Talk About Tennis 2.0

AcesAnnie wrote:

Deuce wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 11:33 pm

ti-amie wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 8:46 pm Tennis ball gate rages on.

Yes, they are different balls for the men and for the women, and have been so for a while now. And of course the two balls will play significantly differently.
Were they changed to be more different recently? I don't know - but I would tend to doubt it.

Regarding the difference in seam size - the seams are the same size, but there's more felt on the men's ball, and so that extra felt hides part of the seam, making it appear as if the women's ball has a wider seam.

There are different balls for the men and the women? Is there a specific reasoning for this? I imagine the balls do not play any differently. So why make the balls different?

Evidently they play differently - women’s is lighter. I think comparing the men’s to the women’s is irrelevant - the ball the men play with has no bearing on a WTA player’s performance Comparing the ball between tournaments is relevant.

I get Iga’s point, though.


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meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 12:25 am

AcesAnnie wrote:

Deuce wrote: ↑Sat Aug 20, 2022 11:33 pm
Yes, they are different balls for the men and for the women, and have been so for a while now. And of course the two balls will play significantly differently.
Were they changed to be more different recently? I don't know - but I would tend to doubt it.

Regarding the difference in seam size - the seams are the same size, but there's more felt on the men's ball, and so that extra felt hides part of the seam, making it appear as if the women's ball has a wider seam.

There are different balls for the men and the women? Is there a specific reasoning for this? I imagine the balls do not play any differently. So why make the balls different?

Evidently they play differently - women’s is lighter. I think comparing the men’s to the women’s is irrelevant - the ball the men play with has no bearing on a WTA player’s performance Comparing the ball between tournaments is relevant.

I get Iga’s point, though.


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So are they ultimately saying that the women need a lighter ball because they don't hit as hard as the men, and the lighter balls compared to the heavier balls would travel faster? I don't know, I am just asking the question.

AcesAnnie wrote:

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 12:25 am

AcesAnnie wrote: There are different balls for the men and the women? Is there a specific reasoning for this? I imagine the balls do not play any differently. So why make the balls different?

Evidently they play differently - women’s is lighter. I think comparing the men’s to the women’s is irrelevant - the ball the men play with has no bearing on a WTA player’s performance Comparing the ball between tournaments is relevant.

I get Iga’s point, though.


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So are they ultimately saying that the women need a lighter ball because they don't hit as hard as the men, and the lighter balls compared to the heavier balls would travel faster? I don't know, I am just asking the question.

Iga says the lighter balls travel faster, yeah. Her theory is that back in the day when women weren’t as strong as they are now, maybe the heavy ball caused injuries so they used this one. (Or maybe the tour just wanted the extra oomph - maybe players did, too - this is just me guessing.) And she says that now the WTA players can handle a heavy ball and she thinks they should play with one in the US Open series, which implies that this ball is lighter than others that women play with throughout the year.


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meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:50 am

AcesAnnie wrote:

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 12:25 am
Evidently they play differently - women’s is lighter. I think comparing the men’s to the women’s is irrelevant - the ball the men play with has no bearing on a WTA player’s performance Comparing the ball between tournaments is relevant.

I get Iga’s point, though.


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So are they ultimately saying that the women need a lighter ball because they don't hit as hard as the men, and the lighter balls compared to the heavier balls would travel faster? I don't know, I am just asking the question.

Iga says the lighter balls travel faster, yeah. Her theory is that back in the day when women weren’t as strong as they are now, maybe the heavy ball caused injuries so they used this one. (Or maybe the tour just wanted the extra oomph - maybe players did, too - this is just me guessing.) And she says that now the WTA players can handle a heavy ball and she thinks they should play with one in the US Open series, which implies that this ball is lighter than others that women play with throughout the year.


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Definitely over the years I have seen some pretty strong women's players including, Martina, Graf, Seles, Pierce, Mauresmo, Davenport, Capriati, The Williams Sisters, and even to some extent BJK. They could hit a mean ground stroke.

AcesAnnie wrote:

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:50 am

AcesAnnie wrote: So are they ultimately saying that the women need a lighter ball because they don't hit as hard as the men, and the lighter balls compared to the heavier balls would travel faster? I don't know, I am just asking the question.

Iga says the lighter balls travel faster, yeah. Her theory is that back in the day when women weren’t as strong as they are now, maybe the heavy ball caused injuries so they used this one. (Or maybe the tour just wanted the extra oomph - maybe players did, too - this is just me guessing.) And she says that now the WTA players can handle a heavy ball and she thinks they should play with one in the US Open series, which implies that this ball is lighter than others that women play with throughout the year.


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Definitely over the years I have seen some pretty strong women's players including, Martina, Graf, Seles, Pierce, Mauresmo, Davenport, Capriati, The Williams Sisters, and even to some extent BJK. They could hit a mean ground stroke.

Sure. But now It’s common.


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meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 2:35 am

AcesAnnie wrote:

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 1:50 am
Iga says the lighter balls travel faster, yeah. Her theory is that back in the day when women weren’t as strong as they are now, maybe the heavy ball caused injuries so they used this one. (Or maybe the tour just wanted the extra oomph - maybe players did, too - this is just me guessing.) And she says that now the WTA players can handle a heavy ball and she thinks they should play with one in the US Open series, which implies that this ball is lighter than others that women play with throughout the year.


