Comparing Tennis Racquets

Finding the perfect Tennis Racquet can be one of the hardest things for a Tennis player to do, this can be a long drawn out process if you don't know exactly what to look for. Tennis racquets can be separated into three different groups: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Racquets are based on a players skill level. Racquets will take its players skill level and enhance and develop skills needed in playing a match.
For beginner Tennis players you will want a racquet that will help you return the ball with some power because you are still developing your specific technique and strokes. Therefore, a beginner player will want a racquet with a larger head size so it is easier to make contact with the ball and return it. These racquets provide an enhancement of power and are lighter to provide easy maneuverability. The intermediate player needs a racquet that will give you additional power because you have already mastered your technique and control. These racquets will be a slight bit heavier than the beginners racquet for control and speed. Last but not least, an advanced player will already have a fully developed game but you will want a racquet that will build upon your strengths and make them greater and more consistent. These racquets will generate more power because of their weight, around 12 ounces or heavier. These advanced racquets will present the player will feedback as soon as they return the ball, the control of these racquets is precise.

Also a big part of buying a racquet is the brand, the major brand names are Wilson and Prince. I preferably like Prince better than Wilson because they are more of a strictly Tennis brand. Wilson is involved in many sports including: football, baseball, tennis, platform tennis, badminton, basketball, fast pitch, golf, racquetball, soccer, and squash. Wilson is widely trusted as an all-around sport brand. However, Prince is strictly a Tennis supporter. Even though I prefer Prince I have both a Prince and Wilson racquet, both of which I play with. I predominately play with my Prince racquet to enhance my strength, but occasionally I play with my special US Open edition Wilson racquet. Honestly both brands produce great racquets, but it just comes down to if you want an all-around sport racquet brand or a only Tennis brand. Picking out a Tennis racquet is like everything, all in what you prefer.
When picking a racket it just comes down to your specific needs. The main advice I can give anyone when picking out a Tennis Racket is to just go in the store (a local Dicks Sporting Goods or Downtown Athletics in Charlottesville) and start playing with the rackets. Picking a racket is just like choosing that perfect pair of shoes, you’ll know when you’ve got the right one.

Thanks for contributing ideas and pictures!

kwaree.com, tennis-warehouse.com,

optimumtennis.net, and experttennis.com

 

 

 

Interesting Facts!

Have you ever wondered the weight of a Tennis Ball or why it is yellow? Well there are plenty of informative sites out there to answer even the weirdest of questions. Keep reading to find out those little "unimportant" details that everyone secretly, deep down wants to know about Tennis.

On record the fastest serve in Men's Tennis is a whopping 156 mph, while the top serve for Women's Tennis is Venus Williams with a lightening fast 130 mph. These two serves are honestly faster than some cars can even go! Wouldn't you hate getting hit with one of those powerful balls? It seems that it would just go right through you, no questions asked. Another whopping fact about Tennis is that one of the major grand slams, that are supposed to be the best of the best playing, was recorded to be the shortest match; a staggering 32 minutes. While the longest match recorded was an enormous 11 hours and 5 minutes! Can you imagine playing for that long? I would feel like I was dead! Wouldn't you?!

For all of those money savvy people out there, the highest jackpot of prize winning money is a outrageous 62 million dollars! Imagine having that to spend you could buy everything your heart desires. If I made that much money I would quit and say hello retirement!

As many people know Tennis is a ball and racket sport. The ball is hit across the court by the racket at top speeds. However, Tennis was not always played with a racket, it was originally played with your hands. Yes you read that right, your bare hands! Ouch! That would not be fun to play. However, the ball has an outstanding history also, it was originally white and made of leather and wool! What a curious combination. Although some Tennis balls were once made of puddy and human hair! That's just gross to even think about. Tennis balls are officially tested for their bounciness they must bounce between 53 and 58 inches after being dropped 100 inches from the ground! Official bounciness is key! Ever wonder what happens to Tennis Balls once they loose their bounce? Well they are quite hard to get rid of, most Tennis balls spend their 2nd lives as "anti-scuffing" devices at the bottom of chairs! The oddest thing that retired Tennis balls are used as is bug repellent! They are covered in Vaseline and hung outside! They really work!

Hope you enjoyed this weeks blog about the crazy side of Tennis!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to:

http://www.onlinetennisinstruction.com/tennisfacts.html

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/tennis-facts.html
http://dynamiceditor.wordpress.com/about/
cnn.com
DiscountTennisBalls.com

Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova is an influential women's Tennis player, she has made a name for herself by pushing herself to the limit while playing her favorite sport. Maria Sharapova is originally from Russia; however, now Sharapova lives in Florida. Maria Sharapova is currently 25 years old and ranked World Number 2. Maria Sharapova joined the pro status in 2001; therefore she has been on the tour for going on 12 years. Currently, Sharapova's stats include 56-10 wins-loses during the 2012 season. However, Sharapova's whole duration of the tour has consisted of 468-114 wins-loses. Sharapova has an incredible record and as a result she is known as one of the highest paid female athletes, bringing in a whopping $22 million in 2009.

