80-20 Rule
Attitude-two players-two very different attitudes. Player A has all the talent in the world. This player has everything but conditioning and work ethic. For whatever reason this player is happy being a good player but unless this player changes their work ethic, will eventually not even be a good player. To make matters worse this […]
Hinder Beggers
Avoidable hinder calls can be obnoxious. I have to blame some of this on the pro players who often hold up for the rally hinder. Sometimes it is hard for me to watch due mostly to my old school experiences which often included throwing a half-nelson on your opponent to get them out of the […]
Geezer Ball
Coaching geezer ball. Now that I am in the “Golden age” category I can appreciate my fellow warriors and warriorettes who compete in the age divisions. My first task when coaching senior athletes is to decide what needs changing and what does not. To simply tear down someone’s game and rebuild it demands commitment from […]
Teaching Newbies
So many of us end up teaching racquetball to newbies just out of courtesy and respect for the game. Others of us actually teach beginners in a more formal setting in club programs. Either way teaching racquetball for beginners can be fun. Here are seven things to consider when working with new players. 1. Stay […]
Losing? Work Harder!
Many moons ago a well meaning person posted something about changing the scoring so one person could not dominate winning pro stops. I do have to be fair because this person did admit it probably would not change the number one standing. But this is humorous to me for a couple of reasons. First they […]
10 Forehand Tips
Above: Yours Truly vs the late Charlie Garfinkle HOF, RIP Forehand basics revisited-10 rules of a good forehand- 1. Parallel feet–not staggered. This keeps you away from the ball and gives you leverage and options. 2. Weight balanced and power generated from the leg nearest to the back wall–not weight on the front leg. 3. […]
Tribute to Moms
The Farm where I lived as a child. This is a racquetball post…sort of. It is a personal post but it does have implications for us all. I am the oldest of five children whose young lives started on a farm in upstate New York. My brothers and sister have all had successful professional lives […]
Trash the Trash Talker
I got a phone call from an athlete I coach. “Coach, my opponent’s talking trash to me and cheating! Every time I play this guy in practice he resorts to cheating and trash talking. Do you have any advice? It threw me completely off my game and I ended arguing instead of playing.” First-this happened […]
The Guilt Trip Player
The guilt trip player can be a shock the first time you experience this. Let’s shorten that to GTP. The GTP plays on an athlete’s sense of fairness. The GTP knows their opponent wants to be perceived as fair. GTP takes advantage of that. Phrases like “If that is the way you are going to […]
3 Squares and Racquetball
From day one in my tournament life I did and still do devote myself to winning. With that in mind, here is the question posed to me. Should tournaments guarantee two matches? In most cases I say yes. Local, and regional tournaments emphasize play and competition so two matches should be guaranteed. This is not […]