How to Choose a great Tennis Instructor - Top 10 Important Considerations

1. A Difficult Process

Finding good tennis instructors and tennis coaches is difficult. The vast majority are former college or high school players who look reasonably good hitting a ball, but have little actual teaching experience.

Indeed, they've seldom studied basic principles of education, read books about proper technique, taken courses in the basic principles of teaching progressions and tennis coaching, or attained certification by either the PTR (Pro Tennis Registry) or USPTA (US Pro Tennis Association).

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructors their NTRP rating, if they are nationally certified (which association and level: low, medium, or high), whether they have ever been ranked highly in the USTA, the number of years they have been teaching professionally, the ages and levels of the students they have taught, the types of locations at which they have taught (year-round indoor centers vs. part-time outdoor summer camps), and which notable authors they have read.

And, while you're talking to your potential Tennis Coaches, try to gain an understanding of their level of professionalism, dedication, level of maturity, type of personality (personable; gregarious), and their ability to communicate clearly and effectively.

2. Expect RAPID Results

You're paying good money to take tennis lessons, and you've got a right to expect good results soon. If you have difficulty understanding your Tennis Teachers during your tennis lessons and have been progressing slowly, stop crossing your fingers hoping you'll one day have a magical epiphany and suddenly improve.

Instead, demand results NOW while you're on-court, and not at some later time. If your Tennis Teachers are truly worth their grain of salt, you'll start improving with your very first tennis lesson, and will continue to improve with each successive tennis lesson.

A good Tennis Teacher is absolutely worth the price. A poor Tennis Teacher simply waists your time and money.

3. National Certification

While certification does not guarantee a GREAT Tennis Coach, it certainly guarantees a reasonable minimum level of expertise. It's unfortunate, but the vast majority of Tennis Coaches are unable to measure up to this requirement.

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructors and Tennis Coaches if they are nationally certified, and to which level.

The PTR and the USPTA are the only two well-respected, USTA-sanctioned, certifying bodies in the USA, and both have been certifying Tennis Coaches for almost 35 years. They certify Tennis Instructors to essentially three ascending tennis coaching levels (low; medium; high).

Good Tennis Coaches always work and study hard to periodically retest and elevate their certification to the highest level.

4. NTRP Level

It's simply impossible for a Tennis Teacher to teach you to do something he/she can not already do him/herself, regardless of what he/she might think or claim.

So, if a Tennis Teacher only has an NTRP of 4.0, he/she can not teach you to play at NTRP 4.5 or higher. If you happen to improve beyond your Tennis Teachers NTRP level, it is solely due to your own abilities, not your Tennis Teacher's.

Always ask your potential Tennis Teachers their NTRP level. It is ill-advised to settle for a lower NTRP level for the sake of a lower price. You will only get what you paid for, with little or no lasting improvement. Instead, demand a high NTRP level to better assure yourself of more rapid improvement.

5. Ranking in the USTA

While a higher USTA (United States Tennis Association) player ranking is no guarantee of getting good tennis lessons, it certainly does help. Tennis Instructors who have never been ranked, or have never even competed for a USTA ranking, should be avoided.

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructors about their current and/or past rankings: The higher, the better.

6. Years and Kind of Experience

There's no substitute for experience. But, tennis teaching experience can be gained in a variety of settings. These include year-round indoor and outdoor facilities, as well as outdoor summer-only institutions such as adult and junior camps, recreation department programs, and country clubs. The tennis teaching experience a Tennis Instructor gains at a summer kids' camp is greatly inferior to that gained at a year-round club. This impacts directly on the quality of your tennis lessons.

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructors exactly where they have gained their experience.

7. Experience Teaching Different

Ages, Levels, and Groups: Different ages and levels require different approaches and techniques when it comes to tennis instruction.

If your potential Tennis Instructor has spent the bulk of his/her time teaching children, he/she will be hard-pressed to provide proper tennis instruction to you as an adult. The skills required to teach privately to a single person are very different and more demanding than teaching a group.

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructors how much time they have spent teaching people of your own age and level, as well as whether they have taught group and private lessons.

8. Expert Knowledge of Proper Technique

Knowledge is critical, and a great Tennis Instructor gains it only from the great effort he/she has made to educate himself/herself. He/she needs to have read a large quantity and variety of tennis instruction books, viewed a sufficient number of instructional videos, and attended many salient courses and workshops on proper stroke technique. There are no short-cuts.

Always ask your potential Tennis Instructor how he/she has gained his/her knowledge.

9. Communication Ability

Regardless of the depth of your Tennis Coach's knowledge of proper technique, this information is useless if he/she is unable to communicate it to you clearly and concisely.

When you speak with your potential Tennis Instructor, always listen to the manner in which he/she expresses him/herself. If you are unable to clearly understand him/her during your initial discovery process, chances are you will be just as bewildered while on court.

