private tennis lessons - need advice

[ktmailserv]

tennis lessons - need advice

I'm a late 20s player and probably now at NTRP 2.5+. I really want to improve my game and take it up a couple of notches to a quality play. To this end, I want to take private lessons with a good coach. However, I want your advice/opinion on what to expect out of the lessons. Looking for some advice from ppl who have taken private lessons....can you describe your experience? Did your game improve? How many hours of lessons did you have to take to see some sort of improvement and how often? How many hours of practice?.... I know there are a lot of factors involved and that these are subjective questions and that everyone's mileage varies but just want to hear your story...

 

[peoplespeace]

If u know a coach who is also a friend go for him/her. The avarage pro will just feed u balls, praise ur shots, a repeat the same thing endlessly ie "bend ur knees", "hit more in front u", "follow through" etc etc some will even stop saying this and just feed u ball and say "nice shot" when u accidentially his a good shot. There is a real real danger that u will fall into a trap of being quite content with really little progress while paying a pro thousands of usd while he is thinking of what to have for dinner. The avarage coach will see that ur a 2.5 in ur late 20s and will not really respect that u have a drive to learn fast, he foremost see the risk of u being frustrated and leaving him and he doesnt what that, so he will do everything to make u content with little. Its a problem that is difficult to solve. U might want to take group lessons instead and do more of them for the same money. During these, ask the better player(s) in the group for advice inbetween drills on during drills when ur in line. These better players will be more honest and critical of ur shots and even often more willing to give u constructive crtizism than ur usual pro. Or u can find a bright junior who has been through is a make a deal with him/her. Video tape urself once a fortnight in the beginning. Ur be surprised at the difference between what u do and what u think u do, in terms of bending ur knees, hitting early/late, etc.

If u do go for ur local pro for what ever reason, dont hesitate to say that u have certain targets and if u dont reach them, dispite also working of ur athletisims etc, then u will find another coach (and then find one in another club and tell this new one what happened).

Gl!

 

[GetBetterer]

Well I had two private coaches.

One of them was from America. I took a public class with him, but then he said I should try a private class with him, and that he would give me a discount. He worked more on placement and strategy since I had my strokes down.

As for my second one, I had an extra partner with me since that's the only way time would work. Also, this coach was from South Korea like me, and my "partner" was also South Korean. I liked him too, he was fun and helped me out with a few technical adjustments to avoid injury in addition to fun games we could play with each other, but he was an arrogant ***** and I always beat him because I used his attitude against himself.

 

[ktmailserv]

If u know a coach who is also a friend go for him/her. The avarage pro will just feed u balls, praise ur shots, a repeat the same thing endlessly ie "bend ur knees", "hit more in front u", "follow through" etc etc some will even stop saying this and just feed u ball and say "nice shot" when u accidentially his a good shot. There is a real real danger that u will fall into a trap of being quite content with really little progress while paying a pro thousands of usd while he is thinking of what to have for dinner. The avarage coach will see that ur a 2.5 in ur late 20s and will not really respect that u have a drive to learn fast, he foremost see the risk of u being frustrated and leaving him and he doesnt what that, so he will do everything to make u content with little. Its a problem that is difficult to solve.

Great point. That is exactly what I am afraid of. I really don't know how to approach and solve this and this is the biggest deterrent that is keeping me from taking the first step on this front. I don't want to spend $$$$ for seeing marginal improvement. Like you said, I might have to set some specific targets to achieve with the coach and within x number of sessions. But determining those specific targets itself is an another question and discussion all by itself.

U might want to take group lessons instead and do more of them for the same money. During these, ask the better player(s) in the group for advice inbetween drills on during drills when ur in line. These better players will be more honest and critical of ur shots and even often more willing to give u constructive crtizism than ur usual pro.

I did take group lessons and didn't find them useful for multiple reasons. Also, at my level, I doubt my peer players would be able to tell what exactly is wrong with my shots unless it is very obvious.

Or u can find a bright junior who has been through is a make a deal with him/her. Video tape urself once a fortnight in the beginning. Ur be surprised at the difference between what u do and what u think u do, in terms of bending ur knees, hitting early/late, etc.

Video taping is definitely something I am going to pursue to develop consistency. But for it to be of valuable assistance, I must first understand what the right technique is for a given shot and not rely on what "I think" is the right technique. Once I get good personalized advice from a coach on a particular shot, I'll use video to identify deviations and reinforce good technique.

If u do go for ur local pro for what ever reason, dont hesitate to say that u have certain targets and if u dont reach them, dispite also working of ur athletisims etc, then u will find another coach (and then find one in another club and tell this new one what happened).
Gl!

Thankyou

 

[kiteboard]

The best coach you will ever get is yourself. Join tennisplayer.net, watch videos, read, and tape yourself to learn the most, quickest.

