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I'm Randy Reynolds

I’m a tennis professional who makes a living teaching tennis. I consider myself the luckiest person on earth. I appreciate you visiting the site, and hope you enjoy!

Tennis Tips to Win More Matches

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Not long ago I heard someone remark that the success of the tennis teams in California (as it relates to performance in USTA NorCal Districts), as opposed to Reno players, is the fact that they get to play all year. I don’t think the answer is that simple. It’s not so much that they have year round access to tennis, it’s the fact that they have year round access to a seemingly endless supply of opponents. And with variety comes strategy. In playing new people, you are consistently finding new ways to win. Albert Einstein defines insanity as, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” If we don’t make the effort find new ways to win by challenging our opponents, or challenging our own abilities, we will never grow as players.

Whether you choose to find diversity in playing tournaments, USTA, Northern Nevada Interclub, Cardio Tennis programs that offer both drills and point play, or a recreational match, there are a number of ways to engage yourself mentally, along with engaging your game. In order to better prepare for “competition when it matters,” find a way to implement new strategies in your everyday tennis.

Tactical tennis starts as early as the warm up. By observing your opponent prior to the match you will start to find cues as to their strengths, weaknesses, preferred shots and even temperament. As you analyze your opponent’s technique you will be able to start to register information beyond stroke production. Look at their size. Are they tall? How do they handle a low ball? What’s their physical condition? How do they move? Laterally? Front to back? Where’s their weight transfer? Back foot? What’s their shot preference? What’s their shot tolerance? How are they mentally? Confident? Aggressive? Nervous? Keep in mind, that as you formulate your game plan early in the match, chances are that is not the strategy you will end with. A good opponent will work equally as hard at changing their game to ensure your tactics don’t work.

The easiest, and most obvious, way to win a match is to win more points than your opponent. By starting your strategy early, based on your opponent’s weakness, you can begin to accumulate points sooner. If you have determined your opponent’s weaker side, you should start attacking their flaw earlier in the match. Use a combination of serves, ground strokes and returns focusing on their weakness. Using more pace might give them less time to respond. Also, employing various spins, speed and adjusted ball height, can work to ensure that your opponent doesn’t get too comfortable and establish a rhythm.

What if your opponent is attacking your weaker side? They have employed the same strategy. Then you must shift your focus away from winning more points, to lose fewer points. Given their formula of exploiting your weakness, you will have to use that shot to test the chinks in their armor, and hopefully allow you to end the point with your strongest stroke.

In being patient, and learning that unnecessary risks will not lead to reward, you will be able to navigate your match easier. I have heard numerous pros discuss concepts like “shot tolerance” or “yellow ball” rallies in setting up points. In essence you are trying to determine how long they can stay in a point – their shot tolerance. If your opponent can keep the ball in play 10 times, then you will have to keep it in play 11 times to win the match. A “yellow ball” mind set works the same way. As we watch the pros play, we tend to focus on the winning shot, the point ender, the green light, without considering the yellow lights along the way. There may have been a 20 ball rally of “keeping the ball in play” before getting the green light for the winner.

In becoming better analysts, we become better tennis players. As we participate in tennis matches here in Reno, we need to develop not only our strokes, but also our strategies. In working on adding variety, dimension and gamesmanship to our games we can actually start thinking through our matches so that when we come across those opponents who are familiar with many different playing styles, we too can make the necessary mental adjustments. We need to find the balance of offensive tennis strategies, married with losing fewer points, in order build a balanced, winning, game plan.

Playing Tennis in the Sun

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Not only does winter tennis in Reno provide a variety of temperatures and precipitation, there is also the issue of the sun. During the winter months the sun is lower in the sky, as the earth tilts further from the sun. Nowhere is this situation more evident than when you’re serving, or at the net.

Nothing can reduce your tennis game to its most rudimentary form, than the sun in your toss, or a perfectly placed lob. Form is quickly forsaken, and our only goal is to make contact at any point on our racquet. While there is no easy method for adjusting your tennis game for a winter day in Reno, the following are some points for consideration.

