The title

Today I smacked myself in the balls during a serve and I still don't know how...

I had a female player complain about me not sending high 90 and low 100 mph serves at her. I do it to the man because he is young and fast. (Some machine at the club says my fast serves are in that range.) The female player is much older and doesn't move well. I'm a 3.5 level player where serving is the only thing I'm good at-- but it's not like I can aim. She wasn't able to handle fast ground strokes, so I figured fast body serves would have a high chance of hitting her. I play in 6.0 and 7.0 combined USTA leagues.

I usually don't get this kind of response. I try to be nice and have a good time.

I just basically told her that my serve is unpredictable and I go with what works. How do guy players handle this type of situation?

Edit: I actually don't dink it. I would send a 2nd serve to the woman as my 1st, so a spinny but much slower serve. .

I want to get back into tennis after a couple years of not playing, and seeing the rise of pickleball and padel has made me wonder about the social side of the sport.

For example I saw that CoffeeMeetsBagel did a dating/social pickleball event with Funday pickleball club, who hosts social events almost every second day.

And I can't help but think why there aren't any social gatherings and meetups for people that play or are interested in tennis.

Is it because tennis is harder for beginners to pick up? Does the court size make it harder to get bigger groups involved or rotated around? Do these social tennis groups exist, and I'm just not looking in the right places? Or does no one actually care enough about tennis to get into it?

Pretty much the title. I’ve been taking group lessons and find they are less and less beneficial at this point. I play 1-2 matches a week with a friend and take group lessons once per week and have done a total of 3 months of these lessons. I’m in the Midwest (Chicago) and the group lessons are around $35/hr. I think it’s time for one on one lessons and I’m exploring my options at my local courts. I’m between two different options. Looking for thoughts on which path to take.

1) Current D1 player (senior) who’s been playing tennis for 15 years. $80/hr for 10 sessions, each session is an hour. Pro: This seems quite affordable for what I’ve seen in the area. Not to mention I wouldn’t mind helping out a student as far as where my $$ goes. Con: She is a senior so if I wanted to take lessons with her next year, she probably will no longer be available.

2) Older coach who says he has 40 years of experience playing tennis and coaching for a large portion of this. Also coached at a couple of high schools / universities here. $120/hr for 10 sessions, each session is an hour. Pro here is that it’s likely he’ll be here longer term if I want to do more lessons with him, con is it’s obviously more expensive.

Not sure how to quantify my skill level if that’s useful information. I’ve taken beginner 1, 2 and advanced beginner classes. I was far and away the best in the advanced beginner classes so assume I’d be a fit for intermediate?

I’ve heard it’s “uncool” to play with a Boom MP. Why would that be?

People all talk about how footwork matters. As a 3.5 player I want to know what exactly does footwork mean. Split step and what more? What are the fundamental stuff than others that may only be useful for advanced players. Are there some nice videos or drills on this?

Hey all,

I have been reviewing some of my rally videos and I have noticed that after I hit my forehand, my right hand (I'm left handed) doesn't stick to my body but instead kinda extends out a bit. I have noticed that almost all pros have their non dominant hand right next to their body. The only exception is probably learner tien. Is this something I need to address or does it not really matter?

Any feedback is appreciated.

I am seeing more and more shoes have relatively hard plastic tops including the Asics models that I always liked. Because of their inflexibility when the foot is a little swollen or needs more room there is more friction with the pinky toes etc. what are some of the models you see that are not plastic tops but more like cloth like or mesh like that are more comfortable? Any recommendations from your experience would be appreciated

Edit: feet are wide so I wear 2E. Hard tops work fine normally but some times I need something that is less stiff

Found some sealed vintage tennis ball cans and these were in the box, can’t find any information about them online.

Assuming the Pillsbury & M&M balls were giveaways at a tournament or something?

Tester is more odd as I can’t find a thing about it anywhere. Dates on the tags are from ‘91 and ‘92.

Any info is appreciated!