 

[masterxfob]

get a good coach, put in the work, and you'll see results. you can't just take a lesson or play once a week and expect to improve. if you can afford it, you need to take 2-4 lessons/week or get out there on your own and practice two or three times in between lessons. you can also self teach, but you still need to be out there 2+ times a week.

as far as how long it will take you to improve depends on your dedication and learning curve. for students that i see once a week, i try to give them 2-4 things to work on and usually recommend that they put in a minimum of two hours practice on their own.

personally, two of the things i have most lower level students focus on is the split step and small adjustment steps. some people don't even know what a split step is and others are constantly reaching for shots when they just need to take one adjustment step towards or away from it.

 

[fuzz nation]

get a good coach, put in the work, and you'll see results. you can't just take a lesson or play once a week and expect to improve. if you can afford it, you need to take 2-4 lessons/week or get out there on your own and practice two or three times in between lessons. you can also self teach, but you still need to be out there 2+ times a week.

as far as how long it will take you to improve depends on your dedication and learning curve. for students that i see once a week, i try to give them 2-4 things to work on and usually recommend that they put in a minimum of two hours practice on their own.

personally, two of the things i have most lower level students focus on is the split step and small adjustment steps. some people don't even know what a split step is and others are constantly reaching for shots when they just need to take one adjustment step towards or away from it.

I very much agree here.

No beginner level player will see "X" amount of improvement from any coach within a specific time frame without also doing their own work. Smart teachers will steer players toward good habits and away from bad ones during their sessions, but the player has to do their homework and play on their own to get those productive habits more ingrained.

While I respect the viewpoint of our pal peoplespeace, I know for a fact that there are more than just a few wise and dedicated coaches in our sport. I think that the bad ones often make the more lasting impressions, though. Nobody who teaches with any appreciation for the game aspires to become one of those sterile ball feeders who only says "good shot" all day, but some people in that role simply don't have much more to offer. Those are the ones that don't deserve your time and money, since they give you nothing in return.

A good relationship with a teacher/coach is a two-way street in terms of communication. You need to help them understand your goals and they need to be able to have an honest outlook or plan for what sort of work you'll need. They shouldn't really have this in focus until after they've at least seen you play, though. That means that you have to talk to some people, ask around, and even try one session with one potential coach or another. While you want to find some good guidance to build your game, you also need to expect to play on your own a few times a week away from a lesson setting in order to make real progress.

 

[mlktennis]

You are a beginner and so most any teaching pro will be able to show you the fundamentals it is just a matter of finding one you connect with at a price you can afford.

-state your goals accordingly
-you HAVE to work on it on your own

You WILL get better faster with lessons and more importantly, you will learn the right way to hit the ball and so less likely to fall into bad habits that can hinder further growth.

 

[mlktennis]

When you actually know how to play and have good fundamental skills that a good teaching pro is hard to find.

It takes a lot more work to help the player improve noticeably,

hard to change ingrained habits of the player, few want to take a step back for two foward

tennis players are by nature hard-headed and distrustful

If you have the money, ask around and find someone, then take the lessons,...don't overthink it.

 

[Cindysphinx]

Funny thing about tennis lessons: People expect miracles. I have many friends who treat tennis instructions like it is a drive-thru window. "I want to change from 1HBH to 2HBH, so I'll take a lesson."

Yet you'd never hear people speak of other forms of instruction in this way. People understand that if you take voice lessons or skating lessons or piano lessons it will be a very long term project and you won't get instant results from one lesson. I think with tennis that if you brace yourself for the long haul, taking instruction is worthwhile. But if you only have $50 to spend, you'd probably do better to buy yourself a nice dinner. IMHO.

Anyway, I've taken private and group lessons for a long time now. A few quick things:

1. Get several recommendations from someone you have reason to think knows what they're talking about. Players who have taken lessons and have improved are a good source.

2. Try out several pros. It's hard to know what to look for, but you can screen for the basics (punctuality, attentiveness, communication skills). I think it's best if the pro spends most or all of the first lesson checking out all of your strokes, recommends which one needs attention first, and focuses on that. If you get the sense you are being bombarded with too many corrections of too many things, that's a red flag. A good pro should be able to focus.

3. You should ask your pro to give you homework, and you should practice it as diligently as you can. The first few years I took lessons I never practiced (other than playing matches). There's a big difference between playing and practice. I wasted a lot of time and money not understanding how much faster I would progress if I practiced.

4. Once you have found your pro, change what he wants you to change. Do not argue that your way is better. If you think that, save your money and teach yourself. If I hear one more clinic mate reject the idea of Continental grip for serve and for volleys, I think I will tear my hair out.

Good luck. And practice!!!

 

[Wilander Fan]

Different guys have different styles. I've had three i've used to pick up 1hb after playing with a 2hb most of my life and after a 15 year break. One guy just stood at the service line and fed me balls to my backhand. The other guy would stand back and rally and generally get them to my backhand. The third guy was very drill orientated...had me running around cones and hitting short and long. This guy also had a lot of good tips and improved my game by 25% with a couple of simple pointers on serve and short balls. The first guy considered me a novice and didn't take me seriously when I first hit with him 6 months ago. The last guy treated me like an advanced student since I had been able to get my feel for footwork which I now realize has always been the strongest part of my game back. Looking good playing tennis is basically about footwork and court positioning. If you can float around the court and put every ball in your strike zone, you will look like you know what you are doing.