10. Personality

Although Personality is presented here last, it is by no means less important than the other considerations. Indeed, a personable, gregarious, punctual, reliable, mature professional who is also upbeat, encouraging, enthusiastic, and animated makes for a fun time on the court.

When you have your initial conversation to discuss tennis lessons, always remember to look for these inviting traits.

For more information, visit the Tennis Lessons Boston website at http://tennislessonsboston.tripod.com

What Makes Tennis Drills Great?

What are the characteristics of great tennis drills? What makes one tennis drill boring and flat and the other one is exciting and fun? Players sometimes practice one kind of exercise time and time again and realize that their skills are not improving. Other times, players try every new tennis drill they hear about and still don't get the desired results. How do we know that the drills we are practicing are effective?

The best tennis drills display certain qualities that are necessary for tennis players to improve. We can find these core characteristics in every single great tennis drill. If tennis coaches can apply these qualities to their own drills, they are well on their way to improve their players' performance. So what are these very important properties that tennis drills have to display?

The first goal of every great drill is focus on a certain area. Tennis players have to know what skill they want to improve in order to deploy the proper exercises. First, players have to identify weaknesses in their game. Naturally, tennis instructors can be a great help in this matter. Players need to ask themselves if they want to be better net players or they rather have a big serve. Of course, all of us want to improve everything at the same time. This, however, is not realistic. You should only focus on one thing at a time. Second, the tennis instructor has to pick the kind of exercises that focus on that given area or skill. If you don't know what you want to improve, no tennis drill can be helpful.

The second important characteristic is simulating match situations. Tennis is a competitive game after all where players want to win. Practicing forehand cross courts for two hours is not very effective and it's also boring. In match situations, the ball never comes at you the same way twice. Tennis players who practice one type of shot will struggle in match situations. There is no replacement for good situational tennis practice.

Finally, it is essential for tennis players to have fun while they are practicing. All of us will burn out if practice becomes a chore. Tennis practice should provide excitement and fun. The way good tennis coaches accomplish this is by allowing players to work towards a goal. Whether players cooperate or compete against each other to achieve this goal doesn't really matter. What's important is that players feel satisfied when they accomplish this goal.

There are very few places where you can find quality tennis exercises. Protennisdrills.net is the best resource online to find quality tennis drills. This site has the largest growing collection of drills.

The author is a tennis professional with over 20 years of experience. He's an expert on tennis drills.

The Great World Of Tennis: Benefits And Facts

Tennis is a world known sport since the 1800s. It originated from France and has become widely known in Europe although the sport has been known to have existed in the 12th century, but without using Tennis Racquets. Today tennis grand slam events the US open, French Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon are annually anticipated by tennis enthusiasts.

World renowned players such as Andre Agassi, Billie Jean King, Margaret Court, and Roger Federer are some of the greatest players of all time for they each have won multiple Grand Slam tournament titles.

Before playing tennis you should be aware that there are some tennis equipment that you will need beforehand, first of all you will need a tennis racquet, especially made tennis shoes, and of course proper tennis clothing.

Because of its grown popularity more and more people are encouraged to join this event, what they do not know is that there is more to tennis than they thought they know. Did you know that tennis is one of the most recommended sports by most doctors? This is right although there are a lot of sports out there keep your body healthy yet tennis remains to be the only one that promotes discipline, as well as physical, mental, and emotional well being all at the same time.

Here are some of the benefits that one could get by playing tennis:

1. It is a proven fact that people who engaged themselves into three hours of tennis every week cuts their possibility of death caused many different natural causes of diseases.

2. A study have also shown that people who plays tennis in good mood have higher chance of winning as compared to angry or depress players.

3. Tennis is also a game that requires mental alertness and strategic thinking which means that you continuously develop new connections from the brain into the nerves and vice versa, which means that even if you grow old your brain continues to develop.

4. Tennis also promotes positivity in terms of personality development.

5. The process of playing tennis promote both aerobic and anaerobic fitness that helps in burning more fats at the same time give your muscles enough time to rest.

The world of tennis has indeed been developed ultimately and because of this development there are more than enough stores worldwide that continuously come up with various tennis equipment to keep players at their best.

It is very important that as you follow the rules you also follow the basic guidelines of tennis in terms of clothing and accessorizing. There are tennis accessories such as sunglasses, that helps you stay in focus even with the sun towering high over you, some people simply miss the ball just because the sun hit them directly into the eye.

Other accessories such as tennis caps, allows you to cover you face from direct sunlight without hassles. Tennis clothing on the other hand are especially made for players to move freely inside the court. Tennis is a great sport but takes courage and determination to be good a good player just like any other sports, except you get more benefits more than anything.

