“Get the water off the playing part of the tennis court as fast as possible.”

In teaching tennis, we instruct our students to know the outcome goal you would like to achieve but to focus on the performance goals which you can control.

Outcome goal, as stated above, is to get the water off the playing surface as quickly as possible so it can begin to dry.  Once that is accomplished, next, begin to remove the water from the area around the court while the main part of the court is drying.

We can control how we remove the water but not how fast the court will dry.  That can be left up to the temperature, wind or sun.  However, we can control the performance goal of how we remove the water initially.

Performance goals, are how we go about removing the water.

1. One of the most effective methods is to begin with your squeegee or roll dri on the junction of the service line and the center service line.
2. Applying gentle pressure to the handle of the roll dri, begin to walk in a small circle to your right or left.
3. As you complete the first circle and start your second circle your circle will get larger and larger and the water will be pushed quickly away from the center of the court
4. Within a matter of minutes the playing surface will be free of standing water and nature can begin to start her part in helping to dry the court surface.
5. You can continue to make the circle larger and larger well outside the court lines.  Finally, there are only small triangle corners left to push the water off the back and side court areas

This method is much more efficient than pushing water back and forth across the court and allows the playing surface to begin drying much quicker.  This process is extremely quick when another person is following behind the lead person making the circle. As a team they can double the speed of getting the water off the playing surface.

Once one half of the court playing surface has been squeegeed, move to the other half and remove standing water from the playing surface.  Now that both playing surfaces are clear of standing water, both people begin to squeegee off the back and side court areas.

When you finish getting as much surface water off the court as possible, do not set your roll dri down on the roller.  Doing so will create a flat part the will permanently create a flat spot on the roller.  This flat spot will jump over standing water as it approaches it.

6 Performance Goals to remember:

1. Do not apply extreme pressure to the handle of the roll dri – just like you do not grip your racquet to tightly
2. Do not bend forward too drastically as you push the roll dri – just like your posture is of extreme importance as you play
3. Stay focused so your roll dri does not allow water to run back onto the area you have just dried from your last circle – just like paying attention as you play your points, games and sets in your match
4. Work as a team, compliment what a great job your partner is doing and make suggestions by saying, “I like what you are doing, how about if we try this?” – just like in your matches with your partner in doubles
5. Once the water is off the main playing surface, focus on removing the water from the area outside the lines while the playing surface is drying.
6. Hang up your squeegee of roll dri to protect the blade or roller

Outcome Goal to experience – Play tennis as soon after a rain as possible.

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5. 7 Tips to practicing the lob

1. Practice tossing the ball up, letting it bounce then directing the lob to a 9 foot by 9 foot area in the corner of the court near the baseline and sideline.

2. Practice tossing the ball up and away from you so you have to run wide or back up to lob to a 9’x9’ target near either alley and the baseline.

3. Have a friend feed you a deep slow high ball and you attempt to lob to your deep targets.

4. Have a friend feed you a wide or deep challenging ball that you must run down and place into your deep targets.

5. Have a friend serve to you from both the deuce court and ad court while you practice lobbing the return into the deep targets near the baseline

6. Have two friends play against you. One serves form the deuce court baseline while the other one is at the net. You practice returning serves deep over the net players head to the targets. This forces the server to retreat to track the lob down and play the ball to your half of the doubles court. Repeat form the ad court as well.

7. Remember – when you can’t see the sun – they can – lob into the sun! You will see the difference – they will see the sun.

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Doubles Situations

1. The receiving team must lob the return of serve and try to take the net at least twice in each game. This is especially effective when the serving team is serving into the sun.
2. The serving team must play out of the “I” formation or Australian formation.  Get use to using the formations so you will have confidence to use them in a match as well as experiencing how to return against the formations.
3. The receiving team starts with both players back. This takes the pressure off the receiver to make a great return to avoid getting their partner killed by the poaching player of fast charging net player
4. The serving team starts both players on the baseline. This formation helps when the receiver is killing the net player because they cannot volley or the serves are too weak.

Singles Situations

1. Players must serve, return and rally 6 balls cross court before the point can begin.  Serve to the deuce court and rally deuce court then serve to the ad court and rally ad court cross court.  Keep score like in a regular match.
2. Player serves and rally out the point.  If the ball lands inside the service line the striker loses the point.  You can also play that the short ball requires the receiver of the short ball to go to the net to play out the point.
3. “3 to win a major” – (with 3 players) one player will serve 3 points.  If the server or receiver wins all 3 points they win a “major point”.  If they win 2 of the 3 points they stay on the court and a third player comes on to replace the person who lost the 1 point and a new game is played. If they win 1 of the 3 they are the one replaced by the third player who will now play 3 points against the player who stayed on the court.  This stresses the difficulty in winning 3 points in a row.  (*when the score is 30-love there is an 80% chance the person with the lead will lose the next point and 65% chance they will lose the 4^th point as well).
4. “3 to win a major” – (with 2 players) one player serves and tries to win 3 points in a row to win a game.  If the receiver wins the point, they become the server and have 1 point while the former server loses all their points and starts at zero again.  Players keep games won and play out a set.

Situational scoring and match play can help to focus on specific skills necessary to improve ones tactical and mental approach to the game.  They also make great coaching opportunities. The shortened scoring and sets make great challenge match format that can be completed in a short period of time.

This form of altered play helps to make practice exciting and more challenging so players stay focused and do not experience “mindless” practice.  They get use to specific situations and proper responses to the score or situation so they play with a “been there before” confidence in actual match play.

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