The Tennis Grunt

[johnyandell]

Share your thoughts on Geoff William's article "The Tennis Grunt."

[GeoffWilliams]

That's the best article I've ever seen on grunting. There is also a little known effect, that the grunt "reflects" the energy of the impact of the ball, lessening injury to the grunters, by projecting a vibratory force from the striker of the ball, towards the ball, and lessening its impact and forceful effect.

With my forty years of experience playing, when I started grunting back 22 yrs. ago, it caused more energy and strength to develop in my core.

[rwiener]

Grunting & timing

I have a tough time believing that grunting is critical to high level play. Federer doesn't grunt, at least not loudly, and he's been very successful. Is it plausible to think he could hit the ball a lot faster if he also grunted? On the other hand, I also find it implausible that grunting handicaps an opponent at the pro level. The study with students, who aren't high level tennis players and using a computer screen to predict which way a ball will go in a video, seems completely irrelevant for the reasons the author gives. Djokovic doesn't have any trouble identifying where Nadal's shots are going no matter how loudly Rafa grunts.

However, another aspect of grunting, particularly at the recreational level, that wasn't discussed, is that it might improve timing. Books like the "Inner Game" suggest little mnemonics like saying "bounce" ... "hit" to improve timing. The grunt might help a recreational player improve his or her timing of the contact point in the same way these mnemonics work. And I have no problem with a recreational player grunting, except when they get so loud it is disturbing people on all the nearby courts. That's when it gets a little silly. At the pro level, let them be as loud as they like. I have a hard time hearing Maria in the nose bleed seats at Indian Wells.

[GeoffWilliams]

Fed does grunt softly always and loudly sometimes, just not very often, and he also uses "gloat" screams after a big point, which focuses adrenaline, rewards a tough point, and vampires energy off the opponents. Those are very "grunt" like in their nature. Explosive emanations. The force developed during the impact is affected. Whether recreational players can benefit from that is up to them. People do get offended by grunting noises, however, and that can be difficult in a public back ground. Timing can be improved as Galwey interprets, and most athletes who do grunt, when forced not to, don't do nearly as well. Part of that may be psychological, but most of it is not from my own experience.

What is important is exhaling at impact, whether or not you emit the noises is up to debate if it helps or not. Why so many others do so, you may ask yourself, in so many other disciplines, is not so up to debate.

[rwiener]

OK I'll give it a try.

Thanks, Geoff, you make a good case. I think I'll give it a try - at least the soft Fed type version.

[GeoffWilliams]

Great! You def. don't have to make a loud noise for it to affect your core, and the energy you "project" into the impact! My whole purpose is to help people improve their energetic games, their unit turns, and their shot choices. If you watched Fed scream, "Come on." against delpo at the Aussie, it does the same thing as a grunt: energize the lungs and blood stream.

[GeoffWilliams]

I find it interesting, that all four finalists, on the Aussie finals, on men/women, were grunters, and gloat screamers. Among the semifinalists who lost, the only non grunter, was Fed, who grunts occasionally, and who also gloat screams.

[cayagua]

Grunting and One handed backhand

Geoff,

Excellent article. Your article on grunting has solved a big problem I had in my tennis game: not exhaling/inhaling properly during a rally. Many thanks.

At the beginning on your article on grunting there is a clip of your one handed backhand. Your one-handed backhand is very unique, both hands at the bottom of the racket - almost like a two hander instead of the traditional style dominant hand at the bottom of the handle and non-dominant hand at the throat of the racket.

Please write an article on your one-handed backhand. You would be helping a lot of frustrated 40's and 50's tennis players.

Thanks again.

[GeoffWilliams]

Great! Always happy to hear someone got improvement as a result or happiness. That video really made the tennis grunt: gladiator or gentleman, pop! I can write a piece and it will help those who have discipline. It's a very fast way to prep your unit turn, and the sound the frame makes on impact is very loud and satisfying. I never slice my bh returns, and commit to driving them aggressively. I can also hit 100 mph shots with it.

Tip: (Keeping the non dominant hand lower on the frame, like I do, gives you more leverage: the throat position has the whole forearm attached to the non dominant hand, vs. the handle postion, so that constricts the take back a full 6-18" around the rear shoulder, vs. the faster handle position.) That translates into, a faster tucking prep and unit turn, giving you more potential voltage on the whole shot! Another reason two handers are dominating right now, is that one handers are taught to keep the non dominant hand on the throat, which slows their prep down and "shortens" the shot. We are talking about miliseconds here, but every shot only spends about 4 ms on the string bed.

