Long, loopy takeback on the forehand!

[Zachol82]

Is pretty epic.

For my entire 7 years of tennis, I have been taught to hit a compact forehand because less motion = less % for error. Also, a shorter takeback means I can react to faster-pace shot more easily. As I played more and more, I was able to put power into this short, compact swing by stepping in, turning my waist, and whipping the ball with pretty good racquet head speed.

Now here's the good part:

As I was playing a match this morning, I accidentally took a much more loopy and longer swing than usual on a slower ball (don't ask me why I accidentally did that, I honestly don't know). Blasted that ball so hard, my opponent couldn't even react to it when it was within his reach. Of course, I did not do this for the entirety of the match because 1, it was a fluke, and 2, I guess my opponent thought I hit it on purpose and got nervous, it was an easy win for me from there.

BUT, BUT!! After the match was over, I called a buddy and asked him to come rally with me. Yup, you guessed it! I tried to replicate that exact long, loopy forehand I did in the match. Most of my shots went into the net because I wasn't used to the timing of such a long, loopy swing...and my damn partner, being a competitive SOB as much as I am, kept hitting extremely fast shots at me. I had to tell him to slow it down and that I was actually trying to work on something.

I finally got the timing down and my god, we both agreed that I get a lot more pace, depth, spin and stretch on the shot. My partner decided to try it as well and also found it to his liking.

Just posting this because it was a pretty incredible accident that will probably change how I hit a forehand from now on. I'll admit the timing is still not quite there yet, especially on returning fast shots, but I think I can get it with more practice!

Oh, and of course, I would recommend anyone who has never hit a long, loopy forehand to try it out as well! It's truly amazing and it feels extremely consistent once you get the timing down as well.

 

[ProgressoR]

I have a long loopy take back for FH, mainly because I have just learnt to play and also at my level you normally get the time to do it. I would have thought to maintain that at a higher level, you get less time to do that?

I love the control, the spin, power etc from the loopy takeback, I would lose a lot if i moved to a compact take back now, but I am guessing at some stage I would probably have to do that if i reach a high enough level?

 

[Slazenger07]

I have a long, loopy swing on the forehand as well, it is also my best shot. I dont miss it much. The amount of spin, control, and pace I have on the ball is fantastic, especially topspin, man that ball is moving after I whip one of those forehands. I generally prefer the reverse finish, but I also love using the across the body finish. Id recommend incorporating both types of finishes on the forehand as well, these combinations have turned my forehand into a point winning machine.

 

[Zachol82]

I have a long loopy take back for FH, mainly because I have just learnt to play and also at my level you normally get the time to do it. I would have thought to maintain that at a higher level, you get less time to do that?

I love the control, the spin, power etc from the loopy takeback, I would lose a lot if i moved to a compact take back now, but I am guessing at some stage I would probably have to do that if i reach a high enough level?

You are absolutely right about having less time to execute a long, loopy forehand at a higher level. That is exactly why I'm spending a lot of time to get the time just right. Of course, I still use compact swings to return serves and to return faster shots. My long, loopy forehand is only for shots that I can get ready for, especially when I get a weak reply from my opponent. I'm just happy that I have a stronger forehand I can rely on for a winner, but it'll still take months before it is applicable in a match situation.

 

[origmarm]

I'll just vary it depending on the time I have. My preference is for longer but often you just don't have the time.

When I have the time I really have a huge backswing, it's almost Gonzo like ...now if only I could hit it like him...

 

[LeeD]

Yet another shot we have to learn in our repetoire, that shot is best used on slower incoming balls, us hitting that shot for a forcing or winner.
Problem now becomes, WHEN to use each forehand. The long loop, the shorter rallyball, the short blocked return with topspin.
Sometimes, too many options ='s brainlock, and we can chose the WRONG option every time.
Note some OK players used shorter backswings, like Agassi, McEnroe, and Courier.
Most clay courters just use the longer loopier swings.
Grass courters would use the shortest, but their antiquities nowadaze.
If you have time to use the long loop every ball, your competition sucks and you're cherrypicking.

 

[Nellie]

If you look at pros, they have very long and loopy strokes but they just prepare faster. Perhaps you should working on getting the turn and weight earlier so that you can use the longer swing.

 

[Djokovicfan4life]

My coach said that I was robbing myself of a lot of power with my short backswing (I also had a hitch in the swing with my wrist that defeated the purpose of short backswing anyway) and advised that I adopt a longer takeback. As Nellie pointed out, my initial problem was getting prepared quickly enough and I would frequently hit late and off center, but over time my forehand has improved a lot in power and control.

 

[UnforcedError]

If you look at pros, they have very long and loopy strokes but they just prepare faster. Perhaps you should working on getting the turn and weight earlier so that you can use the longer swing.

Not true at all most of the pros have shorter take backs than the typical person I see at the courts. Look closely at slow motion footage of Nadal or Federer, not very big takebacks but huge amounts of racket head speed.

