Short Angle: A Tennis Book, Simon and Schuster 2016, 504 Pages

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A Check-list? Should We Really Restrict Ourselves to Two Conscious Thoughts?

For half-loops, increase the amount of linear sweep toward the target. The idea that full and half loop versions should finish in same place (back of hand by left ear) is symptom of the overconceptualization into which western peoples easily fall. Eastern peoples on the other hand don't analyze enough. (And hooray for hasty generalizations.)

For a full loop then, finish with back of hand brushing left ear. For in between loops (1/2, 3/4, 4/5, etc.) finish some inches nearer to left fence.

Dwell-- "staying on the ball"-- is still big consideration as in normal ground strokes out into the court.

But so are other wellworn saws such as "Get on outside of ball." On a short angle one wants to be so on the outside that the ball flies as parallel to the net and close to it as possible.

Note: We've made certain choices to develop these shots. At what point do the choices become a check-list? First, start with shoulders parallel to the net like a boxer ready to punch with either hand. This is huge and truly indicates that one has chosen the specialty shot route. Normal shots by turning the shoulders block the most acute (the cutest) shots.

Second, go with an arm first body chime in formula as in a Ziegenfuss or my McEnrueful, or don't and make it all unified but decide. Obviously I haven't made that choice yet. Third, the elbow moves while scissoring. Fourth, one has a specific well-balanced followthrough in mind. Fifth, mild forearm roll no matter how one set up always brings the ball down sooner.

And there are other important items that could go on the list but who wants to remember them all at once unless one is taking a memory test?

For sharpest possibility, how bent could the elbow be set before it begins to scissor? You and I both, reader, should check this out.

Elbow travel and amount of scissor could become corollaries in inverse proportion to one another like sympathy and judgment in fiction.

Note II: When dancing one doesn't want to overthink either. When first trying to master a difficult step however one may try to hold nine items in mind at once.

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Cygnus 10

It's a new pool shot. Or a new dance step. An unexpectedly discovered variation in chess. It's something new and therefore difficult. It's my short angle of Thursday, April 9, 2015 .

"Why do you persist in this, John, why don't you just shut up and hit the shot?"

I did that for decades. Didn't work. And nobody wanted to discuss the subject very much. That encouraged me to shut up.

But foolishly romantic shots here and elsewhere in tennis except maybe for Andy Roddick's serve cannot ever compete with some eminently sensible shot waiting to be born.

I've identified certain ingredients that ought to go into this cooking recipe. I won't recite them again. Let's take them instead in narrative form.

We start with a wave to the right. Both hands go up while shoulders remain parallel to the net. There's a quick step just before one hits the shot to establish semi-open stance but I am determined now not to let it interfere with my parallelism of shoulders to net, baseline and far fence.

How does the hitting hand go up? On a bent arm. Both arms in fact are bent, but in which direction does the hitting arm go up? Almost toward right fence post (for the right-hander) as if preparing to swing back INTO the body.

That sounds like a disastrous decision to cramp the shot. But hitting arm is bent. Both bent arms can now slightly fall together, forming a small hitting loop that will provide all timing for the shot.

What is the grip? Somewhere around eastern. The grip that most comfortably will help keep the racket head vertical through every inch of the remainder of the stroke.

In unison with slightly turning shoulders, the hitting arm looks like this: It straightens then scissors and finishes with back of hand by one's ear.

Note: Arm straightening as part of the hitting act takes racket toward net thus preventing the stroke from getting cramped.

Note II: I like to splay left foot toward left fence as I adopt my semi-open stance. This splay, similar to the one that occurs in a backhand unit turn, occurs this time as part of a forehand.

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How Good is the Arm Work in Your Federfore (Backward Straight, Forward Round)?

Note: What you may call an ATP3, reader, I call a Federfore.

Well reader if your arm work is good in either apply it now to your short angle.

First modification will be to cut out the Federerian shoulders turn which characteristically is very big.

That leaves you with your shoulders parallel to the net like a boxer ready to punch with either hand.

The boxer certainly does turn his shoulders forward when he throws his punch, and you may too eventually, maybe to pop a soft crosscourt forehand deep.

For now however just use the normal arm work from a Federfore including its mondo (its "flip"), keeping the shoulders parallel to the net throughout.

This can be the first step in bringing across some or all of the elements culled in this thread from attempted specialty shots.