Tennis is not the only thing that Maria Sharapova participates in; she also has her own Maria Sharapova Foundation. The Foundation is committed to helping children all around the world achieve their dreams. In addition, Maria Sharapova is an ambassador for Goodwill's United Nations Development Program. The Maria Sharapova Foundation Scholarship for Youth from the Chernobyl affected areas will be awarded five-year scholarships to 12 students from the Belarusian State Academy of the Arts. Sharapova is highly involved in giving back to children who need aid in achieving their dreams. Other than giving back to the world, Sharapova is an entrepreneur. Sharapova has her own clothing line, which includes Tennis apparel and shoes. Sharapova has even gone into the candy making business; aspiring to be like Willy Wonka. These two business adventures are supposed to show Maria's fun, fashionable, sweet side.

Concealed in Maria Sharapova’s record lays four Grand Slam titles. Grand Slams are also known as the majors, there are four different places that hold the Grand Slam events. There is the French Open, Australia Open, U.S. Open, and (my favorite) Wimbledon. All of these events are exciting to watch and they pay the most in prize money. Maria Sharapova won her first Grand Slam title at the age of 17 at Wimbledon.

There are many things that set Maria Sharapova apart from her competition, and that lies within her playing style. Sharapova is a difficult opponent. Maria Sharapova is skilled and aggressive; Sharapova is widely known for her grunt when she hits the ball. Some of the greatest qualities of Sharapova is that she has excellent power, depth, and is able to catch the right angles while preforming her ground stroke. An exceptionally wonderful defender of her area, eyes are always on the ball no matter what. In addition, Sharapova has great speed for her height, an enormous 6’2”.

Watching Sharapova play her match’s is incredibly entertaining!

Maria Sharapova is by far my favorite Tennis player. Thanks for reading this week!

Thanks to all who contributed to the research involved in the making of this blog.

http://espn.go.com/tennis/player/_/id/399/maria-sharapova

Mariasharapova.com

WTAtennis.com        

AboutTennis.com

LiveTennisGuide.com

SpeciallySports.com 

Tips for Beginners

Tennis is a game that can go either way, whether you win or lose it you will always take something away. There are many tips for playing Tennis and I am going to share some that everyone knows and then some that personally help me when I play.  Everyone who has played a sport of any kind has heard, “practice makes perfect” however, in Tennis our motto is “perfect practice makes perfect.” To make perfect practice, players must give their all into the game by producing blood, sweat, and tears for Tennis. As they say, you’re not really a Tennis player until you’ve eaten the court! This merely means that in order to succeed you have to fall down and get back up again. “Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not prepared to do.” (http://www.active.com/tennis/Articles/How-to-Play-Tennis-Tips-for-Beginners.htm)  The more time a player spends on the court the better their game will be during their match. Therefore, because Tennis is a sport where improvement can be seen daily, players should be tempted to practice all they can!

There are many tips or ways to succeed when playing Tennis, but the main thing is keeping the ball in “play,” which means to keep returning the ball no matter what. Also something to remember when you are returning the ball is to hit it deep, because focusing on depth will force your opponent to make a UFE (Unenforced Errors) or UFO’s as Coach Carr calls them! Every time you hit the ball deep it makes your opponent use more skill than you.  The biggest mistake a beginning player can make is to hit the ball to low and it will hit directly into the net. This will eventually make you want to scream. Don’t scream because you will allow your opponent to believe that they already have you beat. Player’s will take obvious advantage if you are beating yourself up over the little errors. To share inside knowledge, I would suggest you to figure out what you did wrong and throw it out because if you dwell on a mistake it WILL keep happening. So once you throw it away, work on your versatility. Versatility helps keep your opponent on their feet and they will not be able to guess your next move. Look HAPPY no matter what!

The main tip I can give you about playing Tennis is just to stay calm and keep your eyes on the ball! For instance when a serve is coming at you 90 M.P.H. you want to hit the deck and scream but if you watch the ball it seems to slow down. Whether you’re upset, furious, or sad that you’re losing make sure you clear your mind and focus on the most important thing, the ball! At home there are many ways to practice Tennis with just a simple wall, without windows. (Your parents may get a little upset if you break a window, don’t do that!)  The wall is a great opponent that will return every time, just hit against the wall for a hour every day and you will feel like you’re good enough to play someone like Roger Federer or Maria Sharapova! Take my tips and practice them and you’ll be on your way to the pros!    

