Recommend a book on the mental game
- Thread starter Arafel
- Start date
HappyLefty
Professional
"Tennis: Winning the mental game."
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/09...102-3526807-8406553?s=books&v=glance&n=283155
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/09...102-3526807-8406553?s=books&v=glance&n=283155
Nuke
Hall of Fame
The problem with too much mental prepping is that thinking too much on the court can hurt your game. The best players don't have to think about it too much, they just do it.
Federer's mind: Serve...hit...hit...hit...serve...
Nuke's mind: Hmm, where should I serve? Bounce the ball a few times while i think. Into the body might be good. But I better keep it deep. Some sidespin. Watch that toss, keep it out in front. Spring into it. Damn, into the net. OK, now I have to be careful with the second serve. Too short and he'll jump on it. He's standing a foot to one side to favor a forehand, but I'll be cagey and keep it to his backhand. Wow, look at that cute girl on court 2...
Federer's mind: Serve...hit...hit...hit...serve...
Nuke's mind: Hmm, where should I serve? Bounce the ball a few times while i think. Into the body might be good. But I better keep it deep. Some sidespin. Watch that toss, keep it out in front. Spring into it. Damn, into the net. OK, now I have to be careful with the second serve. Too short and he'll jump on it. He's standing a foot to one side to favor a forehand, but I'll be cagey and keep it to his backhand. Wow, look at that cute girl on court 2...
LuckyR
Legend
Hahaha... that is funny.
But seriously what do you mean by Mental Game? Do you mean, conquering your demons or strategy and tactics? If the former I find The Lure of the Big Game to be the most practical, although to be honest it has a small amount (it is a very thin book) of extremely helpful info.
But seriously what do you mean by Mental Game? Do you mean, conquering your demons or strategy and tactics? If the former I find The Lure of the Big Game to be the most practical, although to be honest it has a small amount (it is a very thin book) of extremely helpful info.
LuckyR said:
Oh, I mean the ability to hit the shots you know you can despite your nerves and your fear of making a mistake and losing. That mental game. THe one that goes on in my head where I'm saying "Don't screw up, don't screw up," and then I screw up.
Nuke, that was great!
Although I am no expert, I am told that I am a true student of the game (I think that is a compliment!)... I have found tons of great information on the internet... try www.tennisplayer.net or www.tennisone.com... definitely worth the price of admission.
LuckyR
Legend
Arafel said:
Then in that case I would go with The Lure of the Big Game. The other books make some sense intellectually but have little to no practical value on the court, IMHO. One reason is that Vince Ng, the author, was a great Junior and Collegiate player who is out of the game now and will never get rich in tennis, so he can "afford" to give away all of his secrets. Unlike the tennis teaching Pros who keep all of the good stuff for their private clients and give away the trash to the (relatively) cheaper book market.
Mountainman
Rookie
Nuke said:
I agree. One thing you want to keep in mind in tennis is that you're out there to win, beat, kill or slam your opponent to the groud. Or, lose is not an option. I like this one myself, let the racquet do the talking. Pretend the word "termination" written across your opponent's forehead.
HappyLefty
Professional
Nuke said:
WRONG!
Your mental preparation is many days before a match. As a result of a good mental preparation is that you go to the court doing your best without thinking about it.
You don´t think your heart is beating, in the same way a good mental preparation prepares you to give your best and avoid overthinking.
Again, if you want to do your best, it is extremely necessary a mental preparation.
Nuke
Hall of Fame
But if I read one of those books days before my match, then on match day I have all these new things to think about while I'm playing, which may hurt my game. I suppose it's good to read those books because at some point the knowledge sinks down into your brain so you know them unconsciously, but in the short term, you just have to forget your new knowledge a bit and just play.
HappyLefty
Professional
Right.Nuke said:
That´s the point. Mental preparation is not a specific task with a due date. It´s a daily basis to get what you stated: "the knowledge sinks down into your brain..". Mental preparation is for a long term approach.
iplaythementalgame
New User
Funny you should ask. I have just (as of two days ago) published a book on the mental game called Tennis: Play the Mental Game. You can get it on Amazon.com or go to my web site www.maxtennis.com to read about it or order it. It is a series of Mini Lessons on exactly how to play the mental game and is based on Tim Gallwey's The Inner Game of Tennis. I also have 14 drills that you can do to help you practice your mental game as well as some strategy Mini Lessons that you probably haven't read anywhere else. So, if any of you are looking to play the Mental game, I believe my book will help you.