The simplest, most straightforward, tool is a hat or a visor. Even if you don’t normally wear one to play tennis, depending on the time of day you’re playing in Reno, it’s better to not need it, than to “need it.” Sunglasses can be effective in reducing glare or blocking out the sunlight.

When you’re serving, consider adjusting your stance at the baseline. Too often, as creatures of habit, we get stuck into the mindset that we can only serve from one spot on the court. Moving in either direction, could help you keep your toss, while merely moving your feet.

If finding a new position on the baseline doesn’t work, actually changing your stance could be an option. In a perfect service world, we would have shoulder rotation and trophy position, but all bets are off when the sun is making it impossible to go from serving to playing, without seeing spots. Maybe turn your body more to the court, or more toward the sideline, in order to keep the muscle memory of your service toss and motion.

Which brings us to the toss. Consider all your options: moving the toss right or left, maybe more over your head, further out in front. You could try lowering your toss and speeding up your service motion. The first time to try making these adjustments, however, is not during a crucial match, or an effort to close out a set. Take the time to practice these modifications when you are able to focus solely at the task at hand.

On the tennis court in Reno, the sun shouldn’t always be considered a hindrance. Sometimes the greatest weapon in your arsenal is the glowing orb behind you. Rather than drawing your opponent to the net and trying the passing shot, simply toss up a lob. Even if your opponent is able to retrieve it, and you’re in position to field it, throw up the second one. Generally your opponent will still be recovering from the first lob, before they have time to consider hitting a second one.

If you are in the unfortunate position of having to play a ball in the sun, work on adjusting your strokes in the same way you have to change for the serve. Maybe you adjust your stance, where you track the ball, or let a ball you would normally take out of the air, bounce. Knowing that you will have to modify your playing style, will make you more accepting of the changes when the time comes to try a different stroke.

Winter tennis in Reno provides a number of fun opportunities to expand your style of play. The sun can be a chance to work on your serve and make adjustments to accommodate different strategies. It is imperative to remember that in forsaking style, your ultimate goal is to get your serve in the box. A double fault is a nothing more than a free point for your opponent.

Focusing on the ball, as it leaves your strings, can help track the ball and mitigate the contrast difference. Work to keep your head still while making contact, and maintain keeping your head down to ensure you’re really seeing the ball – especially if the ball is competing with the spots in your eyes. Sacrifice being slightly out of position in exchange for being able to track the ball.

It is important to remember, that whatever the challenge or window of opportunity the sun creates, it will happen only 50% of the time. Your opponent will be facing the same factors. By all accounts the match will be fair and balanced and, as we ultimately hope every match will be, fun.

How the Game of Tennis Can Solve Your Top 5 New Year’s Resolutions

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New Year Resolution Believe Reno NevadaIt’s an annual event. New Years. And it’s the time of year when we make a vow, or resolution, to change, to enhance something in our life. It is no accident that the sport of tennis can address almost any New Year’s Resolution you have set for yourself in 2017.

5 New Year Resolutions Tennis Can Solve

  1. Lose Weight/Fitness. On average player burns 200 to 315 calories in 30 minutes of tennis. Imagine the fitness and calories if that time was spent working on a ball machine, or participating in a cardio classes where the focus is on constant movement? The beauty of tennis lies in the fact that the work out doesn’t “hurt” – until you start losing.
  2. Get More Organized. It’s never too early to get your 2017 calendar in order and tennis should come first. Start setting aside time for an organized hit, weekly class, tournament, or tennis social and make tennis your priority. Got kids? Get a jump on summer planning today. Register your child for tennis camps and lessons now. This will alleviate the stress that comes in the spring, when you realize there is no summer plan in place.
  3. Spend More Time with the Family. The family that plays tennis together, stays together. Tennis is a great, inexpensive way, to spend time with your loved ones, and get some physical fitness to boot. Equipment is easy to borrow, rent or buy, and a can of balls is a little over $3.00, so lace up your tennis shoes and head to the courts.
  4. Spend More Time with Friends. Getting out with friends, as part of a team, or just getting together for a hit, is made easier with tennis. The time and place is generally pretty accessible, splitting the “tab” doesn’t involve tipping, and a smile is guaranteed.
  5. Learn Something New. Tennis, like anything, is changing. The modern game of tennis has changed dramatically since the classic style was first introduced. You have the chance to realize a New Year’s Resolution and do it with the sport you love. Maybe it’s time to master a new grip, learn a different serve, or try your hand at understanding a new spin.