Tennis grunt Article started:
Click to see Geoff still grunting after 30 years.

I was not a grunter for the first ten years of my tennis life. That was the period when none of the pro players were grunting at all. Then Johnny Mac and Jimmy Connors started grunting, and a tennis buddy said to me, "If McEnroe and Connors are doing it, maybe you should be doing it too."

I became a grunter right then and there. I was always willing to try new things to improve my 4.5 game and I think the grunt definitely did. Over time I believe it improved the velocity of my ball, and probably, my movement as well for some of the reasons outlined below.

But in my experience, spanning 30 years of grunting since 1982, I have seen the grunt from all angles, the good and the bad, the positive and the negative. In this article, let's take a look at some of the arguments on both sides.

As an early grunt adopter, there were many tournament and club player types who disliked me due to the grunt alone. A few people began to imitate and caricature my grunt, as if it were a nasty thing to do, although my grunt was a fairly conservative grunt.

It was a little bit hurtful, but I did not stop grunting because of it because I could sense from the very beginning that it was a new positive in my game. I had already seen grunting used in my mart

[bottle]

Ono, Not Another Big Idea, Casually Divulged

I've got to at least try putting hands down near the bottom of the racket not only for these backhand ideas but for the different feel in pushing racket and pointing at side fence on a forehand.

The other casually divulged idea that's affected me recently is that Federer may be missing forehands against Nadal because of the "little wiggle" at the beginning of his (Roger's) forward stroke. (That from Don Brosseau.)

Maybe the only good ideas are the casually divulged ones. On the other hand
I don't have normal (often healthful) immunity to new ideas.

[GeoffWilliams]

Federer is more importantly dropping bh short and missing them against Nadal. He raises his hitting foot off its heel, so that the heel raises off the ground during contact, which raises his whole head and chest as well! What do you think is easier: a still and even head during the shot, or a rising head? (Lots of fluid inside your skull.) It does affect consistency when your head is popping up. He also goes low to high on his bh, against high balls when he is hitting top spin (not slice), instead of starting with a high non dominant hand, on the grip, like all top players do on their fh. If you went low to high on the fh, on high incoming balls, you'd leave those shots short as well. High incoming shot=high starting non dom. hand, and a high plane to shoot down onto the incoming shot, so you can hit flat with a better angle into the court, rather than just automatically wind shielding it. I have beaten several top norcal players, who had great kick serves to the bh, due to their insistence of continuing to hit that shot against me in the ad side, even though I kill them doing it.

(That's a secret reason why two handers are better at returning kicks off the bh side. They tuck faster and higher than one handers taught to use the non dom. hand at the throat.) See how far you can tuck to the rear with the non dom. hand at the throat. Now see how far you can tuck with it at the handle. It's a lot farther, and a lot faster forward due to that extra quick hitting distance.

No baseball hitter uses a 1h bh stroke. The bat is heavier than the frame. The hard ball is heavier than the tennis ball. So why are the faster shots hit with a 1h bh than the 2h bh? More kinetic distance/pathway, further out front contact, and more whip available, more reach available, more time avail. than a batter has against 90-105mph fireballs at 57'' rather than at 85'.

[bottle]

Okay.

[avazpinto]

the grunt

Great article Geoff. I find the grunt to be extremely useful in two different aspects. Rhythm and concentration.

I like using a double grunt that is very common with clay players. The first grunt is done by the time I reach the power position and the ball is bouncing on the ground and the second grunt is made at contact.

I find grunting even more important for serves where you have time to concentrate all your energy in that magical moment of contact. For me if I play a second serve without a grunt, I'm asking for a double fault (especially if I am conscious that I didn't grunt). I am not sure if I grunt on all my serves but for sure on the most critical moments of the game. Again the double grunt I find very useful for the serve where my first grunt coincides with the trophy position, just before the explosion, and my second grunt on contact.

I found grunting to be very important when I'm rallying with my students and I find my concentration going off track for a bit. Grunting is what keeps me alert and due to grunting I can bring my focus back to where I want it.

Another aspect of grunting is that it can help beating the pain. I was having this huge pain on my neck and I was hitting some balls with my student and as soon as I made contact I would feel a huge pain. After a couple of minutes I was about to call off the lesson but then I started grunting on contact and a miracle happened, no pain! It was the lesson that I've grunted the most and quite loudly! Nobody knew that I was fighting with my pain. I finish the lesson and was quite amazed with the power of grunting. It worked just like a painkiller, but a natural one!!

