What to Think About Between Points . . . and What NOT to Think About

June 3, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) This is a simple one. Between points, your only thoughts should be tactical. Don’t think or worry about the score, about how important the match or the next point is, about nets and edges, or anything else except tactics. The very act of thinking about your next tactic should clear your mind […]

Why You Should Develop a Backhand Loop

May 27, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Many players never develop a backhand loop. Some rely on the forehand loop, and so mostly push on the backhand, with the idea of pushing back wide to the backhand to take away the opponent’s forehand loop. Or the player may instead develop a backhand drive (i.e. more of a hit, less […]

Tip of the Week – Recipe for Table Tennis Success

May 20, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Who knew that cooks could be so good at table tennis! With a little tongue in cheek, and yet the touch of truth, here are fifteen ingredients to table tennis success. 1. Put in lots of practice thyme. 2. Always turnip on time for practice. 3. Lettuce be thankful for all the hard practice you’ve […]

Tip of the Week: First Block and First Counterloop

May 13, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Do you often have trouble blocking or counterlooping against your opponent’s opening loop against backspin? If you are like most players, of course you do – and there’s a simple reason for it. Most players practice blocking and counterlooping in rallies where they start the rally by serving topspin. And so they […]

Tip of the Week: Playing Short Pips on the Forehand

May 7, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Now that Sweden’s Mattias Falck made it to the final of Men’s Singles at the Worlds using short pips on the forehand, there’s going to be a sudden increase in players playing this way. I think that’s a very good thing – I miss the days where there were far more contrasts […]

Coaching tip of the week: Rope-a-Dope Defense

April 29, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Suppose you are playing a relentless counter-hitter, who plays every really bang-bang, and you are struggling to stay in these rallies. Point after point ends with either you missing or making a weak return the opponent smashes. How do you get out of this? There are three main ways. First, attack first […]

No More Excuses – Develop World-Class Serves with TNT

April 22, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Unlike most other advanced techniques, you don’t have to be athletic or play at a high level to develop great serves. Anybody – yes, that means you – can develop great, even world-class serves. They just need a little TNT – Technique, Necessity, and Time. You have to have proper serving Technique. […]

Tip of the Week – The Lead Problem

April 15, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) Have you ever played one of those matches where you played really well, went up 2-0 in games, and then stopped “playing to win” and instead “played to not lose,” and so changed how you went up 2-0 in games to start with, and so lost the match? Or had a lead […]

Remember Your Best Match

April 6, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) We all have good and bad matches – but this is NOT some random thing. Poor play usually comes from poor mental skills. But here’s the amazing fact – EVERYBODY has great mental skills some of the time. The key is to make that most or all of the time. How do […]

Coaching tip of the week: Positioning After Serve

April 1, 2019

(By Larry Hodges) One of the interesting things is to watch a player’s ready position after the serve. Most do not position themselves well. Most go to the same position no matter their serve. Suppose you serve short to the middle of the table and then position yourself perfectly. If you have a strong forehand, […]