The biggest reason why we don’t realize our resolutions for the New Year, lies in the fact that we have reached too far. It is possible to set a goal that is unrealistic. And as the reality of its difficulty sets in, we are all too quick to abandon it. However, if you can work harder at something you already have a small hand in, you will be successful faster. How nice would it be to reach December with knowledge that, this was the one year, that you actually realized your resolution?

Happy New Year.

Venus Williams Tennis Footwork & Movement

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Probably one of the most misunderstood and often overlooked aspects on court is tennis footwork. Sometimes when working with kids, or even adults, they get frustrated because a feed may not have landed in a close enough proximity for them to hit it, without having to step. And while obtaining the form is a primary focus of stroke production, we can’t wait too long before introducing basic tennis footwork.

Why is Tennis Footwork Important?

There has never been a tennis match played when the player didn’t have to move to the ball. Compound getting to the ball with the other variables such as the incoming shots; spin, power, and distance from you and you’re having to register a lot of aspects of the game. The biggest favor we can do for ourselves, as players, is to have the ability to recognize the best position to be in, in order to execute our best shot.

Too often our younger, junior players are content to rely on natural athleticism to get to their shots. They, along with adults, need to realize that they have to train themselves on how to correctly execute tennis footwork. A prime example is a teenage Venus Williams who emerged on the court looking like no other player in the history of the game. Her slim build, long legs and sheer athleticism carried her through her juniors, but she quickly found out she would need a bit more.

Using long strides, Venus Williams could run down most balls. Combine that with her six plus feet of height and success didn’t seem all that unobtainable, until she started losing. Arriving at the majority of her shots out of balance and wrong footed, opponents were quick to pick apart her game mitigating her natural speed.

Venus Williams Take on Tennis Footwork

Venus Williams Tennis FootworkIn a recent New York Times article, Katherine Rosman had the fortune of taking a lesson with Venus Williams at Palm Beach Gardens in Florida. Venus was quick to point out Rosman’s footwork. She emphasized the need to hop into a wide-legged ready position when hitting groundstrokes. Venus’ simple statement regarding tennis footwork was, “You win with your feet. It looks easy and it’s not.”

Venus then continued to work with Rosman on running corner to corner, split stepping at the center. The drills progressed to sidestepping, moving side to side all the while facing the net. Rosman’s footwork lesson concluded with running sprints. Katherine had to move the entire length of the court leaping on one foot, pausing to hold the landing and then leaping to the next leg. The lesson concluded with high jumps.

Top Tennis Tips from Venus Williams

Katherine Rosman had the amazing opportunity to hit with Venus Williams. In receiving Venus’ top tennis tips, not one of the top three tips had a thing to do with stroke production. Venus Williams had the following fundamentals for tennis success, “Split-step into a ready position between every shot, at the baseline and at the net. Keep your feet moving; take lots of small steps; make sure you are not too close to the ball. Practice sidestepping: Run from one side of the court to another by crossing your right leg far over left, hopping left foot over to the left, crossing right leg over…and repeat. Face the net the entire time. Then reverse direction.”

When a player has proper tennis footwork they can arrive at their shots earlier and on balance. If a player trains themselves to better their footwork, they grant themselves the luxury of being able to focus more on strategy and shot execution because their feet are already there. Perhaps one of my favorite lines came from a coach leading an adult clinic, and when the player complained that the “feed was bad” the instructor replied, “There’s no such thing as a bad feed, only bad footwork.”

I hope you took something away from this article and if you did share it forward with a friend as well. Or contribute to the discussion by commenting below.  

Tennis Gear and Equipment – Reno, Nevada – Best Tennis Store

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If the Thanksgiving resulted in a little too much tryptophan, stuffing and sweet potatoes you may have missed Black Friday. If you really gave the holiday your best effort, then you probably missed Small Business Saturday. Either way, Tennis Nation Racquet Sports still has the best local deals for all your tennis gear needs.

