WebTennis.net
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Newsletter

by Brent Abel

October 6, 2004

Earn $$$ as a WebTennis.net Affiliate

- On a Personal Note: The latest from the home front...

Not much news to report from here this week.  Getting ready for a rather large college football game this Saturday...  #1 USC against my one and only #7 Cal Bears.  First time Cal has sold out the LA Coliseum since around 1952.  That's right, Cal football is headed in the right direction.  Y E S ... !  Roll on You Bears...

- Tip of the Day:  "Compression, receiving the ball, not fighting the ball, the Conk, they're all the same..."

- Complimentary Download:  My NEW PDF eBook, "How to Develop True Confidence in Your Tennis Game"...

- New Instructional Product from Brent:  Brent's Premium Membership.  "I want to be YOUR online tennis professional..." 

- eBay:  Tennis equipment at incredible prices.  Easy to do, fast, secure, the real deal...

Your perception of how your racket should make contact with a tennis ball is something you should consider.  And this is important, so I want you to sit up straight and pay attention...! 

I'm serious.  This concept can completely change your perception of what you should be doing at contact with any shot.

I was planning on doing some forehand work for this week's Tip of the Day, but one of my new Premium Members, Bill Y. from New Jersey, wrote me an email yesterday, and the question was so compelling that I decided that my reply back to Bill is something that I wanted to share with you...

And I'll share with you his email to me and my reply.  I really hope this makes you think.  I mean, really makes you think, not only for right now, but for days to come.  Makes you think to where you've got to go out and tinker and see what this might be all about...

Here goes...

------------------------

"Hi Brent,

Thanks for your responses thus far to my emails. I have thoroughly enjoyed perusing through your website and becoming a Premium Member has been one of the best tennis decisions I've ever made.

Brent, I wonder if you could expand on your concept of 'receiving' the ball (you use that term a lot in your backhand slice lesson).

One thing I noticed while watching your video clips, was how effortless your strokes are. It almost seems as if the ball is cooperating with you.

You 'receive' the ball and then just seem to send it off on its way in the most economical of ways.

I know this must be related to the 'conk' that your mentor Tom Stow talked about.

To me, this idea (receiving the ball, the conk) is the 'Holy Grail' of tennis.

Players who can learn to play like this could probably play high level tennis well into their 60's and 70's, I would imagine!

Take care, and thanks for all the great instruction.

Bill Y.

P.S. Hey, it was a great honor to see my testimonial on the front page of your website!"

My reply to Bill...

Hi Bill and wonderful to hear your comments about the Premium Membership.  I really appreciate your kind words...

Yes, 'receiving' the ball is to me what the game has gotten away from to where it is now with the big ball bashing extreme grip players...

'Receiving' to me is the same thing as allowing the ball to 'compress' into the string bed through contact, to not fight the ball back, but to allow the natural forces of ball compression against a moving string bed to help propel it back to your desired target.

A relatively 'flat' racket face at contact allows for this to happen... And it is this technique that I believe creates the 'conk' (Note: Tom Stow used this term to describe a specific sound at contact, a real concussion) that truly has a different sound at contact.

Extreme grips create non flat racket faces and thus the 'conk' is almost impossible to achieve.

Non professional players just don't generate enough racket speed on a consistent basis to get in and out of contact to counter balance a 'closed' racket face. Slower swing speeds through contact with a closed racket face is a recipe for disaster. Sorry, let me get back to the point...(!)

I remember watching John McEnroe warm up at the Berkeley Tennis Club with my good friend Bill Maze one day as John was getting ready for his match at the pro tournament at the Cow Palace in San Francisco back in the early 80s  ...

Mac was hitting overheads with a swing so slow that it looked like he couldn't possibly generate any pace to speak of... And yet, the ball was coming off his racket like a bullet.

But the sound that I kept hearing, this incredibly loud explosion as Mac allowed the lob to compress into his string bed and the ball to 'dwell' for a moment at contact absolutely changed my thinking of what we should be doing with the ball at contact....

And to me, this is what Tom Stow was talking about with the 'conk' , concussion... a different sound at contact because the player allowed the ball to compress against the string bed much like a backboard naturally does...

I get my students to imagine what a ball does when it hits against a wall. The wall is stationary and allows the ball to slightly change shape for a moment, to start to flatten out as it compresses into the wall...

If that wall could also move against the ball as it allows the ball to compress, then my thinking is that the ball would be propelled away from the wall at an even faster rate of speed.

