John McEnroe Forehands in Slow Motion

[dubbersubber]

ehhh not that great probably cause he is retired lol

[skateandtennis]

Ugly forehand but beautiful ball girls. ;)

[byen8]

beautiful forehand to watch

[Jrim615]

how was he so good like that?

[Anon1352]

@Jrim615 hit with a wooden racket sometime and then you'll understand haha

[tzane94]

pusher

[neosocrates]

Truly the ugliest forehand in the whole ATP history!!!

[frilloz4]

its so plain and yet its won so many GS

[1313tennisman]

ugly, ugly forehand. His volley was amazing, though

[ripperduck]

@1313tennisman By far the ugliest I have ever seen. Beautiful S&V game though....

[1313tennisman]

@ripperduck yes. his serve and volley game is one of the best of all time. But, like edberg, he still could have improved his forehand

[TitansDeejay1995]

@usfguy85 It s another generation who is playing in the top 50 now. Tey are all physically and mentally so strong and their whole movement is much faster and has much more spin and even more control. With his movements he would hit the most balls much too late.

[mauropiaxxx]

Does anyone know what grip he uses for the forehand? It seems to be continental or eastern. Also, which is his racquet grip size? 4 1/2 ? Thanks if someone can point it out!

[byen8]

@mauropiaxxx The same thing was going through my mind. It looks like a continental to my eye but I'm not sure. I also disagree with some of the other comments that it's an ugly shot. I think it's pleasing to the eye. What are your thoughts ?

[mauropiaxxx]

@mauropiaxxx I also tottaly desagree that's an ugly shot! I think it's a clean and easy movement. That's why I believe he's still playing nowadays! Sad that tennis has become a mecanical topspin monopoly ...!

[daraemkar]

@usfguy85 I know you posted this a while back but I'll give a short answer. Mac hits the ball like he is using a wooden racquet basically. Today's racquet are lighter and players whip them around for speed...wooden racquets were heavy and that technique would hurt peoples arms. Notice his easy take back and forward swing? No whippy movements or rapid accelerations to put unneeded trauma on the arm. That, along with his continental grip, is whats considered old school.

[TennisRocks01]

@usfguy85 he used a continental grip on his forehand

[2012bilderberg]

WOW this type of forehand would get destroyed in today's game lol. EVOLUTION is key to today's level.

[daraemkar]

@2012bilderberg Who would destroy it? Honestly, Mac could still bring it to many of todays players. Not saying he's gonna go out and cream Roddick or Nadal....but lots of lower ranked ATP pros would have a hard time with Mac's game.

I'm not saying McEnroe could play on the circuit again, but I think his game would do better than you think. Then again, his coordination is superhuman anyway.

[2012bilderberg]

@daraemkar DO you play tennis or are you just a fan. I play at a high level and I know for a fact that his form is not enough for today's game. Yes he can still play if he were in his prime but he would not be at the top or even top 30. If he changes his form to adjust to evolution of today's game, then perhaps yes. He would also need to become a lot more athletic which is much more needed today than before. In conclusion, if he were to come back and play the same way,he would never make the cup

[daraemkar]

@2012bilderberg Yes, I play. Top 30? At the top? These are things I never even mentioned. Just because you're an ATP pro doesn't make you a top player. There are lots of pros that don't even make enough money to live on.

Once again, I never said Mac could make a return. I never even said he could win a tournament. Since you play I think we can end the convo here. I thought you were just another fan blasting Mac. I think we can agree to have seperate thoughts on this. See ya man ^^

[2012bilderberg]

@daraemkar You not understanding me if you disagree. I said Mac cant do it up at a top level with the form he had from the prime of his tennis. That does not mean he cant adjust and become a athletic modern player because i think he has some great mental toughness. Yes he can make it big if he were to change his form which isn't hard to do because we all learn from the evolution of others. It is a fact that people today base their training on skills just as much as athleticism.

[voerioc]

This continental/eastern grip is adapted to players who hit the ball near the floor (low balls). And volley players have to hit the ball like that in order to hit the ball nearer the net. So it was a grip adapted to the style of McEnroe. Nowadays, there isn't such volley player anymore. So we don't see that kind of grip anymore. But it made perfectly sense with the style of McEnroe.

[jakemcclain30]

@usfguy85 He also has very little backswing in both his forehand and backhand.

[agentyarred]

@usfguy85 Just look at Federers forehand in hd and you'll see.

[weej267]

@usfguy85 Though i've only looked at the first page, it's alarming how many people answered your question despite not knowing what they're talking about. Topspin had become the style by his time, but he, being an expert net-player, could get away with hitting deep, flat (with eastern grip) ground strokes, and rushing the net. Federer is rather similar, not using much spin. It takes some insane timing to use that grip well. I wouldn't call it old school, just different

[SexyLeprechaun28]

@weej267 your saying federer doesn't use much spin? i agree fed is good enough(was good enough) to get away with hitting deep,flat groundstrokes and rushing the net, but saying federer doesn't use much spin is ridiculous.