Tennis Gear New Arrivals

tennis gear, wilson, babolat racquetsYou don’t have to be a 6’5” Milos Raonic to play with his tennis racquet. Tennis Nation has not only Raonic’s Blade but the Blade racquets used by Serena Williams and Gael Monfils. Twenty-six year old Kei Nishikori holds the title of being the only male player from Japan to hold a top ten ranking. In his hand he holds the Wilson Burn, another racquet you can find adorning the walls of Tennis Nation Racquet Sports. For die hard Babolat fans, you can join the likes of Rafael Nadal and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in their quest for a little more spin and power found in the Aero Pro. The Babolat Pure Drive consistently delivers results with it’s balance and easy swing.

Just in time for the holidays, Wilson Tennis introduces the Roger Federer Autograph Pro Staff 97. This could be one of the classiest looking racquets on the market. It’s promoted as being from “His heart, to your hands” and comes with a message from one of the greatest players in history, “If you play with a fire burning inside you. If you push harder. If you play faster. If you’re obsessed with the game. If you strike fear in your opponents. If your goal is domination. If you look at me not as someone to emulate, but someone to one day eclipse, then I designed this racket for you. With everything I know about power, precision and form. And I hope it takes you as far as it’s taken me.” You can get this racket into your hands, and under the tree, today.

Essential Tennis Gear

tennis equipment, bags, shoes, and ballsIn addition to tennis bags, both backpacks and multi packs, Tennis Nation has a complete line of strings and on site stringing services. For your feet we have Asics Gel Resolution 7’s coming in, and K-Swiss Hyper Court and Big Shot tennis shoes already in stock.  

Tennis Nation Racquet Sports is outperforming your online retailers in the tennis gear segment. We are able to offer the Blade 104 for $99.00 strung. For our junior players, we are able to get you on the court for $85.00 with a performance racquet that will see you through your quickly advancing game.

Stocking stuffers can be dampeners, grips, cans of balls, gift certificates for tennis lessons and so much more. Make the holidays a little easier for yourself, and a whole lot merrier and bright, with a gift from your local Reno Tennis Shop, Tennis Nation Racquet Sports. We look forward to seeing you soon.

Play Tennis Reno Nevada – Winter & the Cold Outdoors

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Play tennis Reno Nevada… It’s the time of year when we bid adieu to Daylight Saving Time and hello to the night. Truly the beauty of Reno rests in the fact that at 45 degree day in full sunlight can feel incredibly warm; until the sun goes down. And as we continue to ride that wave of mild days and colder nights, it’s important to adjust our tennis gear, attire and game to accommodate the changes winter brings.

Play Tennis Reno Nevada: Rule #1 Wear Layers

play tennis reno nevadaLayers are the key to dressing for colder weather. Try to make sure that the fabrics closest to your skin have moisture wicking properties, unlike cotton, so when you do sweat your clothing won’t remain damp, making your core temperature even colder. Much to our mother’s chagrin, the notion that you lose 80% of your body heat when you don’t wear a hat is actually a misnomer. In reality the head is only about 10% of our body’s surface area. In order to lose that amount of body heat mom warned us about, we would have to lose almost 40 times as much heat per square inch as any other part of our body. Our head loses heat because when we’re outside, we have clothes on, and in the absence of hat, heat is lost. That being said, wear a hat, and keep the heat in, not out.

While gloves can be tricky in the colder weather there are a lot of great options on the market to make winter playing easier. Thin “running gloves,” or fingerless gloves can provide both warmth and feel when holding the racquet. I know players who use the “hot hands” warmers on the backs of their hands to allow them to grip the racquet and still stay warm.

Play Tennis Reno Nevada: Rule #2 Drink Water & Apply Sunscreen

Don’t let the cooler temperatures trick you into thinking you don’t have to take care of all aspects of your wellbeing. Staying hydrated is still paramount even though you may not feel as thirsty as you would in the middle of the summer. With the sun lower in the sky, sunglasses can make finding that high ball a little easier, and can reduce the glare we sometimes get in the winter. Sunscreen should be applied before you get dressed. All too often I have made the mistake of only putting sunscreen on my hands or face, only to warm up quicker than anticipated on the court, and realize I missed my arms and legs.

