The Myth of the Magic Bullet

Is there a magic bullet that can turn your forehand into Roger’s? I remember when you could find Tennisplayer in the top 10 when you searched for tennis instruction on Google. Ha! It’s a different world now. The internet is completely cluttered with wild instructional promises. “Don’t be left behind. Make the world’s best contact, eliminate low-back and shoulder pain, and enjoy effortless swings.” “I am literally hitting Federer’s forehand.” All that for only $300. There are dozens and dozens of You Tube coaches who make this or similar claims. “I can fix all problems in your game at a huge discount! I guarantee you can hit 100mph serves.” I say bull shit. Do these players have any idea how fast 100mph is actually is? I say get a radar gun and find out. I know a coach who sent his radar gun back because it said he was serving 85mph when he was certain he was serving 100mph or more. Hey, 85mph is pretty good. There are two problems here. The first is the accuracy and credibility of the information of the coaches making these promises. The second is teaching theory and how technical change actually works. A couple…