What's the lesson here..?

This should not be a game of strength where we 'fight' the incoming ball at contact.

And yet, there are times when some grip pressure is needed, but not so much that it disrupts 'compression', 'receiving the ball, but allows the 'conk' to take place in its own time...

And the real kicker here is that the longer I hold the ball on my string bed as I swing out towards my target, the better control I have on the length of my shots.

The balls just don't go out! It's like the 78 feet from baseline to baseline IS the correct dimension for a tennis court, like I really do get more safety when I allow compression by not fighting the ball at contact and freely swing out towards the target.

What a concept...! I can now freely swing to my target and insure that the ball will not go out. Come on, it's too easy...!

It certainly doesn't mean that I get Carte Blanche to swing as fast as I want on every shot because there has to be some consideration for the elements of the incoming ball, but we can learn appropriate swing speeds to control how we 'receive' the ball for the different incoming ball speeds, depths, and bounce angles...

I've always felt that I've played my best when I feel confident that I can artificially 'hold' the ball through contact and out to my finish position. It's a feeling that I don't have to 'get rid' of the ball, as if I need to not have the ball and that I want my opponent to deal with the ball and not me.

Instead, and as you say in your email, I do sense that I get to "send it (the ball) off on its way in the most economical of ways."

Certainly at times it's appropriate to allow faster swing speeds to pass through the ball at the moment of contact, but ideally, we allow the racket to pass through out to the final finish position with a timing, rhythm, and tempo in the swing speed that is fluid, not forced, not rushed, and without concern for the outcome...

In the end, yes there are ultimate shot making benefits in physically trying to hold the ball longer at contact, to 'receive' the ball, to allow the ball to 'compress', to try to hear the 'conk', but even more so, the confidence that a tennis player gets when they play with this mind set is real, is tangible, and is one hell of a lot more fun...!

How to practice 'receiving' the ball, allowing the ball to 'compress'...?

In the beginning it's a sense of feel and sound. Can you feel a slightly longer contact with the ball by consciously allowing the ball to stay on the racket a little longer. Can you hear it...?

I hope this helps. And you know what, I like this topic so much that why I don't I just take your email and my response and make that as this week's newsletter tip...?

Sound OK with you Bill...?

Stay in touch... Brent

------------------------

And that's maybe the answer to why we really love this game so much. 

How do we get to replicate that wonderful feeling of when the ball makes contact with our racket in that indescribably wonderful way that feels effortless...?

The answer my friend is to let it happen.  Freedom in your swing, especially as you pass through the ball or better yet, 'receive' the ball, is directly related to you not worrying about the outcome or the consequences of what might happen...

The tennis court is long enough.  Yes, 78 feet will do just fine...

Go out there and think about the physics of how you could allow the ball to dwell longer at contact, how you could let the ball have some more time compressing into your string bed as you swing freely out towards your target.

It's, as Bill Y says, the Holy Grail of why we're doing what we do on a tennis court.

Don't mess with this one...!

Brent's WebTennis.net Premium Membership...

Look, this is real simple.  I want to be your online tennis professional.  I want to help you improve your tennis...

Yep, bottom line is this...   I want you to try this.  30 days at zero cost and I'll even give you one of my $39 lesson packages of your choice as a free gift just to try out the Premium Membership...

And at the end of 30 days if you feel that the Premium Membership is not for you, then no problem, keep the lesson package as my way of saying thanks for at least giving it a good "look see"...

Check out your benefits of being a Premium Member...

30 Day FREE "Look See" Trial Period and
a complimentary Lesson Package of Your Choice

OK, here's what my Premium Members get...

• 24/7 Access to my private WebTennis.net Premium Member Center

  • A private website that has several learning sections...

  • Webinars, enhanced newsletters, Pro Stroke Evaluation, Pro Shop where all of my instructional products are 25% off, video clip library, and more...

• Access to all of my live and archived instructional Webinars on specific strokes and match play strategy situations.

  • These are 30 minute live teleconference calls as players follow along either with their downloaded outline or watch online.

  • Players may ask questions throughout my lesson and then I leave 15 minutes at the end when you can ask a question on a different tennis topic.

• Enhanced weekly newsletters with more video and audio instruction.

  • The Premium Member newsletter goes into much greater detail with video and audio than the free newsletter.

  • Past newsletters are archived for easy reference.

• Premium Member Pro Shop

  • 25% off of all instructional products

  • Slightly above wholesale prices on Gamma tennis string and other products.

