Avoiding the Snooze Pace

Golf isn’t the only sport that can be less fun and fulfilling because of the sluggish tempo. A tennis match is guided by the rule that play, once commenced, must be continuous. This includes the rule that all warmup serves are taken prior to the start of a match, and not as the servers turn to serve comes around!

The time between points should be roughly 20 to 25 seconds from the ending of one point until the beginning of the next point.

No one is going to hold a stopwatch to you, but if you mope around like someone just ran over your new puppy every time you lose a point, you aren’t going to be a very popular partner or opponent.

The suggestion is that the points are played at the reasonable pace of the server, so if you are the server, get with it and keep the games moving along.

If you aren’t the server, it’s essential to help the server keep a good pace by:

* Immediately picking up any balls on your side of the net at the end of the point and returning them directly to the server in a polite manner (preferably after you have established eye contact with them so that they know it is coming).

* Being in playing position as either the returner, the returner’s partner or as the servers own net player well within 15 seconds of the ending of the last point.

* As the receiver, look to make eye contact with the server to signify your readiness to play the next point.

Conversation between points and on change over games should be kept brief. Adhere to the 20 second between points and the 90 seconds on change over games guidelines.

Not everyone in your group may want to hear about your trip to Antarctica or your recent root canal work, so save those tidbits until after the match for anyone who is willing to sit around and listen.

If you ask any golfer their biggest pet peeve, it’s almost universally slow play.

Don’t let your tennis match get bogged down in that molasses either.