WHAT Grip to use for net volleys?

user92626

user92626

G.O.A.T.
Hello Tennis Brethren,

Can you tell/show me which grip is comfortable and effective to use for net volleying/poaching?

I'm really struggling with this task cuz the way I hold the racket just feels awkward and sluggish. I've tried Continental and right now Eastern. I could sort of prepare for the forehand hit, but never could switch fast 'nuff for bh. Or maybe I'm doing something entirely wrong and unrelated to grip! :(

thanks
 
Traditionally, a Continental grip is favored at the net because of how effective it is.

Some people that I've seen also use an Eastern grip, including myself. It works for some people.
 
hey davidson.

when you play the net with an easter backhand do you have problems with low balls just popping up? i know when i try that grip and i get a low volley it just sets sail and sits right up to the people.
 
user92626 said:
Hello Tennis Brethren,

Can you tell/show me which grip is comfortable and effective to use for net volleying/poaching?

I'm really struggling with this task cuz the way I hold the racket just feels awkward and sluggish. I've tried Continental and right now Eastern. I could sort of prepare for the forehand hit, but never could switch fast 'nuff for bh. Or maybe I'm doing something entirely wrong and unrelated to grip! :(

thanks
Click to expand...

The Easterns can be used to volley and in some cases they are actually better grips then the continental to volley with simply because they place the wrist in a strong position.

However, as you stated above, the Eastern grips fall short when it comes to an actual volley exchange. Although you can change grips faster then you can blink or say "boo", the fact is your brain has to register the incoming ball and that takes precious time away.

You should use and learn the Continental grip. By learning the Continental, you can compliment this with your serving grip which can lead to S & V'ing. I happen to adjust my grip very slightly for the backhand volley. So it is not a pure continental grip when I hit a backhand volley. It is close but not pure.

So, you need to practice with the Continental. You can lay back the wrist to make the racquet position more comfortable.
 
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I play with one or two guys who I see are so amazing with net volleying. They stand 7 ft or closer to the net and actually punch the ball while I can't even block it. :(

I've gotten passed the fear of getting hit at the net :) but when I do get the ball blocked, which is less than 50%, it's still alive and easy for opponents to return.

Someone told me to always grip the handle hard at the net and be prepared to get one type of ball only, ie the fh or bh but not both, but that's really limited. And I'm not even sure how to handle ball coming directly at the body!

Bill wrote "You can lay back the wrist to make the racquet position more comfortable." Can you elaborate?
 
Bungalo Bill said:
The Easterns can be used to volley and in some cases they are actually better grips then the continental to volley with simply because they place the wrist in a strong position.

However, as you stated above, the Eastern grips fall short when it comes to an actual volley exchange. Although you can change grips faster then you can blink or say "boo", the fact is your brain has to register the incoming ball and that takes precious time away.

You should use and learn the Continental grip. By learning the Continental, you can compliment this with your serving grip which can lead to S & V'ing. I happen to adjust my grip very slightly for the backhand volley. So it is not a pure continental grip when I hit a backhand volley. It is close but not pure.

So, you need to practice with the Continental. You can lay back the wrist to make the racquet position more comfortable.
Click to expand...

Now this guy knows his stuff. :mrgreen:

On a personal note, one of my early coaches fed me ball on both FH and BH at the net using the volleying grip I automatically used - Eastern - and then had me change to Continental to notice how much better I volleyed and how much more effortless it was. I really noticed the difference on the BH side. This sort of exercise was a nice way of saying "get that grip to Continental." So, I'd suggest having someone feed you balls, especially on the BH side and directly compare the grips. Try for a target in the corner of each of the service boxes; you should notice the difference. Of course, the best thing to do is take some lessons to make sure your footwork and body position is good as well as to make sure you're not doing the no-no's of volleying like swinging at a punch volley. Good luck!
 
my grip changes slightly on forehand and backhand volleys... but they are both continental. just make sure you hit the ball in front of you.
 
