Kings of Tennis...Stockholm, Sweden 2014

[don_budge]

Don't know him...

Say Don, by any chance do you know Michael Grindfors?

...but I wish that I did. Can you introduce us?

[don_budge]

The Kings of Tennis training symposium...

The symposium was held at the Radisson across the street from the train station. I had forgotten my wallet too. I had 70 swedish crowns on me. It feels good to be poor. To be broke. I don't know why. It's humbling.

Bob Brett got a polite introduction. Everything in Sweden is done politely. If all that you know about Sweden is Björn Borg, Mats Wilander or Stefan Edberg...you get the picture. Fortunately everything will be conducted in English today. Bob Brett is Australian and the Swedes will automatically default to English. Swedes speak the best English in the world among countries that it isn't the mother tongue.

Bob takes the podium and just sort of off handedly and rather quietly launches into his presentation. It's a slide show with a list of words. A list of characteristics that one looks for in a prospect. Another list of words regarding the responsibilities of the coach to the student. Typical words. Respect. Passion. Attitude. That sort of stuff. Bob in a low keyed manner goes through each word and defines each one as it applies to his philosophy. Nothing earth shaking. Nothing unusual. He does emphasize the word vision as it applies to eyesight. He doesn't make an overly big deal about it.

Bob finishes his listing of traits then he asks the audience the question...does anyone start lessons with the volley. I raise my hand and he acknowledges me. I mention that I start my teaching with beginners at the net...ala Harvey Penick the author of golf's "Little Red Book" Penick teaches his golf students to putt first and works backwards to the tee. He was somewhat familiar with Penick...he says he was a great teacher and player. Bob asked me why I did that and I replied that it is the simplest and shortest of motions therefore easiest to learn.

We got into a discussion about the extinction of certain important aspects of the game and he fully agreed...he's an advocate for change too. He had mentioned that he started in tennis when he was ten years old so I said something to the effect that he had been around long enough to see the evolution and engineering changes to the game. He said that he was older than I was...he said that he was sixty. I said...I will be sixty tomorrow. Everyone laughed...we sort of connected.

Later on he was just sort of standing by himself twiddling around with this racquet in between the presentation and lunch so I went up and engaged him in some conversation. Really natural human being...unpretentious as all of those veteran Aussies seem to be. No airs of superiority at all. Really approachable. We stood there and chatted for 15 minutes or so. Tennis. Life in Sweden. Life in Italy. Little of this...little of that. I was impressed and he definitely earned my respect as a person. At this point he was keeping his tennis coaching paradigm a bit of mystery. He always had a little smile on his face. A little sly bemused smile. Cool guy.

After lunch it was time for a panel discussion with Bob, Mats Wilander and Johan Sjögren. Johan is the head of Swedish tennis. Wonderful discussion that was mediated by some fellow that was a Swedish journalist. Again all conducted in English. Mats speaks better English than Swedish joked one of the organizers. I tried to get an interview with him...without using any credentials. That didn't happen as his schedule was really tight. His match with Henri Leconte was shortly after the symposium.

But during the panel discussion they opened it up for questions and I was recognized again to question. So I asked Mats two questions...one was what was the reason that Björn Borg retired so suddenly for and the other was with regard to the monkeying around with the speed of the courts. I specifically asked if the reason for Borg retiring was because of the equipment change that was going on at that immediate time. Wilander said that he didn't think so. He said that Borg could not take the intense scrutiny any longer. His rock star status made it too difficult for him to live a normal life and coupled with the pressure to maintain his number one status in the sport...it proved to be too much for him.

With regards to the courts Mats went into a rather long and interesting explanation. He said that the courts will incrementally be speeded up. His opinion was there should be slow courts and there should be fast courts. Grass courts should reflect grass court play. Specifically he said that he didn't feel that Nadal should be able to win Wimbledon playing his clay court style of play. He also harped on the lack of style in the game today. Mats was particularly critical in this regard. In other words he was more critical of the state of the game in the sanctity of the symposium than he would ever be on a Eurosport broadcast...but that is my take on his explanation. I thanked him very much for his fascinating insights.

