You’ve spent a lot of time working on a shot, and it’s now somewhat ingrained. Suppose, in a match, you make this shot several times . . . and then miss an easy one!!! The shot didn’t feel right. A common response would be to try to adjust the shot so you make it the next time.

NO!!!!!

Why would you try to adjust a shot that you’ve already ingrained? Instead of starting with the missed shot and trying to adjust, remember the feel of the good ones, and simply repeat. The last thing you want to do is spend time thinking about the missed shot, which is a good way to ingrain that bad shot.

Next time you play, whenever you make a good shot, remember the feel, both the stroke and the contact. Do not ever forget that feel. Then, when you miss, just remember the feel of the shot, and it’ll come back. You do have to adjust for the incoming ball (such as the spin), but the shot itself should be pretty much the same each time.

In that rare case where you absolutely cannot get it right, and the shot just feels wrong, then and only then would you have to analyze it and figure out what is wrong. Once you figure that out, it’ll feel right again, and then you’ll have the feel of the right shot again. Don’t forget it!!!

Why fix a problem you’ve already fixed?

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