• Pro Stroke Evaluation

  • I produce videos where I take a part certain pro's strokes and strategies and show you precisely what you can copy and model in your own game.

• Access to my video clip library

  • Lots of clips to help you further understand the areas where you want to improve.

• A 30 Day FREE Trail Period

  • Yep, try it out for a full month.  Give it a good "look see" and decide for yourself if this is something that can help your tennis.

  • And if not, then simply let me know and you will not be billed.

• New Member BONUS...!

  • Sign up today and I'll give you any lesson package of your choice for free.  Yes, that's a $39 value for simply trying out the Premium Membership for 30 days.

  • And again, if you should decide that the Premium Membership is not for you, no problem, the lesson package is yours to keep.

• Complete 100% satisfaction guarantee that comes with unlimited lifetime support from me.

  • After 30 days, you may cancel your subscription at any time.  This is a month to month subscription, no long term contracts.

• Just $9.95 a month.  30 day free trial period.  Your credit card will NOT be billed until after the trial period.

• You have nothing to lose.  Guaranteed.  Try it out for your free 30 day trail period and take your tennis to a new improvement level...! 

  • Plus your free New Member BONUS...!

• Premium Membership for FREE for life...?  Yes.  Refer 3 of your tennis pals and your Premium Membership will only cost you 95 cents a month.  That's right, just $0.95 a month...!
  Refer four of your friends and you're putting $ in your pocket...!

Sign up and get your Premium Membership NOW...!

30 day free trial period AND
a complimentary lesson package of your choice
just for trying out the Premium Membership...!

Sign up and get your Premium Membership NOW...!

Here's the link to your complimentary copy of my NEW eBook "How to Develop True Confidence in Your Tennis Game"...

http://www.webtennis.net/downloads/tennis-confidence.pdf

This is an Adobe Acrobat file which requires that you have the free Acrobat Reader on your computer.

Here's where to pick up your copy of Reader...
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html 

I am VERY interested in your opinion of this eBook.  Any feedback, you love it, you hate it, anything would be greatly appreciated...   Thanks.     brent@webtennis.net...

The Backhand Slice Lesson Package (CD and Webpage access)

• An Offensive Weapon... how you can change speeds and make the ball bounce and skid low on your opponent's side of the net. 

• A Defensive Weapon... how you can easily handle balls hit out wide to your backhand and then recover to the middle faster.

• An Approach Shot Weapon... how you'll be all set up to take charge on short balls hit to your backhand by using a short compact backhand slice approach up the line.

Special Introductory Price

I'm unveiling a new instructional lesson package on the slice backhand groundstroke this week.  Private webpage and video CD with bonuses.

The WebTennis.net Premium Members had a sneak preview last week and the feedback was very good. 

One of them, Dennis Vorman ordered one of the first copies and was kind enough to send me this email (thanks again Dennis...!)...

Here's what this instructional lesson package
on the Slice Backhand Groundstroke will do for you...

• You'll develop and refine a slice backhand that will help you do three things well...
  • You'll develop true versatility in what your opponent sees from you. 
    No more being predictable.  You'll now be able to change speed and how the ball bounces.  Being able to produce a shot the skids and stays low on your opponents side of the net is a huge weapon...
  • You'll be better at handling balls hit out wide to you.  The mechanics of the this stroke give you better reach out wide while still maintaining good balance and posture which allows you to reclaim the middle of the court faster after your shot.  Dare I say that you'll be bale to play a defensive shot where you don't give your opponent a clear advantage...
  • On short balls hit to your backhand side you'll now be able to play a nice compact dependable slice backhand approach that will skid, stay low, and be a real problem for your opponents' passing shot attempt...
     
• And here's how you'll add this vital shot to your game, think of it as new tool in your shot toolbox...
  • Private webpage with 12 sequential photos of how the shot develops .  Each photo is numbered so you can listen along to my audio instruction directly from this webpage. 
    
    This 35 minute audio lesson takes you through each photo step by step so you can get a clear understanding of what is happening with the stroke and what are the important fundamentals at any point during the execution of the shot...
     
  • The webpage also has three video clips.  One of the video clips is a lengthy instructional lesson by me.  If you've got a high speed connection, then you shouldn't have any problem viewing any of the clips.
    
    Dial up modems will struggle with the long video clip, but no worries, your video CD will arrive in your mailbox within a few days of ordering...
     
  • Practice tips - A sequential list of how to take this from a zero to a ten...!
     
