(By Larry Hodges) Many coaches, including myself for many years, encouraged up-and-coming players to return serves aggressively, even against short serves. So, they learned to flip short serves aggressively, allowing them to control the point. This often worked. But then I noticed that these types of players, in the long run 1) rarely develop good […]

(By Larry Hodges) There was a time that the smash, especially on the forehand side, was considered the most important shot in the game. Japanese and then Chinese players dominated with forehand hitting in the 1950s and 1960s, and often into the ’70s and ’80s, often using short pips. But in modern times, looping has […]

(By Larry Hodges) When you see a ball you can put away, mentally (and possibly physically) your eyes go wide, you smile (perhaps inwardly), and you prepare to pulverize the ball with every bit of muscle-pounding power you can muster. NO!!! Never hit a ball with “full power.” That’s in quotes because I’m referring to […]

(By Larry Hodges) You probably have a regular forehand pendulum serve, or backhand serve, or perhaps a forehand tomahawk serve, or something else. These are all good serves. But if that’s all you use, then it’s pretty much an announcement about what type of sidespin will be on the serve. Your opponent is grateful for […]

(By Larry Hodges) The stronger the player, the more predictable their attacking shots tend to be. Why? Because that’s what makes them consistent. They may be able to make a dozen strong loops in a row, but they often all come out about the same. So, guess what? All you have to do is make […]

(By Larry Hodges) We’ve all had those matches where the opponent was just quicker, and we felt rushed in every rally. So, what can you do in such a match? Here are some tips. 1.      Observe opponent’s stroke so you can see as early as possible where his shot is going. 2.      Shorten your strokes. […]

(By Larry Hodges) Stand up and walk across the room. Now look down at your knees and feet. They point forward, right? That’s how the human body evolved for walking. Alas, this doesn’t work for table tennis. If you stand with your knees and feet pointing forward, you’ll struggle to rotate the body properly on […]

(By Larry Hodges) Nearly all players reflexively set up to cover against the crosscourt shot. They are ready for down the line shots as well, but players tend to play more crosscourt, and crosscourt gives opponents a bigger angle you have to guard against. And so players guard that side more.  You could just go […]

(By Larry Hodges) The thumb is a key part of the backhand. It gives the shot the backing and stability to drive the racket into the ball. However, the perfect placement of the thumb on the backhand often handicaps the forehand. I’ve written about this before, but it’s one of those things that might need […]

(By Larry Hodges) Don’t be that guy who spends years smacking shots but also missing over and over, putting balls all over the table, or off or into the net, and never putting it together consistently. If you are swinging wildly in practice, even if you are making most shots, you are just practicing being […]