Deleted member 23235]

Hi, im new to this forum! How's everyone doing? Anyhow, I'm a junior in high school that plays number 2 on my team, i recently changed to using Alberto Berasategui's Hawaiian forehand grip, as he is my favorite player of all time (even though i never saw him play live). Frankly, it's AWESOME. I can hit the ball as hard as i want to, and because of the heavy topspin, the ball ALWAYS (most of the time) stays in play. Most people say that this grip causes pain to the tendons in the wrist. I haven't noticed that (surprisingly)! Before changing to the hawaiian grip i was already using a deep western grip (maybe thats why the forehand transition was so easy). The most difficult transition is changing from my forehand grip to my two-handed backhand continental grip.

I was just curious, has anyone else had success with this grip?

personally i switched to sw... after hitting it for >10y
mainly to be able to drive more, and to have a better solution to folks slicing to my fh, as well as add more variety in the midcourt (ie, approach shots, sharp angle topspin, etc...)
i was mostly a hc player... but if i played mostly clay i might have stuck with hawaiian

if you're timing is good, hawaiian shouldn't cause issues (applies to any stroke)... in the end you're just "throwing the racquet" at a slightly steeper angle.

strange that your transition to 2hbh is hard... are you going "the long way"? if you go the "short way" it should be a slight tweak (if any at all)... but it's a different feel if you're used to finding your grip in only one direction.

 

[ChaelAZ]

Threadsurrection!

 

[Deleted member 23235]

How ironic, I live in Hawaii and have never heard of this grip. Which grip is this similar to?

lol, similar to the continental or ebh grip , but hitting with the "wrong side"
i think grip names came from country of origin...

continental = europe, UK
eastern = eastern us, or east of europe
western = western us
more western = hawaiian

https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/355397/continental-grip

 

[Deleted member 23235]

Threadsurrection!

damnit. oops.
OP, 9y later,... how'd it go

 

[tlm]

Here is a short clip of some forehands. Would this be considered a Hawaiin grip?

 

[ChaelAZ]

Here is a short clip of some forehands. Would this be considered a Hawaiin grip?

Western. From what I have seen for Hawaiian the thumb is all the way on top.

 

[Dragy]

Here is a short clip of some forehands. Would this be considered a Hawaiin grip?

It looks to me you're not even full western, but more of 3/4 past semi-western.

 

[tlm]

Western. From what I have seen for Hawaiian the thumb is all the way on top.

Sometimes I roll it even more and it looks like a continental with ball hit on opposite side. But that’s probably a good thing that I am mostly using western. I know that I do adjust the grip for different situations, sometimes it’s SW or strong SW and other times it’s western or strong western.

 

[norcal]

I remember Alberto! Once he was asked why he ate so much chicken and he said, "Have you ever tried to catch a chicken, they are so fast!" (or something like that)