MPH - New DVD from Pat Dougherty, Serve Doctor!
 "MPH” is a nearly two hour DVD production that features Bollettieri Tennis Academy’s own “Serve Doctor," Pat Dougherty. For well over a decade, Pat was behind the scenes writing, directing, shooting, editing and narrating over two dozen instructional videos for Nick Bollettieri including all time best sellers like Sonic Serves, Killer Forehand, Ballistic Backhands and Right-Back-atcha Returns. Now he has taken center stage sharing his nearly 30 years of teaching experience and expertise in MPH, the first in a series of Serve Doctor DVDs to be released in 2009. MPH explores the technique styles common among tour players and is loaded with easy-to-understand and apply pointers for improving power, working within your style variation.
MPH is available at www.servedoctor.com
 
Not Discretionary
Kim Shanley, Publisher, TennisOne
I’ve been hearing from my tennis industry friends that they’re hurting. Customers are rethinking their discretionary budgets, cutting their tennis purchases. I understand the economic pain out there, but I’m not buying the argument. Drive less, drink less, eat less, wash less (well?), but less tennis? No, you can’t be serious. What you love is not discretionary.
Irrational Exuberance
Click photo to go to website: Federer's Remarkable Wimbledon 5th Set Winner. |
Reason not the need. We need more irrational exuberance, not less, in this economic and spiritual recession. At least within the tennis world, we have an enormous amount to be exuberant about in 2008. We witnessed what tennis aficionados say is the greatest tennis match in history with the Federer/Nadal Wimbledon final. My vote is the same. The match also featured what I thought was the single greatest clutch shot in tennis history. Facing a match point in that great fifth set, Federer hit a miraculous backhand winner down-the-line. If you can’t get enthusiastic just thinking about that match, a shot like that, well, then the sober discretionary path is truly yours.
Click photo to go to website: As if to prove it was no fluke, Federer makes a similar shot a few months later at the Cincinnati Masters. |
Here at TennisOne, we continued our thirteen year tradition of irrational exuberance, launching a whole new mad version of ourselves, TennisOne 2.0.
Andy Roddick talked about growing up dreaming how he was serving like Pete Sampras. Now you don't have to dream--everyone can compare themselves to their professional idol in the TennisOne Video Network (TVN). In the Comparison Channel, one of the thirteen video channels on TVN, you can, for example, upload a video of your backhand and see how it stacks up against one of the top players in the world. More cutting-edge technology than the "average" tennis player will take advantage of? Sure, that's why we're mad.
Our Mad Writers/Contributors/Editors
No, I'm not talking about the type of madman in AMC's award-winning TV show "Madmen," which depicts the lives of Madison Avenue advertising executives. I'm talking about madmen in the sense of lifelong tennis zealots, our staff, and contributors.
Click photo: Upload your strokes and see how they stack up against Ana Ivanovic or any of the other top pros. |
When I was introduced to our Editor Jim McLennan by Kevin Pope, one of our founding pros, he described Jim as the Mad Scientist of Tennis. Jim does have the largest tennis library I've seen, and not only has he read each volume in his voluminous library, he's read them multiple times! Having said that, I love that he's able to boil down his Alexandrian knowledge-base into something you can go out and use on the court today. I could go on and on about our mad group.
Dave Smith, our Senior Editor--passionately mad about teaching you to play tennis in a way that allows you to become the best tennis player you can be. Doug King, one of our Senior Writers--another student (along with Jim McLennan) of the legendary Tom Stow, the irascible and fanatically technical and demanding coach of Don Budge -- yes, quite madly passionate in bringing a top player's deepest inner sensibility to the teaching of tennis.
Joel Drucker, one of our top newsletter writers -- if the tennis world decides to emulate the Olympic Games' lighted torch to symbolize the spirit of true competition, I'm nominating Joel to be its keeper. No one holds that flame higher. And our Managing Editor, Jay Margolies, well, everyone agrees he's simply quite mad all around.
