Tennis is a great sport, but not without a few foibles. Tennis was a game I remember playing from a very young age. Not really sure, what prompted me to pick up the game, but my younger brother and I use to head over to the local public tennis courts quite a few times during our summer vacation. Quite a few very competitive matches ensued during those long summer days, and a number of them evolved into some very competitive and verbal matches. Ala John Mcenroe vs Jimmy Conners kinda stuff. Not the same tennis skill level of course, but some of the tennis style disagreements certainly did. There are a few things that are kind of annoying about the game of tennis, especially whey you play at the very beginning skill level. One has to be learning to hit a decent tennis serve. Certainly tricky, hitting the ball with just the right power to get it over the next, and still land it in that itty bitty little square of a service box. Certainly makes you look in awe at the tennis pros, as they pound the tennis balls at over 100 miles per hour just barely over the net, and paint the lines of the service box. Of course thousands of hours with a tennis racket in your hands hitting balls till there are callouses on your callouses helps develop a great tennis serve.

Tennis Serving Wenches

The other thing that kind of annoys me about tennis, is all the time spent chasing errant balls. All those tennis shots, that should have been great, but somehow ended up flying over the fence, orwhacking the guy two courts over, or the really sneaking ones that zipped out under the hole in the fence into the big bunch of bushes. I think every tennis court, public or otherwise, should come with a full time staff of ball boys or ball girls. I love watching those kids on the big televised matches running around fetching balls, handing out towels, at the beck and call of the players. As I’ve gotten older, and hadchildren, I’ve tried to encourage them to take up the fine and honorable of career of tennis ball girls, but to no avail. There must be something about chasing all my wild tennis shots, that just doesn’t appeal to youngsters these days.

Tennis Graduation Days

I don’t play a whole lot of tennis these days. Occasionally I’ll play with friends and family while on vacation, or at resorts that have tennis courts available. I’ve taken up other racket sport activities. Played racquetball for a while before moving on to the game of squash. There is something to be said for playing in a court with no net, and no chance of the ball slipping under or over the fence. Helps to save my energy for running down my opponents shots, instead of traipsing through a pack of bushes look for that pink tennis ball, that should be oh so easy to find. Although, I’d have to thank my early days on the tennis courts to develop my affinity for other racket sports. Their all fun in their own way, a great game to play with family, and quite a racket.

There are a lot of things to learn when taking up tennis, but one of the main fundamentals that must be taught is how to swing. Perfecting your swing may make the difference between being able to handle yourself on the court, and never quite learning how to play a decent game of tennis.
Want to know how to improve your swing? Follow these important guidelines:
Step #1: Get Ready For The Hit!
Keep your racquet back at all times. Once the ball has left your opponent’s racquet, you must move into position. It’s important to keep your racquet back while positioning yourself to enable a clean shot.
But, before heading toward the incoming ball remember to…
1. Recognize that the ball is going to your forehand side.
2. Establish a balanced sideways stance as you begin to position yourself for the stroke by letting go with your non-dominant hand. At this point your racquet should be pointing away from your intended target and positioned about waist high.
3. Move into final position for the shot by maintaining enough space between your body and the ball. This will allow for a more fluent stroke. Position your body to enable you to hit the ball when it is waist high. If the ball happens to be below your waist, bend your knees to lower your waist height.
4. Next, move the racquet towards the ball and remember to keep the “head” of the racquet at the same height as your hand as you initiate your stroke. DO NOT bend or straighten your arm or move your wrists. Begin to rotate your shoulders while keeping your eye on the ball.
5. It’s time to make contact with the ball. The point of contact should be somewhere around your front foot. Be sure that the “face” of your racquet is square to the ball at contact. Remember to rotate your shoulders through contact. This will allow you to keep your racquet face going in the right direction throughout the entire swing.
Step #2: Follow Through!
Correct follow through ensures that the prior phase of your swing was executed in a smooth manner. Similar to the backhand, correct follow-through creates an arcing motion that rises from the point of contact with the ball to an area just above your opposite shoulder. A smooth follow through is a direct response to a smooth contact. Brute force alone can’t create a powerful swing. The key here is a smooth execution of both the stroke and its follow-through phase.
A strong follow through consists of these steps:
1. Lifting the ball over the net while keeping the arm and wrist fixed.
2. Finishing the shoulder rotation. If your chest is facing the intended target you are positioned correctly.
3. Being sure that your racquet face remains perpendicular to the ground through the entire follow through.
4. Be sure to keep your rear toe planted while the heel raises off the ground. Lifting your rear foot will result in a poor follow-through.
While all of these techniques and tricks can definitely help you to improve your tennis swing, the most important element to improvement is practice, practice and more practice.

In order to play the best game you can, you must have the right equipment. Of course, your racquet is the most important piece of tennis equipment you will ever buy.
Tennis racquets are divided into three main categories:
Power racquets – which are most suitable for beginners and middle intermediates.
Tweener racquets – which are best suited for intermediate to advanced players.
Control racquets – made especially for more advanced players.
For those who are either new at the game of tennis, or only play periodically, a power racquet is best. Designed to accommodate those with weaker, shorter strokes, the power racket features a larger head, which creates a larger hitting spot, which gives the racquet more power. A heavier head, or balance, also gives these racquets more maneuverability, making it easier for those with little training to play a decent game right form the start.
Tweener racquets are lighter, and may feature a larger or smaller head, depending on the type of racquet chosen. These racquets are usually longer than the power racquet, which offers more control and power, especially for handling groundstrokes.
Those with more training and experience on the court may find a control racquet to offer the most control and added precision. Although they do not feature the same amount of power as their counterparts, Control racquets usually feature smaller head sizes and heavier weights.
When choosing a tennis racquet it’s important to also check out their weight, balance, frame size, and length in order to choose the correct one for your body size, and playing ability. Check with your instructor a qualified salesperson to see which size is best for your size, weight and playing ability.
As is the case when choosing an adult racquet, children must be fitted with the correct style and size in order to play properly.
When choosing a tennis racquet for you budding tennis pro, follow these important buying tips:
-Children five years or younger and/or 3 feet 11 inches or shorter, need a junior sized racquet featuring a frame between 19 and 21 inches.
-Children ages five and six and/or 3 feet 11 inches need a light weight racquet of 7 ounces and a head size of 91 sq. in. Grip size should run about 3 and 3/4 inches.
-Children 6-8 and/or 3 foot 11 inches to 4 foot 6 inches should use a 23-inch frame.
-Those over 4 foot 2 inches, should be using a 25 inch frame with about a 100 square inch head (or more). This size is especially good for junior players who may be getting close to needing an adult size racquet, but still needs the lighter weight, balance, and maneuverability of a junior tennis racquet.
-26″ frame with a weight of 8 ounces is good for children 8 to 12 years of age and around 4 foot 6 to 5 feet tall.