How To Build A Beautiful Serve:
Part 4

By Chris Lewit

In Part 3 of the Winning Pretty series on the serve (click here), I went over the lower and upper body check points, as well a 5 stage method for serving the Winning Pretty way. In Part 4, we will conclude by going over the finish as well as the "Three Stop" model for serving. 10 more drills are provided to help develop your serve.

5. Finish

I spend a lot of time on the finishing details trying to help the player feel the correct amount of body lean forward into the court, the scorpion move kickback, and following-through near to the left pocket area. Research shows the upper body lean forward is about 45 degrees to horizontal in elite servers (1). In my experience, holding the scorpion pose for a few seconds as an exaggeration is a great way to work on balance, stability and athleticism.

The shoulder forward lean just post-contact

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Chris Lewit is a leading high-performance coach, author, and educator. He is the author of the best-selling book Secrets of Spanish Tennis 2.0, which is now available, and a new technique book, Winning Pretty, which will be published by New Chapter Press in paperback in 2026. He is also a contributing editor for Tennisplayer.net magazine and a long-time member of the RSPA and PTR. As an educator, he has presented at several large conferences, including the PTR International Tennis Symposium. Chris studied religion and literature at Cornell, Harvard, and Columbia, and is currently pursuing a PhD in kinesiology and biomechanics.

As a player, Chris Lewit played No. 1 for Cornell University and competed on the USTA and ITF pro circuits. As a coach, he has recently worked with several No. 1 junior players in the US and has trained hundreds of nationally ranked juniors. He directs a boutique full-time academy for homeschool/online players and a high-performance summer camp program, as well as high-performance training for all ages and levels, all at his club in the beautiful green mountains of Manchester, Vermont.

Chris Lewit has a popular YouTube channel, Youtube.com/ChrisLewit, and you can follow his writing portfolio at https://medium.com/@ChrisLewit.

Chris Lewit Tennis
World-Class Technical Training
Expert in Spanish and European Training Methods
New York, New York and Londonderry, Vermont
914-462-2912

Contact Chris directly by phone/WhatsApp at 914-462-2912 or chris@chrislewit.com.

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