First the two big problems: Dress and choosing between two.
As for girls and dress? I only coached girls three years. I’m no closer to
having any clue as to how to handle their clothing preferences.
Girls will force you into lose-lose situations. This centers on making you
choose between two players.
I quickly found two solutions:
Refer these questions or demands to my noble assistant, Bob Owens.
Bob is real sweet and fatherly. I’m not.
Coach Tom Morris pointed his “Lieutenant” out to me.
The Lieutenant was a girl on the team who didn’t put up with “that
garbage.” She understands, by nature, how to handle these situations. Find
your Lieutenant. The Lieutenant should help you convince them the team
is not a “social club.” Team Rule: If anyone catches two girls standing at the
net idly talking during challenge matches, they should drop racquets and
run for a while. If this continues to be a problem, all girls are forced to join
in (running, not talking).
Girls don’t like you to single out one girl for high praise.
Girls really want to learn, and they are appreciative. They will trust you
until your suggestions are bogus, or you overcoach them.
My guess is most talented boys and girls have little trouble finding
someone to take them under their wing. Most boys’ high school teams find
coaches pretty easily. The “limited girl” has few “allies.” That’s why if you are
a good coach and try to help them, you may be the first capable person
they’ve confronted. That player drinks in everything you say. I usually liked
coaching that person.

Jack Kramer once said, “the fundamental strategy of singles is to find
out what your opponent can’t do, or doesn’t like to do, and make them do
that.” That’s a violation of the number one rule of the women’s secret code.
Number two is never asking why they can’t wear shorts (balls in the
pockets make them look wider—a no no). Number three is never saying
“waddle” in reference to women’s tennis.
But the number one rule (I suspect for many women) is, ”I won’t make
you hit awkward balls (up and back movement) if you won’t make me.
Deal, left and right only. This one puzzled me. And I tried to develop Plan
B. Simply stated, Plan A, or rallying corner to corner, is okay as long as you
can win this way. Once you realize she’s better at this than you, then we’d
better modify.
A southern veteran, Bob Cage, showed me his favorite “play.” Bob’s theory
was most people don’t have a good backhand approach shot (true of a lot
of college men). This is true mainly because it is different and not practiced
much at lower levels. Bob’s trick was to float up a semi-disguised weak
shot on his opponent’s backhand, which “sucked him up to the net” on a
weak shot. Then the “killer lob,” or passing shot. This play, a violation of the
“silent code,” was the first I attempted. Moderate success. Women are loyal.
The more you can make your opponent move up and back the more you’ll
have a Plan B escape.
Mia Hamm and Nomar Garciapara had twin girls. Bet someone’s already
recruiting them. They’ll be able to run. If I were a women’s basketball
coach, I’d recruit a skinny little girl with three older brothers. That girl can
run and is tough. I’ve noticed more and more point guards who can run in
women’s basketball. Once again, if American junior tennis is to succeed we
have to develop women who can move well and that includes movement
up and back. Many already can. Just as a junior girl has to learn to cope
with the infamous “moon ball” to her backhand, she needs to confront up
and back. No ducking; do the work.

A few comments on ground strokes and women: I was pre-two hander,
in 1961. Pancho Segura showed the world how to hit this shot, but
conventional wisdom said, “Two-hand backhands are only for those who
can’t hit a one-hander.” No Evert, Connors, Borg, Austin…. I’m glad many
young ones didn’t listen. Soon the tennis world realized not only can a lot
of people hit it two-handed but also it’s often a better shot offensively. The
two-hander gave many average players something they’d never had:
Offense or topspin on the backhand side. Until the two-hander, college men followed this regimen: They’d practice like heck on hitting a one- handed topspin backhand. Then, when the match was on the line they’d revert to their more trusted underspin backhand ball. There were certainly exceptions, but by and large this statement is true: “Most average college men players can’t hit a reliable one-handed topspin ball.”
Once the two-hander was “certified,” you began to see average high
school players who could tattoo a topspin two-hander and the game
changed forever, for the better. However, a valuable tool was neglected for
many. Coach Jim Verdieck of Redlands gave me one of his business cards.
It had an interesting sentence on it: “I didn’t change anything, I gave you a
new one.” I asked him what he meant. Essentially, he said the two-handers
were so protective of their newfound weapon, the underspin one-hander
was abandoned. The underspin one-hand backhand is a tool every truly
complete player should possess. Too many awkward and or short shots
(approaches, service returns, defensive cross courts) are best hit by one
hand under spinners. Often these balls are difficult to handle with
two-handed top spin “full” or lengthy shots.
Like golfers, you have to have a lot of “tools” in your bag of tricks. The
“chip” or “slice” is truly a great tool to master. Think “wedges,” golfers. And
slices are tough for little people, young girls, especially. It’s tough to add
once you’ve neglected it in the “formative years.” One reason it’s difficult is that people don’t understand the value of the “hit spot” regarding two
different backhands. The two-handed backhand is much like a one-handed
forehand, therefore, it works best when hit off the front foot. One handers
must be hit about the width of one’s shoulders in front of the front
“balance” foot.
When teaching adult women a hush would come over the group. These
strugglers with the backhand would grip the racquet just as I, yet neglect
movement to the “hit spot.” Good backhands come from good grips and
good “hit spots.” I’d bark: “Good hit spots make good shots. Lousy hit spots
make lousy shots. Lousy hit spots make wristy shots, and wristy shots are
lousy shots.”
The term “hit spot” is a direct steal from Coach Verdieck. My guess is
Dennis Van Deer’s early unique contribution to tennis instruction was
teaching pupils to understand the pupil’s adjustment to the bouncing
ball. Van Der Meer and Verdieck were friends. Once I became better at
conveying “movement to the hit spot” my players at all levels improved
quickly. And the one-handed slice may be the one most helped by proper
“hit spot.” A lot of good college men had forehand trouble because of a
subtle flaw in “hit spot.” Whereas backhands are tougher to learn, my guess
is many young boys could hit forehands with any number of “hit spots.”
Backhands, they internalized early on, must be hit “right there” or in the
perfect backhand hit spot. Then, as they advanced, a ball they tried to
hit in a faulty forehand position let them down and caused a lot of
frustration. Once I could convince them of this error and the principle of
perfect “forehand hit spot,” they’d get better too. Keeping the ball in the
perfect “hit spot” is tennis magic.