Play Tennis Reno Nevada: Rule #3 Warm-Up & Stretch

While we should be warming up, and stretching, year round prior to playing, somehow in the summer when we’re already warm, the ritual seems redundant. Very often the simple act of bending over to tie our shoe, or take our racquet out of our bag, seems like an equally effective warm up as actually stretching. However, in the cooler weather it is imperative that not only are we spending some time static stretching, but that we are including a dynamic warm up. Incorporating more movement will allow your muscles to warm, in addition to gauging exactly how the colder weather is affecting the ball and your ability to move to your shots.

Play Tennis Reno Nevada: Rule #5 Play Strategically

Finally, you will need to adjust your game. In colder weather, the ball doesn’t bounce nearly as high or as deep in the court. You will need to exaggerate your topspin on your groundstrokes through earlier preparation and really dropping the racquet head in order to get under the ball even more. If you haven’t worked on slice and/or drop shots, now is the time. The combination of colder temperatures, combined with the tennis balls themselves being colder, means the ball will remain low. Using slice, you can make a low ball even lower and much harder for your opponent to retrieve. Much like your groundstroke, you’re going to find your top spin serve not kicking up as high as you’re accustomed to. Working with the cold, you can make better use of your flat and slice serves in keeping the ball down and your opponent guessing.

There is a certain reunion that cold weather brings to tennis – the serve and volley. Knowing that the modern game of grinding out groundstrokes, will be hampered by colder weather, it’s imperative that you get to net. Your opponent’s shots will be traveling slower and lower. No sense wasting your energies retrieving short, low slice shots, make your move to the net to take advantage of the changes cold weather provides.

Colder weather shouldn’t be a deterrent to enjoying tennis. It’s a great time to add new strokes and strategies to your current game. Continuing to play tennis in the winter allows you to remain outdoors in the Reno sun, exercising, while simultaneously playing a sport you love.

Tennis Shots That Work in Cold Weather

Without the 90-degree temperature and humidity, you may be able to play longer and stay in the longer rallies without feeling like you are going to pass out.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that the cold weather does have an impact on your play–and the ball. The colder the weather, the less bounce the ball will have.

Effective tennis shots in cold weather:

How to Adjust Your Shots

Meanwhile, other shots, like your topspin, won’t be as effective. If you have a big kick or topspin serve beware: the cold weather will take some of the kick/bounce out of the ball.

Flat serves and slice serves will be more effective for you in the cold and force your opponent to have to get down low for a ton of balls. This also means that the ball will bounce low for you too. Bring your racquet back early for good preparation to adjust to the low bounce, and start your backswing lower than you typically would.

If you have a topspin approach shot and a slice approach shot, you may want to try to lean more towards some slice approaches on any ball that does not bounce much higher than the net. This keeps the ball extra low and really forces your opponent to get under the ball and hit a passing shot, which is tough.

You also need to move to the ball more than you would in warmer weather. Since the ball is flatter it will not get as deep in the court as it would if it was warm out. Be sure to move well into the court for shorter balls.

With the ball being a little flatter, be sure to aim deeper and hit harder to keep the ball from landing too short and allowing your opponent to step into the court to hit every ball.

The School of Tennis

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kids tennis schoolEvery day I ask my daughter, “Tell me three things about your day today?” It seems like a good jumping off point for an open dialogue relating to any part of her day. After having been down this parenting road for a bit, I have learned that asking a child, “What did you learn in school today?” will inevitably garner the response, “Nothing.” Time spent on the court is a learning experience as well. It should be easy to come up with at least three things that you obtained in your lesson, or match. Keeping in mind that the time on court extends beyond hitting the ball. Maybe what you learned wasn’t necessarily relating to a particular shot. There are human interaction lessons, scoring lessons, shot selection and so much more. When going to the school of tennis, finding the right teacher is paramount.

Tennis School Basics – How do you learn?