When people in tennis say, "Don't give up," they usually mean to tough something out, to keep up physical pressure, to do a thousand push-ups, to go for sessions with a psycho-therapist, to buy a hundred cardio drills and fifty new electronic devices, to take advanced Yoga, Tai-Chi, Tae Kwon Do, Karate, run a Marathon to make the body hard, etc.

Do they ever mean not to give up on new invention? Some do and I am one of them.

First thing to figure out: To where does arm typically go backward in a good Federfore? Mime this while subtracting shoulders turn. The racket will now go to a spot outside of its usual spot. Mime normal backswing. Keep arm in same relation to shoulders but return them to parallel to net. Now you know where to take arm.

Next, do some self-feed. What is the acuteness of crosscourt angle produced? If more acuteness is needed bring other elements across one by one from all the specialty shots recently attempted.

Could take seconds, minutes, weeks.

Summary: Use normal shot but without shoulders.

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Immediate Self-Feed

# 123 seems like a good starting place. Added preparation of one foot farther in front of right foot than indicated in # 123 . Strengthened grip (turned it to right). Experimented with keeping elbow down and letting biceps raise the racket head to the ball. Used forearm roll (pronation) then to take strings off of the ball. Didn't worry much about where followthrough went-- it went where it wanted.

Note: When arm is right-angled with forearm parallel to court, upper arm twist can turn racket tip around quicker without destroying stability. Question: Can one do this while circling elbow level around body? Sure.

I went on the understanding that this stability would still exist if arm just adopted its right angle at contact. Kept the right angle (didn't finish squeezing the two halves of the arm together) during whatever followed: some sanding of the ball by forearm.

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PPffft Right in Der Feuhrer's Face

Note: In watching the following video, reader, ignore the reference to Neville Chamberlain. That is a cheap attempt to spin the question of who the real dictators and appeasers in present society are (https://video.search.yahoo.com/video...s-invalid&tt=b).

Do you, reader, want to say, "Just go ahead and hit your short angle, John, but quit talking about it." I heartily concur. Unfortunately however my limbs and sinews have become anthropomorphized and won't shut up.

Right Arm: I wanna bend. I wanna twist at the humerus while performing horizontal adduction.

Moderator: What? That's three different things.

Left Arm: How bout dem Tigers.

Right Arm: I wanna get down there fast. I wanna be straight before both arms go down a little more.

Left Hand: How bout I form a lid on top of an imaginary volleyball. And right palm holds the ball from the bottom. The left palm turns over the right palm as both hands descend.

Moderator: What? You reintroduced elbow twist into the shot. You've brought back the very instability you just fulminated about.

Right: Shut up, dictator.

Left: You're the dictator. (Sings.) "When de Fuehrer says, dis is de master race, we will all go pfft right in de Fuehrer's face."

Moderator: Boys, boys.

Right: I don't want the Roger Federer backswing on this shot. Once I get straight I'm gonna do some weird stuff. So I might as well do the weird stuff all the way through.

Moderator: Very sensible.

Right: Yeah. I do the three things to get the strings perpendicular to the target which is WAY WAY off to the left. Then I roll from the forearm while holding myself at a right angle and I let this move guide the followthrough wherever it wants to go.

Followthrough: That's too vague. I want more direction.

Right: Later.

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Something to Try

Incredibly simple, right? No, a Rubik's Cube. Neither, just something to try.

Left arm goes more across than up, demonstrating that when it goes across it can either help pull the shoulders around or not, here not.

At the same time the hitting arm makes a C-shaped yet arm-straightening loop first toward the right fence and then back toward the body but in front of it.

As elbow approaches the body it stops, reversing toward right fence then continues toward left fence.

Why would it do such a weird thing? To make time to twist racket sharply around while closing it a bit more and lift racket from bending forearm up to the ball where said forearm rolls to brush the ball.

There is only one brush. No need to continue the upward motion more. So little body weight goes into this shot that something basically horizontal is needed to apply sufficient pressure for friction and desired range-- the finally released elbow traveling toward left fence.

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Major Alteration

Two big dudes were having their first outside Spring hit replete with incessant babble and pointless hyper-instruction one to the other. They were hitting deep, powerful shots with good shape. They were at least 40 years from hitting significant short angles.

One of them looked over. What the F? He couldn't believe what he saw.

