Subtle changes and Dr Hat revisited. In the 80s I was league director in a club in Syracuse, New York, and we had a player everyone called Dr. Hat.
I don’t think anyone knew his real name, but Dr Hat owned the A leagues and nobody could beat him. One day he challenged me to a match and at that time I was playing local open and national age division and had State and Regional titles so I was eager to show him the difference between tournament experience and local league play. Well, I did beat him but not a badly as I thought I would.
I asked him how he hit his serves because my timing was always off. What he told me is something all of us can do, especially in crucial situations. He told me he hit his serves flat, on the top, and on the bottom of the ball. In other words if the ball is a clock, he is hitting the ball as a right hander at 3pm(flat) 1pm(top) and 5pm(bottom).
Try it-it puts a different spin on the ball and can throw the opponent’s timing off. After you hit one of those for a winner remember to say-“What dat?” Thanks Dr. Hat!