In previous posts, I have addressed the importance of understanding what kind of student, or learner, you are, in an effort to better help your instructor instruct. There are, however, certain factors that you can take into consideration in order to find the right coach for you, or your child. Tennis instruction is an investment of your time, your money and yourself (mentally, emotionally and physically); and for that reason your tennis instructor should be working to make your time as positive as it can be.

Teaching, by nature, is an art. Not everyone can communicate effectively to ensure a valuable learning experience. Much like high school, college or a job conference, just because a person “knows the material,” doesn’t guarantee that their delivery will be considered informative. There are any number of former college players who may hit a great ball, but lack the teaching experience, or communication, needed to give a productive lesson.

Tennis School Basics – Know your tennis coach.

It is important to know your coach’s qualifications and background. Are they PTR or USPTA certified? USPTA certification encompasses more than just tennis lessons. With the USTA’s “10 and Under Tennis” initiative, tennis pros have to be knowledgeable in the new standards for junior tennis. Instructors are required to know appropriate court dimensions, type of balls and net height for children. In addition, the USPTA requires knowledge of equipment: frame selection, string patterns and string types. The USPTA ensures that their coaches are familiar with modern tennis techniques, as the game moves away from traditional serve and volley, to power groundstrokes. Finally, those pros that are USPTA certified, are required to participate in numerous continuing education opportunities, so that you can be assured that your coach is current on all the latest news in the world of tennis.

Enjoying the “subject matter” is the easiest part of tennis. It is obvious you love it, because of your commitment to the lesson, or the program. It is imperative, that you also get the feeling that your coach loves it as well. The best teachers are those that are knowledgeable within their subject matter, a student within their own right, an effective communicator and someone who is excited and energized to share their insights with you. Answering the question, “Tell me three things about tennis today” is easier when you have a teacher that can make learning the game less like school, and more like recess.

Tennis Serving and World Series Pitching

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Baseball Pitching MotionUnless you’ve been hiding under a rock this past week, and who could blame you given the current political climate, the Chicago Cubs won the World Series. Breaking a 108 year losing streak, the Cubs won an epic 10 inning, Game 7; complete with a rain delay. And in those tight moments when the game was tied, the question always deferred to who was warming up in the bull pen. There was the tireless analysis of how many innings the relief pitchers had pitched, followed by the question, “How much more does he have left?” As tennis players, we can appreciate the repetitive, momentum of a baseball pitch because it is so akin to a serve in tennis.

Tennis Serving and Pitching Motion Similarities

Both tennis and baseball have similar motions, but they generate very different results. Some tennis serves have been measured at over 150 miles an hour, as compared to a baseball fastball, at a little over 100 miles per hour. It is interesting to note the similarities in motion between the two sports in order to better find ways to perfect our own service technique.

In the wind up portion of a pitch, or a serve, the upper body remains relatively alike. The lower portion of the body in baseball is marked by the pitcher stepping backwards to allow the lead leg to step forward and the trunk to coil. In tennis, however, a step forward is generally a foot fault forcing the legs to flex slightly more and momentum to go up. The important thing to note, is that in both tennis and baseball the upper body rotation is crucial as a means of coiling, or loading the body.

tennis serving motionThe next progression in the execution phase, is the dropping of the arm. In this moment, the forearm is almost horizontal to the tennis court. Players like Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic are great examples of the “racquet drop,” allowing them simultaneously have their arm flexed, or relaxed, but still obtaining momentum for an upward strike. In this position, the racquet is lining up on edge to move up, and ultimately out.

Finally, the serve concludes with pronation. Much like a fastball pitch, after the ball releases from the hand, the natural movement is for the wrist to snap and the hand turns outward. As the racquet moves from an “on edge” position, to striking the ball, and ultimately to its outward rotation, the motion is 180 degrees.

Becoming a Better Server

In order to become better tennis players, we have to become better pitchers. Learning to throw a ball is crucial to mirroring the needed motion for a serve. In working on our games, or our kids (especially our female athletes) we need to channel our inner Cubs reliever stand out, Aroldis Chapman and set our own personal winning record.