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Definitely over the years I have seen some pretty strong women's players including, Martina, Graf, Seles, Pierce, Mauresmo, Davenport, Capriati, The Williams Sisters, and even to some extent BJK. They could hit a mean ground stroke.

Sure. But now It’s common.


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Yes, there are a lot more players that hit the cover off the ball.

Heavier ball, easier to make it land inside the court.
Go play with Tretorns. Heavy to the limit that is authorized. They always land in.

ponchi101 wrote:Heavier ball, easier to make it land inside the court.
Go play with Tretorns. Heavy to the limit that is authorized. They always land in.

I want some!! Never even heard of Tretorn balls. Maybe they are so heavy, I can’t get them over the net.


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Tretorn pressureless balls have been around for close to 40 years. They come in a cardboard box instead of a pressurized can.
I tried them a few decades ago and found them hard and heavy - the kind of ball that'll wreck a lot of elbows.
I'm sure they're different now than they were then - hopefully better.
Strangely, though, they were easier to find 30 years ago than they are today.

Tretorn was originally a Swedish shoe company.
Some interesting - and unusual - stuff here - including Billy Joel and Abba...

'Tretorn - Our Heritage'...

.

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 3:45 am

ponchi101 wrote:Heavier ball, easier to make it land inside the court.
Go play with Tretorns. Heavy to the limit that is authorized. They always land in.

I want some!! Never even heard of Tretorn balls. Maybe they are so heavy, I can’t get them over the net.


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The link above is very good, but indeed, you must be careful with them. Absolutely difficult to power if you have a very light racquet, and you will very likely need to put an anti-vibration thingy on your strings. And, if you have short strokes, yes, you will not get the ball far enough.
But I really like them because they play well at altitude, and my playing area in Bogota is close to 10,000 feet.

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 2:18 pm

meganfernandez wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 3:45 am

ponchi101 wrote:Heavier ball, easier to make it land inside the court.
Go play with Tretorns. Heavy to the limit that is authorized. They always land in.

I want some!! Never even heard of Tretorn balls. Maybe they are so heavy, I can’t get them over the net.


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The link above is very good, but indeed, you must be careful with them. Absolutely difficult to power if you have a very light racquet, and you will very likely need to put an anti-vibration thingy on your strings. And, if you have short strokes, yes, you will not get the ball far enough.
But I really like them because they play well at altitude, and my playing area in Bogota is close to 10,000 feet.

Since BOTH of my elbows hurt for some reason, I'll skip it. I didn't know Tretorn even made balls. I only know the shoes.

I never thought I hit the ball very hard or with much technique at all, but at the club I attend which has many different sports that the patrons get involved in, and the main one I am involved in is running while my husband is involved with golf. We do both however dabble on the tennis side of things as well and have for many years.

Just a few days ago, one of the club instructor/pros approached me and said to me that he thought I had some potential for the game. This guy was in his 30's, I suppose and I just laughed and said that I have been playing tennis for a very long time and this is good as it gets. He went on to explain to me that my technique was not bad at all and with some work, he thought I could easily improve the level of my game.

I am 57 years old and I have been thinking about what he said. I have used tennis as a platform for exercise and fun and really nothing more. My main thing is running, and that would really stay the same no matter if I decide to take on this challenge or not. I just don't know what to do. Should I start taking these lessons to improve my game even at the advanced age that I am, or should I just keep it relaxed and the same as I have been doing it for so many years?

Take at least a few lessons. Get your grips evaluated, make sure you get some corrections on probable wrong things you are doing.
Get at least one lesson on volleying (most club level players really can't execute the shot), get one lesson on serving (ditto). Get one lesson on back hands, because the shot has evolved so much some people are really only slapping at the ball (and it will depend on whether you have a one handed, a two handed, and the grips you use).
I say people should get one lesson once every six months. Just to check what things are working, and what things can be improved.

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 21, 2022 3:26 pm Take at least a few lessons. Get your grips evaluated, make sure you get some corrections on probable wrong things you are doing.
Get at least one lesson on volleying (most club level players really can't execute the shot), get one lesson on serving (ditto). Get one lesson on back hands, because the shot has evolved so much some people are really only slapping at the ball (and it will depend on whether you have a one handed, a two handed, and the grips you use).
I say people should get one lesson once every six months. Just to check what things are working, and what things can be improved.

I think it would be interesting to see if this old broad has it in her to improve. With running, I have reached a plateau with my age and actually have started to decline. So seeing if I have some ability to improve on this game would be interesting and a challenge for me. I will probably give it a go, because also my husband has been hinting to me for some time that I should retire early from my Medical Transcriptionist job that I do for him and just take care of the home and spend more time with my granddaughter who is 1. So not having the job would free up a lot of my time for the tennis lessons and other stuff as well.

I say I finally learned to hit a FH around age 45. My slice BH reached its peak around the same time.
I had to. My legs were no longer the same, so my strokes had to improve.