Help With Getting COnsistent hit On sweetspot.

K

KUNFUCHOPSTICKS

New User
Hi,
I have been playing tennis for long enough to develop a good forehand ground stroke, but i have one nasty problem- not hitting the ball with sweet spot. a lot of my shots are off center, yet they have enough speed and spin, but the vibration is ridiculous.

I have a 98in racquet- Bab Aerostorm. So what are somethings i should be doing in order to get more center shots- to hit the ball at sweet spot?

thanks
 
i would just say to watch the ball all the way into your stringbed... make sure to keep your eye on the ball and keep you head down... that always helps me.
 
First, if you are inconsistent with hitting the sweetspot, then the Aerostorm isn't for you. Get a Prince O3 model racquet because of their bigger sweetspot.

Second, keep your eye on the ball.
 
Hi,

Maybe you wanna try this:- when you are about to hit, try to vision the ball to 'go thru' the racquet. Watch the ball and make sure the ball goes thru the racquet.After it has gone thru the racquet, extend your arm out to make sure the ball 'has gone' to the other side of your racquet.

Of course, everything happens very quickly. To assist you, maybe you would like to stencil the sweet spot of your racquet. The success of your stroke depends on the amount of felt it stuck onto the stencil portion of your racquet.
 
Make sure to watch the ball all the way into your stringbed. And during the swing, put your non-dominant arm pointing at the ball so it can guide you.
 
Improve your footwork. Getting your feet set and in position goes a long way. Often players look to correct their stroke first, but don't realize they aren't in position or using the proper body mechanics to hit the ball.
 
one thing that i found helpful ... i read on this forum that a head light racquet like mine (PS 6.0 95) has a sweetspot slightly closer to the throat.
A few days back, while hitting i kept that in mind, and automatically began hitting slightly lower. and that got me more consistently to the sweetspot.

This of course assumes that you are in place and correctly positioned etc.
 
there are two things that i was taught that really helped me hit consistantly and hit the sweet spot:

the first was to always watch the ball, as some have already said. i point with my left hand to help me identify contact point, a method i know a lot of people use.

the second advice really helped me out a lot: shorten my backswing. for the longest time i had a pretty loopy forehand. it generated a good amount of topspin and had a good deal of pace, but it was incredibly inconsistant. i'd frame the ball a lot and hit in the upper hoop way too much. once i shortened it, everything seemed to work out so much better. and because i shortened my backswing i was able to get more pace out of it.
 
count to 4 before hitting the ball make sure u land on 4 each time so u get the ball infront of you but you have to keep your eye on the ball to do this as well also try forgetting about everything else but the ball and where to hit it it always helps me
 
Couple of suggestions for you.

The Technique:
How do u position yourself when you hit a forehand? Closed stance or Open stance?
open stance, the hips and navel are facing straight ahead...toward the net...at the moment of impact.
the closed stance, you face sideways and the hips and bellybutton are perpendicular to the net...facing one of the two sidelines

I would suggest you look into playing with the Open stance.
http://www.tenniswarrior.com/myths/myth-closedstance.htm
http://www.geocities.com/hofertennis@sbcglobal.net/tiparchive3.html

Grip : when playing open stance, its recommended you use Semi Western Grip on your forehand


The Drill:
1. get a racquet with no string. have someone feed you the ball slowly, your goal is to swing thru the ball with your racquet; ball should not be touching your racquet at all. Try this for a couple of times and then start playing with your regular racquet.

2. have you and your partner stand just right outside the service line on each side. Start forehand rally, but make sure you hit the ball softly; ball should bounce within the service line. Focus on your stroke and footwok while playing on the ball on one direction (hit cross court to each other forehand). Do not hit hard but rather try hit the ball with a little topspin - goal is to maintain the rally; count the number of stroke you can maintain.

Always do this drill as a warm up before you start playing on the baseline.

Trust me .... I've change my stance, performed this drill (still do drill #2; every time in my warmup) - my forehand improvement (i can hit with heavy consistent pace and with very good control. I also taught this to a brother /sister players. And within an hour, they were rallying from servince line and at the baseline.
 
