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Modern Tennis

Modern Tennis has become the generalized description for the Open Stance Forehand, Topspin, Hitting Across the Ball, and overall, a freedom to act in a natural, instinctive way.

Some top players from way back, like Bill Tilden and Jack Kramer in the 1930s and 1940s, played this way, especially on their forehand stroke, and promptly became the top in their field. The 1950s and 1960s saw another evolution, now with more pros, including Rod Laver, playing a more modern way. Then came Bjorn Borg in the 1970s, and the differences between conventional coaching and the modern style became more apparent.

Tennis had become an easier (and more natural) sport to play. But only for those that copied the pros.

Neither Tilden nor Kramer were able to pass on their techique, both in writing and in coaching. Tilden wrote a famous tennis instruction book, so did Laver. Jack Kramer’s had a club and academy in California. But the tennis they promoted was still complicated, non-efficient, not the way they themselves played, and only a few kids from the multitude of young tennis adepts made it through.

What stood in the way? What was the barrier that stifled, among millions of tennis-adept young American athletes, the development of a telling number of superstars? Basketball, after all, shows the American dominance of the sport. Why couldn’t tennis follow those steps?

The barrier is obvious (to Oscar), and pervasive. Conventional tennis, the brainchild of the mid-twenty’s coaches, had become the norm for almost a century. Rather than having a natural model, tennis was thought to be a sport for super-athletes, while 95 percent, from their own count, were pronounced hackers (non-able beings) by the coaches themselves. And Tilden and Kramer, both reluctant to break away from these coaching tenets, let that influence permeate through their own beliefs. Even Rod Laver, in his tennis book, was unable to demonstrate his own technique. He actually adjusted his strokes, during the photo shoot, to conform to the tenets of the conventional way (Oscar Wegner witnessed it, as his hitting partner during that 1971 photo shoot).

So how did Modern Tennis become, for some countries, the norm, in the midst of such misinformed field?

Here comes Oscar Wegner. A Buenos Aires, Argentina, resident, in the mid 1950s, he owned a wicked Western forehand, much like Bjorn Borg and Jim Courier’s a few decades later on. That forehand was his own brand, what felt natural, and it was powerful, accurate, and deadly. He had modeled his topspin backhand a la Tony Trabert, his slice from Ken Rosewall, his volleys from Lew Hoad, and his serve and smash from Pancho Gonzalez. At 16 he started to get noticed in the 18 year old tournament circuit, and thought to have a great future in the sport. Coaches approached, offering advice: Oscar’s wicked forehand, in their opinion, was wrong. He waited too long for the racquet to get back, his grip was too extreme, he hit open stance, well, you could barely count major flaws with one hand. Oscar needed to turn sideways, take the racquet back early, step into the ball, and follow through towards the target.

Oscar, a kid respectful of elders and authority, followed through with their advice. There was no role model that resembled Oscar’s wicked forehand; that would not show until the 1970s with Borg and Vilas.

Oscar still made it onto the tour in the 1960’s and had a chance to play the likes of Emerson, Stolle, Newcombe, Roche, and many other top players. But with a plethora of problems and lack of confidence on his forehand, the cards were against any success.

Then came an injury, cutting short Oscar’s international stint after five years, and prompting the start of a coaching career at the Beverly Hills Tennis Club, as assistant to Pancho Segura. Oscar immediately questioned the conventional coaching system, and Segura became very interested. Oscar’s students, which included Charlton Heston, Dean Martin Jr., and a plethora of movie stars, were showing quick progress and, above that, a renewed love for the sport. The trick, Oscar (who had nightly practice sessions with Pancho Gonzalez, a nearby resident) said, was to Play Like the Pros, copy, emulate, the tennis star of your choice, and just play like that. It was quite a contradiction to conventional coaching wisdom, but it worked wonders, and Segura wanted his Hollywood customers happy, so he allowed his assistant Oscar to follow through. And Modern Tennis Methodology was born: wait for the ball, tracking it with your racquet in front, open stance whenever possible, hit across the ball and across the body, and relate the end of the swing to your placement. Don’t worry about your feet, you learned to move when you were two or three years old, don’t even think, just feel the ball. Topspin was also the norm, right from the start. Topspin, Oscar says, gives you a longer contact and more feel. It also adds to the safety of your shot.

The rest is history: hired by Spain in 1973 Oscar did a number to their coaching ideas, throwing them overboard, and putting in the new tenets. Spanish tennis took off like a rocket, and within a decade their tennis stars production was startling the world. Then, in the 80s, it was Brazil, and from Oscar's work, the World Junior Champions a decade later, and a World Professional Champion and three time Grand Slam winner Gustavo Kuerten. In 1989 the Russian Tennis Federation was the recipient of Oscar’s first book, and studious Russian coaches (a fact confirmed by Bud Collins in his first Moscow visit in 1990) took a liking to the new tenets and changed from conventional to modern coaching in the blink of an eye. Within a decade astounding results showed, first in the female group, then with the male, surpassing those of Spain.

In the early 1990s Oscar’s weekly instructional sessions on the New Tennis Magazine show were promptly taped by another smart guy, Richard Williams, who put them to good use. Within a few years, his results with his daughters Venus and Serena would startle the world.

In 1992 Oscar had the chance to coach Bjorn Borg for his second attempt at a comeback, and Oscar's principles of modern tennis fit like a glove, helping Borg regain his game.

"Tennis", says Oscar, "is one of the easiest sports to learn. Just follow a few tenets (conspicously shown by the pros in their play), and you'll surprise yourself."

“The results”, Oscar says, “are beyond the wildest imagination. I get e mails and success stories from all corners of the world. I could not imagine such far reaching trend.”

American tennis will suffer until Modern Tennis is fully adopted as the coaching norm.

Beyond that, Oscar recommends to learn the difference between the psychiatry/psychology model of a human (body plus mind), and the actual body-spirit-mind. Man is a spirit, the spirit plays, feels and enjoys, and the mind is just a tool. Learn how to handle this combination and you’ll play your best. Oscar recommends reading "The Fundamentals of Thought", by L. Ron Hubbard, his favorite author. And "Dianetics, the Modern Science of Mental Health", also by L. Ron Hubbard, which could be called the owner's manual for the mind.

"Not only you’ll play better tennis through this knowledge", says Oscar, "but it will lead you to a better understanding of yourself and your role as a spirit in your life."

Dear Oscar,
I would like to THANK YOU so much for your method. I received the instructional book and DVD last week, and I cannot tell you how much I improved already. I have been playing for 30 years, taught the 'old fashion' way, but was very inconsistent and always felt I was uncoordinated. Until now. What a pleasure to play tennis again and having the ball in the court all the time, and not having to worry about my feet or body position. I briefly taught my novice wife and kid today, and even they were putting balls in the court! John Vu

There is a man at doubles Mon Wed Fri who owned several tennis clubs and played for about 40 years.   He is giving me the business saying my stroke is what is causing my tennis elbow and I am mentioning your name, sent your web site via email, and said that YOUR STROKE helped my tennis elbow.   You can lead a horse to water... I also have a torn tendon in my right shoulder from pulling my skate bag through the unplowed snow years ago ... and using your stroke has relieved that pain as well. Do you know in all of the martial arts training I had NO ONE tell me it was the final twist that added velocity.   I am glad you added that analogy .... as I can now see that the change of direction in the windshield swipe at the ball adds velocity. Fay K. AZ

Below, the book, the five videos in 3 DVDs, fully indexed, and the ESPN Tips CD.