[don_budge]

Grunting and Farting...everyone does it.

Well I have to say that we have reached the dregs of the barrel. An article on grunting in tennis, not that it wasn't well written or relevant, it's the mere fact that we have to talk about this sort of stuff in public. Now we are dissecting the grunts and groans that come from deep within like all of our dirty little secrets...and our farts. Sure everyone farts, too...it's sort of a natural function of life, kids in particular get a great delight about letting out a good one...but to me it just is a matter of why did it get to this point. With the grunts that is.

The martial arts aspect that Geoff discusses is of course the real beneficial byproduct of a good grunt. This is something not to be argued with and it is duly acknowledged. The rhythm of the breathing cycle...the inhale and the exhale is something universal...I wonder if the universe grunts. In a good golf swing or in a good putting stroke the timing of the inhale with the backswing and the exhale with the release and roll forward is something that you should set your internal clock to, your internal timing mechanism, because if you can learn to control your breathing you will get your nerves and concentration under control.

It's funny thinking back...having become ancient without really realizing it. One begins to get a historical perspective or rather it used to be possible to get such a perspective. Nowadays one must have the inclinations of a Sherlock Holmes and be willing to dig and sift out the facts in order to have any kind of historical perspective or concept of truth. Where was I...oh yea, the very first time that I came into contact with grunting was at the qualifying for the 1975 US Open at some private tennis club immediately outside of New York City. It was the same tournament where I first witnessed the spectacle that was to become John McEnroe...he was only sixteen and had not completely caricatured himself yet, although he was well on his way. The first grunter that I ever witnessed was named Humphrey Hose. I believe that he was from Bolivia or maybe Ecuador.

That year the tournament was being played on Har-Tru and the sound effects at the club were mainly the boinking of the tennis ball and the swoosh of the players sliding on the topping of the courts. But at one point in time there was an additional sound effect that was permeating the immediate surroundings of the club and the noise's reverberations were in a polar contrast with the rest of the activity. The noise was coming from one of the outer courts and it was difficult to discern just what kind of noise it was. Only two sounds came to mind and one was a woman who was laboriously trying to expel a baby from between her legs and the other was from some poor unfortunate soul having a rather difficult bowel movement. It sounded excruciating!

At any rate we identified the culprit and watched him play at least part of his match and it is just like Geoff says...all of it. Breathe in, breathe out. The rhythm of life. With Humphrey it wasn't merely swoosh and boink...it was swoosh, boink and uuuuhhhhhgghhg! At the time I thought it rather over the top. These days someone might think he was clearing his throat. All of this talk about evolution sometimes amazes me and here is another prime example how we have evolved as a race...of tennis players. Analyzing the grunt...who would of perceived the need way back when. Maybe it is about time this subject does come to the forefront of some discussion...it is out of control. I mentioned in the Australian Open thread that I was up late at night watching the two Rusky "Ladies" playing and had to turn down the volume for fear that I would wake my sleeping wife...clear up stairs. To say nothing of the neighbors...the nearest being some 800 meters away.

Grunting of course has it's place. Child labor and bathroom activities come to mind. But in my humble opinion (first time I have used that expression in my life) it has it's place, just like the emission of a fart. Why not do it tastefully and not try to draw all of the attention in the world to one? Why not be somewhat discreet? I can understand the metaphysical aspects of grunting but is it really necessary to try and impress everyone within earshot that you are making an extra human effort getting your racquet to meet the ball squarely. Nothing looks quite so silly as one of these big-time grunters coming off the court after having their asses handed to them by some silent toiler. My real objection to the whole matter is that it is a definite infringement on what used to be termed "tennis etiquette" which to all of the hip and modern has been relegated to the dust bin along with everything else traditional. These loud squeals and high decibel exhales are clearly a distraction to opponents, not to mention the bane of the audience, and it is another thinly veiled disguise to attempt to gain an unfair advantage over the opponent. Gamesmanship anyone? Come on...why else grunt when executing a drop shot?

A well written article Geoff and a very entertaining ensuing conversation.

[stotty]

I haven't read Geoff's article yet...but will when I get the chance. Who is responsible for starting off this grunting business? Do we know who the first ever grunter was? At the moment, I'm blaming Connors? Was their anyone before him?

I know ancient warriors used to shout as they charged...modern warriors too probably. It was to give them more courage...

I have never been a grunter...don't like it...feel it's unnecessary. If Fed doesn't do it there simply cannot be any need for it.

I'll go read Geoff's article later today....