Tell me if you’ve heard this in a lesson, video, or discussion…
“All of the professionals…”
…I don’t know about your experience with this phrase, but most of the times I’ve heard this, it’s a generalization and not an actual thing that all “pros” do universally. For example, I use a table tennis grip. There’s pros and cons, but it’s the only way I feel comfortable holding the paddle. My father plays with a racquetball grip, and it’s caused him no disadvantage.
I’ve been told time and time again the same thing:
“Use the continental grip, you can’t get better without it.”
While it is true that many and most players, including professionals, use a conventional grip, I’ve seen plenty of 4.5-5.0+ players that use different grips, including a table tennis grip like mine.
As of recently, my hand actually has gone from up at the neck of the paddle to near the middle of the handle (but still with my finger on the paddle face). However, I don’t feel like I could go to a conventional grip without a load of time and energy, and I don’t know if the transition would be more harmful than helpful.
Every serve is unique, but it has the same fundamentals in its swing. Couldn’t the same go for other shots with particular grips…?
Every swing in baseball is different, but it gets the job done in a way that suits the player who does it. Does the same not apply to pickleball…?
This issue has been roaming my mind recently, especially since I’ve been relentlessly playing Singles and due-in-part to my acquisition of my new Engage Elite Pro Maverick (a paddle with an extended handle and elongated paddle face). If any of you have any input, please let me know what your experience has been, what has worked for you, and anything else if you want to add it to the discussion.
Thanks in-advance, and hope you had a great 4th of July weekend!