One of the most exciting aspects of attending this symposium for me was the chance to make use of all of the writing and studying that I have done the past couple of years. I had a number of coaches asking me for my email and contact information as we engaged in some really interesting topics. The website here really has served me a good stead. All of the topics that we have discussed and gone back and forth on is great preparation in participating in venues of this nature. All of my questions and responses were gaged primarily on forum or website information. One nice Italian fellow was asking Bob about the relationship of eye dominance which he sort of didn't really answer. That same Italian talked about Matthew Seed's book "Bounce". We really covered a lot of territory here in this neighborhood and all of this writing has made me very comfortable in discussion groups...not to mention in my teaching.

Lastly...Bob Brett's on court practice session. I am extremely tired and worn out by everything the last few days. It is a struggle to write. Usually it just flows. I'm cramping up. Today it was five hours on the court. Four and a half actually...half of the first hour was a birthday party that I was the honoree. Eight eight and nine year old girls...the junior committee chairman, the club chairman and my partner. The girls gave me so many group hugs, individual hugs and on and on. I cut the two ice cream cakes for them...seconds and thirds for all. In all of my life...I have never felt so honored. I sat at the head of the table with four little ones to either side of me. They sang to me in English and Swedish. They mobbed me and made a wall around me...eight pretty little heads around mine. It's been an exhausting few days. When I came home to the farm tonight after the club there was a strange car here. When I got inside I found it was Gustaf and his father. Gustaf being my protege for six years. He came to wish me congratulations and returned my copy of "The Razor's Edge" that I had lent to him. What a fine young man. His father was with him.

Why the obsession with creating professional tennis players? The best things in life are free?

[klacr]

...Swedes speak the best English in the world among countries that it isn't the mother tongue...

What about the Dutch? The Netherlands have great command of the English language.

moving on...

Interesting Bob Brett asked the question about starting with volleys. I often start beginners with volleys for the exact point you make. Shorter stroke. Build as you move back. I always got laughed at for doing this and explaining it to other pros...funny, most of the pros are now out of tennis, couldn't take the grind or not having patience to see their players develop I guess.

Don't disagree with Wilander on the court surfaces. Would be great to see grass play like the true grass I know, love and taught on during my days at Philadelphia Cricket Club as a teaching professional. The courts will get faster. Slowly but surely.

Glad you got a chance to meet Coach Bob Brett. Fine Aussie indeed. I can say many of the same complimentary things about my pal Mr. Roy Emerson.

Grattis på födelsedagen!
Happy Birthday don_budge...You've earned it!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[tennis_chiro]

One of your best posts ever, d_b.

Happy Belated Birthday!

don

[don_budge]

Bob Brett's one hour Lesson...the First Half.

Bob Brett gave a one hour demonstration of a tennis lesson that he conducted at the Radisson Blu Hotel on March 12, 2014 in Stockholm, Sweden. It was part of a coaches symposium in conjunction with the Kings of Tennis.

What a nice symposium it was. Sure...tennis is one big dog and pony show. But sometimes the spectacle sort of reminds me of something in the past. Something romantic linked to my tennis genetics for the rest of my life. Bob Brett left a wonderful impression on me. I told him about my coaching paradigm...he nodded in approval. He concurred. We had a wonderful conversation. He spoke and I listened. I spoke and he listened.

A couple of guys talking tennis. I just love the old Aussie school of thought. Hopman is the coach. He nodded in approval. He spoke of his years with Hopman. A sly, wry smile on his face. Years of experience. A knowing look. Without boasting. Not too full of himself to stop and listen to a fellow sixty year old pursuing tennis just for the "Bloody Fun of It".

