How, Not What!
The “how” of racquetball is more important than the “what”. I can say, hit the ball down the line but when my athlete does not, I can say, “they do not listen to me.” or “Try it again!” Or… I can teach “how” to hit the ball down the line with proper footwork (not stepping […]
Salute to Fran
Above: Coach W and Fran talking Coaching Salute to Fran Davis. The year was..well a long time ago in the wayback machine. Yours truly got a message from an old friend in Pennsylvania and he asked me if I could help this one wall paddleball player from New York City. He knew she had talent […]
UnClog the Blocker
This one drifted across my desk-again will paraphrase to protect the innocent; but this occurs all over the world on racquetball courts frequently. “My opponent never kills the ball but hits it so I have to move through him or around him to get to a shot. After he hits a shot he slides slightly […]
Practice and Think Stink!
The matches are over. The club is quiet but still open. Down on court 8, way in the back is the ole ball coach and one of his athletes. We are putting in an after hours session working on footwork and return of serve. Motivated athlete wants extra work during the tournament and motivated […]
Get a Grip!
Backhand check list- For reference: https://buff.ly/ecnbWQc Talking backhand grip-V formation of the thumb and forefinger for right-handers should rotate to 11 to 9 o’clock. That roughly translates to Eastern to modified western grips. Why do I not teach one grip? As someone told me last summer, “Coach you teach the wrong backhand grip.” My response? […]
Ref Rules
Ten signs of poor reffing! In fairness to all players out there it is tough reffing and even more tough when you are reffing against good players. Here are ten signs of ref change needed! 1. The ref tries to be part of the action. You know the drill. The ref has a flair for […]
Whoa-Slow Down Phenom!
Overheard from well-meaning fans and some young coaches. “My athlete is national ranked junior champion and they are a great player.” I am thinking “Poor junior player-all you hear is how great you are from everyone. I hope you do not listen.” Here’s me also thinking , “You are not that good-you must learn your […]
11 Tips for Excellence!
11 tips for excellence: 1. Do not come to the coach to get help. Come to the coach to collaborate. 2. Do not take orders from a coach. Work with a coach. 3. Understand that the coach cannot get you better. You must get better by practicing skills taught to you. 4. Playing is fun, […]
Am I Improving?
How do you know if you are improving? Well, if you are killing every ball in practice you might be improving but remember these things….. 1. Almost impossible to simulate tournament conditions, especially the mental pressure. 2. There is practice tough and there is tournament tough. The latter means more tournaments needed! 3. Without tournaments, […]
Rough Day in Racquetball?
Some time ago, after National Doubles I got a text from a colleague of mine that went like this: “Boy you had a rough day. You lost every match on center court! Below is my reaction to that! The funny thing is I did not see any of it like that. I did not lose […]