Last edited:
KhaosBaseliner said:
i would just say to watch the ball all the way into your stringbed... make sure to keep your eye on the ball and keep you head down... that always helps me.
Click to expand...

This is interesting considering most pros don't even do this. If you look at that James Blake picture on the TW home page, he isn't even looking at the ball.

The only guys who ever really keep fixed eyes on the contact point are Borg and Federer. It's amazing that this eludes so many top pros and even legends.
 
Doc Hollidae said:
Improve your footwork. Getting your feet set and in position goes a long way. Often players look to correct their stroke first, but don't realize they aren't in position or using the proper body mechanics to hit the ball.
Click to expand...

absolutely! footwork is the first thing you have to get down, and it is very important. good footwork makes everything else easier, especially where you make contact with the ball. with that more consistent you can groove a swing with keeping your eyes on the ball, and hit the sweetspot more consistently. people often overlook footwork and worry about their stroke, but footwork should be more important and worked on first.
 
stormholloway said:
This is interesting considering most pros don't even do this. If you look at that James Blake picture on the TW home page, he isn't even looking at the ball.

The only guys who ever really keep fixed eyes on the contact point are Borg and Federer. It's amazing that this eludes so many top pros and even legends.
Click to expand...

this is true to a degree, but the concept is "watch the ball hit the racquet". though blake isn't looking at the ball, his head is down and is close to looking at the ball. like in baseball, it is very hard to see the ball hit the bat, but trying to makes you keep your head down and still. this helps a lot when trying to make solid contact. many beginners, and even more advanced players pull their head (because they are not focused or trying to see the ball hit their racquet). trying to do so (even if you aren't completely succesful) will help a lot.
 
tbini87 said:
absolutely! footwork is the first thing you have to get down, and it is very important. good footwork makes everything else easier, especially where you make contact with the ball. with that more consistent you can groove a swing with keeping your eyes on the ball, and hit the sweetspot more consistently. people often overlook footwork and worry about their stroke, but footwork should be more important and worked on first.
Click to expand...

Indeed.. Also think of how nice it is to hit a ball in your strike zone. With good foot work, you'll be able hit more balls in your strike zone.
 
tbini87 said:
this is true to a degree, but the concept is "watch the ball hit the racquet". though blake isn't looking at the ball, his head is down and is close to looking at the ball. like in baseball, it is very hard to see the ball hit the bat, but trying to makes you keep your head down and still. this helps a lot when trying to make solid contact. many beginners, and even more advanced players pull their head (because they are not focused or trying to see the ball hit their racquet). trying to do so (even if you aren't completely succesful) will help a lot.
Click to expand...

But what advantage could there be to not looking directly at your contact point?

Certainly the closer your eyes are fixed to the target the better. Pros obviously get away with it because they can fill in the blanks, but the circumstantial evidence is that Federer is the best in the world and he's the only one who really focuses on that contact point during and even shortly after contact.
 
keep you head still until you have finsihed swinging, your head weighs about 20 pounds and when it moves your whole body has to move to compensate which wrecks your accuracy.
 
BeHappy said:
keep you head still until you have finsihed swinging, your head weighs about 20 pounds and when it moves your whole body has to move to compensate which wrecks your accuracy.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's a balance issue. Feet properly set and head STILL are very important. Also, it's very easy to get distracted by what your opponent is doing. Your eyes can be moving off target and you might not be aware of it. Learn to focus on the ball as long as possible. No, you won't see the ball hit the strings, but your head WILL be still. :)

I have found that hitting against a ball machine with no distractions is very helpful. Hit about 100,000 forehands and backhands and you will probably improve. ;)

Good luck.

-Robert
 
I don't mean to oversimplify this, but try swinging through the ball and finishing your stroke. I notice when I concentrate on making a full stroke I focus in on the ball more. This should lead to you "watching" the ball through impact.

Not sure if you play golf, but a lot players hit at the ball v. through it which leads to mishits (much smaller sweet spot) and essentially a loss of control and power...same thing here.

Good Luck!
 
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