By chance or by fate...I found myself seated with Johan Porsborn. More on him later. Seated on the baseline opposite of Bob Brett...he launches into his on court demonstration. He has the perfect foil...a fifteen year old hot shot. Full of energy but with the nervous look of something that is about to be slaughtered. Knowing that something is in the offing...but not exactly sure what form it will take. One thing is for certain for the kid...Bob Brett is standing there in front of him. Smiling and twiddling with his racquet.

In his presentation earlier in the morning Bob posed the question for the coaches...”who begins their lesson with volleying?” Only I did it seems. But why...he asks. Some gal in the back of the room gets it...to engage the student close at hand.

Bob begins to engage his victim...I mean his student. He starts with some pretty relaxed volleying...he asks slyly “are you getting warmed up”. The kid laughs nervously. Bob is alternating volleys to the backhand and the forehand. Never saying a word about technique. This is not going to be a technical lesson. He starts to angle the volleys incrementally further from the kid’s reach...he’s stretching a bit now. The effort beginning to show. The whole time Bob is encouraging the kid to volley back to him nicely...it’s becoming challenging. I say to Johan Porsborn sitting next to me...the kid’s legs are beginning to wobble just a bit. Signs of things to come. Ten minutes of volleying...Bob rarely misses. He’s a great volleyer.

The second step up this steep ladder that the kid is now ascending is a drill on the baseline where Bob is hand feeding alternately to the forehand and the backhand. Once again he starts at a civilized pace but very shortly it becomes very challenging for the kid to reach the hand feeds...let alone get a good swing on the ball. The kid tends to overswing anyways...Bob is encouraging him to drive the ball but to keep it in play. All the while the balls are getting closer and closer to the sidelines...sometimes they are six inches out yet the kid is practically diving now. But Bob only calmly reminds him how important it is to keep the ball in play. I am beginning to understand that smile and I am beginning to understand why it is that Harry Hopman is the coach in my coaching paradigm.

Bob has his victim nice and warmed up now. Actually the kid’s legs are taxed. From here on out it is going to be about survival. We are only twenty minutes into the on court demonstration. It’s time for the kid to go on the other side of the net. A little practice moving up to the net and behind the service line. The drill consists a very accurately and deliberate feed for the player just behind the service line...maybe one or two meters back. It varies...upon Bob’s wishes. Then the player must move quickly to the net and volley and after the volley once again he must retreat in back of the service line in order to drive the bouncing ball...then back to the net. Over and over. Forehands...forehand volleys.

Five minutes is enough...just enough it seems. The kid is drinking water as if he has been trekking through the Sahara. Now it is the same thing...only on the backhand side. Bob the whole time is harping on placement and consistency...the kid is only thinking of staying on his feet. Five minutes of backhands. It’s half time...thank God! The kid breathes heavily while drinking more water.

Unfortunately it is Bob that is just getting warmed up.

[stotty]

Bob Brett's Lesson

Bob Brett gave a one hour demonstration of a tennis lesson that he conducted at the Radisson Blu Hotel on March 12, 2014 in Stockholm, Sweden. It was part of a coaches symposium in conjunction with the Kings of Tennis.

What a nice symposium it was. Sure...tennis is one big dog and pony show. But sometimes the spectacle sort of reminds me of something in the past. Something romantic linked to my tennis genetics for the rest of my life. Bob Brett left a wonderful impression on me. I told him about my coaching paradigm...he nodded in approval. He concurred. We had a wonderful conversation. He spoke and I listened. I spoke and he listened.

A couple of guys talking tennis. I just love the old Aussie school of thought. Hopman is the coach. He nodded in approval. He spoke of his years with Hopman. A sly, wry smile on his face. Years of experience. A knowing look. Without boasting. Not too full of himself to stop and listen to a fellow sixty year old pursuing tennis just for the "Bloody Fun of It".

