Tennis Drill: Visual Focus
First published on 9-09-2009. Bookmark & share
by Randy Lynn Rutledge - a previously certified USPTA Tennis Teaching Professional
( Note: retired in good standing, but stopped making USPTA dues payments )
( Note: retired in good standing, but stopped making USPTA dues payments )
Focus Drill: This drill encourages students to participate more fully to enhance their visual skills during the string-to-ball contact. Visual skills are an area where every student has the potential to make their biggest improvement in tennis.
The most important progressive part of any stroke or hit is the first contact of the strings of a functionally positioned tennis racquet with the an exact spot on the ball (both vertically and horizontally) to functionally match the path of the racquet and impart an intended action (spin) to the ball and send the ball on a predetermined flight path with consideration having been given to an intended amount of net clearance and landing depth in the court.
Students forcefully expel a small breath of air at the exact moment of string-to-ball contact, the most important moment in tennis. This drill helps to establish regular breathing patterns and acts as a concentration technique during lengthy tennis hitting sessions when paying attention needs a boost.
Ask your students to forcefully say the word "FOCUS" at the exact moment of string-to-ball contact and do what they are saying; the student can't say a word without expelling air, so have them focus their vision on the exact part of the tennis ball where they want string-to-ball contact to happen.
Students forcefully expel a small breath of air at the exact moment of string-to-ball contact, the most important moment in tennis. This drill helps to establish regular breathing patterns and acts as a concentration technique during lengthy tennis hitting sessions when paying attention needs a boost.
Ask your students to forcefully say the word "FOCUS" at the exact moment of string-to-ball contact and do what they are saying; the student can't say a word without expelling air, so have them focus their vision on the exact part of the tennis ball where they want string-to-ball contact to happen.
Note:
FOCUS is a good word to start off with when students are learning to see the ball better.
The WORD can and should be changed so that it has a functional purpose for improvement goals during the string-to-ball contact:
FOCUS is a good word to start off with when students are learning to see the ball better.
The WORD can and should be changed so that it has a functional purpose for improvement goals during the string-to-ball contact: