The Mechanic and the Magician

[johnyandell]

Would love to get your thoughts on Paul Annacone's article "The Mechanic and the Magician"!

[don_budge]

The Mechanic and the Magician...

Would love to get your thoughts on Paul Annacone's article "The Mechanic and the Magician"!

I like to refer to myself as a Metaphysical Engineer...which is sort of in line with Paul's thoughts. But not quite.

[klacr]

I loved this interview.


I've heard the "Mechanic and Magician" term before and it makes sense.

Maybe a weird question and I'm posting this for selfish reasons but I wonder if a single player can possess both the attributes across all his shots. For example, I feel I'm a magician on my Backhands, volleys and serve, but my forehand I definitely feel as if I need that constant repetition and confidence. My forehand is certainly mechanical in its form and feel like I need to hit 500 balls to develop and warm it up. If its not "on" it's the shot that will break down. My forehand can be a huge weapon but it also causes most of my errors. I have a large quality variance on the shot.

Is this possible to have mechanic and magician attributes on different shots for 1 player or am I just crazy?

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[GeoffWilliams]

We've all seen M&Ms.

[bottle]

It makes perfect sense. "M&M, Magician and Mechanic," right brain and left-- those terms are or should be exactly the same. But I don't think the shortcomings you (Kyle) perceive on your forehand side are necessarily your own fault. It could be we've all been taught to be more self-conscious on that side since forehand always receives the most attention in overall tennis talk.

There are so many assertive people always saying so much stuff about forehands that one must clear one's head of all the static before one can make discovery of one's own.

And if the self-discovery breaks down (or partially breaks down) then one can-- it would now appear-- buy a shiny new ATP Forehand off of the shelf.

I think of a new Dell laser printer, jet black and boxy with no frills but a hell of a good printer.

Later, of course, a creative person will tweak the ATP Forehand in certain directions along with everything else in their game.

Maybe they'll see their tennis world anew. Maybe what originally was over-analyzed and too mechanical and a bit sterile (and mercurial, as you point out) and thoroughly left brain and overly logical and probably mean-- but if that's too much of an intellectual stretch then certainly TENSE-- will become spontaneous.

I know that when I'm not hitting a minimalist continental forehand, I'm still going to call my other minimalist forehand (my ATP Forehand) my Federfore in the hope of finding right lobe inspiration, i.e., magical ease.

[johnyandell]

I think we are all some of each. If you note Paul said Roger was mechanic like in some ways.

Kyle my only advice for you is to try to identify any negative (borderline subsconscious??) negative messages you give yourself when the ball comes to your forehand. Maybe you can use imagery and pre-imagined feel to move a little more toward the magic on that side.

You could be crazy but probably not about this.

[klacr]

I think we are all some of each. If you note Paul said Roger was mechanic like in some ways.

Kyle my only advice for you is to try to identify any negative (borderline subsconscious??) negative messages you give yourself when the ball comes to your forehand. Maybe you can use imagery and pre-imagined feel to move a little more toward the magic on that side.

You could be crazy but probably not about this.

Thanks John, Great advice.

In response to your last line, "May be" can be changed to "definitely". Crazy is for sure, in what areas is still highly debated.

I watched the clip again and it started to sink in a little more.

My backhand has always been a better shot, but recently it's become a bigger gap in quality between the bh and fh. I do the imagery I have in my head, the problem may actually be too much as I'm constantly changing/tweaking it to models of Berdych, Del Potro, Federer. All 3 different forehands. My assumption quite possibly "paralysis by analysis".

I'll fix it. Will never feel as natural as my backhand but thats ok. It just has to feel comfortable.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[GeoffWilliams]

In some of our pasts, there was a time when you broke something at home swinging your racquet, and your mom yelled at you, and the glass shattered all over the place. Those instances also can occur at a young level when you embarrass yourself with a shot, and never recover fluidity, and confidence. To do that, takes a lot of mechanical work. Shadow swinging. A key to the fh, is to pull the racquet, forward, while the tip is still high and inverted towards the net. That produces that whip lash. And to keep it on the right side, and in front, a short swing path, with that vicious whip lash.

[don_budge]

How about...

I like to refer to myself as a Metaphysical Engineer...which is sort of in line with Paul's thoughts. But not quite.

The Artist and The Engineer.

[bottle]

Yeah. And Geoff: Tip still high "and inverted toward the net!"

Here the plot thickens.