By chance or by fate...I found myself seated with Johan Porsborn. More on him later. Seated on the baseline opposite of Bob Brett...he launches into his on court demonstration. He has the perfect foil...a fifteen year old hot shot. Full of energy but with the nervous look of something that is about to be slaughtered. Knowing that something is in the offing...but not exactly sure what form it will take. One thing is for certain for the kid...Bob Brett is standing there in front of him. Smiling and twiddling with his racquet.

In his presentation earlier in the morning Bob posed the question for the coaches...”who begins their lesson with volleying?” Only I did it seems. But why...he asks. Some gal in the back of the room gets it...to engage the student close at hand.

Bob begins to engage his victim...I mean his student. He starts with some pretty relaxed volleying...he asks slyly “are you getting warmed up”. The kid laughs nervously. Bob is alternating volleys to the backhand and the forehand. Never saying a word about technique. This is not going to be a technical lesson. He starts to angle the volleys incrementally further from the kid’s reach...he’s stretching a bit now. The effort beginning to show. The whole time Bob is encouraging the kid to volley back to him nicely...it’s becoming challenging. I say to Johan Porsborn sitting next to me...the kid’s legs are beginning to wobble just a bit. Signs of things to come. Ten minutes of volleying...Bob rarely misses. He’s a great volleyer.

The second step up this steep ladder that the kid is now ascending is a drill on the baseline where Bob is hand feeding alternately to the forehand and the backhand. Once again he starts at a civilized pace but very shortly it becomes very challenging for the kid to reach the hand feeds...let alone get a good swing on the ball. The kid tends to overswing anyways...Bob is encouraging him to drive the ball but to keep it in play. All the while the balls are getting closer and closer to the sidelines...sometimes they are six inches out yet the kid is practically diving now. But Bob only calmly reminds him how important it is to keep the ball in play. I am beginning to understand that smile and I am beginning to understand why it is that Harry Hopman is the coach in my coaching paradigm.

Bob has his victim nice and warmed up now. Actually the kid’s legs are taxed. From here on out it is going to be about survival. We are only twenty minutes into the on court demonstration. It’s time for the kid to go on the other side of the net. A little practice moving up to the net and behind the service line. The drill consists a very accurately and deliberate feed for the player just behind the service line...maybe one or two meters back. It varies...upon Bob’s wishes. Then the player must move quickly to the net and volley and after the volley once again he must retreat in back of the service line in order to drive the bouncing ball...then back to the net. Over and over. Forehands...forehand volleys.

Five minutes is enough...just enough it seems. The kid is drinking water as if he has been trekking through the Sahara. Now it is the same thing...only on the backhand side. Bob the whole time is harping on placement and consistency...the kid is only thinking of staying on his feet. Five minutes of backhands. It’s half time...thank God! The kid breathes heavily while drinking more water.

Unfortunately it is Bob that is just getting warmed up.

Yes, it's an education to watch a good kid get put through his paces. The Spanish basket drills are lethally tiring in much the same way. They have kids moving only in a very small area but it's non stop cardiovascular stuff. It can take a mere 10 or even only 5 minutes to bring a player to his knees.

Coaches can tread a fine line between cruelty and a worthwhile venture here. A coach has to know and gauge when to stop, know how to build a player up over time. I have seen coaches cruelly abuse this almost "master/slave" position beyond a point that is worthwhile.

The only sport where I have seen players pushed to the edge is rowing. Rowers can be physically sick when they train, they are pushed that hard. But coaches deem it necessary. It's that kind of sport.

No doubt Bob was an expert at this kind of stuff as Hopman was. It's about preparing a kid for what's to come...building them up so they will respect you and listen. Sounds a bit like training a dog, doesn't it?. Worn out dogs are more compliant and easier to train

But I have digressed somewhat...chatted about the extreme.

So what happened next? How did the lesson continue?

[GeoffWilliams]

Now we see why so few Americans are left in the top ten. Who has that kind of desire to destroy themselves to win?

[don_budge]

The Second Half...After the Warm Up

So what happened next? How did the lesson continue?

