Forehand Grips

Today we are going to go over The Complete Guide To Finding The Best Tennis Forehand Grip For You.

The main thing to keep in mind is that there are different grips for different playing styles and nobody can tell you which one is the best for you.  It is your choice and you need to find the one that feels the best and works for your game.

For example, the tennis pro at your club may suggest that you have to use a full western grip.  Then you might go on a trip down south and the club pro at the resort you are staying at says that full western grips are terrible.  You should be using an eastern grip.

This is confusing, right?  Especially when you are starting out.  You're gonna hear all these different opinions.

That is why we want to go through what each of these different types of forehand grips mean, and then you can try them out for yourself, and pick the absolute perfect forehand grip for your game.

What Are Bevels On A Grip?

To start off, lets talk about the bevels on the racquet grip.

If we're putting the racket on its edge, the top bevel is the flat part on top of the racket and this will be bevel number one. Moving along at 45 degrees to the next bevel, that's number two.

Number three is on the side.

Number four is the next one at 45 degrees and number five is at the bottom.

Why does this matter? This is where you are going to put the knuckle of your index finger on the grip to determine which grip you use.

Continental Grip (John McEnroe)

The continental grip is going to be the lowest spinning type of grip.  This is the grip we recommend when you are just starting to play tennis.  It allows a beginner to try all shots in tennis without focusing too much on the grip.

Once you get the basic fundamentals of a stroke sorted out, we would hardly ever recommend someone use this as they try to improve their game. 

With the spin that is used in today's game, we don't really particularly want to use this grip, unless we're strictly a player that just wants to get the ball back over the net without much spin at all.

There are definitely some disadvantages with the continental grip.

If you watch legendary tennis player John McEnroe in the video below, you can see how the racquet face is fairly open when he makes contact with the ball using a continental grip. The position of the racquet caused by this grip will make it very difficult to move the racquet head in an upward brushing motion.

This grip makes it almost impossible to create topspin with the continental grip while having your index finger knuckle on level two.

If you are a recreational player that plays every once in awhile and is happy with getting the ball back over the net and generating a flatter ball flight, then I would recommend you use the continental grip.

Eastern Grip (Roger Federer)

This grip is not going to generate aggressive topspin like the semi-western and western grips, but it will allow you to create some topspin on your forehand shots. 

The advantage of not having as much topspin is that your ball will move through the court much quicker.  This means it is going less up and down and it's moving flatter through the court. Almost like a rock skipping on water.

The disadvantage is consistency. If you hit a flatter ball, there is a greater chance you will hit the net or your ball will sail long.  Having more topspin on your ball will allow you to hit six or seven feet over the net, and the ball will still drop into the court on the other side.

Meanwhile, a flatter more eastern grip may give you more pace and it can still generate some topspin as long as you get your hand low and brush up through the ball with the angle of the racquet strings slightly angled down. 

He doesn't create tons and tons of topspin, but he can when he needs to. 

He wouldn't create nearly as much topspin as Rafa Nadal, but not many humans do.

One reason why a player like Federer has an eastern grip is because he likes to play and attacking game.  Federer is known for taking the ball early and on the rise and then moving forward to the net to try and finish points off with a volley.

Having an eastern grip allows for hitting flatter balls inside the court and makes a quick transition from an eastern grip to a continental grip so he can hit his volleys.

Semi-Western Grip (Rafa Nadal)

What this grip does is it forces the racquet head to be tilted forward or closed a little bit more.  To compensate for the racquet to be closed more, we would swing our racquet lower to higher, so the racquet head will automatically generate more topspin.

The semi-western grip is what most pros use, which helps generate spin and hit balls that bounce higher up on you.  Cade would also use a semi-western grip.

Here you can see Rafa hitting his forehand in slow motion.

Western Grip (Jack Sock)

hand towards the sky and your fingers pointing to the left if you are a right-handed player and set the racket in there.  This is how a full western grip would feel. 

Again, your hand slides down to the bottom and your fingers are spread apart. 

This is how Jack Sock would grip his racquet to hit a forehand. 

This is a grip for somebody who's big and strong, has a lot of power and can create a lot of racket head speed, which Jack Sock can definitely do.

You can really see how Jack's elbow is pointing completely down to the ground prior to making contact.

Most people would find this to be an awkward angle here, but if you want to create topspin, there is no way to not create tons of topspin with this grip. 

Conclusion

Give all of these grips a try... continental, eastern, semi-western and full western.

Go out with a friend and have them feed you about 50 balls for each grip. If you don't have a friend to play with you can use a ball machine or hand feed to yourself.

When you are hitting them, notice how the ball flight of the tennis ball changes and with the western grips how it drops down more after you hit it.

Which grip do you think will work for you or which forehand grip do you prefer and why?

Try These Drills With Your New Forehand Grip