People who don't know how to feed balls

[boojay]

Maybe this should go in the rant section, but man, this is one of my pet peeves. I pride myself on being an excellent feeder as I can control the pace, depth, and spin of my feeds onto any spot on the court. My feeds are 85-90% consistent and I may feed one into the net maybe once or twice a week and it's usually toward the end of a hitting session when I'm fatigued.

An alarming number of the people I hit/rally with are incapable of giving a consistent feed and while I don't mind getting a bad feed that's within my reach, I get guys who blast forehand cross court winners to the corners that I chase down only to produce a sitter that they subsequent smack for a winner. What gets me further is that they're completely oblivious to this and probably think they just hit a great shot. No words are spoken, the pattern is repeated numerous times during our hitting session.

If anyone else knows this feeling, what do you do to vent? Give bad feeds back (which I think is taboo as I'm a gamesman and like to play fair; if I'm able to give a good feed, I'll always do it) or start cranking winners off crappy feeds (which I'm capable of doing on most occasions, but again, I don't like going for winners off of the first ball as I also think that's unsportsmanlike)?

I realize not everyone is able to control their feeds so I'm trying hard to use this to my benefit in terms of training, but I dunno, it gets to me sometimes. Hitting a feed winner doesn't compute in my world.

 

[tkopperl]

I know exactly wat u mean

Hitting a winner off of a feed is horrible sportsmanship..i mean common u are feeding for practice most of the time i mean wait a few hits then go for a winner....I see exactly where you are coming from....My coach does the same thing....

 

[Solat]

its generally the people who do not command a continental grip, those who have only ever used SW so there feeds are ugly, big swipes coz thats the only way to hit a SWFH. If someone keeps feeding away from you just leave it, they will either get the point and concentrate or they will query you why you aren't running for it and then discussion is open.

 

[snoflewis]

its generally the people who do not command a continental grip, those who have only ever used SW so there feeds are ugly, big swipes coz thats the only way to hit a SWFH. If someone keeps feeding away from you just leave it, they will either get the point and concentrate or they will query you why you aren't running for it and then discussion is open.

big swipes for a semiwestern fh? not always...

but i agree w/ you on the feeding...i just the balls go and if it persists, i'll say something to the other guy.

 

[boojay]

its generally the people who do not command a continental grip, those who have only ever used SW so there feeds are ugly, big swipes coz thats the only way to hit a SWFH. If someone keeps feeding away from you just leave it, they will either get the point and concentrate or they will query you why you aren't running for it and then discussion is open.

Hmmm....you know what? I think you're right on both counts. I actually feed with an extreme eastern, but I also feed with a continental on occasion too and many of the poor feeders I can think of off the top of my head indeed use a SW.

As for leaving a poor feed alone, that never crossed my mind. My body instinctively chases down balls, but there's no need for me to do so in a practice rally. I'm actually gonna try that. Thanks for the advice. Hopefully it won't be too awkward. We may end up having to pick up balls more frequently, but it's as you say, if my partner doesn't feel the need to improve his/her feeding, I shouldn't have to waste energy chasing them down.

 

[DarrenT]

I can't stand when my hitting partner throws me garbage balls while we're warming up. He usually does the exact thing you're describing too. I'll chase them down just to keep the rally going so we don't have to pick up balls every 2 minutes but he just doesn't get it. He goes 100% as if he's playing a match. I really don't just go out to hit balls with him anymore because an hour or two of that crap would drive me nuts.

The worst is when we start a match and he gets bagel'd the first set and says something to the effect of "man i'm just beating myself today", when in reality if I'm not hitting out-right winners, he'll just barely get to it and dump it into the net or hit it long. I've wanted to say "yea, sucks when your opponent keep hitting it back to you, huh?" but held my tongue to avoid a blow up. I figure the score of the match will do the speaking for me.

 

[DarrenT]

"yea, sucks when your opponent keep hitting it back to you, huh?"

should be "yea, sucks when your opponent doesn't keep hitting it back to you, huh?"

 

[xie_419]

just dont chase after them.. no need to overexert yourself in a warmup and your opponent will soon realize his mistake if every one of his feeds are winners.

 

[Jabezhh]

so...the ideal grip to feed balls with is a continental? is that the shot where the player drops the ball, looks down, and hits the ball before it hits the ground?

huh...maybe i should stop feeding with a western grip

 

[boojay]

so...the ideal grip to feed balls with is a continental? is that the shot where the player drops the ball, looks down, and hits the ball before it hits the ground?

yes

takes practice, but do your hitting partner a favor and learn how to do it :-o

 

[southpaw]

I want to take this opportunity and apologize to all my past and future opponents for the poor quality of my feeds. It is the weakest part of my game.

I've tried different grips and techniques, settling on the underhand with an eastern/cont, but I still suck. My warm ups are always peppered with "sorry", "sorry", ...

Boojay, just let the errant balls go, or catch them and feed them back correctly.

 

[stormholloway]

My hitting partner and I have a running joke. The weakest aspect of his game are his feeds. It's funnier if you get stoned before you hit.

 

[Mad iX]

I rarely return bad feeds. I either catch them or yell out "fore!" or "home run!" while staring towards the sky.
I occasionally hit a bad feed and will say "sorry" or if he hits a weak ball, I'll just block it back.

 

[Hot Sauce]

Also reminds me of people who don't know how to start rallies. Sometimes a shot with no depth or one that is almost a lob.

 

[J011yroger]

Sorry to all, and anyone I have played with on the boards can vouch for my horrific feeds. The more I teach the better they get, but they still suck.