I try to hit with one of these guys at least once a week. Although I prefer the third guy and the second guy. The third guy runs these drills but the second guy actually hits with me so I can get an idea of my progress.

Videotape everything. It's fascinating to go back to you older tapes and the new tapes and see what you were doing wrong. 80% of then time its footwork which means 80% of the time its fitness.

 

[ktmailserv]

get a good coach, put in the work, and you'll see results. you can't just take a lesson or play once a week and expect to improve. if you can afford it, you need to take 2-4 lessons/week or get out there on your own and practice two or three times in between lessons. you can also self teach, but you still need to be out there 2+ times a week.

as far as how long it will take you to improve depends on your dedication and learning curve. for students that i see once a week, i try to give them 2-4 things to work on and usually recommend that they put in a minimum of two hours practice on their own.

personally, two of the things i have most lower level students focus on is the split step and small adjustment steps. some people don't even know what a split step is and others are constantly reaching for shots when they just need to take one adjustment step towards or away from it.

Yes, definitely. I intend to be serious about this. I plan on putting in atleast 2 sessions of play in a week and in between taking classes/lessons. I have a ball machine and I am going to be putting in more hours of play on it. What I don't want to doing by self-teaching is reinforcing bad habits thinking they are right and then have to re-learn fundamentals at an advanced stage.

 

[ktmailserv]

When you actually know how to play and have good fundamental skills that a good teaching pro is hard to find.

It takes a lot more work to help the player improve noticeably,

hard to change ingrained habits of the player, few want to take a step back for two foward

tennis players are by nature hard-headed and distrustful

If you have the money, ask around and find someone, then take the lessons,...don't overthink it.

Yeah, one of the coaches I ran into at a tennis meetup was saying that the toughest ppl to teach are adults and not the ones very new to tennis but those who have already picked up a racket and started hitting around. (I fall in the latter category). With these latter bunch, they have developed bad habits and first the coach needs to break them and have them re-learn the right technique. By far, he said this is the toughest thing to do. I guess you can't teach a old horse new skills.

 

[ktmailserv]

Funny thing about tennis lessons: People expect miracles. I have many friends who treat tennis instructions like it is a drive-thru window. "I want to change from 1HBH to 2HBH, so I'll take a lesson."

Yet you'd never hear people speak of other forms of instruction in this way. People understand that if you take voice lessons or skating lessons or piano lessons it will be a very long term project and you won't get instant results from one lesson. I think with tennis that if you brace yourself for the long haul, taking instruction is worthwhile. But if you only have $50 to spend, you'd probably do better to buy yourself a nice dinner. IMHO.

Anyway, I've taken private and group lessons for a long time now. A few quick things:

1. Get several recommendations from someone you have reason to think knows what they're talking about. Players who have taken lessons and have improved are a good source.

2. Try out several pros. It's hard to know what to look for, but you can screen for the basics (punctuality, attentiveness, communication skills). I think it's best if the pro spends most or all of the first lesson checking out all of your strokes, recommends which one needs attention first, and focuses on that. If you get the sense you are being bombarded with too many corrections of too many things, that's a red flag. A good pro should be able to focus.

3. You should ask your pro to give you homework, and you should practice it as diligently as you can. The first few years I took lessons I never practiced (other than playing matches). There's a big difference between playing and practice. I wasted a lot of time and money not understanding how much faster I would progress if I practiced.

4. Once you have found your pro, change what he wants you to change. Do not argue that your way is better. If you think that, save your money and teach yourself. If I hear one more clinic mate reject the idea of Continental grip for serve and for volleys, I think I will tear my hair out.

Good luck. And practice!!!

Thankyou. That makes sense.

 

[Cindysphinx]

Yes, definitely. I intend to be serious about this. I plan on putting in atleast 2 sessions of play in a week and in between taking classes/lessons. I have a ball machine and I am going to be putting in more hours of play on it. What I don't want to doing by self-teaching is reinforcing bad habits thinking they are right and then have to re-learn fundamentals at an advanced stage.

Be careful with the ball machine. If you use it while using poor technique, all you'll be doing is grooving bad technique.

 

[KenC]

You are a beginner and so most any teaching pro will be able to show you the fundamentals it is just a matter of finding one you connect with at a price you can afford.

-state your goals accordingly
-you HAVE to work on it on your own

You WILL get better faster with lessons and more importantly, you will learn the right way to hit the ball and so less likely to fall into bad habits that can hinder further growth.

Absolutely! Telling a prospective coach your goals and sitting down and working out a coaching schedule and a practice schedule to reach those goals is key. Both of you have to keep up your ends.

I used one coach to take me from 4.0 to 4.5 and then recently started with another who is better qualified to take me to 5.0. There is no problem with using different coaches for different things. If I could, I would use Pat Dougherty to teach me a better serve...

Its also a good idea to be honest with any coach, and every coach should be brutally honest with their students. I want to get better, not inflate my ego, so my coach must point out everything I do wrong or could improve. If I want compliments, they sound much better coming from tough opponents anyway.