 Thanks to everyone who supplied pictures, in order or appearance:

Warren Road Community Center http://www.augustaga.gov/index.aspx?NID=1052    2006-2012, September 27, 2012

Optimum Tennis http://www.optimumtennis.net/tennis-warm-up-drills.htm   2009-2012, September 27, 2012

Nina In Tennis on Tennis Info Blog   http://tennisinfoblog.com/categories/maria-sharapova  October 27, 2007, September 27, 2012

Thanks also to everyone who supplied information:

              Active. Copyright 2012, September 27, 2012 http://www.active.com/tennis/Articles/How-to-Play-Tennis-Tips-for-Beginners.htm 

              Cooper, Jeff. About.com. Copyright 2012. September 27, 2012. http://tennis.about.com/od/strategysinglesdoubles/a/mentaltough5tip_2.htm

              Sheiner, Glenn. Strategic Tennis. Copyright 2012. September 27, 2012. http://www.strategictennis.com/Tips_On_Tennis.html

 

Thanks everyone for reading!

Come back next week for Maria Sharapova!

Roger Federer

Roger Federer represents Men’s Tennis and is an icon that many people will be like “Hey! I’ve herd of that guy before.” Roger Federer is sometimes described as the greatest Tennis player of all time. Federer was born in Basel, Switzerland on the eighth day of August, 1981. Roger Federer is a right handed Tennis player with a one handed back hand; which is not common because it takes a lot of wrist and arm strength to have that much power on your weaker hand’s side. Playing with a single-handed backhand gives Federer much shot variety.  Roger Federer is an all court player. He can play on grass, clay or hard courts and still excel at each. Roger Federer is known for his speed, style of play and shot making. 

 

Roger Federer is an icon and he is a Tennis player that everyone wants to imitate. Federer’s playing style is the most memorable aspect of his match’s. Federer’s serve is like a cannon, in Tennis there is a first serve and if you do not get the first in you get a second served. Roger Federer’s first serve is typically around 125 mph, while his top record speed is 137 mph. The problem when playing Federer is that his serve is difficult to read because of the fact that he employs the same routine every time he gets ready to serve. Roger Federer uses the same type of ball toss every time. What makes Federer a terrific opponent when he is serving is that where he aims he is going to hit every time.  While playing, Federer constitutes the slice, using it to bring his opponent to the net and deliver a passing shot. Federer employ’s topspin on his first serve, this will throw off competitors by the force of the serve.  

 

Roger Federer currently plays with a customized Wilson Pro Staff 6.1 90 BLX Tennis Racquet. Also, Federer is ATP ranked number three. Federer has won 64 matches while he has lost only 12.  Roger Federer has played in 18 tournaments with four singles titles. Roger Federer is mainly well known for holding the number one position in ATP ranking for a total of 295 weeks.  In 1998, Roger Federer turned pro at the age of seventeen.

Come back next week for more Tennis Tips!

Thanks to: Wikipedia September 12, 2012. “Roger Federer” for the reliable information.

Also, http://www.rogerfederer.com/en.html.  The official Roger Federer website.

Pictures provided by: http://www.rogerfederer.com/en.html

http://www.rogerfederer.net/

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/08/12/1216_charity_celebrities/20.htm

All updated September 2012.

 



Swoosh!

There goes the ball across the court!

In Tennis there are different lines for singles and doubles. Singles lines are the narrow lines with less space. On the other hand, doubles lines are the wider lines they give you and your partner more space to move. When I play Tennis I prefer to play singles because I like the court to myself and there is less space to cover!

Tennis is just like the Tennis on the Wii. Tennis is relatively easy to take up, the techniques are just harder. If the ball is on the line it is in, if it's not then obviously it's out. To signal the ball was out, put up one finger. And that doesn’t mean use your middle finger! If you stick that up people may get a little mad. Tennis can also help you develop hand-eye coordination, so for y'all who say you don't have any, take up Tennis. Hope y'all come back next week I will talk about:

Rodger Federer!

 

Tennis Overall

Tennis is a complex sport that is fun but it can be hard to learn. Tennis is a sport that can be played by all ages, old or young. Tennis is played on a court with two opposing sides separated by a net. Tennis is only as fun as you allow it to be; for me I absolutely love the feeling of out smarting your opponent and winning the match. Because there are always things that we can improve upon, tennis players are always eager to come to practice to learn new techniques. Personally, I've been playing since I was seven, and even though it has been that long I still have things to improve. Ever since I started playing tennis I've loved the sport, and I hope you'll love it too!

Each week I will be explaining the different rules and ways of playing tennis. Many famous athletes are tennis players and they all show their unique techniques while playing in a match. Something new will be shown or explained on tennis as a whole every week. Techniques are also important when learning to play tennis, you can learn to outsmart your opponent. By the end of this blog, you'll be swinging like a pro!