 

[Nellie]

I would respectfully disagree- what do you mean by long? By long, I mean that, during preparation, the arm is straight back with the racquet head up, at shoulder height and behind the body, during the swing extends fully backwards to point to the back fence. That's how you get racquet head speed.

There are some more extreme forehands, like with Gonzalez, that take the racquet over and behind the head.

 

[Zachol82]

Pros generally have greater burst and racquet head speed to make up for their short take-back. That and they also hit it cleanly at the sweet-spot.

As for me, I do agree with Nellie that better preparation is needed. If I can control my shot, I have a general idea of where my opponent will return my shot and I can pre-prepare(is this a word?) for the longer, looper take-back :]

However, it's pretty hard for me to speed up my preparation, since I'm used to the timing of the shorter take-back. I am improving though, so eventually it'll be my favorite forehand.

Also, by long, I do mean the take-back behind the head as well, which is why I also called it loopy to clarify.

Long = straight back
Loopy = over the head

 

[UnforcedError]

I would respectfully disagree- what do you mean by long? By long, I mean that, during preparation, the arm is straight back with the racquet head up, at shoulder height and behind the body, during the swing extends fully backwards to point to the back fence. That's how you get racquet head speed.

There are some more extreme forehands, like with Gonzalez, that take the racquet over and behind the head.

Take a look at the picture of Nadal on the tennis warehouse start page in the babolat ad. He is about full takeback at that point and is about to start his swing forward, the takeback is nowhere close to what you describe.

 

[user92626]

I would side with Nellie, who seems to be very experienced.

IMO, I don't think about "long" and whatnot. To me, there's only if you do a good unit turn or not, because if you do, you'll likely have a good enough swing length. On top of that, don't you also have to do what's natural to you? I mean, I tried to have a long, loopy swing, a la Gonzo, but I just felt my body and mind just disconnected with the contact point.

 

[aimr75]

Is this considered a long loopy swing?

 

[user92626]

aim,

That's about complete and comfortable to Fed, which confirms my idea about takeback. It's neither long nor compact.

 

[LeeD]

Exactly, medium loopy takeback, the best of both worlds.

 

[aimr75]

^ yeah, i dont think his swing is loopy and long. He extends his arm back in the takeback, but his arm still remains to the right of his body. According to another poster, Tricky, his swing is turn based rather than loop based

 

[Zachol82]

Is this considered a long loopy swing?

Yes, aimr, that's exactly what I am talking about. I started the take back from the top and kind of circle downward clockwise. Whereas before, I would just go counter-clockwise from the bottom a little bit. Federer does turn his entire body more than I did...maybe I should give the whole unit turn thing a try as well.

 

[aimr75]

Federer does turn his entire body more than I did...maybe I should give the whole unit turn thing a try as well.

yeah you would most likely benefit from a good unit turn the way fed does it in the pic if you arent really making a strong unit turn

 

[TennisCoachFLA]

Several posters summed it up well. Its not the 'loopyness' or 'long', its straight back vs up back. And the proper unit turn. The vast majority of pros go up on the take back. Old John McEnroe has a very straight take back by comparison, so obviously one can still succeed that way, although his other talents certainly helped him..

If you go back to basics, look how the best coaches train the best kids. Rick Macci has several videos working with 5-6 year olds. From day one with the forehand they drill "up, drop, hit". Over and over and over again he tells them to "let the racquet drop into the hit" and "turn the shoulders". He says he must have told the Williams sisters and Andy Roddick and Capriati at least 10000 times to do these two things.

We have the perfect proving grounds for this at our tennis club. In the afternoon you have 18 courts of juniors from age 5-18. Some have been trained to take the racquet back up, some not. You have kids the same age and size, some doing it one way, some the other. The quality of the forehands of the kids who get that racquet up and the shoulders turned is much, much better.

 

[Zachol82]

Its not the 'loopyness' or 'long', its straight back vs up back.

Yes, that is what I meant when I say long, loopy forehand. Taking the racquet up, back, down is definitely a longer, loopier take-back than straight back. Nonetheless, it is definitely the ideal way to hit a forehand, for me that is.

 

[tricky]

yeah, i dont think his swing is loopy and long. He extends his arm back in the takeback, but his arm still remains to the right of his body. According to another poster, Tricky, his swing is turn based rather than loop based

Yup, turn-based. It's all about how you separate the left hand from the neck of the racquet.

One way to experience this is to try holding the neck of the racquet with your palm facing down. (In other words, the neck of the racquet is supported by the dark side of your hand.) For example, you may try holding the neck of the racquet between your index finger and thumb.

Now, separate the hand from the racquet and go through your takeback. You will notice two things:

1) Your takeback will look much straighter. Even if you try to force a big loop, it's relatively compact.

2) When you take the racquet back, you'll notice that your shoulder is mostly stretching or turning, instead of going in a clockwise motion.