And what about you, dear readers? What are you doing reading a tennis newsletter while it's 20 degrees below zero out (for you Northern Hemisphere fans), in the deepest depths of this December winter? You're quite mad as well. Thanks for coming along.
This issue--see some of the 2008 editorial highlights from our mad crew.
As always, we would love to hear from you! Questions, comments, personal experiences all create helpful dialogue for everyone! Please click here to send us your email.
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Current Features
Editor's note: Even TennisOne needs a break from time-to-time so, as is our tradition, we go on holiday the last week in December. Here we offer some of the more interesting articles from 2008. Happy Holidays!
Rhythm and the Toss of the Serve
 Much has been written about the ideal toss height. Some pros endorse a low toss, only as high as the contact point. The argument is that when the ball reaches its peak, it is easiest to hit since it is nearly stationary. Others suggest a toss about 18-24” above the contact point. Their argument is that as the ball accelerates down, it is easier to apply topspin and there is more time to load the legs and shoulders for power. However, since there are so many kinds of serves, is there really an ideal toss height? Doug Eng looks into the quest for the ideal toss.
Developing an Attacking Game: Learning to Close
 The general idea of moving forward in the court and volleying the ball is to take the offensive and increase the chances of hitting a winner. By moving forward you increase the potential angle of your shot and reduce the amount of time that your opponent has to react to it. Your ability to intercept a volley as close to the net as possible plays a vital role in your net game. This is called “closing on the net.” In this article Doug King looks specifically at how to attack the sitter and, in general, how to become more effective at finishing points off at the net.
Teaching the Forehand
 In the 70's, the emphasis was on technique and templates (teaching each stroke as a single unit) but new research has shown that the brain does not process this information efficiently. Hence, in order to develop a new, more efficient method of development, Ray Brown designed a tennis program around two principles of learning. One is that the brain learns more efficiently when organizing information by relevance and purpose; and two, the brain is organized around the use of components, not templates.
Return of Serve – Old School
 The return of serve may be the stroke practiced least (recreationally or professionally) that bears the greatest impact on a match. So many of the Big Bangers on tour over swing and return serve with regrettable inconsistency. Jim McLennan thinks they might be improved by taking a step backwards in time to some of the Old School return of serve techniques. Namely, borrowing pace on the first serve and stepping in to make something happen on the second.
Position, Balance, Transfer -- The Modern Forehand
 Professional tour coach, Heath Waters, breaks down the modern forehand. With slight variations, this is the same stroke used by touring professionals everywhere. Heath provides three reference points designed to enhance positioning, balance, and weight transfer and guide you in the right direction. Heath also provides a unique drill to help you practice and perfect this basic stroke of the modern game.
Extreme Makeover: The Volley
 Perhaps more than any other shot, the volley tends to either be relished or feared and avoided. The ability of players to really enjoy their volleys is directly related to two main issues: the ability to execute effective volleys and the ability to defend more difficult shots while at the net. Here, Dave Smith teaches the volley from the ground up, starting with the continental grip and adding some drills to help you build a confident volley of your own.
The Etcheberry Experience DVD
 For more than twenty years Pat Etcheberry has been providing athletes from around the world with the winning edge. We call this the Etcheberry Experience, and players with an Etcheberry experience have hoisted Championship Trophies at over one hundred major championships, including 28 Australian Opens, 18 Wimbledons, 22 UP Opens, 22 French Opens and 15 Olympic medals.
And now it's your turn! This is your chance to experience the same drills, exercises and words of tennis wisdom that Pat gave to Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jennifer Capriati, Martina Hingis, Jim Courier, Justine Henin-Hardenne, and others, that helped launch them on their incredible careers. For the first time, Pat Etcheberry shares his training secrets in a series of DVDs for players of all ages, their coaches, and trainers. |
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December 22, 2008 