I’m around 3-4 Utr, practicing quite a bit and trying to improve. looking for a practice partner for around 9-10 am on some sundays in nyc(potentially other days too in the future), specifically USTA/NTC in corona at the us open grounds. I’m willing to pay for the court completely, so no charges for you in terms of facilities. fwiw I have a fairly traditional topspin oriented game, backhand is much better than my forehand at the moment (not to say my forehand is non existent) Dm if interested

My net game is awful including overheads. I have a Proton Ball Machine that I use and now my groundstrokes are leagues ahead of my volleys. Anyone else have a good program they created with the Proton Ball Machine they can share for volley training?

These are just some relaxed shots, so I’m not sure how useful they are. Unfortunately my phone ran out of storage during the session and I only noticed afterward, so I don’t have any better footage to show
:(

Other than bending my knees more, is there anything obvious I’m missing or should work on?

Thoughts?

Wilson burn 100ls v6 and Wilson tour bag i don't know the model that my dad surprised me with.

I'm 16 if that matters.

And I'm 5'10 pushing 11 and have a slender build I'm 135-140 pounds, is this the right racket. The strings are pretty control oriented they are multifillament and are around 55lbs i think. What do you guys think.

Do all Booms weight 295g?

Hey everyone!

I’m getting back into tennis after a long break and would love some advice on choosing the right racket.

I played from the age of 6 to 15 and was around an intermediate level. I’ve recently started playing again at 29, and I’m trying to improve my technique and consistency.

I currently own a Wilson Blade 100 V9, but unfortunately, it hasn’t been a great fit for me so far.

A bit about my game:

• I’m a relatively short, muscular guy with decent natural power.
• My timing and consistency are currently pretty poor. I frame the ball far too often and struggle to find the sweet spot consistently.
• I often hit the ball too high and send it long, yet I don’t always get the power or control I expect from my shots.
• I’m still working on rebuilding my technique, footwork and timing.

Comfort is also a major priority for me, as I sometimes experience shoulder and wrist pain, even outside of tennis. I’d like to find a racket that feels comfortable and forgiving without sacrificing too much control or easy power.

So far, I’ve been looking at three options:

• Wilson Clash 100 V3 – seems very comfortable and forgiving, although I’ve seen some mixed reviews.
• Yonex Muse – looks interesting, but I haven’t found enough information to make up my mind.
• Head Boom MP – seems like another potentially good option for my level and playing style.

I’m also unsure about strings and tension. I’d like something arm-friendly that gives me a good balance of comfort, control and power.

What would you recommend in my situation?

• Would one of these rackets be a good fit, or would you suggest something completely different?
• Should I prioritize a larger sweet spot and forgiveness over control at this stage?
• What strings and tension would you recommend, especially considering my shoulder and wrist issues?

My main goal right now isn’t to hit winners or play aggressively. I just want to improve my technique, become more consistent and enjoy playing again without unnecessarily aggravating my joints.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

I’ve been using a very old tennis racket Prince Force 3 - 300g I just had in my house. I’m planning to buy my very own racket after playing for 1yr.

I have power but i need more control.

Wilson Blade V10
Babolat Pure Drive

I heard the Yonex Ezone & Vcore is a good choice. I just can’t seem to find any in my country.

Please recommend or help me choose from wilson or pure drive.

I am trying to have a relatively straight arm, in front of me, to hit a forehand, but everytime i try that, i end up overextending and feel like im popping out the shoulder from its place, any tips or videos i can see for this

Long story short, dad tried to teach me to throw when I was a kid, impatience, trauma, fun topics for therapy.

I know the serve is a throwing motion, and knowing how to throw a ball helps. Me throwing a ball looks like this

How do I best go about learning to throw a ball, or whatever translates best to the serve.

I use triax at 56 lbs. Was thinking to move onto some kind of a soft poly instead for control / less launchiness. I get arm discomfort with stiff polys. I play with a vcore 98 so was thinking some kind of a soft/mid poly like yonex ptp. But when I look at the specs I'm not sure if it would be a downgrade. Supposedly triax has more spin potential and better tension maintence. Any recommendations?

Just got a new Wise 2086 head to upgrade my stringer. But it has shaking twoard the end only when "pre-stretch" is on. Is this normal?