An old guy hitting from self-feed and only making two thirds of his short angles. Pathetic! I agree. 66 and two thirds per cent from self-feed is 16 per cent when one hits with somebody else and 6 per cent once one starts to compete.

So it's time for further modification-- usually is. To subtract: The Scissoring Arm. To keep: Manny Pacquiao's parallelism of shoulders to the net. To forget: Any notion that this is a Federfore other than the straight arm at contact. To keep: Straight Wrist. To subtract: A hitting step to establish semi-open stance. It's just one more annoyance. Open stance is good enough. To keep: Three finishing beats. I don't care how far I'll have to run in real life. I shall hit the ball with three beats:

1) Giant tortoise shell configuration to straighten arm down way out right way out front.

2) Keep elbow right there. Twist it up while making sure that this action moves the racket tip significantly toward the left fence. Give this action its own beat.

3) Flick (a roll of the forearm).

Adopt grip and contact point that will allow the shot along with its natural followthrough.

The End.

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Now Hit the Same Shot but with a Bent (at 90 Degrees) Arm

The right angle in the arm should bring the racket tip around quite far and well. Having hit both the straight arm and the bent arm versions with sufficient repetitions to build confidence, reader, you should be in position to decide which you like better-- or will that be determined by situation?

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Long Arm Version: Put Left Palm Under Twisting Elbow to Avoid Temporizing

Not when you play tennis, dummy. Do it to learn tennis. The racket tip will move 18 inches from the non-temporized elbow twist. Moral of the story: Slow not quick. But one of three beats.

Note: The racket tip moving 18 inches is a better cue than elbow twisting up.
That nevertheless is how the 18 inches happens.

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Comparing Straight Arm and Bent Arm Versions May Lead to a Conclusion (or Two)

The most common short angle mistake is not keeping ball in the court. This happened for me more often in bent arm.

Already I had decided on classical eastern grip for both versions. For me that simply means bent thumb on panel eight.

Why then would some shots fly out in bent arm but not in straight arm?

Because whatever the grip the racket face closes slightly the straighter the arm. Ray Brown the polymath teaching pro pointed that out in the prominent general interest tennis website that he and his wife Becky used to conduct.

The next question then should concern the bent arm version only. Would one have a better chance of eliminating pitch errors through protruding elbow toward side fence more or through slightly westernizing the grip? And which alternative would feel more zippy and natural?

Slight grip change please. For me that is bent thumb on 8.5, the same grip I use for my Federfore.

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Higher Racket Tip All Through The Loop?

If I don't immediately record the results of the most recent self-feed session, I am afraid that I will forget them and regress from a possible beachhead.

Straight arm works but bent arm may be more promising. I found I needed a smaller loop than I thought. I experimented too with the classic concept of keeping racket head above wrist in order to firm up the wrist even though that pose for the administration of topspin seemed counterintuitive. In any case the higher racket tip produced sharper angles the same as it does in volleys.

Even with a slightly westernized eastern grip there still seemed some need to knob the elbow out to right of loop for proper pitch.

A small loop parallel to the baseline was allowed to continue until racket circled down a few inches toward the left fence.

At that point the elbow stopped to snap around the forearm a bit more crisply.
This hinge-like winding around of forearm then turned into pronation of the forearm, a roll from the forearm to make the strings brush up.

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The Nome

If I was headed for three counts as in long arm version, I now am headed for two.

Let's preliminarily call this shot "scaling a flat stone" but look for a better title by last sentence here.

The model I know best for this, Nome Obermeyer, is a Katharine Hepburn niece who I once personally witnessed skip a flat rock 20 times.

The late Vic Braden knew her too and used her son an Aspen ski instructor in one of his videos. Vic made both tennis and ski instruction videos.

Nome, who was and no doubt still is extremely beautiful, had recently lost her twin brother, a medic, who was shot while attending to a wounded soldier in a field in Vietnam.

Well, in my view and can my view be true (?) Nome hitch-hiked from Avon, Connecticut to Aspen, Colorado.

While she was waitressing in Aspen someone left a hundred dollar bill on her table. She snatched up the bill, slipped out the restaurant's back door and climbed three fences in a successful get away.

Waitressing again, she became extremely ill. One person, a clothing manufacturer from Garmisch-Partkirchen and former member of the German national ski team, Claus Obermeyer, came repeatedly to visit and speak with her in the hospital.