Toss the ball to the service hit spot for them. Let them cock the racquet
and just hit. Once they understand and feel the proper service hit spot,
then they can add the other first part of the serve (or the toss to the
hit spot).
I taught a lesson called “Learn the second serve first.” Simply stated, a
player is as strong as her weakest link, and the weakest link in tennis is the
second serve. The clue is Welby Van Horn’s balance technique. I call it the
“hit-turn” serve and it came from limited foot movement. It’s also called a
ballistic swing and baseballers, golfers, and all “hitters” use this technique.
Van Horn is worth studying, and I appreciated the personal help he
gave me.

2. The backhand is tough for beginners. It becomes much easier if you are in the correct position.

Give the newcomer a ball. Have them start with the racket in the proper backswing position with the proper grip. Righthanders toss themselves the ball softly and slightly in front of themselves. Toss the ball lefthanded and underhanded over the low backswing, Step properly with your right foot and “lift a descending ball in the perfect HIT-SPOT. Once a player experiences how the proper contact moment feels, progress follows.

One phenomenal contrast I noticed coaching girls centered on two
entirely different shots. I could hammer a ground stroke hard and wide
and was amazed at them running this tough shot down. Seriously, watch
them do this. Impressive ability. Then at the net in doubles, they’d blow a
sitter overhead. Why I don’t know, but we practiced a lot on easy
overhands in doubles, and closing on easy volleys. I taught, “volley with
your legs,” meaning to use quick movement to get the volley where you
can pop it down. The girls got better here. And when they limit their foot
movement on easy overheads, they keep the overhead in the perfect
service hit spot and watch it a little longer than you think is necessary.
(See pages 18 and 19)

Let me repeat. There are some tough spots girls don’t like to practice.
While I preferred they choreograph these tough practices on their own,
trusty assistant Bob and I ran these particular drills a lot:
Cross court and back up. If you are hit an awkward ball or purposeful
drop shot, and you don’t want to come to the net, your best response is
to cross court the ball and back up. We’d set this ball up, the player digs in,
cross courts the ball, then scampers back to the baseline. (Bend your back
knee down to get the low ones).
Drop shot off a drop shot. Set up a good drop shot and have her respond
with her own drop shot. (Mostly down the line.)
Bump volleys. There are a lot of passing shots that can be handled with
a simple bump away from the passer. Teach your girls not to panic on this
easy ball. Just bump or touch it away from this source.
Backhand service returns. The coach hits from the “T” or mid-court,
directing the ball at the backhand of the player. Work on technique,
quickness, and target. As they progress, pick up the pace on your serve,
vary the types and direction of your practice serves. Encourage returning
on the rise or aggressively moving in.
Hitting on the rise. The better the player, the more balls she’ll be able to
take “on the rise.” Some don’t understand this tactic or technique. Some
avoid it because “it’s hard to do.” Start with slower balls; adjust to their
successes.

Next to net play, the service return requires the most quickness. Good
players “unweight” or bounce slightly to ready themselves.
You have to get wide, get low, and get ready. The first part of quick is
ready!In college doubles returns are the shots that get the service break. College
kids “go for it,” almost a wide open hit. Don’t move back…move in. And
if you move wide first, try to bring your weight back to the target. (A “Z”
shaped movement.)
Often a chip shot or lob is a quality shot. Keep in mind the “tough and
tighten” return. (See Wimbledon 2014) and “Danny and the Forehand Chip”
My wife was great at helping me with the women, though she’s much
tougher than I was. I must admit that not having a daughter I missed the
true nature of young women. I’m convinced women are better people
than men, by and large, and I am grateful for the three years with some
wonderful student athletes.
There are some different issues you have to be aware of. Eating disorders
are serious and much more of an issue for women. Don’t take these
problems too lightly (no pun intended).
Sexuality in sports is a growing issue. Bigger, stronger, faster, tougher
athletes win. Most of these are heterosexual in men’s tennis. There are a
lot of great women’s athletes and people of all orientations.