Bob Brett warmed up the Kid to a slow simmering boil. He was sucking on a water bottle whenever Bob gave him a couple of seconds to talk to the audience. He had come a long way and covered a lot of ground since the warm up at the net. I remember thinking later on in the lesson how I had seen the Kid starting to buckle when they were "warming up" at the net. At the net...where Bob had mentioned that he could begin to engage with his victim...I mean his student.

For the next series of drill Bob was standing about a meter from the baseline...maybe a bit closer and very close to the sideline. In this position he encouraged the Kid to hit closer to the lines and deeper in the court...mixed in with admonitions to keep the ball in play while hitting on the dead run. It wasn't that he was hitting on the dead run...he was hitting on the dead run and moving from side to side as well.

Bob started by standing on the backhand side of his court and he had the Kid starting on the backhand side of his court on the other side as well...only the Kid was to hit backhands. Remember the Kid is left handed. Inside out backhand from that position, but the challenge was that after hitting an inside out backhand from the backhand sideline he had to run to the other side of the court to hit on down the line. Bob knows how to feed I can vouch for that. He knew exactly how much ground the Kid could cover and pushed him to his limits much of the time...throwing in the occasional feed that was clearly beyond his limits for good measure. Reverse crosscourt backhand...followed by a sprint to the other side to pound it down the line.

Then Bob had the Kid reverse his position and started him on the forehand sideline while Bob maintained his position on the backhand sideline. Bob is an excellent volleyer and he simply volleys the Kid into some form of submission with the repetitive sprinting from sideline to sideline. But the Kid is inspired and Bob has lit a fire inside of him and this boy has become a Chocolate Labrador Retriever in his heart and he will run until Bob says it is time to quit. At one point Bob drills a ball that is outside the line and so far out of the Kid's reach it would have been obviously futile to chase it. But guess what...Bob give the Kid a twenty second breather with a nice little lecture how he should be trying to run EVERYTHING down in practice...including balls that are out.

I smile to myself...I encourage the kids to run everything down too. Only I haven't run them to the culmination point.

Bob moves to the other side of the court and repeats the drill as a mirror image of the first half. That is a lot of backing up to the ball to get around it to hit the reverse direction. Just watching I am feeling a bit exhausted...then I realize that only 36 hours earlier I was clinging to dear life to the porcelain god in the bathroom feebly murmuring...Help...Help...Help. It wasn't pretty either.

At the conclusion of the hour Bob takes a look at the Kid's serve. Since he has no legs under him at this point he is quite wild...so Bob has the Kid walk several meters behind the line and asks him to just throw the ball as hard as he can to the other side of the court. He has him do this several times. Then he has the Kid do the same thing with his tennis racquet...just to get the kinks out I suppose. Then he starts to get the Kid to think about aiming very specifically and lo and behold the Kid starts to place his best serves very close to the targets...without one word about lining up. It was rather surprising I thought. Not one word about technique the whole session.

[bottle]

Nice portrait. I say this as a person who was out to create a tennis pro in the novel THE PURSE MAKER'S CLASP. Here is the real thing, though, with the court pushed further out.

[stotty]

Like it

Bob started by standing on the backhand side of his court and he had the Kid starting on the backhand side of his court on the other side as well...only the Kid was to hit backhands. Remember the Kid is left handed. Inside out backhand from that position, but the challenge was that after hitting an inside out backhand from the backhand sideline he had to run to the other side of the court to hit on down the line. Bob knows how to feed I can vouch for that. He knew exactly how much ground the Kid could cover and pushed him to his limits much of the time...throwing in the occasional feed that was clearly beyond his limits for good measure. Reverse crosscourt backhand...followed by a sprint to the other side to pound it down the line.

I like this one. I like these kind of drills in general because they are about footwork and positioning. Such drills also separate the workers from the uncommitted...the men from the boys. The lazy simply cannot face this type of drill week in week out.

A skilled coach can deliver feeds to keep players at the brink of their physical capabilities...and slightly beyond. Looks like Bob can do that really well.