I believe that I'm using pretty much of a classic continental for the BH with a slight adjustment toward the semi-continental for the FH. Since I'm usually at the net (playing doubs), I often don't have time for a major grip change -- the minor grip change I described above is very easy to implement.
 
Bungalo Bill said:
However, as you stated above, the Eastern grips fall short when it comes to an actual volley exchange. Although you can change grips faster then you can blink or say "boo", the fact is your brain has to register the incoming ball and that takes precious time away.

You should use and learn the Continental grip. By learning the Continental, you can compliment this with your serving grip which can lead to S & V'ing. I happen to adjust my grip very slightly for the backhand volley.
Click to expand...

No adjustments for me. Except on backhand half volleys i go continental.
 
I have seen slow motion, frame by frame of Sampras, in which he moves slightly between continental and eastern on many of his vollies. I would say continental every time, but maybe there is something going on that I cannot explain.
 
Cindysphinx said:
Continental on both sides. The key is keeping the racket head up. There's nothing worse than a limp-wristed volley.
Click to expand...

Cindy, I've read that you're more of a net player than a baseliner. How do you punch-volley with fast balls? I can sort of block it but it's ineffective to kill! Worse, I set it up for opponent to kill me.
 
user92626 said:
I have decided for now that I'll use the chopper/Continental grip slightly modified to accomodate the bh --it'll be a bit tough for fh but fh's supposed to be more dexterous, right?

How do you guys handle fast shots coming directly at your chin?
Click to expand...
duck and hope it goes* out :p
jkjk

move out of the way then volley it back
 
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User: For volleying fast balls, you don't need to worry about punching them, often it'll be all you can do to get your racquet to the ball. When you're hitting a fast, hard shot, all you need to do is present a stable racquet and direct the ball where you want, you don't need to worry about adding speed.

Once you get the hang of getting the racquet behind the ball in time, it's then all about placement. Placement is far more important than pace when it comes to a pressured volley.
 
OrangeOne said:
User: For volleying fast balls, you don't need to worry about punching them, often it'll be all you can do to get your racquet to the ball. When you're hitting a fast, hard shot, all you need to do is present a stable racquet and direct the ball where you want, you don't need to worry about adding speed.

Once you get the hang of getting the racquet behind the ball in time, it's then all about placement. Placement is far more important than pace when it comes to a pressured volley.
Click to expand...

Eeeyup. Do as OrangeOne says, not as I do.

The more pace you have to work with, the less you have to do. With correct grip and firm grip, you need only block it. I can't seem to get this through my thick skull and I often volley much too aggressively for the situation with fast balls.

In fact, if you play a poor volleyer, one way to beat them is give them lots of topspin and less pace. This requires them to move forward and generate their own pace, which they may lack the technique to do.

The other thing that someone told me that is helpful is that you can raise your volley effectiveness by 50% by moving your feet (doing your split-step) every single time. Flat-footedness makes it nigh on impossible to volley.
 
CONTINENTAL definitely

For any type of volley you want to hit (maybe not the drive volley... hehehe) the continental grip will automatically shift your racquet face to the necessary position for your forehand or backhand. But the grip is just one small part of the volleying game.

Early preparation, racquet positioning, body positioning, and also experience in reaction (cause that will fix up the entire volleying motion) will affect your feel off the racquet and how well you can execute the volley.

:)
 
Continental. For the first six month I played I used the same Semi-Western that I did for everything else but low BHs were vulnerable.

When I spread my fingers out it became more secure.

The portion of my hand near the V stays the same, but there is slight change at the butt end between BH and FH for me.
 
user92626 said:
Hello Tennis Brethren,

Can you tell/show me which grip is comfortable and effective to use for net volleying/poaching?

I'm really struggling with this task cuz the way I hold the racket just feels awkward and sluggish. I've tried Continental and right now Eastern. I could sort of prepare for the forehand hit, but never could switch fast 'nuff for bh. Or maybe I'm doing something entirely wrong and unrelated to grip! :(

thanks
Click to expand...

Continental as already mentioned. Just cause the very LOW volleys are very difficult to hit with forehand grip.
 
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