If you are looking for great tennis equipment such as tennis shoes, tennis raquets, or clothing, visit thetennisshop.com.au. They offer the best tennis accessories from equipments to tennis apparels. Everything about tennis will be available to you in just one click.

Tennis Training Aids - Great For Tennis Teaching Professionals

Tennis is a sport that can be done anytime of the year, but most especially during summer. There are tennis camps that abound which usually make us of tennis training aids to make sure that their students, and even professionals, stay at the top of their game.

Anybody can enjoy training aids, whether you're a man or a woman, whether you're young or old. You can make tennis as a leisurely sport, as a form of play and recreation, or as a means to improve yourself. Just spend a few minutes in court and see your physical prowess increasing. Tennis can indeed boost your health.

If you are just starting with tennis, or probably you've played before and you want to get back into it, let me share with you some aids. These would be great for beginners and professionals alike.

Lightweight Tennis Racket - One of the tennis training aids you will be needing is this one. Your racket must have a big face to make sure that the ball can be hit and returned to the other side of the court.

New Tennis Balls - These are the aids which always need to be replaced in time. They lose some pressure once they are out of the can and if you let them be that way, they could cost you your game.

Proper Attire - One of the vainest tennis training aids that you will need is a proper attire. Make sure your attire will allow you a lot of physical movement that won't hamper your game.

For intermediate tennis players, the following are some guidelines for tennis training aids perfect for you.

You should have more than one racket - Your other racket must be an identical one with the same string tension. In the event that your racket breaks, you immediately have a spare to use.

Use The Right Shoes - The tennis shoes you should use must be the ones with rubber over-toes. They will protect your feet when you do toe drags.

Wear Skirts or Shorts with Pockets - You have probably seen this on TV when you watch tennis games. The player always has a second and third ball inside his/her pockets. This makes the game move along faster.

Tennis training aids are great for professionals. If you are one, with the help of tennis training aids, your game would most definitely improve.

Aside from having quality tennis equipment, the tennis training aids will make you swing and hit faster, your racket will be easier to handle, and you will be able to make stronger and more powerful shots. Your game will be so much more enjoyable because you can be sure that you are playing your best game every single time. And so, for professional tennis players, the following are the tennis training aids you must always keep inside your tennis bag.

At least four or more if possible, similar if not identical, superior-quality titanium, or graphite tennis rackets that must be newly strung before every match,Brand new tennis balls for each game,spare over-grips;special string for your racket, and spare tennis shoes.

All of these demonstrate that anybody can play tennis - beginners, intermediate, professional players. If you are a tennis teaching professional, so much the better because this means that you can teach the importance of tennis training aids to your students. By following the tips laid out here, anybody will surely become a great tennis player in time.

For more information, tips and advice on Tennis Training Aids, visit tennisdrills4u

Sports Psychology and Tennis - How and Why to Hit a Great Drop Shot - 18 Tips For Tennis Players

A drop shot is a thing of beauty and it can be a powerful weapon in every level of tennis. Being able to hit a well disguised drop shot on your forehand and your backhand can be a great asset for you and for your tennis game.

As its name implies, in this shot, the tennis drops over the net and stays low to the ground. It usually has little or no pace. This shot is all about touch, feel and accuracy.

Here a some suggestions for mastering the shot that can help you to win more tennis matches:

1. Soften your grip so you can feel the ball and develop the touch you need to execute this shot.

2. Turn sideways toward the net.

3. Keep your head very still throughout the stroke.

4. Hit this shot as far away from your opponent as possible.

5. Effective drop shots will bounce three times in the service box.

6. Disguise your shot by setting up as if you are about to his a ground stroke.

7. Use a continental or western grip when you want to hit this kind of ball.

8. Practice hitting the drop shot off different kinds of balls.

9. Use a short back swing and a short follow through.

10. Do not use this shot when you are well behind the baseline. This is a low percentage shot.

11. Use this tactic when you want to draw your opponent into the net. Then you can pass them or lob over them.

12. When you are close to the service line and your opponent is at the baseline or behind the baseline, consider the drop shot.

13. This kind of shot is a good tactic against taller players who don't like to bend down for a low ball.

14. The drop shot is a great tactic for changing the pace and the geometry of a tennis match.

15. This kind of shot can neutralize a hard hitter who likes to stay behind the baseline.

16. A drop shot is a great tool for a player who is losing power and velocity from his or game and who wants to develop a balanced and well rounded attack.

17. Experiment with this shot during a match. If it works well, continue to use it.

18. An effective drop shot can frustrate an opponent and give you a psychological edge.

Jay P. Granat, Ph.D. is a psychotherapist and the founder of http://www.StayInTheZone.com. He is also the author of Zone Tennis. He has coached many top tennis players and can be reached at 888 580-ZONE. To get a free copy of his book and learn more about how he help tennis players, visit his site.