It is most assuredly a Western FH thing.

J

 

[35ft6]

I don't understand the feeding thing either. I know some 4.0 players who can NOT feed at all. And when I say they can't feed, you're probably not even coming close to imagining how inept they are. It's mind boggling. Your racket should move about a foot on a feed but these dorks take almost a half swing, and they hit it all over the place.

 

[VaBeachTennis]

Hitting a winner off of a feed is horrible sportsmanship..i mean common u are feeding for practice most of the time i mean wait a few hits then go for a winner....I see exactly where you are coming from....My coach does the same thing....

I agree. My former hitting partner would just blast a feed I would give him when we started a rally and actually think he was hot s***. I would just look at him like he was a fool and then when he would feed me one I would blast it as a winner to show him how it feels and say " how can we practice or rally by blasting ducks that are fed to you". 99% of the time if I am fed a ball I return a neutral shot to start off the rally, then progress to more angles and harder shots. What annoys me more are the lazy feeds or careless feeds when we would drill, it almost felt like he was trying to sabotage my game. Finally when he would blast a feed or do crappy feeds I wouldn't chase the ball down, and finally after that I just straight out told him what I didn't like. It annoys me because when I feed for a rally or a drill, I try to give my hitting partner something to work with.
Why did I wait so long to tell him straight out?.................Because it's hard to find hitting partners that want to practice for a few hours a day.
After that things got a little better. I think it tends to happen a lot with people who are usually at the 3.0 to 3.5 level, who are trying to prove a point to themselves or someone else, as to how good they are and think that they know it all by parroting advice they got from other hackers that they think are good.

 

[luckyfool]

I hate it when people blast off steady pace rallying balls thinking they are playing a match point of something? For god's sake, they don't realize that until i do the same to them. It's easy to blast off winners when the balls are fed straight to you!! I know exactly how you feel OP.

 

[J011yroger]

^^^Yea that is tough, I get that alot if I hit with H.S. kids, they can't keep up with the pace/spin on my rally balls, so they try to tee off/hit winners off of my feeds, when they do, I don't even move. I just hold my hands out palms up like WTF?

Basically when I hit with a normal partner, you just keep it deep, and move the other person around until someone coughs up something short, then it's on.

J

 

[VaBeachTennis]

Basically when I hit with a normal partner, you just keep it deep, and move the other person around until someone coughs up something short, then it's on.
J

That's how I hit with my other partner, we're both 40 and in good shape and have nothing to prove, we just want a good work out, too bad he has a lot less time to hit.

 

[J011yroger]

That's how I hit with my other partner, we're both 40 and in good shape and have nothing to prove, we just want a good work out, too bad he has a lot less time to hit.

I most assuredly have something to prove. However, what I have to prove isn't that I can smoke a feed ball .

J

 

[VaBeachTennis]

I most assuredly have something to prove. However, what I have to prove isn't that I can smoke a feed ball .

J

My sentiments exactly! If I do happen to accidently smoke a feed ball, I apologize to my partner immediately and take care not to do it.

 

[Supernatural_Serve]

for those who can't feed a ball and think its because of their grip (Western, Semi-western or whatever), then use your backhand to feed the balls.

There's no rule that says you have to feed a ball with a forehand.

Your hitting partners would appreciate it.

 

[J011yroger]

for those who can't feed a ball and think its because of their grip (Western, Semi-western or whatever), then use your backhand to feed the balls.

There's no rule that says you have to feed a ball with a forehand.

Your hitting partners would appreciate it.

I feed backhand when I teach.

But if players have Western FH/2HBH it is unlikely that their feed balls are good. I don't mind it of course, because I love hitting high balls, so eye level feeds don't bother me.

J

 

[donnygg]

I realised my feeding got worse after I switched to extreme eastern. I started playing a few months back with a new partner who wanted feeding practise and my feeds were so bad he stopped to teach me how to feed. Granted I have some neurological problems in my hands but they are not the main reasons for my bad feed as I realised now. I still feed with extreme eastern grip but by adding a little spin to the ball, it feels so much more natural and my feeding improved tremendously. Also, I watch the ball as I feed. This helps me get into the habit. This way, I am practising something even when I'm feeding.

 

[Slazenger]

Sounds to me like the OP is talking not just about the initial feed but rallies when you are just warming up/hitting. In that case why would you want to do that with a continental grip?

Plus you can feed just fine with an extreme eastern or semi-western grip.

Communication is the answer in this situation. Just politely inform the player that you are at the center line not the corners and he should aim in your general vicinity.
Almost everyone at that point will oblige.
For the rest, should make for an interesting match lol.

 

[herosol]

i love rallying with the people when you only both hit it once, and then he just fires something long and wide and like literally flies out the court, and he looks at you expecting you to get it. yea.

what ever happened, to lets get a rally of 20 and start adding some pace?

 

[chess9]

Smoking feed balls causes tennis elbow cancer. Don't you guys read the warnings before you smoke 'em?


-Robert

 

[Cheez-It]

heh. I thought you meant incompetents like myself who are just as likely to hit it in the net or in front of the service line than a good feed ;p

 

[boojay]

Heh, I came up with a new solution. I refrained from lunging for bad feeds, as advised by many ppl in this thread, but also, I proposed we play a match after a few consecutive bad feeds (which I didn't bother chasing after), then proceeded to win.

Ok, so it's not really a solution, but at least I feel better. I'd like to be able to rally and practice, but I think that will be my approach against people who feed poorly. I'll ignore feeds then take feeding right out of the equation.