  • A series of follow up weekly emails from me with reminders on the fundamentals and additional practice tips...
     
  • Unlimited email and telephone support - Yep, the standard from me.  Just let me know if you ever a question.   Uh, let's qualify that...  anytime between 7am and 10pm Pacific time...!
     
• BONUSES...!
  • You know me, in addition to wanting to truly help you with your tennis, I want to make sure my instructional products are overloaded with value for you...
    
    So, this instructional lesson package will also include a $10 coupon good towards any future product purchase from WebTennis.net.  Just let me know when you want to redeem it.
    
    And, I'll also include my Match Warm Up video and interviews with Pat Blaskower and Alan Margot on a couple of ways to on specifically how to spend your time during any competitive match warm up.
    
    So, there's almost $50 in BONUSES...

Like my other lesson packages, this instructional product is $39.

So, if you want to get your slice backhand organized and ready for battle, then here's your answer to happiness!  Jump on this good price now.  The first 20 get it for $29.95...

And don't forget, I do offer a lifetime player satisfaction with this lesson...

So, to recap, the complete Backhand Slice lesson package includes immediate access the online webpage portion of the lesson, the CD, the follow-up emails, and the $10 coupon, video, & audio bonuses, shipping, unlimited support, and a full satisfaction guarantee...

Last week 20 packages were available at 36% off at $24.95 (normal is $39).  But those are now gone.  BUT, see below for another good price on this package...!

Secure payment with your Credit Card or PayPal

Remember - 100% satisfaction guarantee & lifetime unlimited free support

Buy The SPECIAL Backhand Slice Lesson Package Now

Last week's introductory price was $24.95 for the first 20 who took advantage.  I'm more than glad to still offer a nice discount (normally $39) at $29.95 for the first 20...

SPECIAL - only 20 packages available at $29.95...!
Includes shipping and Bonus Video Lesson

Jim McLennan's "The Secrets of World Class Footwork" Videotape and Training Manual

Learn the secrets of how to develop the "drop step", a footwork pattern that all top players instinctively use on many shots.

Not only that, Jim's well organized videotape and companion manual will teach you...

- how you can move quicker and on better balance which will also improve your visual contact with the ball

- how you can arrive at your hitting position earlier (consistently better spacing to the incoming ball, thus better shot making)

- how you can recover back to the "middle" of the court sooner (challenge your opponent with you being in better court positions shot after shot)

- how and when you will use the "jab step" or the "drop step"...

- what is and how you can perfect the "split step"...

- what is the concept of "Gravity Motion" and how does it apply to your improvement as a player...!

$33.95 includes shipping to
Continental U.S.
Buy Now with Credit Card or PayPal

I am at times shocked at the incredible deals on tennis equipment that are at eBay day in and day out.  Heck, I now do most of my office supplies shopping there at eBay and I know I'll start doing more and more shopping there in the near future...

eBay is a secure and safe shopping experience.  If you've never been to eBay or bought anything there, no worries, every seller and buyer at eBay carries around their personal "Feedback" rating and comments.

The eBay "Feedback" is genius.  When you buy and/or sell something at eBay, the other party gives you "Feedback" as to how you performed your end of the deal. 

As a seller, did you deliver the product on time, was the exact product delivered to the buyer that was advertised, were there any problems with returns, etc., and as the buyer, did you pay in a reasonable amount of time.

And your Feedback" comments are available for the entire world to read, so if someone is out there ripping people off, then the ripper's eBay Feedback will doom them forever...!  Bottom line, it works...

So, if you're in the market for new tennis equipment, you must get with the program over at eBay.  Absolutely stunning prices...

New brand name equipment available through either winning an auction or their "Buy It Now" feature where you don't have to wait around to try win an auction.  Many of the "Buy It Now" equipment prices are slightly above wholesale.

It's nuts, but the prices are real and you can save significant dollars by shopping for your tennis needs at eBay.

I've set up a webpage where you can quickly see the current auction and Buy It Now listings for your favorite categories...

• Rackets
• Shoes
• String
• Clothing
• Bags
• and more...

Use this link to check out the up to the minute availability at eBay for your favorite tennis equipment.  Click here

OK, here's how to find me.

Email: brent@webtennis.net
Phone: 1-925-376-4575

And please let me know what you thought of this newsletter, obviously the content, but also the format, and if there's anything you'd like me to address in a future newsletter issue. 

Until then, as always, keep moving forward and see you at the net...!