He and Nome married, and she became the lead designer, "the best" according to Claus, of the high end Obermeyer ski apparel line.

When I came to Aspen looking for Nome, Claus could not have been more cool, i.e., hip cool not chilly cool.

He encouraged Nome and me to go for a long hike in the woods together, and I can't remember whether it was then in a mountain stream or back in a cow pasture pond in Connecticut that I witnessed Nome skip the flat rock 20 times.

Nome and Claus put me up in their house. I remember that everybody went to bed early and there was a lot of subsequent laughter and noise though none of it came from me. The next morning Claus beat me in tennis in the high altitude: I didn't really think he should have but he did.

The rest is on the internet. Half a century later Nome is co-owner with some guy of some large house in Virginia Beach, Virginia, but still returns to Aspen as Claus' best designer.

And Claus who never has skied at less than 90 mph was in his early 90's and making his daily run down the edge of a favorite trail when he hit a hidden wire strung between two posts-- not good for his health.

So, to skip a rock like Nome but do it with a tennis racket, I prescribe a two-count sidearm throw. (Let's just say that my loss to Claus half a century ago inspires my continuing effort to develop "the pro shot" once and for all.)

The bent arm makes a small circular loop parallel to net and baseline (count one).

The forearm scales the racket around then to vigorously brush it up the ball (count two).

P.S. The fatuous biographers of Katharine Hepburn never capture the really good stuff much of it having to do with Kate's extended family, but as another one of her nieces, a very close friend of mine the last I heard famously said on LARRY KING LIVE, "My aunt has been written about enough."

Note: Nome 1) is the name of one of the finest people ever, 2) the name of my current short angle, 3) an explanation of what happened to most of the people who ever in their lives encountered Katharine Hepburn, and yes, Kate and I did beat her brother Dick and my brother Derek ("Echo") in straight sets in tennis. Poetic language in the words of Ezra Pound is "language that is charged with meaning to the utmost possible degree," so one could think of "Nome" as abnegation of oneself or even as "gnome," although that description could never apply to the Nome I know whose name is an invitation.

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Add Some Moebius Strip to Your Loop to Mobilize Self-Fed Shots to Own Side of the Net

The bent arm makes a small circular loop parallel to net and baseline.

Nah, don't do that. That was yesterday. Pretend that you are Floyd Mayweather instead of Manny Pacquiao. Floyd is on the other side of the net. So you start your loop in a direction that Floyd would probably use if he were hitting a forehand in tennis.

From Manny's perspective, that means that bent arm starts a small loop toward Floyd. But do not continue with this madness. As hand and racket approach Floyd change their direction to the right. Complete the loop and land the ball on your own side of the net.

Why would you want to do that? To find proper range for your short-angle shots (your "pro shots"). You must admit, reader, that when you hit a short-angle, there often wasn't much momentum in the oncoming ball. By contrast, if you hit your short-angle off of a John Isner serve, your lousiest experiment or the one that flew too much into John's court now becomes your best reply due to added deflection from the momentum in John's serve.

This is what we learned preceptors mean by the word "quirky." We are not unorthodox.

Because of physical limitation, we've got to figure things out in a most un-animal way. We need to use conscious repetitions-- in self-feed of course-- to develop full range of the short angle possibilities.

Whether it's Floyd or John on the other side of the net, reader, try this moebial
loop that I advise. Success then will depend on initial direction every time. Did you start your loop like a comber breaking directly at Floyd/John? And then as your racket veered to your right you lost your only protection and you got hit? But you still are alive? So adjust initial direction a smidge to the right. And then another smidge and another until the racket ends up parallel to the net. And then on your own side of the net. And then behind you, so that you can try to push back.

Some balls, as we have already posited, will have no oncoming momentum at all. Change initial direction to more forward for those.

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Gael Monfils…Alice in the Looking Glass

I suppose you are referring to crosscourt short angles…but Gael is here to remind us about the other side of life as he goes reverse crosscourt. Or what did John call it? Oh yeah…"inside out".

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2015/04/15/Monte-Carlo-Friday-Hot-Shot-Monfils.aspx

Another three or four hundred pages…possibly.

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I have always thought about reverse crosscourt short angles and will occasionally rehearse them in self-feed. They are so much easier to hit than the other kind, or to put this another way, they require much less or no re-design.