[thehunto]

@weej267 Actually I read in TENNIS magazine a short article where they analyzed the spin produced from forehands on 8 or so famous players. The only player to generate, on average, nearly as much spin as Nadal was Federer.

[gwfactions2]

@usfguy85 His serve and volley style.

[JUSfr34k]

The Temperamental GrandPa Strikes :D

[98989898787878]

@usfguy85 good question bro

now a days everyone plays base line. They are behind the baseline hitting base shots and sometimes approach the net for volleys.

mac served then ran up to the net and volleyed. hench the name serve and volley.

with new racket technology, it is much easier to hit hard and fast passing shots which caused the serve and volley style to die

[weej267]

I have a close friend who uses a continental grip on his forehand, and he's a really good player. It looks awkward, WAY less margin for error, but if you use it right, it's amazing for disguising chip approaches, and having loopy deep topsin shots, and for approach volleys. Again, it's only if you have the unbelievable ability to hit the ball on the sweet spot almost always. Btw, his "all arm" as bobbything says, is because he's warming up, at which point players never hit their hardest.

[themaliced]

continental grip, closed stance, the swing pattern is less loopy, not alot of top spin. A shot like that requires a lot of skill and a lot of dexterity to control the ball, there is less margin for error than the strokes of today

[affenkeks]

@usfguy85 its because hes not doing the things that are usually for forehands nowadays.

Most obvious one is the lack of topsin, as no pro would hit such a flat forehand.

Then theres the missing Backswing.

And i guess a ton more... ;)

[MaxPayne0581]

UGLY FORE!!

[cj397]

Dont try to emulate this guys forehand, if you were playing back in the 70's and early 80's then by all means yes haha

[KingCast65]

Don't take notes here.... true that, it sure isn't the ideal, but it sure worked for him, continues to work for him and it is one of the most interesting things on any tour to watch. His backhand is a work of art, top, slice, you name it.

[traceybonner]

Pretty sure Federer uses an Eastern Grip. See Fuzzy Yellow Ball analysis of his grip. When people use to learn with wood racquets, there was a lot more weight to the equipment, and a lot more grass surfaces and serve and volleying. That made for no grip changing on any groundstrokes or between groundies and volleys. Everyone learned to hit everything with a continental grip b/c of lower bouncing balls, more volleying, less topspin and more slice. That's "old school".

[c7878011]

weird....but he's still a great player right?

[bobbything]

Hard to criticize one of the best players ever, but he's all arm. The continental grip isn't the issue, it's his rotation when making contact. Good shoulder and hip rotation to get into position. Terrible use of that rotation when making contact. Learning how to hit a forehand? Don't take notes here.

[depelated]

I hate his form...it looks like a girl

[depelated]

continental grip...like he is holding a hammer. Today people are playing full-western and are just now starting to move into semi-western grips like federer.

[AtlantisArch]

best way to arm yourself : hit the ball "behind" the foots+hips perpendicular axis.

[mirokou878]

is that a continental forehand grip?

[723465]

lmao at 00:32 seconds i'd rather be watching the hot spectator chick in slow motion ;)

[dayne120]

yes

[historian111z]

exactly

[loondoo]

Johnny Mac has always played with a pretty weak Continental grip, which is why he seems to "block" the ball back flat. 

It's amazing that he was able to compete with guys like Borg and Vilas who hit such huge topspin for their time.

Guess that's why he served and volleyed all the time!!

[wind1357]

he hits more like Nadal

[TehincNick]

uhm, no.

[wind1357]

i was refering to how nadal put his weight on his left foot when he hits a forehand and so does mcenroe

[prattle128]

No doubt because he's left handed, so in order for him to load his weight properly into his shot, he loads on his left foot. For a right handed player, he would load on his right foot.

[wind1357]

exactly

[SammyyJordz]

No his swing isn't as natural as say, Federer's, in his book he compares himself to him. But i can't see many likenesses.

[TehincNick]

really, there isn't. his personality is imo a little twisted. I would be more than surprised if he is happy the way things are now. i would even say he has a god complex if he s constantly comparing himself with undoubtedly the best this sport has ever seen ... and quite clearly federer and sampras are way up in any possible way, not only there style of playing but there style of handling the stuff around the sport ... staying so natural after all.

[TehincNick]

btw not referring to fed or sampras as gods ... but u get the msg ... ;)

[johnthirteenmusic]

he takes the step into the ball with the same foot instead of the opposite. strange technique, yet it's johnny mac. iconic lefty-serve-and-volley.

[Spidey2391]

sooo old school !

[TheVilma51]

i dont like the way he plays

[TehincNick]

i dont like his way to hold & swing the racket. doesnt seem natural

[Redgummybear]

because the way we think is "natural" is different for everyone.

[jaimepo8]

I agree